Georgia Extends Its Gas Tax Pause to Nov. 30 as North Carolina Polices Pumps

• Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp extended the suspension of the state’s 33.3 cent gasoline tax and 37.3 cent diesel tax through Nov. 30, so it covers the Thanksgiving travel period.
• North Carolina’s 41 cent fuel tax is suspended through the same date under Session Law 2026-62, and drivers who think a station is keeping the saving can report it to Attorney General Jeff Jackson at ncdoj.gov/ncfuelcheck or 1-877-5-NO-SCAM.
• Both suspensions run out after Nov. 30 unless the states extend them, and neither one touches the federal tax of 18.4 cents a gallon on gasoline and 24.4 cents on diesel.

A Suspended Tax Only Helps If the Saving Reaches Your Receipt

Take a 15 gallon fill-up as the yardstick. In Georgia, the 33.3 cent gasoline tax adds up to $4.995 on that tank, just under $5. In North Carolina, the 41 cent tax comes to $6.15. Both states have switched those charges off through Nov. 30, and the Thanksgiving weekend, with the holiday on Thursday, Nov. 26 and the Sunday drive home on Nov. 29, sits inside both windows.

The two states reached the same date by different routes. Kemp announced on Saturday, Oct. 24 that he is extending the state of emergency that carries Georgia’s suspension, after talking it over with Lt. Gov. Burt Jones and House Speaker Jon Burns. North Carolina wrote its version into a session law, and its Attorney General has set up a complaint system to check that stations pass the money on.

The pump price is where either policy succeeds or fails. AAA’s daily fuel gauge for Oct. 29 ranks North Carolina first and Georgia second among the 50 states and the District of Columbia for the lowest average price of regular gasoline, at $3.4268 and $3.6157 a gallon. The national average is $4.2258.

Georgia Keeps the Suspension Running Through the Holiday

Kemp ordered Georgia’s suspension on Sept. 28, and it took effect at 12:01 a.m. on Sept. 29 for an initial 30 days. The extension carries it through Nov. 30, 63 days in all. It rests on the governor’s emergency declaration. Earlier orders in the same emergency suspended the state’s limits on how heavy a commercial vehicle can be, and a later order that extended the emergency also suspended penalties for running off-road dyed diesel on public roads. Kemp cited global market volatility for the latest extension.

“With a major holiday coming up and fuel prices still at high levels, I am proud to take this step to keep more money in Georgians’ pockets,” Kemp said in the announcement.

The state’s current rates are 33.3 cents a gallon on gasoline and 37.3 cents on diesel. Diesel buyers get the larger cut: a driver or fleet taking on 100 gallons skips $37.30 in state tax. With the announcement, the governor’s office cited AAA prices for Oct. 24 of $3.66 for regular, about 63 cents under the national average, and $5.72 for diesel, about 61 cents under.

AAA’s Oct. 29 numbers keep that gap open. Georgia regular is $3.6157, which is 61 cents below the national average of $4.2258. Georgia diesel is $5.7049 against $6.3347 nationally, a gap of 63 cents a gallon, or $62.98 on a 100 gallon fill.

North Carolina Wrote Its Suspension Into Law and Put the Attorney General on Watch

North Carolina took the legislative route. Gov. Josh Stein signed House Bill 3, now Session Law 2026-62, on Friday, Oct. 9, two days after the General Assembly passed it with a 111-1 vote in the House and 41-0 in the Senate. The suspension took effect Saturday, Oct. 10 and runs through Nov. 30, 52 days, for gasoline and diesel alike. The 41 cent rate for 2026 is the highest in state history.

“Rising grocery, utility, and gas prices are making the costs too high for people across our state,” Stein said in a news release. He expects the suspension to cost the state about $350 million in revenue, money that mainly pays for the North Carolina Department of Transportation, and the state will draw on reserves to cover it.

Economists expected drivers to save 30 to 35 cents a gallon rather than the full 41, and the saving could take a week to start. On a 15 gallon fill that is $4.50 to $5.25 instead of $6.15.

The Attorney General’s office moved within days. Jackson notified fuel retailers and distributors that they must pass the savings on to customers and launched N.C. Fuel Check. His office told drivers that prices could lag, as stations first sell fuel they bought while the tax was in effect, and that most stations should receive new deliveries within about a week.

“I’m going to enforce this law. We have a ton of data about gas prices across the state, and we are going to be able to spot outliers,” Jackson said in a video posted on social media.

Drivers took him up on it. State officials counted 259 complaints by 10 a.m. on Friday, Oct. 16. By Oct. 21 the Department of Justice reported more than 470, an increase of more than 200 in five days, and had started contacting gas stations that might not be passing the saving along. The office is also reviewing public price data for stations charging far more than comparable stations nearby.

“We’re asking consumers to be our eyes and ears by reporting gas stations they think aren’t passing on gas tax savings at the pump,” Jackson said in a statement on Oct. 21.

The Two Cheapest States in the Country

AAA’s map data for Oct. 29 gives the clearest check on both policies. North Carolina’s $3.4268 is the lowest state average in the country, and Georgia’s $3.6157 is the second lowest, ahead of Texas at $3.7006. At the other end of the map, California’s gas prices average $5.9477, which puts the gap to North Carolina at $2.52 a gallon.

Compare each state with its own recent past. Georgia regular is down from $4.1774 a month ago, a fall of about 56 cents. North Carolina is down from $4.1198, about 69 cents. The national average slid only 23 cents in the same month, from $4.4558, in the wider slide from October’s record high. Diesel followed the same pattern: Georgia fell from $6.2307 to $5.7049 and North Carolina from $6.1238 to $5.5327, while the national diesel average moved from $6.4391 to $6.3347.

The drops need one caution. Subtract the national slide and Georgia fell an extra 33.2 cents, almost exactly its 33.3 cent tax. North Carolina fell an extra 46.3 cents against a 41 cent tax. The fit is rough, and the Department of Justice says fuel costs respond to other factors too. Crude oil near $100 a barrel, which AAA flags on its Oct. 29 page, pushes pump prices around as well. The price data cannot separate the tax from those other forces.

North Carolina’s numbers carry a second signal. On Oct. 9, the day Stein signed, AAA had the state at $4.09, 28 cents below the national $4.37. Twenty days later North Carolina is down 66 cents to $3.4268 while the nation is down 14 cents, and the gap has widened to about 80 cents.

What to Do at the Pump in Either State

Start with the benchmark. AAA publishes averages by county and metro area, and a station priced well above them deserves a second look. On Oct. 29 Georgia county averages ran from $3.3080 to $3.9860 a gallon for regular, with Atlanta at $3.6452, Savannah at $3.6581 and Albany at $3.4382. North Carolina county averages ran from $3.1640 to $3.7820, with the Charlotte area at $3.4463, Raleigh at $3.4565, Asheville at $3.5706 and Goldsboro at $3.2137.

Next, document the price before you drive off. The Attorney General’s office asks for a photo of the price sign and the receipt, so take both. Write down the station name and address, the date and time, the fuel grade and the price per gallon, and note what neighboring stations charge. A price well above comparable stations nearby is the pattern Jackson’s office says it is looking for.

North Carolina drivers who believe a station is keeping the saving can file at ncdoj.gov/ncfuelcheck or call 1-877-5-NO-SCAM. The online form requires your name, address, daytime phone and email, plus the station name and address, the gasoline grade (regular, mid-grade or premium), the listed price per gallon and the date of the visit. The time of the visit is optional. The form takes up to four attachments in jpg, png, pdf, doc, docx or txt format, each up to 122 MB, and a Save and Continue Later button lets you finish it afterward. Documents can also go in the mail. The Department of Justice warns that submitted information could become a public record, so expect your complaint to be readable.

The Department of Justice reviews complaints and can investigate potential violations of North Carolina’s consumer protection laws. The delivery week the office described ended around Oct. 17, which makes a price far above the county average a fair candidate for a report.

Georgia drivers have the same tools for the check itself: the AAA county average, the price sign and the receipt. A Thanksgiving trip that ends by Monday, Nov. 30 stays inside both windows, so keep the receipts from every stop.

What Happens When the Calendar Turns to December

Unless a state acts, both taxes return on Dec. 1. Kemp has extended his emergency before and did so again on Oct. 24, while North Carolina’s end date is written into Session Law 2026-62. If the full rates come back, a 15 gallon fill-up carries $4.995 more tax in Georgia and $6.15 more in North Carolina, and a 100 gallon diesel fill carries $37.30 more in Georgia and $41 more in North Carolina.

Other states went the opposite way this summer: California, Washington, Illinois, Maryland, Virginia and Mississippi all had gas tax increases scheduled for July 1. Georgia and North Carolina pulled the other way this autumn, switching their fuel taxes off through Nov. 30.

Neither suspension changes the federal fuel tax. The federal government still collects 18.4 cents a gallon on gasoline and 24.4 cents on diesel, a charge that sits on top of whatever a state collects, and only Congress can suspend it. A Georgia driver filling up today pays no state fuel excise tax and the full federal amount.

Photograph the sign and the receipt on every fill-up between now and Nov. 30. If the price at your station looks high next to the county average, the photos are the evidence North Carolina’s Attorney General’s office asks for.

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