Rep. Norm Thurston — Voting Record

Bill

Number

H.B. 134 Second Substitute (2017GS)

Sponsor

Rep. Arent, P.

Final action

House/ filed 3/9/2017

Outcome

Failed / filed without passage

Summary

What it does

• This bill:
• restricts the authority of a county to exempt a motor vehicle from an emissions test;
• amends exemptions to emissions testing; and
• makes technical changes.

Every vote on this bill

Bill text

EMISSIONS TESTING AMENDMENTS
GENERAL SESSION
STATE OF UTAH
Chief Sponsor: Patrice M. Arent
Senate Sponsor: 
 Curtis S. Bramble
LONG TITLE
General Description:
This bill amends requirements for emissions testing of motor vehicles.
Highlighted Provisions:
This bill:
▸ restricts the authority of a county to exempt a motor vehicle from an emissions test;
▸ amends exemptions to emissions testing; and
▸ makes technical changes.
Money Appropriated in this Bill:
None
Other Special Clauses:
None
Utah Code Sections Affected:
AMENDS:
41-1a-226
, as last amended by Laws of Utah 2015, Chapter 400
41-6a-1642
, as last amended by Laws of Utah 2015, Chapter 258
Be it enacted by the Legislature of the state of Utah:
Section 1. Section 
41-1a-226
 is amended to read:
41-1a-226.
Vintage vehicle -- Signed statement -- Registration.
(1) The owner of a vintage vehicle who applies for registration under this part shall
provide a signed statement that the vintage vehicle:
(a) is owned and operated for the purposes described in Section 
41-21-1
; and
(b) is safe to operate on the highways of this state as described in Section 
41-21-4
.
(2) The signed statement described in Subsection (1) is in lieu of:
(a) a safety inspection, from which a vintage vehicle is exempt under Subsection
41-1a-205
(3); and
(b) an emissions inspection, from which a vintage vehicle is exempt under Subsection
41-6a-1642
[
(3)
]
(4)
.
Section 2. Section 
41-6a-1642
 is amended to read:
41-6a-1642.
Emissions inspection -- County program.
(1) The legislative body of each county required under federal law to utilize a motor
vehicle emissions inspection and maintenance program or in which an emissions inspection
and maintenance program is necessary to attain or maintain any national ambient air quality
standard shall require:
(a) a certificate of emissions inspection, a waiver, or other evidence the motor vehicle
is exempt from emissions inspection and maintenance program requirements be presented:
(i) as a condition of registration or renewal of registration; and
(ii) at other times as the county legislative body may require to enforce inspection
requirements for individual motor vehicles, except that the county legislative body may not
routinely require a certificate of [
emission
] 
emissions
 inspection, or waiver of the certificate,
more often than required under Subsection [
(6)
] 
(8)
; and
(b) compliance with this section for a motor vehicle registered or principally operated
in the county and owned by or being used by a department, division, instrumentality, agency, or
employee of:
(i) the federal government;
(ii) the state and any of its agencies; or
(iii) a political subdivision of the state, including school districts.
(2) (a) The legislative body of a county identified in Subsection (1), in consultation
with the Air Quality Board created under Section 
19-1-106
, shall make regulations or
ordinances regarding:
(i) emissions standards;
(ii) test procedures;
(iii) inspections stations;
(iv) repair requirements and dollar limits for correction of deficiencies; and
(v) certificates of emissions inspections.
[
(b) The regulations or ordinances shall:
]
(b) In accordance with Subsection (2)(a), a county legislative body:
(i) [
be made
] 
shall make regulations or ordinances
 to attain or maintain ambient air
quality standards in the county, consistent with the state implementation plan and federal
requirements;
(ii) may allow for a phase-in of the program by geographical area; and
(iii) [
be compliant
] 
shall comply
 with the analyzer design and certification
requirements contained in the state implementation plan prepared under Title 19, Chapter 2,
Air Conservation Act.
(c) The county legislative body and the Air Quality Board shall give preference to an
inspection and maintenance program that [
is
]:
(i) 
is
 decentralized, to the extent the decentralized program will attain and maintain
ambient air quality standards and meet federal requirements;
(ii) 
is
 the most cost effective means to achieve and maintain the maximum benefit with
regard to ambient air quality standards and to meet federal air quality requirements as related to
vehicle emissions; and
(iii) [
providing
] 
provides
 a reasonable phase-out period for replacement of air pollution
emission testing equipment made obsolete by the program.
(d) The provisions of Subsection (2)(c)(iii) apply only to the extent the phase-out:
(i) may be accomplished in accordance with applicable federal requirements; and
(ii) does not otherwise interfere with the attainment and maintenance of ambient air
quality standards.
(3) Except for the statewide exemptions provided in Subsection (4), a legislative body
of a county described in Subsection (1) may not exempt a motor vehicle from an emissions
inspection program.
[
(3)
] 
(4)
 The following vehicles are exempt from 
an emissions inspection program and
the provisions of this section:
(a) an implement of husbandry 
as defined in Section 
41-1a-102
;
(b) a motor vehicle that:
(i) meets the definition of a farm truck under Section 
41-1a-102
; and
(ii) has a gross vehicle weight rating of 12,001 pounds or more;
(c) a vintage vehicle as defined in Section 
41-21-1
;
(d) a custom vehicle as defined in Section 
41-6a-1507
; [
and
]
(e) to the extent allowed under the current federally approved state implementation
plan, in accordance with the federal Clean Air Act, 42 U.S.C. Sec. 7401, et seq., a motor
vehicle that is less than two years old on January 1 based on the age of the vehicle as
determined by the model year identified by the manufacturer[
.
]
; and
[
(4) (a) The legislative body of a county identified in Subsection (1) shall exempt
]
(f)
 a pickup truck, as defined in Section 
41-1a-102
, with a gross vehicle weight of
12,000 pounds or less [
from the emission inspection requirements of this section
], if the
registered owner of the pickup truck provides a signed statement to the legislative body stating
the truck is used:
(i) by the owner or operator of a farm located on property that qualifies as land in
agricultural use under Sections 
59-2-502
 and 
59-2-503
; and
(ii) exclusively for the following purposes in operating the farm:
(A) for the transportation of farm products, including livestock and its products,
poultry and its products, floricultural and horticultural products; and
(B) in the transportation of farm supplies, including tile, fence, and every other thing or
commodity used in agricultural, floricultural, horticultural, livestock, and poultry production
and maintenance.
[
(b)
] 
(5)
 The county shall [
provide
] 
issue
 to the registered owner who signs and
submits a signed statement under [
this section
] 
Subsection (4)(f)
 a certificate of exemption
from emission inspection requirements for purposes of registering the exempt vehicle.
(6) A legislative body of a county described in Subsection (1) shall require:
(a) a visual inspection of emissions equipment for a diesel-powered motor vehicle with
a gross vehicle weight rating of 14,000 pounds or less that was manufactured after 1997; and
(b) a computerized emissions inspection for a diesel-powered motor vehicle
manufactured after 2007.
[
(5)
] 
(7)
 (a) Subject to Subsection [
(5)
] 
(7)
(c), the legislative body of each county
required under federal law to utilize a motor vehicle emissions inspection and maintenance
program or in which an emissions inspection and maintenance program is necessary to attain or
maintain any national ambient air quality standard may require each college or university
located in a county subject to this section to require its students and employees who park a
motor vehicle not registered in a county subject to this section to provide proof of compliance
with an emissions inspection accepted by the county legislative body if the motor vehicle is
parked on the college or university campus or property.
(b) College or university parking areas that are metered or for which payment is
required per use are not subject to the requirements of this Subsection [
(5)
] 
(7)
.
(c) The legislative body of a county shall make the reasons for implementing the
provisions of this Subsection [
(5)
] 
(7)
 part of the record at the time that the county legislative
body takes its official action to implement the provisions of this Subsection [
(5)
] 
(7)
.
[
(6)
] 
(8)
 (a) An emissions inspection station shall issue a certificate of emissions
inspection for each motor vehicle that meets the inspection and maintenance program
requirements established in rules made under Subsection (2).
(b) The frequency of the emissions inspection [
shall be
] 
is
 determined based on the age
of the vehicle as determined by model year and shall be required annually subject to the
provisions of Subsection [
(6)
] 
(8)
(c).
(c) (i) To the extent allowed under the current federally approved state implementation
plan, in accordance with the federal Clean Air Act, 42 U.S.C. Sec. 7401 et seq., the legislative
body of a county identified in Subsection (1) shall only require the emissions inspection every
two years for each vehicle.
(ii) The provisions of Subsection [
(6)
] 
(8)
(c)(i) apply only to a vehicle that is less than
six years old on January 1.
(iii) For a county required to implement a new vehicle emissions inspection and
maintenance program on or after December 1, 2012, under Subsection (1), but for which no
current federally approved state implementation plan exists, a vehicle shall be tested at a
frequency determined by the county legislative body, in consultation with the Air Quality
Board created under Section 
19-1-106
, that is necessary to comply with federal law or attain or
maintain any national ambient air quality standard.
(iv) If a county legislative body establishes or changes the frequency of a vehicle
emissions inspection and maintenance program under Subsection [
(6)
] 
(8)
(c)(iii), the
establishment or change shall take effect on January 1 if the 
State
 Tax Commission receives
notice meeting the requirements of Subsection [
(6)
] 
(8)
(c)(v) from the county prior to October
1.
(v) The notice described in Subsection [
(6)
] 
(8)
(c)(iv) shall:
(A) state that the county will establish or change the frequency of the vehicle emissions
inspection and maintenance program under this section;
(B) include a copy of the ordinance establishing or changing the frequency; and
(C) if the county establishes or changes the frequency under this section, state how
frequently the emissions testing will be required.
(d) If an emissions inspection is only required every two years for a vehicle under
Subsection [
(6)
] 
(8)
(c), the inspection shall be required for the vehicle in:
(i) odd-numbered years for vehicles with odd-numbered model years; or
(ii) in even-numbered years for vehicles with even-numbered model years.
[
(7)
] 
(9)
 The emissions inspection shall be required within the same time limit
applicable to a safety inspection under Section 
41-1a-205
.
[
(8)
] 
(10)
 (a) A county identified in Subsection (1) shall collect information about and
monitor the program.
(b) A county identified in Subsection (1) shall supply this information to an appropriate
legislative committee, as designated by the Legislative Management Committee, at times
determined by the designated committee to identify program needs, including funding needs.
[
(9)
] 
(11)
 If approved by the county legislative body, a county that had an established
emissions inspection fee as of January 1, 2002, may increase the established fee that an
emissions inspection station may charge by $2.50 for each year that is exempted from
emissions inspections under Subsection [
(6)
] 
(8)
(c) up to a $7.50 increase.
[
(10)
] 
(12)
 (a) A county identified in Subsection (1) may impose a local emissions
compliance fee on each motor vehicle registration within the county in accordance with the
procedures and requirements of Section 
41-1a-1223
.
(b) A county that imposes a local emissions compliance fee shall use revenues
generated from the fee for the establishment and enforcement of an emissions inspection and
maintenance program in accordance with the requirements of this section.
Legislative Review Note
Office of Legislative Research and General Counsel