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Gov. Patrick Morrisey declared a statewide emergency Tuesday to allow cheaper red-dyed diesel on West Virginia highways, targeting fuel costs for coal, natural gas, logging and trucking businesses while leaving the state’s motor fuel excise tax in place.
The action provides no direct price cut for unleaded gasoline or regular highway diesel sold at the pump. The savings the governor announced depend on buying red-dyed diesel, a fuel normally used in off-road equipment.
Red dye marks diesel sold without highway fuel taxes for off-road uses. Using it on public roads normally carries penalties because those taxes have not been paid.
Large businesses operating fleets stand to accumulate savings across many vehicles and fill-ups. The governor’s office also identified agriculture among the industries intended to benefit.
Morrisey’s office estimates savings of 20.5 cents a gallon, or $41 for a truck buying 200 gallons. Although regular residents will not save when they go to fill up at the pump, the governor hopes the business savings will be passed on to families.
“When we help the businesses that produce and transport the goods we depend on, we’re helping the families who buy those products,” Morrisey said in the release.
The order suspends state penalties for selling or using red-dyed diesel in highway vehicles and directs state agencies to stop inspections aimed specifically at detecting it. Commercial vehicle safety inspections and other enforcement remain in place.
It follows an October 5 executive order from President Donald Trump directing federal relief for highway use of dyed diesel. Morrisey’s emergency declaration covers all 55 counties for 60 days unless ended earlier.
West Virginia Coal Association President and CEO Chris Hamilton welcomed the action, saying in the governor’s release that rising fuel costs had added to the pressures on surface mining and coal hauling.
“The suspension will reduce cost pressure and help us compete in a very difficult market,” Hamilton said.
West Virginia drivers were paying an average of about $4.19 a gallon for regular gasoline and $6.34 for diesel on October 20, according to AAA’s fuel price data. Diesel was $3.57 a gallon a year earlier.
Fuel prices have risen sharply since the war in Iran began. AAA’s national regular gasoline average was about $2.98 on February 26, before the war, compared with about $4.28 on October 20 — an increase of roughly 43%.
Diesel has risen even more. The U.S. Energy Information Administration’s weekly national diesel average climbed from $3.809 a gallon on February 23 to $6.276 on October 19, an increase of about 65%. In its October energy outlook, the agency described constrained Middle East oil flows, attacks on oil infrastructure and higher shipping costs as pressures keeping crude oil prices elevated.
West Virginia House Democrats have sought broader relief through a temporary suspension of the state’s fuel tax. In an October 13 announcement renewing that request, they said Morrisey had taken no action on their calls for a special legislative session.
The Democrats said they had legislation prepared and were willing to work across party lines.
Other states have suspended taxes on the ordinary fuel drivers buy. Georgia suspended its motor fuel excise tax from September 29 through October 29, covering taxes of 33.3 cents a gallon on gasoline and 37.3 cents on diesel. North Carolina enacted a motor fuel tax suspension through November 30.
