INDIANAPOLIS - Citing continued shortfalls in crude oil across the nation, Gov. Frank O'Bannon on Wednesday extended his suspension of the state sales tax on gasoline for the third time.
''While prices at the pump have declined since this summer's peak of nearly $2 a gallon, supplies of crude oil and gasoline have not kept pace,'' O'Bannon said. He did not say when the 5 percent tax might resume.
Some Republicans have accused O'Bannon, a first-term Democrat, of using the suspension to boost his re-election chances against Republican David McIntosh. The governor has denied that.
''I think it was political to begin with and I think it's more political right now,'' GOP state Sen. Larry Borst said Wednesday.
Over the summer, Illinois suspended its gas tax and O'Bannon followed suit by suspending the state's tax effective July 1. Gas prices in Indiana dropped to among the lowest in the nation.
O'Bannon in August extended the suspension until Sept. 15, saying it would give motorists extra savings through the Labor Day weekend and allow retailers time to prepare for the adjustment.
He is relying on a 1981 statute allowing a governor to declare an ''energy emergency'' for up to 60 days and suspend provisions of state laws regulating transportation if certain conditions exist, such as a shortfall in energy and economic hardship. Such a proclamation can be extended another 60 days.
If he allows the suspension to remain up to the statutory limit, it would expire Oct. 25, shortly before the Nov. 7 re-election.
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