How much did Michigan's gas tax increase in 2026?

Michigan replaced its old formula with a new one, raising the rate from 31 cents to about 52.4 cents per gallon and eliminating the 6 percent sales tax on fuel. All of the new fuel tax is dedicated to road and bridge repairs.

Why do gas taxes keep rising automatically?

Many states now index their fuel taxes to inflation or fuel prices, so rates adjust every January 1 or July 1 without a new vote. The federal gas tax of 18.4 cents has not been raised since 1993, so states use indexing to keep road funding from eroding.

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Which States Raised the Gas Tax in 2026? The Full List

Q: Which states raised the gas tax in 2026?

On January 1, 2026: Michigan, New Jersey, Minnesota, and Florida raised fuel taxes, while Utah lowered its rate. On July 1, 2026: California, Illinois, Washington, Maryland, Mississippi, and Connecticut (diesel) implemented increases. Most changes were automatic inflation or formula adjustments rather than new legislation.

Q: Did any state lower its gas tax in 2026?

Yes. Utah was the only state to lower its motor fuel tax in 2026, dropping about half a cent to 37.9 cents per gallon under a recalibrated three-year average formula.

Which states raised the gas tax in 2026? Ten of them, across two waves: January 1 and July 1. Most drivers never noticed, because most of these increases were automatic adjustments, inflation indexers and formula recalibrations that tick up without a vote. The result is the same whether the legislature acted or the formula did: a few more cents on every gallon. Here is the full list, state by state.

The January 1 raisers

Michigan made the biggest move of the year. The state scrapped its old setup, a 31-cent excise tax plus a 6 percent sales tax on fuel, and replaced it with a single, more predictable fuel tax of about 52.4 cents per gallon. Every cent of it now goes to road and bridge repairs. A driver filling 15 gallons at $4 a gallon pays roughly $7.86 in state fuel tax plus $2.76 federal, or $10.62 total. Michigan went from a middle-of-the-pack rate to one of the highest in the country in a single day.

New Jersey raised its per-gallon tax from 34.4 to 38.6 cents for gasoline and 38.4 to 42.6 cents for diesel, bringing the all-in totals to 49.1 and 56.1 cents once the state's fixed Motor Fuels Tax is included. The money feeds the Transportation Trust Fund, and the state plans to keep raising the rate gradually through 2029.

Minnesota and Florida also implemented increases effective January 1. And Utah moved the other direction: the only state to cut its fuel tax in 2026, dropping about half a cent to 37.9 cents per gallon under a recalibrated formula based on a three-year average of rack prices.

The July 1 raisers

California applied its annual inflation adjustment: the gas excise rose 2.2 cents to 63.4 cents per gallon, and diesel rose 1.6 cents to 48.2 cents. The formula has run for nearly a decade, tied to the California Consumer Price Index, and it kept California at the top of the national ranking at 73.6 cents per gallon in all-in state taxes and fees.

Washington raised its rate from 55.4 to 56.5 cents, the first annual inflation adjustment under a new law that had already added 6 cents the year before. Maryland's automatic increase added 0.6 cents, bringing it to about 46.6 cents. Connecticut raised its diesel tax a penny to 49.9 cents while leaving the 25-cent gas excise, unchanged since 2000, alone. Illinois and Mississippi rounded out the July wave.

The pattern worth noticing: almost every July increase was automatic. California, Washington, and Maryland all index to inflation now, so these hikes happen every year without a single recorded vote. That is by design, the federal gas tax of 18.4 cents has not moved since 1993, and states that index are trying not to repeat that erosion.

The increases that died

Not every proposal survived. Oregon passed House Bill 3991, which would have raised the gas tax from 40 to 46 cents per gallon to fund ODOT and local transportation. Petitioners referred it to the voters, and in May 2026 voters rejected it, so Oregon's rate sits at 40 cents. New Mexico introduced a bill to lift its 17-cent rate to 20 cents effective July 1; it was killed within a month of introduction. The lesson: automatic indexers sail through, but asking voters for a hike is a different sport.

What it costs you: a one-cent increase is roughly 15 cents on a 15-gallon fill-up, so the July wave added about 30 to 45 cents per tank for most affected drivers. Small per visit, real over a year. Run your own number with our free annual gas tax cost estimator.

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