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Washington, D.C.—In an effort to help ease the impact of sharply rising gas prices on those who use their vehicles in their jobs—including federal workers—the head of the National Treasury Employees Union (NTEU) today called on the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) to raise the maximum mileage reimbursement rate allowed as a business expense tax deduction.

Such a move, NTEU President Colleen M. Kelley said in a letter to IRS Commissioner Mark Everson, would permit the General Services Administration (GSA) to boost the reimbursement rate for federal employees from its current 40.5 cents a mile.

GSA sets the reimbursement rate for federal employees who use their vehicles in the course of their work, but the rate can’t exceed the maximum set by the IRS.

The fact that gasoline prices have reached record levels this summer, including hitting more than $3 a gallon in many locations, “is placing an especially heavy burden on those who must travel to perform their work duties, including many employees of the IRS and other employees of the federal government,” Kelley wrote.

The NTEU leader said GSA has indicated its willingness to boost the reimbursement rate for federal workers if the IRS increases its mileage deductibility rate. “I am writing to urge you to do so,” Kelley told the IRS commissioner, since “the current rate of 40.5 (cents) is simply insufficient to cover the actual costs of driving a car on government business” with gas prices over $3 a gallon.

She added: “I hope you will do whatever you can to see that all Americans who must depend on their cars to perform their jobs get some relief, including those who work for the federal government.”

NTEU is the largest independent federal union, representing 150,000 employees in 30 agencies and departments.