Senator Dahle Supports Classic Car Smog Exemption Bill

SACRAMENTO — District 1 State Senator Meghan Dahle announced on April 11 that the state senate’s transportation committee has approved a bill that would exempt many classic cars and trucks from state smog check requirements. The bill, SB 712, was introduced by District 12 Senator Shannon Grove and has bipartisan support. It is also known as “Leno’s Law” in recognition of the backing of TV personality Jay Leno, who is a well-known car collector.

If adopted, the law would exempt vehicles more than 35 model years old on a rolling basis from biennial smog testing and from inspections that are currently required on purchase or transfer. Both senators point out that classic cars are a small fraction of vehicles on the road but an important part of California’s car culture. They are often carefully maintained and sparingly driven.

Existing law already exempts model-year 1975 and older vehicles from emission testing, but a fact sheet from Senator Grove’s office notes that maintaining outdated and often complex emission control systems in 1976-1990 model vehicles, which currently must be tested and meet emission standards, can be costly and even infeasible due to the age of the systems involved. Senator Dahle and District 1 Assembly Member Heather Hadwick are co-authors of the bill, which now goes to the full Senate for consideration.