Congress is debating suspending the 18.4¢ federal gas tax, but state levies — which range from roughly 14¢ (Alaska) to over 68¢ (California) per gallon — dwarf it in most high-population states. The play here is simple: federal suspension hands governors a political gift without requiring them to cut a dime, because drivers in high-tax states see marginal relief while state coffers stay intact. Any Republican messaging on pump-price pain runs straight into the wall of state-level Republican and Democratic governors who have quietly raised gas taxes to fund infrastructure — their own receipts on the issue.