Drivers, prepare to pay a little more at the pump: Illinois' gas tax is set to increase again on Thursday.
The state's motor fuel tax rate increases by a half-cent per gallon beginning July 1, rising from 38.7 cents per gallon of gasoline to 39.2 cents per gallon.
Illinois' gas tax last increased on July 1, 2020, when it rose by .7 cents per gallon, from 38 cents to 38.7 cents per gallon.
The previous year, the gas tax doubled from 19 cents per gallon to 38 cents per gallon.
That increase was prompted by a $45 billion capital plan Gov. J.B. Pritzker signed into law in 2019 to fund major improvements to infrastructure like roads, bridges, mass transit and buildings. Pritzker said in 2019 that the gas tax hike that year was the first time it had increased since 1990.
The 2019 change also tied the motor fuel tax to the Consumer Price Index, which means it will automatically continue to increase annually with inflation.
The revenue from the gas tax hike is split between three purposes, Pritzker's office said in 2019: 48% to construction of state roads and bridges, 32% to units of local government and 20% to local transit districts.
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