Alberta pausing gas tax for three months starting Oct. 1, Smith says
Premier Danielle Smith says the fuel tax suspension will run alongside a federal excise tax pause, stacking savings for drivers already squeezed by high global oil prices.
Why it matters
The tax pause directly lowers pump prices for Alberta drivers already facing higher costs from global oil market disruptions.
Alberta Premier Danielle Smith announced her government will suspend the province's gasoline tax for three months beginning Oct. 1, saving drivers 13 cents a litre on both gasoline and diesel.
The move follows an earlier attempt to ease pump prices through $100 rebate cheques offered to Albertans starting in April amid soaring global oil prices. Smith had previously favored rebates over tax cuts, citing uncertainty over whether savings from a tax cut would actually reach consumers at the pump. But the rebate program ran into trouble, with many eligible adults declining to apply through an online portal that critics called invasive and onerous.
The provincial tax pause comes on top of a federal fuel excise tax suspension already in place until the end of January, which is expected to save drivers up to 10 cents a litre. Combined, the two measures could cut pump prices by up to 23 cents a litre.
Fuel prices have surged since the United States' war with Iran began in late February, disrupting the Strait of Hormuz, a key shipping lane at the mouth of the Persian Gulf that has driven global oil costs higher.
Compiled by the Alberta Daily Desk — an AI-written summary of reporting from the credited sources below, produced and reviewed under our editorial policy.