Trumps red-dye diesel tax waiver could have limited impact on prices heres why

President Trump’s executive order allowing a more widespread use of tax-exempt red-dye diesel is meant to lower the cost burden on Americans – but it may not help prices at the pump much, according to experts. The special fuel has the same exact chemical composition as diesel fuel, but it’s dyed red to denote its tax-exempt status and is typically meant only for off-road farming equipment like tractors.Long-haul drivers could save a substantial amount of money using the cheaper fuel, potentially passing those savings along to groceries – but there are several roadblocks standing in the way.Patrick De Haan, head of petroleum analysis at GasBuddy, estimated that few truckers – perhaps just one in 100 – will actually be able to take advantage of the tax-exempt fuel because it’s not usually available at gas stations.“The problem, first of all, is that dyed diesel is a specialty product.Generally it appears in rural areas where there are many farmers, not at gas stations,” De Haan told The Post.Off-road diesel can be found around the country, but fill-up locations are spread out and rarely found near cities, according to a map by C NRG Fleet, a fueling management company.The closest location to New York City, for example, is in North Bergen, New Jersey, and there’s not a single red-dye stop on Long Island.“Also, most consumers don’t know that the red-dye diesel is exactly the same as ultra-low sulfur diesel with an added dye.

So adoption becomes more challenging,” Ramanan Krishnamoorti, vice president for energy and innovation at the University of Houston, told The Post.During a rally Monday night, Trump signed an executive order allowing drivers to use the tax-exempt dye, claiming the average trucker “will save over $100 every time they fill up” and farmers “will also save millions and millions of dollars.” He argued the tax waiver “will also drive down the cost of all goods, including grocery prices, very substantially.” The vas...