Alabama Fuel Tax Discriminated Against Railroads, Appeals Court Rules

A federal appeals court ruled that Alabama discriminated against freight railroads by making them pay sales taxes on fuel that competing trucking and barge companies were not required to, the Associated Press reported.

The 11th U.S. Court of Appeals ruling said that Eastern freight railroad CSX Corp. was paying a 4% sales tax on diesel fuel purchases in the state, AP reported.

Instead of the sales tax, truckers in Alabama pay a 19-cent per gallon state tax on their diesel fuel purchases.

The case dates back to 2008, when CSX first filed suit against the Alabama Department of Revenue.

The case previously reached the U.S. Supreme Court, which in 2011 sent it back to lower courts to reconsider CSX’s claim.

For more coverage, see the July 15 print edition of Transport Topics.