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State, federal governments provide relief on diesel costs

Farmers may soon see some relief for the cost of diesel fuel – both for highway and off-road use – after state and federal executive orders suspended taxes and penalties related to both.

In Georgia, Gov. Brian Kemp issued an executive order on Sept. 28 suspending collection of state motor fuel taxes on regular gas and on-road diesel until Oct. 29. The order also removed state weight limits on commercial vehicles.  

Kemp noted in the Sept. 28 executive order “that factors driving these market shifts are inherently unpredictable, and therefore, difficult, if not impossible, for the citizens of our state to budget for, worsening the impact on hard-working Georgians.”

On Oct. 6, Kemp amended his original state executive order to include waiving state penalties for selling, delivering or using dyed diesel fuel for on-road vehicle use. Kemp also extended the waiver of state fuel taxes on gas and on-road diesel from Oct. 29 until Nov. 5.

Many farmers operate farm equipment in their field using red-dyed diesel, which is exempt from federal and Georgia excise taxes and therefore less expensive than standard diesel. Farmers often buy it in bulk and store it on their farms. Under normal conditions, if farmers use red dye diesel in vehicles on public highways they can face penalties.

Georgia’s motor fuel excise tax for gas is 33.3 cents per gallon and 37.3 cents per gallon for regular diesel.

Georgia’s average price for diesel on Oct. 6 was $5.80 per gallon, according to the American Automobile Association, down from $6.35 per gallon on Sept. 19.

On Oct. 5, President Donald Trump signed an executive order that among other things eased limits on farmers’ use of tax-exempt dyed diesel fuel and deferred federal diesel excise tax through the end of the year. Mainstream media has pointed out that the executive order does not waive the federal taxes because only Congress can eliminate a tax.

The president’s action came after an Oct. 1 letter from the American Farm Bureau Federation (AFBF) requesting fuel-cost relief for farmers. The federal highway diesel tax at the time of the letter was more than 24 cents per gallon.

“We thank President Trump for recognizing that what happens at the fuel pump directly affects what happens on the farm and therefore at dinner tables across America,” AFBF President Zippy Duvall said in an Oct. 5 statement. “Allowing dyed diesel fuel to be used over-the-road will bring welcome relief for farmers because every cent per gallon matters when you're running a fleet of grain trucks or hauling cattle hundreds of miles.”

 The AFBF letter noted that 10 states, including Georgia, had taken steps to ease fuel costs.

Nationally, the average price for diesel was up $2.49 per gallon, from $3.71 per gallon on Oct. 6, 2025, to $6.20 per gallon on Oct. 6, 2026, according to the U.S. Energy Information Administration.

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