House Ways and Means Chairman Aaron Michlewitz remained noncommittal Thursday when asked whether he supports Gov. Maura Healey’s proposal to temporarily suspend the gas tax, while referring back to House votes rejecting similar ideas.
“Obviously we’re reviewing it. There’s -- it landed in Ways and Means last week. We’re going through the, going through the process right now of -- there’s a lot of outside sections in this discussion. That is one of them that we’re weighing,” Michlewitz told the News Service on Thursday, referring to Healey’s $2.24 billion fiscal 2026 closeout supplemental budget that includes the gas tax holiday proposal. “But, you know, I think we’ve taken votes on this conversation in the past ... going to work with -- to find where the membership is on it going forward. But you know, obviously those votes were pretty significantly against previously.”
The House has voted several times against similar proposals with opponents, mainly Democrats, raising concerns about how suspending the tax would take away a much-needed revenue source and could affect the state’s bond rating. In April, the House voted 25-124 against a fiscal year 2027 budget amendment from Southwick Republican Rep. Nicholas Boldyga that would suspend the state’s gas tax until the average price per gallon in Massachusetts drops below $2.50. AAA reported an average price of $4.36 per gallon in Massachusetts on Thursday.
Asked if he thinks the vote could go similarly if Healey’s proposal reached the House floor, Michlewitz said, “I don’t want to speculate yet until we do our due diligence on working through, the working through, the bill. But I think there’s certainly been skepticism on doing these types of initiatives in the past.”
Healey’s proposal would suspend the 24-cent-per-gallon tax for two months, beginning a week after the supplemental budget bill is signed. Healey estimated it would deliver $120 million “in relief” and she has cited the war in Iran while blaming President Donald Trump for increasing gas prices.
Michlewitz is also co-chair of a conference committee negotiating final details of primary care legislation. After releasing a report on 944 victims of child sexual abuse within the Catholic dioceses of Worcester, Springfield and Fall River on Wednesday, Attorney General Andrea Campbell urged lawmakers to adopt policies that offer stronger remedies for survivors. The House included similar policies in its version of the primary care legislation.
Michlewitz called the report “heartbreaking” and said it “makes us have to think about how we can continue work on this discussion.”
“It’s just, it’s part of the conversations that we’re having on the primary care bill,” Michlewitz said when asked about the proposal. “There’s a number of other initiatives that are in there. We’re working through it right now.”
