DALLAS — Bexar County in San Antonio was set to begin required emissions testing on Nov. 1, but the rollout is now on hold after the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) granted a stay.
The new requirement has raised questions about what emissions testing could mean for drivers, particularly those with older vehicles that may need repairs to pass.
At Chris Murphy’s Automotive in East Dallas, emissions testing is nothing new.
“The car has a computer in it that scans the systems and will tell you if there’s a fault,” said Nick Murphy of Chris Murphy’s Automotive.
The test checks a vehicle’s computer for problems that could cause a check engine light to turn on.
“The main thing is pollution. If the car is polluting too much, running rich, or the catalytic converter is not doing its job, it will throw a code to notify the driver,” Murphy said.
If a vehicle fails because of an emissions problem, the driver has to get the issue fixed before the vehicle can pass.
“In order to get your vehicle registered, you have to pass the emissions inspection,” Murphy said.
Emissions testing is already required in a number of Texas counties. Bexar County, where San Antonio is located, was set to join that list of counties on Nov. 1, but that plan is now on hold.
San Antonio Councilwoman Misty Spears announced that Bexar County leaders traveled to Washington to raise concerns about the impact of the new requirement on drivers. The EPA later granted a stay, delaying the Nov. 1 start date.
Spears also spoke with a San Antonio news outlet and said Dallas County is looking for a delay as well.
In a statement to Spectrum News, a Dallas County spokesperson said they were “unable to confirm” if the county had requested a delay. The spokesperson also said that, as shown on the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality website, “the DFW region has been subject to emissions testing for decades.”
For now, Bexar County drivers get more time before they have to worry about passing an emissions test — and the potential cost of repairs.