FRANKLIN COUNTY, Mo. — The car registration process is getting a little bit easier in Franklin County starting next month.
On July 1, Franklin County residents will no longer be required to get a vehicle emissions test in order to register their cars. The requirement remains for vehicles registered in Jefferson County, St. Charles County, St. Louis County and St. Louis City.
The change comes after the Missouri Department of Natural Resources submitted a formal request to the EPA to end the testing requirement. The Missouri DNR provided documentation that showed the change would not jeopardize air quality because of federal vehicle regulations.
Under new rules unveiled by the federal government in April, new vehicles sold in the United States will have to travel an average of at least 40 miles per gallon of gasoline in 2026.
Osage Street Garage owner Kevin Schwartzkopf says the change won't cut into business profits unless there's something wrong.
"If a car comes in, fails emissions, then you have to diagnose and repair whatever the case may be," Schwartzkopf said.
The garage owner said his biggest concern with the emissions test going away is drivers ignoring the check engine light.
"Some of them affect the cars performance and the way it runs and can cause engine damage," Schwartzkopf said. "Some of them are mainly more about pollution than anything else."
“We are happy to announce the removal of this regulatory burden for vehicle owners in Franklin County,” Dru Buntin, the director of the Department of Natural Resources, said in a press release. “We will continue to evaluate and pursue opportunities to remove burdens on our citizens where it will not jeopardize the environmental improvements we have achieved.”
Last July, Missouri Gov. Mike Parson vetoed a bill that would have removed St. Charles, Franklin and Jefferson counties from a U.S. Environmental Protection Agency program that required vehicle emissions testing. The program, which also includes the city of St. Louis and St. Louis County, was designed to bring the St. Louis area into compliance with federal air quality standards.