“To amend the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to establish a tax credit for the production of aviation gasoline that is free of tetra-ethyl-lead.”
No CRS summary available for this bill.
This section establishes a new general business tax credit under IRC §38(b)(42) for U.S. producers of qualified aviation gasoline sold to unrelated persons for business use or retail fueling of aircraft during calendar years 2026 through 2030, equal to $1.25 per gallon in 2026, decreasing $0.05 annually to $1.05 per gallon in 2030 (IRC §45BB). Qualified aviation gasoline is unleaded (free from tetra-ethyl-lead) aviation fuel, as defined in 10 C.F.R. §436.101, that meets Federal Aviation Administration standards under 49 U.S.C. §44714 (i.e., standards for aircraft fuel composition or properties to control emissions the Environmental Protection Agency determines endanger public health or welfare under Clean Air Act §231) and is transferred to an aircraft fuel tank in the U.S. (Thus, the credit incentivizes domestic production of unleaded alternatives to leaded avgas.) Producers must register under IRC §4101(a)(1) and certify qualification; conforming amendments clarify taxation of such fuel as aviation gasoline under IRC §4081(a)(2)(A)(ii) and require Treasury regulations within 180 days after enactment, in consultation with the Transportation Secretary; the credit terminates for sales after December 31, 2030, with amendments effective for fuel sold or used after December 31, 2025.
This section directs the Comptroller General of the United States to conduct a study on the price of unleaded aviation gasoline that examines (1) the price differential between leaded and unleaded aviation gasoline (including at different octane levels) at the consumer point of sale, (2) major drivers of that differential (including research and development, refining, transportation, delivery, and storage), (3) whether the aviation gasoline credit under IRC §45BB results in cost savings passed to end-user consumers, (4) recommendations for changes to the credit to maximize such pass-through, and (5) the current and projected market share of unleaded aviation gasoline; the Comptroller General must submit a report to Congress on the study's findings not later than one year after enactment.