RALEIGH – The North Carolina Department of Justice says it has received more than 470 complaints about gasoline prices and has begun contacting stations that may be outliers after the state temporarily suspended its motor-fuel tax.
Attorney General Jeff Jackson’s office announced the outreach Oct. 21. The department said it is reviewing every complaint submitted through its Fuel Check form and comparing reports with publicly available price data before contacting stations whose prices appear unusually high.
The General Assembly suspended the state’s 41-cent-per-gallon motor-fuel tax from Oct. 10 through Nov. 30. A legislative summary of Session Law 2026-62 says sellers must pass the full benefit of the suspension to consumers, except for fuel bought before the suspension on which the tax was already paid.
WRAL reported that investigators are asking contacted stations about wholesale costs and whether they are still selling previously taxed inventory. The outlet also reported that prices have generally fallen statewide and that a higher price by itself does not establish a violation.
The Justice Department has not identified a station as violating the law or announced a penalty in connection with the complaints. The reports remain allegations under review, and the letters represent an investigative step rather than a finding of wrongdoing.
The review puts the statewide enforcement of a legislatively approved tax-relief measure into focus during the final weeks of the campaign. Consumers may continue submitting prices and station locations through the department’s Fuel Check form.
Sources
- North Carolina Department of Justice, Oct. 21, 2026
- WRAL, Oct. 20, 2026
- North Carolina General Assembly, Session Law 2026-62 summary
Photo Credit: U.S. House of Representatives, public domain. Official portrait of Attorney General Jeff Jackson, photographed Dec. 2, 2022. Image cropped and resized.
Editor’s Note: This article was drafted with the assistance of artificial intelligence and was reviewed and fact-checked by a member of the NC Political News editorial team before publication.