Local lawmakers want to make E-Check easier

[In the player above, watch previous FOX 8 News coverage on a 2023 push to end Ohio’s E-Check program .]

COLUMBUS , Ohio (WJW) — Two Northeast Ohio lawmakers have introduced a bill to make E-Check , the state’s vehicle emissions inspection program, less burdensome, even giving vehicle owners a way to skip inspections altogether.

State Reps. Steve Demetriou of Bainbridge Township, R-35th, and Bill Roemer of Richfield, R-31st, are sponsoring House Bill 640 , called the E-Check Ease Act.

Under Ohio’s E-Check program , residents in seven counties — Cuyahoga, Geauga, Lake, Lorain, Medina, Portage and Summit — who own cars that are between 4 and 25 years old are required to have their emissions inspected every two years. A passing inspection is required for vehicle registration in those seven counties.

The proposed change would expand the exemption for newer cars from four years old to six years old. Hybrid vehicles that are seven years old or newer would also be exempt.

The bill also allows vehicle owners to forego inspections entirely and obtain an “alternative emissions certificate” from the Ohio Environmental Protection Agency, attesting that their car meets state emissions laws “to the best of their knowledge.”

Read the full bill:

That attestation would be rejected if the EPA determines it was falsified or if the vehicle in question was in a collision in the prior two years which caused “substantial” internal damage. Rejected owners would then have to get the car inspected.

The bill has yet to be assigned to a committee for hearings.

Last year, Roemer and several other local legislators wrote to Ohio EPA Director Anne Vogel, calling for an end to Ohio’s E-Check program, which started in 1996, citing better air quality in the region, compared to Central Ohio.

Swiss firm IQ Air named Columbus the most polluted major U.S. city in 2023 .

The EPA, in response, stated, “while the air quality has improved in Northeast Ohio in the last 30 years, the area does not meet the current health-based standard for ozone.” The region’s failure to control emissions could lead to new restrictions in the near future, the EPA said last year.

The E-Check program removes more than 74 tons of vehicle emissions from Northeast Ohio air daily, according to OhioECheck.info .

The lawmakers plan to brief reporters on the new legislation next week at a Twinsburg business.

For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to Fox 8 Cleveland WJW.