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Documentation key to highway red dye diesel use

The associate director of transportation and infrastructure with the Illinois Farm Bureau says more guidance has been released for farmers wanting to use red dyed diesel on the highway.

Rodney Knittel says documentation is key.

“The Illinois Department of Revenue gave out a list of needed documentation, including, license plate number associated with the dye diesel used, gallons used, fill up date dye diesel was last added to the vehicle, proof that it was being used for agriculture use,” he says.

He tells Brownfield the documentation needs to be retained for four years.

“We’ve still got some questions in terms of enforcement.”  He says, “Plan on January 1^st that enforcement could and likely will resume. You need to plan that exit strategy again to go back from red diesel to highway fuel.”

Knittel says using red dye diesel would save farmers in Illinois around 80 cents a gallon, but questions still remain if farmers would later be liable for the unpaid taxes.

“We are still waiting on the guidance from the IRS,” he says.

Illinois is one of several Midwestern states that have taken the step as a measure to provide farmers with relief from record high diesel costs this harvest season.

AUDIO: Rodney Knittel – Illinois Farm Bureau