Vehicle Safety Systems Inspection - Automotive Repair - Business & Professions - CA

Section § 9888.5

This law focuses on ensuring vehicle safety systems and components are installed, maintained, and serviced correctly. The director is responsible for creating inspection criteria and issuing licenses to stations and technicians to inspect and repair these systems. By January 1, 2024, regulations must be in place detailing inspection standards, license application fees, and compliance certification processes. Current licenses and certificates for vehicle safety inspections will be replaced over time with new ones under these rules. Existing licenses and certificates remain valid for six months after new regulations are implemented.

(a) The director shall develop inspection criteria and standards for specific safety systems and components of the vehicle in order to promote the safe and uniform installation, maintenance, and servicing of vehicle safety systems and components.

(b) The director shall issue vehicle safety systems inspection licenses to stations and technicians to conduct inspections of, and repairs to, safety systems of vehicles. The director may electronically issue these licenses.

(c) By January 1, 2024, the director shall adopt the regulations, in accordance with the rulemaking provisions of the Administrative Procedure Act (Chapter 3.5 (commencing with Section 11340) of Part 1 of Division 3 of Title 2 of the Government Code), including, but not limited to, all of the following:

(1) Inspection criteria and standards for specific safety systems and components of the vehicle in order to promote the safe and uniform installation, maintenance, and servicing of vehicle safety systems and components.

(2) The application fee and process for applicants, including any specialized application process for those licensees licensed pursuant to Article 5 (commencing with Section 9887.1) and Article 6 (commencing with Section 9888.1).

(3) The certificate of compliance fee and certification process for vehicles, including any specialized certification process for those vehicles certified pursuant to Article 8 (commencing with Section 9889.15). The director shall prescribe a form for the certificate of compliance that contains, at a minimum, the date of issuance, the make and registration number of the vehicle, and the official license of the station.

(d) The vehicle safety systems inspection license shall replace licenses issued pursuant to Article 5 (commencing with Section 9887.1) and Article 6 (commencing with Section 9888.1). Licenses issued in accordance with those articles shall remain valid until six months after the effective date of regulations adopted pursuant to subdivision (c). A licensee with a license issued pursuant to Article 5 (commencing with Section 9887.1) or Article 6 (commencing with Section 9888.1) shall thereafter be regulated under this article and shall apply for and be issued a vehicle safety systems inspection license under this article.

(e) The vehicle safety systems inspection certificate shall replace certificates issued pursuant to Article 8 (commencing with Section 9889.15). Certificates issued in accordance with that article shall remain valid until six months after the director adopts regulations pursuant to subdivision (c).

vehicle safety systems inspection criteria safety system maintenance

Section § 9888.6

This law is about vehicle safety system inspections in California. When a licensed inspector checks a vehicle's safety systems and confirms they meet the required standards, they must give a certificate of compliance to the vehicle owner or driver. Inspectors might have to send these compliance records electronically to the state department, and they might be charged a fee for each transmission. The law also allows the director to send these certificates to the Department of Motor Vehicles. Additionally, the director will look into improving database systems to handle fees and the issuance and tracking of these certificates, and can hire services to manage an electronic certificate system.

(a) A licensee shall issue to the owner or driver of a vehicle a certificate of compliance on a form prescribed by the director if, after conducting an inspection of, and any necessary repair to, the safety systems of the vehicle, the licensee determines that the safety systems conform with the inspection criteria and standards adopted by the director.

(b)

(1) The director may require a licensee to electronically transmit to the department a record of each certificate of compliance issued.

(2) The department may, for each transmission pursuant to this subdivision, charge a licensee a transaction fee established by the department that shall be only sufficient to cover the actual regulatory costs of administering those transmissions.

(c) The director may electronically transmit to the Department of Motor Vehicles certificates of compliance issued by licensees.

(d)

(1) The director shall evaluate the feasibility of augmenting existing database systems to support the charging of fees with respect to, and the issuance and tracking of, certificates of compliance.

(2) The director may enter into a contract for services necessary to maintain and operate an electronic certificate system for the program.

vehicle safety inspections certificate of compliance electronic transmission