FIRST REGULAR SESSION
[PERFECTED]
HOUSE COMMITTEE SUBSTITUTE FOR
93RD GENERAL ASSEMBLY
Reported from the Committee on Transportation April 7, 2005, with recommendation that House Committee Substitute for House Bill No. 697 Do Pass. Referred to the Committee on Rules pursuant to Rule 25(26)(f).
Reported from the Committee on Rules April 12, 2005 with recommendation that House Committee Substitute for House Bill No. 697 Do Pass with no time limit for debate.
Taken up for Perfection April 26, 2005. House Committee Substitute for House Bill No. 697 ordered Perfected and printed, as amended.
STEPHEN S. DAVIS, Chief Clerk
AN ACT
To repeal sections 307.366, 643.315, and 643.335, RSMo, and to enact in lieu thereof four new sections relating to motor vehicles emissions testing, with penalty provisions and an effective date for certain sections.
Be it enacted by the General Assembly of the state of Missouri, as follows:
Section A. Sections 307.366, 643.315, and 643.335, RSMo, are repealed and four new sections enacted in lieu thereof, to be known as sections 307.366, 643.315, 643.335, and 1 to read as follows:
307.366. 1. This enactment of the emissions inspection program is a mandate of the United States Congress pursuant to the federal Clean Air Act, as amended, 42 U.S.C. 7401, et seq. In any portion of an area designated by the governor as a nonattainment area, as defined in the federal Clean Air Act, as amended, 42 U.S.C.A. Section 7501, and located within the area described in subsection 1 of section 643.305, RSMo, certain motor vehicles shall be tested and approved prior to sale or transfer, unless such testing and approval has occurred in the ninety-day period immediately preceding such sale or transfer, and biennially thereafter to determine that the emissions system is functioning within the emission standards as specified by the Missouri air conservation commission and as required to attain the national health standards for air quality. For such biennial testing, any such vehicle manufactured as an even-numbered model year vehicle shall be tested and approved in each even-numbered calendar year and any such vehicle manufactured as an odd-numbered model year vehicle shall be tested and approved in each odd-numbered calendar year. The motor vehicles to be tested shall be all motor vehicles except those specifically exempted pursuant to subdivisions (1) to (3) of subsection 1 of section 307.350 and those exempted pursuant to this section.
2. The provisions of this section shall not apply to:
(1) Motor vehicles with a manufacturer's gross vehicle weight rating in excess of eight thousand five hundred pounds;
(2) Motor vehicles within the first four years of the specific model year for such motor vehicle;
[(2)] (3) Motorcycles and motortricycles;
[(3)] (4) Model year vehicles manufactured twenty-six years or more prior to the current model year;
[(4)] (5) School buses;
[(5)] (6) Diesel-powered vehicles;
[(6)] (7) Motor vehicles registered in the area covered by this section but which are based and operated exclusively in an area of this state not subject to the provisions of this section if the owner of such vehicle presents to the director a sworn affidavit that the vehicle will be based and operated outside the covered area;
[(7)] (8) Motor vehicles owned by persons sixty-five years of age or older which have an odometer reading increase of less than five thousand miles per year since the odometer reading of such motor vehicle at the immediately preceding emissions inspection;
(9) New and unused motor vehicles, of model years of the current calendar year and of any calendar year within two years of such calendar year, which have an odometer reading of less than six thousand miles at the time of original sale by a motor vehicle manufacturer or licensed motor vehicle dealer to the first user; and
[(8)] (10) Motor vehicles owned by a person who resides in a county of the first classification without a charter form of government with a population of less than one hundred thousand inhabitants according to the most recent decennial census who has completed an emission inspection pursuant to section 643.315, RSMo.
Each official inspection station which conducts emissions inspections within the area referred to in subsection 1 of this section shall indicate the gross vehicle weight rating of the motor vehicle on the inspection certificate if the vehicle is exempt from the emissions inspection pursuant to subdivision (1) of this subsection.
3. (1) At the time of sale, a licensed motor vehicle dealer, as defined in section 301.550, RSMo, may choose to sell a motor vehicle subject to the inspection requirements of this section either:
(a) With prior inspection and approval as provided in subdivision (2) of this subsection; or
(b) Without prior inspection and approval as provided in subdivision (3) of this subsection.
(2) If the dealer chooses to sell the vehicle with prior inspection and approval, the dealer shall disclose, in writing, prior to sale, whether the vehicle obtained approval by meeting the emissions standards established pursuant to this section or by obtaining a waiver pursuant to subsection 6 of this section. A vehicle sold pursuant to this subdivision by a licensed motor vehicle dealer shall be inspected and approved within the one hundred twenty days immediately preceding the date of sale, and, for the purpose of registration of such vehicle, such inspection shall be considered timely.
(3) If the dealer chooses to sell the vehicle without prior inspection and approval, the purchaser may return the vehicle within ten days of the date of purchase, provided that the vehicle has no more than one thousand additional miles since the time of sale, if the vehicle fails, upon inspection, to meet the emissions standards specified by the commission and the dealer shall have the vehicle inspected and approved without the option for a waiver of the emissions standard and return the vehicle to the purchaser with a valid emissions certificate and sticker within five working days or the purchaser and dealer may enter into any other mutually acceptable agreement. If the dealer chooses to sell the vehicle without prior inspection and approval, the dealer shall disclose conspicuously on the sales contract and bill of sale that the purchaser has the option to return the vehicle within ten days, provided that the vehicle has no more than one thousand additional miles since the time of sale, to have the dealer repair the vehicle and provide an emissions certificate and sticker within five working days if the vehicle fails, upon inspection, to meet the emissions standards established by the commission, or enter into any mutually acceptable agreement with the dealer. A violation of this subsection shall be an unlawful practice as defined in section 407.020, RSMo. No emissions inspection shall be required pursuant to this section for the sale of any motor vehicle which may be sold without a certificate of inspection and approval, as provided pursuant to subsection 2 of section 307.380.
4. A fee not to exceed twenty-four dollars may be charged for an automobile emissions and air pollution control inspection in order to attain the national health standards for air quality. Such fee shall be conspicuously posted on the premises of each such inspection station. The official emissions inspection station shall issue a certificate of inspection and an approval sticker or seal certifying the emissions system is functioning properly. The certificate or approval issued shall bear the legend: "This cost is mandated by your United States Congress.". No owner shall be charged an additional fee after having corrected defects or unsafe conditions in the automobile's emissions and air pollution control system if the reinspection is completed within twenty consecutive days, excluding Saturdays, Sundays and holidays, and if such follow-up inspection is made by the station making the initial inspection.
5. The air conservation commission shall establish, by rule, a waiver amount which may be lower for older model vehicles and which shall be no greater than seventy-five dollars for model year vehicles prior to 1981 and no greater than two hundred dollars for model year vehicles of 1981 and all subsequent model years.
6. An owner whose vehicle fails upon reinspection to meet the emission standards specified by the Missouri air conservation commission shall be issued a certificate of inspection and an approval sticker or seal by the official emissions inspection station that provided the inspection if the vehicle owner furnishes a complete, signed affidavit satisfying the requirements of this subsection and the cost of emissions repairs and adjustments is equal to or greater than the waiver amount established by the air conservation commission pursuant to this section. The air conservation commission shall establish, by rule, a form and a procedure for verifying that repair and adjustment was performed on a failing vehicle prior to the granting of a waiver and approval. Such rule shall include, but not be limited to, the following provisions:
(1) A failing vehicle may be repaired by any mechanic of the owner's choice and remain eligible for the granting of a waiver. No failing vehicle shall be required to be repaired by a mechanic recommended, suggested, or listed by any agency of the state as an approved mechanic for conducting such repairs; and
(2) The waiver amount established by the air conservation commission shall include the labor costs associated with such repairs, including labor costs incurred if the repairs are made by a mechanic of the owner's choice as permitted in subdivision (1) of this subsection.
The waiver form established pursuant to this subsection shall be an affidavit requiring:
(1) A statement signed by the repairer that the specified work was done and stating the itemized charges for the work, including labor; and
(2) A statement signed by the inspector that an inspection of the vehicle verified, to the extent practical, that the specified work was done.
7. The department of revenue shall require evidence of the inspection and approval required by this section in issuing the motor vehicle annual registration in conformity with the procedure required by sections 307.350 to 307.370.
8. Each emissions inspection station located in the area described in subsection 1 of this section shall purchase from the highway patrol sufficient forms and stickers or other devices to evidence approval of the motor vehicle's emissions control system. In addition, emissions inspection stations may be required to purchase forms for use in automated analyzers from outside vendors of the inspection station's choice. The forms must comply with state regulations.
9. In addition to the fee collected by the superintendent pursuant to subsection 5 of section 307.365, the highway patrol shall collect a fee of seventy-five cents for each automobile emissions certificate issued to the applicable official emissions inspection stations, except that no charge shall be made for certificates of inspection issued to official emissions inspection stations operated by governmental entities. All fees collected by the superintendent pursuant to this section shall be deposited in the state treasury to the credit of the "Missouri Air Pollution Control Fund", which is hereby created.
10. The moneys collected and deposited in the Missouri air pollution control fund pursuant to this section shall be allocated on an equal basis to the Missouri state highway patrol and the Missouri department of natural resources, air pollution control program, and shall be expended subject to appropriation by the general assembly for the administration and enforcement of sections 307.350 to 307.390. The unexpended balance in the fund at the end of each appropriation period shall not be transferred to the general revenue fund, except as directed by the general assembly by appropriation, and the provisions of section 33.080, RSMo, relating to the transfer of funds to the general revenue fund at the end of the biennium, shall not apply to this fund. The moneys in the fund shall be invested by the treasurer as provided by law, and the interest shall be credited to the fund.
11. The superintendent of the Missouri state highway patrol shall issue such rules and regulations as are necessary to determine whether a motor vehicle's emissions control system is operating as required by subsection 1 of this section, and the superintendent and the state highways and transportation commission shall use their best efforts to seek federal funds from which reimbursement grants may be made to those official inspection stations which acquire and use the necessary testing equipment which will be required to perform the tests required by the provisions of this section.
12. The provisions of this section shall not apply in any county for any time period during which the air conservation commission has established a motor vehicle emissions inspection program pursuant to sections 643.300 to 643.355, RSMo, for such county, except where motor vehicle owners have the option of biennial testing pursuant to chapter 643, RSMo. In counties where such option is available, the emissions inspection may be conducted in stations conducting only an emissions inspection under contract to the state.
13. Notwithstanding the provisions of section 307.390, violation of this section shall be deemed a class C misdemeanor.
643.315. 1. Except as provided in sections 643.300 to 643.355, all motor vehicles which are domiciled, registered or primarily operated in an area for which the commission has established a motor vehicle emissions inspection program pursuant to sections 643.300 to 643.355, which may include all motor vehicles owned by residents of a county of the first classification without a charter form of government with a population of less than one hundred thousand inhabitants according to the most recent decennial census who have chosen to participate in such a program in lieu of the provisions of section 307.366, RSMo, shall be inspected and approved prior to sale or transfer, unless such inspection and approval has occurred in the ninety-day period immediately preceding such sale or transfer. In addition, any such vehicle manufactured as an even-numbered model year vehicle shall be inspected and approved under the emissions inspection program established pursuant to sections 643.300 to 643.355 in each even-numbered calendar year and any such vehicle manufactured as an odd-numbered model year vehicle shall be inspected and approved under the emissions inspection program established pursuant to sections 643.300 to 643.355 in each odd-numbered calendar year. All motor vehicles subject to the inspection requirements of sections 643.300 to 643.355 shall display a valid emissions inspection sticker, and when applicable, a valid emissions inspection certificate shall be presented at the time of registration or registration renewal of such motor vehicle.
2. No emission standard established by the commission for a given make and model year shall exceed the lesser of the following:
(1) The emission standard for that vehicle model year as established by the United States Environmental Protection Agency; or
(2) The emission standard for that vehicle make and model year as established by the vehicle manufacturer.
3. The inspection requirement of subsection 1 of this section shall apply to all motor vehicles except:
(1) Motor vehicles [with a manufacturer's gross vehicle weight rating in excess of eight thousand five hundred pounds] within the first four years of the specific model year for such motor vehicle;
(2) Motorcycles and motortricycles if such vehicles are exempted from the motor vehicle emissions inspection under federal regulation and approved by the commission by rule;
(3) Model year vehicles manufactured twenty-six years or more prior to the current model year;
(4) Vehicles which are powered exclusively by electric or hydrogen power or by fuels other than gasoline which are exempted from the motor vehicle emissions inspection under federal regulation and approved by the commission by rule;
(5) Motor vehicles registered in an area subject to the inspection requirements of sections 643.300 to 643.355 which are domiciled and operated exclusively in an area of the state not subject to the inspection requirements of sections 643.300 to 643.355, but only if the owner of such vehicle presents to the department an affidavit that the vehicle will be operated exclusively in an area of the state not subject to the inspection requirements of sections 643.300 to 643.355 for the next twenty-four months, and the owner applies for and receives a waiver which shall be presented at the time of registration or registration renewal;
(6) Motor vehicles owned by persons sixty-five years of age or older which have an odometer reading increase of less than five thousand miles per year since the odometer reading of such motor vehicle at the immediately preceding emissions inspection;
(7) New and unused motor vehicles, of model years of the current calendar year and of any calendar year within two years of such calendar year, which have an odometer reading of less than six thousand miles at the time of original sale by a motor vehicle manufacturer or licensed motor vehicle dealer to the first user; and
[(7)] (8) Historic motor vehicles registered pursuant to section 301.131, RSMo.
4. The commission may, by rule, allow inspection reciprocity with other states having equivalent or more stringent testing and waiver requirements than those established pursuant to sections 643.300 to 643.355.
5. (1) At the time of sale, a licensed motor vehicle dealer, as defined in section 301.550, RSMo, may choose to sell a motor vehicle subject to the inspection requirements of sections 643.300 to 643.355 either:
(a) With prior inspection and approval as provided in subdivision (2) of this subsection; or
(b) Without prior inspection and approval as provided in subdivision (3) of this subsection.
(2) If the dealer chooses to sell the vehicle with prior inspection and approval, the dealer shall disclose, in writing, prior to sale, whether the vehicle obtained approval by meeting the emissions standards established pursuant to sections 643.300 to 643.355 or by obtaining a waiver pursuant to section 643.335. A vehicle sold pursuant to this subdivision by a licensed motor vehicle dealer shall be inspected and approved within the one hundred twenty days immediately preceding the date of sale, and, for the purpose of registration of such vehicle, such inspection shall be considered timely.
(3) If the dealer chooses to sell the vehicle without prior inspection and approval, the purchaser may return the vehicle within ten days of the date of purchase, provided that the vehicle has no more than one thousand additional miles since the time of sale, if the vehicle fails, upon inspection, to meet the emissions standards specified by the commission and the dealer shall have the vehicle inspected and approved without the option for a waiver of the emissions standard and return the vehicle to the purchaser with a valid emissions certificate and sticker within five working days or the purchaser and dealer may enter into any other mutually acceptable agreement. If the dealer chooses to sell the vehicle without prior inspection and approval, the dealer shall disclose conspicuously on the sales contract and bill of sale that the purchaser has the option to return the vehicle within ten days, provided that the vehicle has no more than one thousand additional miles since the time of sale, to have the dealer repair the vehicle and provide an emissions certificate and sticker within five working days if the vehicle fails, upon inspection, to meet the emissions standards established by the commission, or enter into any mutually acceptable agreement with the dealer. A violation of this subdivision shall be an unlawful practice as defined in section 407.020, RSMo. No emissions inspection shall be required pursuant to sections 643.300 to 643.360 for the sale of any motor vehicle which may be sold without a certificate of inspection and approval, as provided pursuant to subsection 2 of section 307.380, RSMo.
643.335. 1. The commission shall establish, by rule, a waiver amount which may be lower for older model vehicles and which, prior to January 1, 2001, shall be no greater than seventy-five dollars for model year vehicles prior to 1981, no greater than two hundred dollars for model year vehicles of 1981 to 1996 and no greater than [four] three hundred [and fifty] dollars for model year vehicles of 1997 and all subsequent model years. On and after January 1, 2001, the commission may, by rule, set the waiver amount, except that the waiver amount for model year vehicles of 1997 and subsequent model years shall not exceed three hundred dollars and that the waiver amount for all prior model years shall not exceed the waiver amount provided in the federal Clean Air Act, as amended, 42 U.S.C. 7401 et seq., and the regulations promulgated thereunder for the enhanced motor vehicle emissions inspection.
2. The commission shall establish, by rule, a form and a procedure for verifying that repair and adjustment was performed on a failing vehicle prior to the granting of a waiver and approval.
3. The waiver form established pursuant to subsection 2 of this section shall be an affidavit requiring:
(1) A statement signed by the repairer that the specified work was done and stating the itemized charges for the work, including labor; and
(2) A statement signed by the emissions inspection contractor that an inspection of the vehicle verified, to the extent practical, that the specified work was done.
4. A vehicle which fails upon reinspection to meet the emissions standards specified by the commission shall have the emissions standards waived and receive approval only if the owner furnishes a complete, signed affidavit satisfying the requirements of subsection 3 of this section and the cost of the parts, repairs and adjustment work performed is equal to or greater than the waiver amount established by the commission. [Costs for repair work may only be included toward reaching the waiver amount if the repairs are performed by a recognized repair technician as defined by rule.] For any motor vehicle which fails upon reinspection, the following provisions shall apply:
(1) A failing vehicle may be repaired by any mechanic of the owner's choice and remain eligible for the granting of a waiver. No failing vehicle shall be required to be repaired by a mechanic recommended, suggested, or listed by any agency of the state as an approved mechanic for conducting such repairs; and
(2) The waiver amount established by the air conservation commission shall include the labor costs associated with such repairs, including labor costs incurred if the repairs are made by a mechanic of the owner's choice as permitted in subdivision (1) of this subsection.
5. No cost for parts, repairs or adjustments shall be included toward reaching the waiver amount if such costs are covered by an emission control performance warranty provided by the manufacturer at no additional cost to the vehicle owner unless the vehicle owner provides, with the affidavit, a written denial of warranty remedy from the motor vehicle manufacturer, dealer or other person providing the warranty.
6. No cost for parts, repairs or adjustments shall be included toward reaching the waiver amount if such costs are required to correct the effects of tampering with emissions systems or air pollution control devices.
Section 1. The department of natural resources shall consult and negotiate, if necessary, with the federal Environment Protection Agency regarding any rule changes required by the provisions of sections 307.366, 643.315, and 643.335, RSMo, which may adversely impact this state's compliance with the federal Clean Air Act. No later than September 1, 2005, any proposed rules to be promulgated or modified under the authority of sections 307.366, 643.315, and 643.335, RSMo, based on the amendments to such sections shall be submitted to the joint interim committee on emissions, which is hereby established to operate in the 2005 legislative interim. The committee shall provide its comments and recommendations on such proposed rules on or before November 1, 2005. This section shall terminate on January 1, 2006.
Section B. The repeal and reenactment of sections 307.366, 643.315, and 643.335 of section A of this act shall become effective January 1, 2006.