...OK...you've got everything right about sharing the semi's. If you swap work for work...then everything is hunky dory. Here's my question though. We have to file a Form 2290 with the Internal Revenue service in order to get a farm plate from the State of Ohio. That form clearly states...you can use that semi for up to 5000 miles of commercial usage, or 7500 miles for agricultural usage. So...I ask you...can you charge to haul someone else's corn with your farm plated semi?...In my opinion..if you only rack up 5000 miles of doing so...then you can....

I forgot that when we re-license on semi which has farm plates we have to get a 2290 tax suspension. Anyone who runs a commercially plated semi on the highway has to file a 2290 annually with the IRS and pay $550 tax. The tax is based on number of miles ran and the gross weight of the vehicle and $550 is the maximum tax. But if your semi has farm plates and you travel less than 7,500 miles per year you can get a tax suspension. This is a yearly hassle to fill out the 2290 form, go to a local IRS office and apply for a suspension of the 2290 tax. The form has to be stamped at an IRS office. I have to do this before I can re-license the truck. Fortunately it only takes time out of my day and it doesn't cost any money.

Dave - you ask a very good question and one I am going to pursue an answer. Your question "So...I ask you...can you charge to haul someone else's corn with your farm plated semi?...In my opinion if you only rack up 5,000 miles of doing so...then you can...." I called the Carrier Enforcement Division at the Nebraska State Patrol who enforces the DOT truck regulations in Nebraska. They told me that the 5,000 mile limit only applies to commercially plated trucks. So if you have a semi with commercial plates and drive less than 5,000 miles you do not have to pay the 2290 tax. Semis with farm plates can travel up to 7,500 miles a year without paying the 2290 tax and can haul their own grain or grain for another farm where they share harvesting services.

I know that smell but this year it smells like cured hay or corn cooked in a microwave oven! The wind is blowing with 90 degree and has for days and I hope farmers can get the crop in before the weather changes. It will be a real mess if we don't, this is no year to leave the crop in the field for further drying, it is dead dry now!