California residents are receiving government relief checks to counteract the heightened inflation this year. Earlier this week, California Gov. Gavin Newsom announced that sums up to $1,050 are being distributed to residents based on their income and number of dependents, in an effort to get “dollars back into the pockets of millions of Californians who are grappling with global inflation and rising prices.”
The inflation relief package totals $17 billion, though additional funds will be provided for needs such as rent and utilities. These tax rebates will aid workers who are facing an 8.6% inflation rate — the highest our country’s rate has been since 1983, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. The bureau’s Consumer Price Index elaborates on what’s causing high inflation, showing that fuel oil (up 106.7%), energy commodities (up 50.3%) and gasoline (up 48.7%) are the leading contributors to the average inflation in the United States.
California’s gas prices currently average $6.29 per gallon, AAA reports, beating out the other 49 states for highest price per gallon. Georgia sits at the bottom of the list at $4.38.
But California isn’t the only state providing financial assistance to its residents.
Indiana Gov. Eric Holcomb proposed an inflation relief plan earlier this month consisting of $1 billion in tax rebates for Indiana residents. Taxpayers would collectively earn $350 from both the relief plan and the rebate previously promised to Hoosiers for filing their taxes last year, the Indiana Lawyer reports.
“Hoosiers have real needs right now during this period of high inflation, from the gas pump to buying groceries,” Holcomb said in a press release. “Everyone should benefit from the state’s success.”
CNET reports that 11 states currently are offering tax rebates to their residents, ranging from $75 in Idaho to $1,000 in Minnesota.
While Utah’s gas prices sit at an average of $5.19 a gallon, Utah legislators have not responded positively to the idea of a gas tax suspension.
Utah officials including Gov. Spencer J. Cox, Sen. Mike Lee and Sen. Mitt Romney have all voiced their disapproval of Biden’s call for a temporary gas tax suspension. However, Cox has voiced support for free or reduced fares for public transit, according to KSL.
“We would like to see free fares in every transit district across the state, and the state would fund that for a period of time — three months, six months, something like that,” Cox said in his April briefing with the media.