Massachusetts has not suspended its gas tax. What exists is a proposal. Governor Maura Healey has filed legislation that would pause the state's 24-cent-per-gallon tax on gasoline and diesel for two months, and because the tax is set by state law, the Legislature must approve it before anything changes at the pump. As of September 24, the bill has not passed, and the tax remains in effect.

What is proposed

Under the plan the governor's office announced September 22, the suspension would begin seven days after the bill is signed and run for two months. The legislation would require gas stations to lower prices to reflect the suspended tax, and it would protect station owners from losing money on fuel they sold at the reduced price. The administration estimates the suspension would provide about $120 million in relief, coming from unbudgeted surplus Fair Share surtax collections in fiscal 2027 rather than from transportation funding, so roads, bridges and public transit would not lose money.

Why savings would not be immediate

The suspension is the last step in a sequence, not the first. Lawmakers must pass the bill, the governor must sign it, and only then does the seven-day clock start. The suspension is one piece of a $2.24 billion supplemental budget that closes out fiscal 2026. State House News Service reported that a new legislative rule lets lawmakers return for formal sessions on a limited range of matters, including appropriations bills filed after July 31, and that they will get a chance to debate and amend a House Ways and Means version of the bill. It is not yet clear when lawmakers could take it up, though closeout budgets typically pass in the fall, and if legislative leaders leave the suspension out of their version, it could still come to the floor as an amendment.

Where lawmakers stand

House Speaker Ron Mariano has said the Legislature has historically declined to suspend the gas tax, arguing it would cut into infrastructure funding without doing much to ease residents' costs. He called a suspension “fiscally irresponsible” while the end of the war in Iran remains uncertain, and his spokesperson pointed back to that statement after Healey's announcement. Senate President Karen Spilka did not say whether she supports the plan. She said she would review it with her Senate colleagues when the supplemental budget reaches her chamber.

History is a hurdle. Massachusetts adopted the gas tax in 1929, and it has never been suspended. Then-Governor Charlie Baker proposed a suspension in 2022, and the Legislature rejected it. Healey herself opposed a suspension that year as attorney general, and has said circumstances are different now. Republican gubernatorial candidate Mike Minogue, who is challenging her, has proposed suspending the tax whenever prices rise above $4 a gallon and working to eliminate it permanently, his campaign said.

What it could mean for Chelsea drivers

The proposal would apply statewide, so Chelsea drivers would be treated like anyone else in Massachusetts. The governor's office puts the average price at $4.41 a gallon for gasoline and $6.40 for diesel, up from $2.90 and $4.20 in February. AAA figures were $4.40 and $6.39. The governor's office says the plan is meant to help families who commute and truckers. At 24 cents a gallon, the tax comes to $2.40 on a 10-gallon fill-up, a rough illustration, since actual savings depend on how much fuel a driver buys. Diesel buyers would see the same 24 cents per gallon.

Whether savings reach the pump is the question the governor says her bill answers. Healey has said she previously doubted drivers would see the benefit, but that her team wrote the legislation to make sure savings are passed on. She has also said the administration has spoken with the attorney general's office about its authority to act on price gouging.

The stakes for the state are real, too. Nearly all gas-tax revenue goes to the Commonwealth Transportation Fund, according to the governor's office, and comptroller records show the tax brought in about $704 million in fiscal 2026.

What to watch

Until a bill is signed, the tax stays at 24 cents. If the Legislature passes the suspension and Healey signs it, the pause would start seven days later and last two months. If lawmakers do not act, nothing changes.