Your yearly NC vehicle inspections could change this year. Here’s what to know

Mary Ramsey
·3 min read
24

A change may be coming to vehicle inspections for drivers in some North Carolina counties.

The newly released N.C. House budget proposal includes a provision to remove the requirement for emissions tests for many car and truck owners. A similar bill was also introduced in the state Senate during the 2023 legislative session.

But some Charlotte-area drivers would still have to get emissions inspections.

Here’s what to know about the potential changes to North Carolina’s car emissions inspections:

Air pollution issues improving in some counties, supporters say

Current North Carolina law requires emissions tests as part of yearly inspections for vehicles in 19 North Carolina counties, but most of those counties now have air quality that falls within the Environmental Protection Agency’s standards, state Sen. Steve Jarvis told the Winston-Salem Journal.

“This is something that’ll be a major benefit to our lower-income tier of the entire state,” the Davie and Davidson County Republican said. “They’re hit the hardest by the emissions testing when a lot of times a (indicator) light will come on and they’ll have to spend $500, $1,000 for issues that are usually just sensors. The car’s not doing anything bad. It’s just a sensor that’s bad.”

As of last month, car emissions tests are still required in the following counties:

  • Alamance

  • Buncombe

  • Cabarrus

  • Cumberland

  • Davidson

  • Durham

  • Forsyth

  • Franklin

  • Gaston

  • Guilford

  • Iredell

  • Johnston

  • Lincoln

  • Mecklenburg

  • New Hanover

  • Randolph

  • Rowan

  • Wake

  • Union

Emissions tests would still be required in Mecklenburg County

Even if the proposed emissions test changes become law, nothing would change for Mecklenburg County vehicle owners.

Mecklenburg is the one county that would still have an emissions inspection requirement under both the proposed House budget and Senate bill.

It’s the one county of those with a requirement that hasn’t brought down its air pollution to safe levels, Jarvis told the Winston-Salem Journal.

Safety inspections would still be required

Safety inspections would still be mandatory for most North Carolina vehicle owners even if the emissions test requirement is repealed.

Vehicles less than 30 years old have to be inspected annually and “must be completed within 90 days” of renewing your registration, the N.C. Department of Transportation says.

Safety inspections must be done by a licensed mechanic and “examine a vehicle’s headlights, signals, brakes, steering, windows and tires.”

Plan would have to be sent to EPA

If the legislature were to approve the changes to emissions inspection rules, the changes wouldn’t immediately take effect.

The state Department of Environmental Quality would first have to submit by the end of 2023 “a proposed North Carolina State Implementation Plan amendment” to the EPA addressing the change and its impact.

The EPA would then have to approve the amendment.

Before that, the N.C. House and Senate would need to pass a budget with the the emissions test language included and get the governor’s signature.

NC’s emissions testing rules were last changed in 2019

This isn’t the first time state legislators have tried to change the rules surrounding car emissions tests.

The most recent change ended the emissions inspection requirement in 26 counties and exempted cars and trucks older than 20 years from emissions testing, the Raleigh News & Observer reported at the time.

The General Assembly approved that change in 2017, and it took effect in 2019 after getting EPA approval.