Gallego Presses Trump Admin to Boost Gas Mileage Deductions as Prices Skyrocket

WASHINGTON –Senator Ruben Gallego (D-AZ)called on the Trump administration to increase the mileage deduction rate used by small business owners who operate a vehicle for their business due to the rising cost of gas due to Trump’s war in Iran.
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“As you know, gas prices have reached record highs in 2026 due to President Trump’s lack of planning with regard to the impacts of the Iran war on energy prices. Increasing the standard mileage rate is critical to support the small business owners and self-employed individuals whose livelihoods have been harmed by these price increases,”Senator Gallego wrote in aletterto Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent.“Given the significant increase in gas prices, I urge the IRS to raise the standard mileage rate at a rate that proportionately reflects gas price increases.”
Since the start of the war with Iran, gas prices have risen by nearly a dollar per gallon across the country. Self-employed individuals that rely on their vehicles for work are currently able to deduct 72.5 cents per mile as a business cost for federal taxes. Gallego is asking the IRS to raise this rate in response to high gas prices, as they have done in the past.
“Small business owners and self-employed contractors are key contributors to our economy, and they rely on optional standard mileage rate deductions that reflect the real cost of doing business,”Senator Gallego concluded.“I urge the IRS to act quickly to increase this rate and provide these individuals and small businesses with the economic certainty they need.”
Read the full letterHERE.
In 2022, the Biden administrationraised the standard mileage rateby 4.0 cents per mile following then-Representative Gallego’s push for an increase amid rising gas prices following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.