AB 2722 California Assembly · 2025-2026 Regular Session

Motor Vehicle Fuel Tax Law: suspension of tax.

Summary

Existing law, the Motor Vehicle Fuel Tax Law, imposes a tax upon each gallon of motor vehicle fuel removed from a refinery or terminal rack in this state, entered into this state, or sold in this state, at a specified rate per gallon. Existing unfair competition laws establish a statutory cause of action for unfair competition, including any unlawful, unfair, or fraudulent business act or practice and unfair, deceptive, untrue, or misleading advertising and acts prohibited by false advertisement laws. This bill would suspend the imposition of the tax on motor vehicle fuels for one year. The bill would require that all savings realized based on the suspension of the motor vehicle fuels tax by a person other than an end consumer, as defined, be passed on to the end consumer, and would make the violation of this requirement an unfair business practice, in violation of unfair competition laws, as provided. The bill would require a seller of motor vehicle fuels to provide a receipt to a purchaser that indicates the amount of tax that would have otherwise applied to the transaction. This bill would also direct the Controller to transfer a specified amount from the General Fund to the Motor Vehicle Fuel Account in the Transportation Tax Fund. By transferring General Fund moneys to a continuously appropriated account, this bill would make an appropriation. This bill would declare that it is to take effect immediately as an urgency statute.

Issues: ✗ Budget & Taxes

Bill status in committee 1 of 4 stages cleared

Introduction

Feb 2026

Committee Review

Floor Vote

Governor

Introduced Feb 20, 2026 Last action Mar 26, 2026

Maddy AI version diff · 3 comparisons

What changed between versions

03/19/26 - Amended Assembly → 03/24/26 - Amended Assembly · 6 edits · Mar 24, 2026

MODERATE

AB 2722 was substantially restructured between the March 19 and March 24 amendments. The bill removed a minor amendment to Labor Code Section 2929 (wage garnishment discharge protection) and added an entirely new motor vehicle fuel tax suspension provision that would suspend the state gas tax for one year, require savings to be passed through to consumers, and direct a General Fund transfer to backfill lost transportation revenue. The environmental data transparency provisions were retained but renumbered.

Scope change

The bill's scope expanded significantly: it now covers motor vehicle fuel taxation, consumer price relief, and a General Fund appropriation in addition to the existing environmental data transparency provisions. The labor code component was dropped entirely.

FISCAL

New Section 7374 of the Revenue and Taxation Code suspends the motor vehicle fuel tax (Sections 7360, 7362, 7363, 7364) for one year from the effective date. The Controller must transfer an amount equal to FY 2023-24 fuel tax collections, adjusted for inflation, from the General Fund to the Motor Vehicle Fuel Account within 60 days of the effective date. After the suspension period ends, if actual lost revenues exceed that initial transfer, the Controller must transfer the difference.

REQUIREMENT

All savings from the tax suspension realized by any party other than an end consumer (defined as a purchaser for consumption, not resale) must be passed on to the end consumer. Sellers of motor vehicle fuel must provide a receipt clearly indicating the amount of tax that would have applied if not for the suspension.

ENFORCEMENT

Failure to pass through savings is made an unfair business practice under the Unfair Competition Law (Business and Professions Code Section 17200 et seq.). A prospective plaintiff must provide written notice at least 60 days before filing suit, giving the defendant an opportunity to cure. If the defendant responds within 60 days with an explanation and intent to remedy, the cure period is extended by an additional 30 days. Remediation during the waiting period is an affirmative defense.

TIMELINE

The bill now includes an urgency clause declaring it necessary for the immediate preservation of public peace, health, or safety, so it takes effect immediately upon passage rather than on January 1. The stated justification is to immediately lower gas prices and provide relief to California motorists.

SCOPE

The amendment to Labor Code Section 2929 (prohibiting employer discharge based on wage garnishment) was removed entirely from the bill. This provision had been described as making only nonsubstantive changes to existing law.

TECHNICAL

The vote threshold changed from a simple majority to two-thirds, and the fiscal committee and appropriation designations both changed from 'no' to 'yes,' reflecting the new General Fund transfer. Coauthors were added (9 Assembly members and 7 Senators). The environmental data provisions were renumbered from Sections 1-2 to Sections 6-7.

02/20/26 - Introduced → 03/19/26 - Amended Assembly · 7 edits · Mar 19, 2026

MODERATE

AB 2722 was substantially expanded from a narrow nonsubstantive cleanup of wage garnishment discharge protections in the Labor Code to also include an entirely new chapter requiring state agencies to publish environmental data in machine-readable formats online. The amendment adds a new Chapter 3.6 to the Public Resources Code (Sections 71075-71077) that mandates quarterly updates, defines covered data types broadly, and authorizes creation of a statewide environmental data portal. The original Labor Code changes remain nonsubstantive.

SCOPE

Added an entirely new Chapter 3.6 (Sections 71075-71077) to Part 2 of Division 34 of the Public Resources Code, expanding the bill from a single Labor Code amendment to also cover environmental data reporting standards across all state agencies.

Added legislative findings (Section 1) establishing policy rationale, noting the bill builds on SB 978 (2024) machine-readable transparency goals and explicitly stating it does not impose new regulatory requirements or data collection duties beyond existing mandates.

REQUIREMENT

Section 71076 requires each state agency that collects, maintains, or publishes environmental data to publish it online in machine-readable format, make it accessible via the agency website or a statewide portal, and update it at least quarterly.

The Secretary for Environmental Protection must determine minimum permissible machine-readable formats in consultation with the Office of Data and Innovation, consistent with open data best practices including standardized schemas, APIs, and metadata specifications. These formats must be reviewed at least every two years.

DEFINITION

Section 71075 defines 'environmental data' to include air quality indices, water quality results, waste characterization studies, Proposition 65 chemical lists, greenhouse gas emissions reporting, climate vulnerability assessments, and enforcement actions.

FISCAL

Section 71077 authorizes (but does not require) the Office of Data and Innovation to create an interoperable statewide environmental data portal, subject to availability of necessary resources. The fiscal committee note changed from 'no' to 'yes,' indicating a fiscal analysis is now triggered.

TECHNICAL

The original Labor Code Section 2929 amendments remain nonsubstantive: updating archaic pronouns (changing 'his' to 'the employee's') and correcting awkward phrasing in the wage garnishment discharge protection provisions.

Floor votes

How they voted

No floor votes recorded yet.

Full legislative history

Actions timeline

Total actions

Key actions

Committee

Amendments

Mar 26, 2026

Committee

Re-referred to Com. on TRANS. pursuant to Assembly Rule 96.

lower

Mar 25, 2026

Committee

Re-referred to Com. on NAT. RES.

lower

Mar 24, 2026

Introduced

From committee chair, with author's amendments: Amend, and re-refer to Com. on NAT. RES. Read second time and amended.

lower

Mar 23, 2026

Committee

Re-referred to Com. on NAT. RES.

lower

Mar 19, 2026

Introduced

From committee chair, with author's amendments: Amend, and re-refer to Com. on NAT. RES. Read second time and amended.

lower

Mar 19, 2026

Committee

Referred to Com. on NAT. RES.

lower

Feb 21, 2026

Lower · Passed

From printer. May be heard in committee March 23.

lower

1 primary · 16 co-sponsors