Farm Truck Registration

[Duffster]

That is correct - for Texas (and Florida). However, other states may be different. For example, if you (as a Texas resident) want to drive a motorhome over 26,000# you must have a Class B license (car type = class C). If you (as a Florida resident) want to drive a 42,000# motorhome all you need is a regular (class E = car type) drivers license. One of the reasons retirees move to Florida. I have not looked into whether a 5th wheel RV trailer is exempt.
----------------------------------
In Texas:

3. Class C driver license permits a person to drive the following vehicles,
except a motorcycle or moped:
a. a single unit vehicle, or combination of vehicles, that is not a Class A
or B; and
b. a single unit vehicle with a gross vehicle weight rating of less than
26,001 pounds, towing a trailer not to exceed 10,000 pounds gross vehicle weight rating or a farm trailer with a gross vehicle weight rating that
does not exceed 20,000 pounds.

http://www.txdps.state.tx.us/DriverLicense/documents/DL-7.pdf


In Florida a Class E license is what most people have:

NonCommercial Driver Licenses
CLASS E: Any non-commercial motor vehicles with Gross Vehicle Weight Rating (GVWR) less than 26,001 pounds, including passenger cars, 15 passenger vans including the driver, trucks or recreational vehicles and two or three wheel motor vehicles 50 cc or less, such as mopeds or small scooters. (see below). Farmers and drivers of authorized emergency vehicles who are exempt from obtaining a commercial driver license must obtain a Class E license.

Official Website Florida Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles

But an exemption allows someone with a 42,000# motorhome to drive it with a class E license.

Exemption Means the following persons are not subject to the commercial driver痴 license
provisions (Florida law only, other states may differ and exemptions must be verified):
Drivers of authorized emergency vehicles;
Military personnel driving military vehicles;
Farmers transporting supplies, machinery or agricultural products to or from market or
first place of storage or processing, within 150 miles of their farm (must have a Class D
with F endorsement or a current chauffeur痴 license until it expires);
Drivers of recreational vehicles as defined in s. 320.01; and
Drivers of straight trucks as defined in s. 316.003 that are exclusively transporting their
own tangible personal property, which is not for sale.
Farmer Means a person who grows agricultural products, including horticultural products

http://www.dot.state.fl.us/mcco/downloads/policy/04-10_2008-08-08_cdl_enforcement.pdf

The only way that you can't tow over 10k with a class C in TX is if the combination is over 26k.

 

[wsp617]

The WI State Patrol is primarily a "traffic law enforcement" agency. That's the way it's been for years. The sheriff's departments investigate crimes. I believe TX has a "Department of Public Safety" and they "do everything" including criminal and traffic. In varies state to state but by law we are a traffic agency.

I don't know about you but if I worked at a factory and every day I saw guys pulling in there with farm plates I'd get a little upset. I'd be asking "why am I paying $106 a year to register my truck while those guys are paying $45 for TWO years".

Currently the WI is 3.5 BILLION dollars in the red. I haven't had a raise in 4 years and with the 8 unpaid furlough days I take a year it comes out to a 3.5% pay cut. My feeling is, I pay my registration....why can't they pay their's.

 

[Duffster]

I haven't had a raise in 4 years and with the 8 unpaid furlough days I take a year it comes out to a 3.5% pay cut.

I almost feel bad for you.

 

[bearhawk]

Man, wsp617, you are really on a crusade against these people who might be saving a little money on tags. I'm thinking that the state of WI might go broke if you don't 'catch 'em all'.

I think you are missing the point.

If some people are misusing their farm tags, everyone else is paying for them.

I am all for saving a little money, but not to where it makes other people have to pay my fair share.

 

[two_bit_score]

I think you are missing the point.

If some people are misusing their farm tags, everyone else is paying for them.

I am all for saving a little money, but not to where it makes other people have to pay my fair share.

Yeah. But there is a big factor of interpretation in these things. A guy who has a farm and raises cattle is entitled to farm tags. The fact that he might have a side job in town and occaionally drives his farm tagged truck to work because he needs to stop at the feed store on the way home is not a cheater in my opinion.

A guy who lives in a trailer on a small acreage might have some other land somewhere that he is actually 'farming' or 'ranching' and having some cop drive by and check out his place because he saw a truck with farm tags in a place the cop thinks is out of place is just going too far. Then I guess the cop is gonna sit up some where and stalk the guy until he hits the street and swoop down on him to make a big bust- all for an 'alledged' farm tag violation.

Doing stuff like wsp617 described is going to an extreme for the infraction and actually sounds like he is taking out his aggravation about how the state budget problems affect him personally against citizens he feels ( wrongly, imho) are somehow to 'blame' in his mind.

To me that is a lot worse than any possible misuse of a farm tag.

And the truth is that you and I are paying more than our 'fair share' in a lot of things because of government policies that capitulate to political pressure groups.

 

[two_bit_score]

I almost feel bad for you.

He's on a 'gravey train' and he knows it.

 

[dkostiha]

If you live in a rural county and use the truck for short trips primarily nearby, you should have noe issues. I have a pickup with farm tags that I keep at my weekend ranch and use it for trips within 100 miles nearby. I have never been stopped or asked about the tags by law enforcement.

 

[Rocksprings]

I have farm plates on my truck and several trailers. I am a farmer/rancher, a real farmer/rancher, not a subdivision jockey or a drug store cowboy. Thats my two cents.

 

[wsp617]

Yeah. But there is a big factor of interpretation in these things. A guy who has a farm and raises cattle is entitled to farm tags. The fact that he might have a side job in town and occaionally drives his farm tagged truck to work because he needs to stop at the feed store on the way home is not a cheater in my opinion.

A guy who lives in a trailer on a small acreage might have some other land somewhere that he is actually 'farming' or 'ranching' and having some cop drive by and check out his place because he saw a truck with farm tags in a place the cop thinks is out of place is just going too far. Then I guess the cop is gonna sit up some where and stalk the guy until he hits the street and swoop down on him to make a big bust- all for an 'alledged' farm tag violation.

Doing stuff like wsp617 described is going to an extreme for the infraction and actually sounds like he is taking out his aggravation about how the state budget problems affect him personally against citizens he feels ( wrongly, imho) are somehow to 'blame' in his mind.

To me that is a lot worse than any possible misuse of a farm tag.

And the truth is that you and I are paying more than our 'fair share' in a lot of things because of government policies that capitulate to political pressure groups.

Apparantly I hit a nerve! The one guy's place I went by was about 2 miles from where his truck was parked....in the employee lot of a concrete company. How is that "out of place"? The guy wasn't a farmer and even if he was, he can't drive his farm truck to a non-farm job. Maybe TX law is different. They can't do it here in WI. By the way, I've been driving through parking lots for 20+ years, not just lately when the economy has been in the gutter.

Duffster, I'm sorry but I missed your question regarding hauling scrap. You can haul scrap on a fam plate. You just can't do it in a CMV unless you have a CDL. The WI statutory exemption for farmers from having a CDL states "...the operator of CMV is a farmer who is using the CMV within 150 miles of the operator's farm to transport agricultural products, farm machinery or farm supplies..." Scrap metal is not an ag product, farm machinery or a farm supply. Other states read very close to that because about 20 years ago all the these different states had different law for operating a CDL. The feds stepped in and got all the states on the same page. That's why you see that 26K level as to what qualifies as a CMV. It was set by the feds. Hope that answers your question.

 

[QRTRHRS]

Maybe we should start looking around at our neighbors and turn them in for these high dollar crimes. Crimminy, talk about eating your young.

 

[Gale Hawkins]

I swear the views do vary depending where people are from in the USA.

The kind of tags on our 23,000 pound flat bed dump had nothing to do with my insurance rates because I had to have my insurance before I could buy any kind of tags.

Many regulations are vague. This is from KY:

"Farm plates can be used for the vehicle owner´s private business provided that owner is only hauling their own equipment/product."

Does this mean a farmer with a backhoe can do custom work and move the backhoe with his/her truck that has farm tags?

Do hauling restrictions apply on any empty truck? Can I got to WM as often as I like.

What if a person is hauling something without charge? It is not a For Profit For Hire case.

It seems trucks for private use do not attract much attention in the south. We drove our F-700 300 miles with NO tags from Cleveland TN to our home by way of I-75 but mainly I-24 over Monteagle. We parked in two car spots in the then open Opry Mills Mall where security hawed everything and passed out tickets like S&H green stamps (some dating there ).

Not once did we we get asked any questions or were even followed. TN is known to be eagle eyed on traffic too. Our pick up was our load and it did have KY tags so what we were doing was kind of clear I expect to most any sharp LEO.

I agree vehicles not operating in a wreckless manner just do not get much attention. Often one or both kids are in the cab with me and it is clear I am no teenager.

 

[crazyal]

I have my dump truck tagged as a farm vehicle. I don't use it for anything other than for around my house and since I tap maples on my land any work I do to my driveway is also for the farm.

I know plenty of people who drive their farm trucks to work. They usually do so because they stop and pick up feed or other supplies on the way home. Again I think it would be hard for the police to argue that the two trips can't be combined.

 

[buckeyefarmer]

If some people are misusing their farm tags, everyone else is paying for them.

I don't buy this argument, but to each his own I guess. How about the farm trucks used by people that don't want the hassle of trying to figure out what is legal and what isn't, so they just run regular plates. They are overpaying. Farm plates should be what it says, if you farm, you can put the plates on and use it for whatever you need to do. That's how I would assume they worked, never knew cause we never used them. The only ones who know all those restrictions are the cops, looks to me just a way to trick innocent people. I really don't care if my coworkers come to work in a truck with farm plates, heck, they might actually have to pick up something for their farm on the way home. Some people don't live next door to the farm supply store. Why should they have to drive their car to work, go home to get there truck, drive back into town to pick up farm supplies.

Granted all systems have their abuse, but enforcement seems to be guilty until proven innocent. Just the other day I was driving out of state, and got pulled over for a vehicle inspecton. They then told me the inspection was for instate vehicles only, and let me go on, after recording my plate info. Now why did they even stop me, my out of state plate was clearly visible when they pulled me over, and they didn't ask for registration to check that the tags were even legit.

 

[JDgreen227]

I have been following this thread and it reminds me of an auto insurance policy I had twenty years ago, the terms of my policy said it applied to, quote: "any private passenger car, pickup truck, OR FARM CAR (emphasis added) owned and operated by the named insured, etc,"

It makes me wonder if the "farm car" as described on the policy would have meant a Farm Truck as being discussed in this forum? I have never seen the same description "farm car" on any policy I have had since....

 

[Kyle_in_Tex]

The law is the law. If there is no system of checks and balances, we have anarchy. I don't believe driving your truck to work should be allowed. It cheats the rest of us who have to pay. I wish in Texas that the DPS would prowl parking lots more frequently.:thumbsup:

 

[jinman]

The law is the law. If there is no system of checks and balances, we have anarchy. I don't believe driving your truck to work should be allowed. It cheats the rest of us who have to pay. I wish in Texas that the DPS would prowl parking lots more frequently.:thumbsup:

+1 - The law is not what we think it should be. It is what it is. I have lots of vehicles, but I'm allowed one vehicle with disabled veterans tags in Texas. Now, I could reasonably say that those tags should apply to all vehicles and be allowed to move from vehicle to vehicle since I'm no less disabled when I drive any of the others. Still, I don't do that because of law. I live with it and accept that at least I get a break on one vehicle. If I want to change it, I work to change the law rather than break it and thumb my nose at it. If everyone just followed the laws as they want them to be, that would indeed be anarchy.

 

[wsp617]

As I stated in my previous post, the laws on farm truck registration varies from state to state. Its best to check with an experienced officer on how the law reads in your state.

In WI the ag business is huge so the state is freindly to the farmers when it comes to registration fees. Like I said, if I have farm plates on my truck, I can register it for $22.50 a year and it's good up to 12,000 lbs. I have regular truck plates and they cost $106 per year for 8,000 lb plates. You can see the why guys want to have farm plates in WI.

In WI you are allowed personal use of a farm truck (providing it's reg under 38,000) for things like going to the doctor, shopping, hunting, etc. But you CANNOT use it to work off the farm, even if you plan on stopping at the feed store. It has to be that was otherwise a person could drive their farm truck to work every day. When they questioned about it all they'd have to say is, "I'm stopping for farm supplies after work"....even if they weren't. It would be unenforceable.

 

[two_bit_score]

+1 - The law is not what we think it should be. It is what it is. I have lots of vehicles, but I'm allowed one vehicle with disabled veterans tags in Texas. Now, I could reasonably say that those tags should apply to all vehicles and be allowed to move from vehicle to vehicle since I'm no less disabled when I drive any of the others. Still, I don't do that because of law. I live with it and accept that at least I get a break on one vehicle. If I want to change it, I work to change the law rather than break it and thumb my nose at it. If everyone just followed the laws as they want them to be, that would indeed be anarchy.

While I would never advocate an abuse of the law or an out right illegal act I feel very positive that the country in not going to decend into anarchy because some people may be taking a liberal interpretation of the farm tag law.

You are absolutely right, jinmam, that the law is what it is and in Texas the law allows for using farm tagged vehicles for the '.....necessities of the home and family'. That is pretty broad and very reasonable, as it should be.

I just don't understand why some people would expect that a person trying to make a living on a farm couldn't use his vehicle except in such a restrictive manner when the law clearly affords a lot of descretion and liberal interpretation of activities. It would seem from yours and Kyle's comments that if a farmer/rancher is only able to afford one vehicle that he dang sure better never have to get a side job to make ends meet or he better keep regular tags on that truck. Ridiculous.

 

[Duffster]

As I stated in my previous post, the laws on farm truck registration varies from state to state. Its best to check with an experienced officer on how the law reads in your state.

In WI the ag business is huge so the state is freindly to the farmers when it comes to registration fees. Like I said, if I have farm plates on my truck, I can register it for $22.50 a year and it's good up to 12,000 lbs. I have regular truck plates and they cost $106 per year for 8,000 lb plates. You can see the why guys want to have farm plates in WI.

In WI you are allowed personal use of a farm truck (providing it's reg under 38,000) for things like going to the doctor, shopping, hunting, etc. But you CANNOT use it to work off the farm, even if you plan on stopping at the feed store. It has to be that was otherwise a person could drive their farm truck to work every day. When they questioned about it all they'd have to say is, "I'm stopping for farm supplies after work"....even if they weren't. It would be unenforceable.

How do you prove they are working where the farm truck is parked?

I agree that these are abused but I don't like the thought of the state patrol strolling through private property searching for "law breakers".

I can transport farm machinery and farm supplies in a CMV with out a CDL correct?