With Missouri gas prices blowing past $4 a gallon just in time for Memorial Day road trips, State Rep. Christopher Warwick wants to slam the brakes on the state’s 29.5-cent-per-gallon gas tax through the end of the year. In a Thursday, May 21, 2026, request to Gov. Mike Kehoe, Warwick argued that a temporary pause could cut roughly $3.84 off the average fill-up and save a two-car household as much as $69 a month. The pitch lands right as travel is surging and has quickly kicked off a fight over whether Missouri can afford to sideline a key funding source for roads and bridges.
As reported by First Alert 4, Warwick, a Republican from Bolivar, formally asked Kehoe to call lawmakers into a special session and suspend the motor-fuel tax through Dec. 31, 2026. The station notes Missouri’s average retail price has climbed to around $4.17 per gallon, roughly $1.30 higher than at this time last year, and quoted Warwick saying his rural constituents are “pinching pennies” at the pump. The timing overlaps with AAA forecasting about 45 million Americans on the move for the Memorial Day holiday, a rush that raises the stakes for any quick policy shift on fuel costs.
Warwick is not alone. Rep. Tricia Byrnes of Wentzville has echoed the call for a special session and told reporters the proposed pause would cost the state around $713 million in revenue. She pointed to roughly $1.65 billion in Missouri Department of Transportation reserves and nearly $5 billion in recent general-revenue appropriations for transportation as evidence the state could plug the gap, according to Missourinet. Byrnes has floated the idea that lawmakers could use a May 28 return to Jefferson City to take up the issue if the governor agrees to bring them back.
MoDOT officials, for their part, say they are watching the debate but want to see details before backing any suspension. As reported by First Alert 4, MoDOT Director Ed Hassinger said the department “take[s] the revenue we get and we do the best we can with it,” while Chief Safety and Operations Officer Becky Allmeroth noted MoDOT will have roughly 1,000 active work zones on a typical day this summer and urged drivers to slow down around road crews.
Why the pause is legally complicated
Pressing pause on the gas tax is not just a spreadsheet exercise, it bumps up against constitutional rules. Article IV, Section 30 of the Missouri Constitution spells out how motor-fuel revenue must be collected, divvied up and dedicated specifically to road funds. That framework could make a temporary suspension legally tricky or even force a statewide vote, according to the constitutional text available through Justia. It is also why some lawmakers say any suspension would need a companion appropriations plan to guarantee MoDOT, cities and counties do not see construction cash dry up mid-project.
How much of the tax cut would actually reach drivers?
Warwick’s estimates, about $3.84 per visit and up to $69 a month for a two-car household, assume every penny of the 29.5-cent tax break shows up on the pump’s digital readout. History suggests that is optimistic. The Penn Wharton Budget Model has found that when fuel taxes are suspended, suppliers and retailers often keep a slice of the savings, so drivers typically see only part of the per-gallon tax removed reflected in posted prices. In practical terms, households would likely feel some relief, but analysts warn the price drop could be noticeably smaller than the headline numbers suggest.
What happens next
For any break to become reality, lawmakers need a special session, either called by the governor or triggered through Missouri’s petition process. The state’s options for convening the General Assembly, along with the thresholds for a legislative petition, are laid out by the National Conference of State Legislatures in its overview of special-session rules. If Kehoe signs off on a call, backers say the next steps would involve drafting the suspension language, lining up an appropriations backfill plan and sorting out constitutional questions before a pause could actually take effect at the pump.
For now, the idea has opened a fast-moving tug-of-war between near-term relief for drivers and the need to keep billions flowing into marquee infrastructure efforts such as Improve I-70 and Forward 44. The next move will likely come from the governor’s office or from a flurry of legislative messages converging on Jefferson City.
