Some relief is finally on the way for farmers and truckers of agricultural products who have been paying more than they should for fuel as a result of Washington state’s new cap-and-trade law.
But, farmers and truckers need to register and prove their eligibility for the refunds, and the money is first come, first serve.
The legislature this year directed the state Department of Licensing to administer the program to get the $30M earmarked for refunds into the hands of farmers, and the DOL was given a tight timeline to make it all happen.
Jennifer Clawson, DOL Business and Professions Assistant Director, told Save Family Farming they’ll process applications as quickly as they can with the small staff the legislature funded for the effort.
Clawson said the refunds are only for last year’s (2023) fuel expenses, and she expects them to go relatively quickly.
The 2021 Climate Commitment Act was supposed to exempt agriculture and the transportation of agricultural products from paying the extra costs the cap-and-trade program added to fuel bills, and state leaders including Gov. Jay Inslee insisted that the costs would be miniscule.
But that promised exemption did not materialize when the new law took effect at the beginning of 2023, and has since added costs for agriculture estimated by some to be in the hundreds of millions.
According to Clawson, the refunds will have 4 tiers, depending on the amount of fuel each farmer or trucker purchased in 2023.
Clawson joined host Dillon Honcoop on the Save Family Farming Show to let people know how they can apply for the refunds, and said her team put together the refund program with input from farming and trucking leaders.
You can register with the DOL for a refund here.