New operator needing help crossing the T's. Need to operate in 2 weeks.

Up until 07 I would run up to ky to buy hay and resell it back down in Florida. Note I did not divulge that info, I claimed it was for my own farm. Farm plates on a sleeper truck, stupid cheap insurance, no ifta required(and no temporary fuel permit), no log book required, and no annual inspection required. that Florida farm plate was valid in every state on my route(no extra trip fees required). Also Florida volunteered that I didn't even need a cdl(tho I did have one so never checked the other states. As far as those states were concerned as soon as I put the farm plate on, it became no different than a pick up truck.

However, not every state treats it the same way, when that farmer would run out of hay, he introduced me to some of hisbuddiesfrom Ohio and Indiana. When i checked with them, they had different requirements. One of them required a logbook, I don't remember which.
The key thing here is you need to call the individual states department of transportation and ask them. Or maybe call the state department of agriculture, they are usually more friendly and much much easier to actually get someone on the phone vs bad elevator music on hold for 12 hours.


Edit to add, there was also no drug consortium requirements or driver qualification file, record keeping, our any of that other jazz that goes with a normal trucking outfit.

 

I think I can get farm plates here but it is just a cost savings on the plates and really does not affect anything else as I understand it. Operating as "private" does remove some of the BS but I will have to find out how much.

 

The last thing you want to do is get pulled over out of state beyond that 150 mile limit and be missing a CDL and permits. One ticket could cost you thousands, and if you were in an accident without correct insurance you could have liens and law suits on you for life and we all know what help attorneys are out of state in someone elses back yard. Bottom line is you end up paying what they want you to pay.

Good Luck

 

So now, back to your other thread, we see why we don't like to move your widget for cheap and despise the term back haul. From my experience hay is almost as bad as it gets. Take forever to load, 8' tarps, want the trucker to pay your empty and full weight tickets so you know what to charge your buyer, overload on purpose and say if we don,t want to haul it we can unload the extra weight in the am.(good way to get a bail kicked off in the truck stop parking lot, ask the anole in El Paso ).......any of that ring a bell??????? Then they want it hauled for a buck 65. Enjoy your new adventure.

 

Not all your jurisdictions exempt farm plates from IFTA taxes which means that you will need permits. DO NOT get caught in IL without the permits or an IFTA sticker. Here is a link from the IFTA web site about exempt vehicles per state: http://www.iftach.org/view_exemption_archive.php That might help you figure out at least the IFTA part.

I had a taxpayer that registered IFTA on a farm plate because he hauled his farm product from mid-Indiana to Detroit at the Canadian border and to Chicago. All MI and IN miles were exempt (95%), IL NOT exempt. Actually the Canada was exempt but he stopped going there since it was such a hassle to go through customs with a time sensitive product. Weirdest looking IFTA I ever audited but he had it right.

Also, if you are hauling commercially (not saying you are but if the jurisdiction determines that to be commercial) on farm insurance for the truck and are involved in an accident, the insurance does not have to pay. That was always one of my biggest gripes about Indiana NEVER EVER doing anything about all the commercial farm drivers on farm plates, of course aside from it putting the honest hauler out of business and costing everyone else more taxes to make up for it. Hey, what can you do when you live in a farming state?