IL Fuel Association To Sue Over Pritzker's Required Gas Pump Stickers

ILLINOIS — Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker has suspended a planned midyear increase of the state’s gas tax included in his new budget, but gas station owners across the state aren’t happy that they have to post stickers on pumps alerting customers that they’re not paying the higher amount.

The Illinois Fuel and Retail Association is finalizing a lawsuit to fight the sticker requirement, along with the $500 daily fine that stations will face starting July 1 if they don’t post the stickers, according to media multiple reports.

The state’s gas tax of 39.2 cents per gallon was set to increase in July, but under the new budget, it will remain the same through the end of the year. Illinois already has one of the nation’s highest gas tax rates.

Last winter, political opponent Richard Irvin, who hopes to challenge Pritzker in November, called the gas tax freeze a political gimmick.

Josh Sharp, the CEO of the Illinois Fuel and Retail Association, called on lawmakers to reject increasing the gas tax as a way to provide relief from inflation. In a statement issued earlier this year, Sharp said that the state doesn’t need more gas taxes and that “Illinois motorists are taxed enough.”

The organization has criticized the stickers, calling them political speech.

The stickers alert customers that the gas tax is suspended through the end of the year, which Pritzker touted as a way of helping Illinois residents save money. The association of gas station owners asked Pritzker’s office to why the stickers were necessary, according to KHQA in Springfield. In response, the association said it received a message from Pritzker’s office stating:

“As gas prices remain high, providing meaningful relief to working families is the Governor’s top priority. Suspending the gas tax increase accomplishes this. Informing consumers of the gas tax relief they are entitled to is a practice that dates back to 2000 under a Republican administration and does not promote the Governor or the lawmakers, including nearly every Republican, who voted for the measure. However, it ensures consumers see the benefit of bipartisan action.”

The sticker requirement was included in the budget, and the stickers are intended to alert drivers that the gas tax is suspended through Dec. 31 and that the price on pumps that stickers are affixed to should reflect the suspension of the tax.

The gas and retail association represents about 5,000 stations across Illinois.