habanero
09-27-2006, 09:06 AM
If you want to be technical about it, it isn't legal to run VO at all (unless you're paying federal road taxes on it). Some states do relax the state tax on the fuel, but as far as I've ever known, federal law requires taxes to be paid on any fuel burnt. Up to a certain percentage could likely be called an additive, but you'd have an uphill fight on your hands saying VO is an additive in a two-tank set-up. Now I've never known anyone to get nailed on this, but it is possible if the right people ever felt like being a-holes.
So, as to your question about the legality of mixing kerosene in, it is no more illegal than running the WVO in the first place.
Not sure if that is true.... but anyway back on topic...
Above posts taken from this thread: http://dieselplace.com/forum/showthread.php?t=104396 but to avoid getting that thread further off-topic, I thought I'd start a new thread.
Anyway, here is a link to IRS publication 378 that outlines tax code for fuels: http://64.215.224.113/public/ops/taxes/irsforms/p378_200504.pdf#search=%22IRS%20publication%20378% 22
According to that publication, diesel fuel is defined as a liquid suitable for use, without further processing, in a diesel-powered vehicle. Now I don't know if you can really call heating further processing or not. But I'd be willing to bet if the feds really wanted to fight you on it, you'd lose in a court of law, and WVO would be defined as a diesel fuel.
The publication does mention the use of biodiesel and tax credits associated with that, but to claim those credits you must be registered as a fuel-blender (and have first paid the fuel tax in the first place). No where in that document does it mention WVO.
So moral of the story is there is no clear cut mention in the tax code of paying fuel taxes on WVO. But, a case could be made to define WVO as a regular diesel fuel. Therefore if they really wanted to nail you, I bet they could. Its use isn't wide-spread enough for the feds to really care at this point, but in the right situation on the right day with the right tax agent, you would likely be in trouble.
Do note all this is based on federal fuel taxes. State taxes and stances on taxing alternative fuels vary. When I first started running WVO I actually contacted the Oklahoma tax commission and they basically acted like I was retarded and more or less hung up on me. But this was almost 4 years ago, and WVO and home-brewed biodiesel has received a lot of publicity since then. When I moved to Kansas, I researched the tax code and there was actually a mention of homemade fuels in it, giving the procedure to go through to document and pay the road taxes on it. It was geared toward gasoline, however, as I guess there are some private oil wells in the state (or were at some time, apparently) that produce gasoline-range hydrocarbons directly with little or no refining necessary.
So, as to your question about the legality of mixing kerosene in, it is no more illegal than running the WVO in the first place.
Not sure if that is true.... but anyway back on topic...
Above posts taken from this thread: http://dieselplace.com/forum/showthread.php?t=104396 but to avoid getting that thread further off-topic, I thought I'd start a new thread.
Anyway, here is a link to IRS publication 378 that outlines tax code for fuels: http://64.215.224.113/public/ops/taxes/irsforms/p378_200504.pdf#search=%22IRS%20publication%20378% 22
According to that publication, diesel fuel is defined as a liquid suitable for use, without further processing, in a diesel-powered vehicle. Now I don't know if you can really call heating further processing or not. But I'd be willing to bet if the feds really wanted to fight you on it, you'd lose in a court of law, and WVO would be defined as a diesel fuel.
The publication does mention the use of biodiesel and tax credits associated with that, but to claim those credits you must be registered as a fuel-blender (and have first paid the fuel tax in the first place). No where in that document does it mention WVO.
So moral of the story is there is no clear cut mention in the tax code of paying fuel taxes on WVO. But, a case could be made to define WVO as a regular diesel fuel. Therefore if they really wanted to nail you, I bet they could. Its use isn't wide-spread enough for the feds to really care at this point, but in the right situation on the right day with the right tax agent, you would likely be in trouble.
Do note all this is based on federal fuel taxes. State taxes and stances on taxing alternative fuels vary. When I first started running WVO I actually contacted the Oklahoma tax commission and they basically acted like I was retarded and more or less hung up on me. But this was almost 4 years ago, and WVO and home-brewed biodiesel has received a lot of publicity since then. When I moved to Kansas, I researched the tax code and there was actually a mention of homemade fuels in it, giving the procedure to go through to document and pay the road taxes on it. It was geared toward gasoline, however, as I guess there are some private oil wells in the state (or were at some time, apparently) that produce gasoline-range hydrocarbons directly with little or no refining necessary.