As Goel and Nelson (1999) show, fluctuations in fuel prices prompt politicians to alter fuel taxation policies. The goal of this paper was to examine the determinants of both gasoline and diesel fuel excise taxes. The diesel model builds on the work of Decker and Wohar (2006) and is extended to construct a model for gasoline fuel excise taxes. In addition to replicating results of prior research, the results suggest that states with colder weather have higher fuel tax rates. Additionally, findings demonstrated that increased funding from the Highway Trust Fund is associated with lower fuel tax rates.
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