Bills Introduced in New Hampshire, New York, and Virginia would Loosen Vehicle Safety Inspection Requirements

Bills were recently introduced in New Hampshire, New York, and Virginia that would loosen requirements around those states' vehicle safety inspection programs.

New Hampshire House Bill (HB) 209 would exempt a vehicle, purchased from a licensed dealer prior to or during the vehicle's model year, from the state's vehicle safety inspection requirement for at least one year. The vehicle would have to undergo an inspection by the last day of the registered owner's birth month in the second year after the vehicle was purchased.

New York S. 344 would implement a regulatory framework that allows for autonomous vehicles (AVs) to operate on roads in the state. As part of that regulatory framework, AVs would be subject to the state's vehicle safety inspection program. However, inspection requirements relevant only to a vehicle driven by a human would not apply to AVs.

Also introduced in New York, A. 131 would maintain the current requirement that new motor vehicles to undergo a safety inspection, but that safety inspection would remain valid for five years from the data the vehicle was purchased.

HB 2334, introduced in Virginia, would provide an exemption to the state's vehicle safety inspection requirements for new vehicles. While all other vehicles are required to undergo a safety inspection every twelve months, a new vehicle would not need to undergo a safety inspection until twenty-four months after the vehicle's initial inspection.