Stimulus Check for Gas: $100+ Energy Rebate Proposed Amid Oil Price Hike

A group of Democratic lawmakers in Congress is proposing a new type of stimulus payment to aid Americans coping with rising gas prices.

The Gas Rebate Act of 2022 was proposed by Reps. Mike Thompson (D-California), John Larson (D-Connecticut), and Lauren Underwood (D-Illinois).

In every month that the national average gas price surpasses $4 a gallon, the plan suggested giving Americans an "energy rebate" of $100 per month, with an extra $100 per dependent for the remainder of 2022.

How To Be Eligible for a Gas Rebate?

According to Al.com, the rebate would be calculated in the same way as the most recent Economic Impact Payment:

Single filers earning less than $75,000 will pay $100, with the tax phased out at $80,000.
Joint filers earning less than $150,000 pay $100, with the tax phased out at $160,000.

Because the plan does not specify how the payments would be paid and Congress has been unwilling to begin any other sort of stimulus payments, approval seems uncertain. The law comes after a month of record-high gas prices, with no relief in sight at the pump. The national average price of a gallon of gas in the United States is $4.24 as of today.

With Americans still reeling from record-high gas prices, a few suggestions have circulated in Congress and elsewhere to provide some comfort to motorists.

Los Angeles became the first major city in the United States to reach a gas price of $6 or more on Tuesday. According to GasBuddy, the national average gas price in the United States has begun to fall after reaching a high of $4.35 per gallon on March 10.

The Stop Gas Price Gouging Tax and Rebate Act was sponsored by Rep. Peter DeFazio of Oregon. "The measure would impose a windfall profit tax on excessive corporate earnings and return the cash to American consumers in the form of a tax refund," according to the bill's summary.

Companies will pay a one-time 50 percent windfall profit tax in 2022 if their adjusted taxable income (ATI) surpasses 110 percent of their average ATI between 2015 and 2019, according to his plan.

DeFazio said the windfall profit tax revenue will be returned to consumers in the form of a monthly, advanced, and refundable tax credit that will be tapered down as income rises.

According to Fox32, DeFazio said that the criteria for qualifying are the same as those used for stimulus payments under the American Recovery Plan (ARP). Democratic state legislators in California proposed a $400 gas rebate for every taxpayer. The gas rebate would be funded with $9 billion from the state's budget surplus, and it would pay the 51.1-cent-per-gallon gas tax for a year of weekly fill-ups for a car with a 15-gallon gas tank.

Would Gas Rebate Become Monthly Stimulus Check?

To be clear, a gas rebate would not be available to everyone. Instead, eligibility would be the same as it was at the most recent stimulus check cycle. In view of the better economy, lawmakers have been reluctant to provide stimulus aid. Even with today's high gas prices, they may not be quick to send out a gas rebate, as per The Motley Fool.

If you're having trouble covering your gas expenses, it might be worth changing your driving habits. That might imply a more planned approach to your errands. Perhaps you could organize a carpool with your coworkers to share the cost of commuting to and from work.

It's also a good idea to use a credit card that gives you a lot of cash back when you buy gas. Some cards, for example, give you 3% back at the pump; so if yours only gives you 1%, you might want to apply for a new one.

Unfortunately, we may be facing many more months of exorbitant gas prices. We can't expect a stimulus payment to help offset those expenditures despite Congress' best efforts. The best thing that consumers can do is to plan ahead when it comes to driving and try to save as much money as possible by utilizing the right credit cards.