SEMA-supported legislation to extend the emissions inspection exemption to vehicles five model years old or newer has been signed into law by New Jersey Governor Chris Christie. The new law acknowledges the relatively minimal environmental impact of the vehicles targeted for this exemption and that it is senseless to test newer vehicles, the results of which demonstrate no significant air-quality benefits.
The idea behind exempting any class of vehicles is to reduce costs while not losing appreciable emissions reductions. This strategy builds support for emissions-inspection programs, but also directs finite resources to where they will be most valuable in cleaning the air. New Jersey already exempts historic (at least 25 years old) and collector (driven no more than 3,000 miles per year and insured for limited use) vehicles from emissions testing. The logic for this trend is clear—such vehicles do not contribute in significant ways to air-quality problems. This logic applies equally to newer cars.
For details, contact Steve McDonald at stevem@sema.org.