(Probably) Definitive Info on Colorado Emissions, Collector’s Plates and Late Fees
 

Great post!

One thing. This:

The only time a car isn’t tested is when the technician is calibrating the equipment which is two or three times a day. He recommended that if you know your car is clean that you drive through as many of those mobile stations as possible to increase your chances that you won’t have to take your car in for a test you pay for. It will save you about $24 and the time and stress of having some hack technician mess with your car.

Seems to imply that the mobile testing rig saves you money, which it doesn't. If your car passes via the mobile testing rig the $25 emissions fee is just added onto your next registration renewal card you receive in the mail.

It does save time, though, as long as you pass.

I must have slid by
 

I checked the renewal registration for my trusty ol' 1996 Camry that passed the mobile testing way recently. The total renewal fee was $38.12 and there was no fee for emissions. I thought you only paid if you had to go in. Not sure why I didn't have to pay like you state Gogar ... maybe it's just an old car. Hmmm. Please don't call the governor or I'm sure they'll send out the revenuers to collect.

Hmmm I don't know. The only reason I replied is because I renewed my 1991 Toyota pickup and had passed the roadside thing, the total was $81, up from 56, and there was a line item "emissions testing fee."

Perhaps the roadside thing tests you all the time and your results show up, but you only pay the $25 every two years, when required.

My test was definitely due
 

My renewal postcard said that my car passed the mobile testing and that I only needed to send in the fee. I wonder how I dodged that bullet?

I'm on hold with Boulder County Clerk right now...

So far she has confirmed that starting September 1st, 76 and later cars will NOT be able to get collector plates. 75 and earlier only, Just like CA.

She also confirmed that you WILL lose your collector plates if your reg lapses and your car is later than 75.

Ask your friend to inquire about it, she will be surprised, as this all just hit last week.

Ferg

Any chance she'd send you the regs
 

Ferg:

While your on the phone with her can you ask her to send/fax you the regs on this? The clerk/friend I spoke with really dug around in the regs after I told her the story and she couldn't find anything about it. There was nothing about this change on DORA either. That was last Friday.

She told me I could go on the state site and find the new law, Ritter signed it but I have not had the time to go and look for it, and I suck at reading legal mumbo jumbo...

I too am friends with my clerk, and this second clerk just confirmed.

Sucks big time, but seems to be true.

see here...

http://www.oldcarcouncil.org/Legislature.html

SB09-003 Motor Vehicle emissions Programs (Bacon, Fischer) This bill is the result of our meetings with
RAQC over the past 18 months. Here is the official summary:
Excludes a collector's item motor vehicle with a model year of 1975 or earlier from the emissions testing
process. Correspondingly, changes the definition of "collector's item" from a motor vehicle that is at least 25
years old to a vehicle that is either:
1. A model year of 1975 or earlier; or
2 . A model year of 1976 or later that is registered as a collector's item on or before September 1, 2009.
Prevents a motor vehicle with a model year of 1976 or later that is registered as a collector's item on or before
September 1, 2009, from being registered as a collector's item after sale or transfer to a new owner.
The bill also extends the "enhanced" emission area to heavily populated areas of Weld and Larimer counties.
This is done to help bring the Denver metro area into compliance with EPA maximum ground level ozone
concentrations (brown smog) during stagnant air days.
Progress:
signed by the Governor.

I guess I'm in that grey area. Luckily I have my collector plates already.

I'm from Iowa, one state north of Missouri
 

Mike, I'm not doubting you or the clerk you spoke with but it still seems strange to me that the regs that the lady at Douglas County DMV reviewed said nothing about this and she wasn't aware of any of this. I'm also suprised that the fellow at the Denver Emissions Testing Center didn't seem to know about it.

I'm very confident that the fellow who had the Mustang that got all upset when they wouldn't renew his collector's plates, mentioned on another Pelican thread about this problem, would have had his collector's plate renewed by this lady at Douglas County DMV; no sweat.

Plus I'm concerned that there's nothing on the Colorado state website. I just feel like the only way to know is to actually see the regs in black and white. So many times this stuff can be based on hearsay. That's why I was hoping your clerk friend could fax you the actual regs.

In any event if the drop dead date is really Sept. 1st I'm going to need to throw this puppy together pretty fast!

Probably went up because of the new licensing fees that began in July (from the June 28th Durango Herald):

"The size of the fees varies by the weight of the vehicle, but most drivers will see their registration fees increase by $32. Late fines are going up, too, and there will be a $2 daily fee on rental cars. The fees come from Senate Bill 108, the first new funding source for Colorado highways since the last time the gas tax increased nearly two decades ago."

Nope. My 2007 fees were $56. My 2009 fees were $81, and when I renewed online there was a specific line item that stated the extra $25 was for "Mobile emissions testing station" or something similar. And, the $25.00 is noted in the "EM. FEE" section of the actual registration slip.
http://forums.pelicanparts.com/support/smileys/wat.gif

I'm not sure what proof this is, but here's a little "black and white"

http://www.leg.state.co.us/clics/clics2009a/csl.nsf/fsbillcont3/F2A88B9B258F49A487257537001A2FF9?open&file=003_01. pdf

http://www.state.co.us/gov_dir/leg_dir/olls/sl2009a/sl_322.htm

I would "guess" that untill it Sept 1 it may be a judgment call, my clerk said not everyone is well informed at this stage, but as I and porschenut posted, the law has been passed, and new rules will go into place.

So anyone that has post 75 car, I suggest you get it plated before then!!!

SB 09-003 enacted
 

I stand corrected with apologies.

No apologies needed. SmileWavy

I was the guy with the Mustang story... Since it was such a shock, after confirming it, I wanted to do what I could to get the unfortunate news out!

I am still interested to hear if your girl would still renew lapsed plates, I got a absolutely not here in Boulder/Louisville (both locations). May be good info for those currently in that pickle...



Ferg.

DC versus BC
 

Ferg:

Don't you have to go to your resident county to get your plates? So it sounds hopeless for the Mustang guy unless he moves to Douglas County really fast.

As I mentioned, if I'd have been the guy with the Mustang my DC DMV clerk would have renewed it without incident last Friday, other than the late fee. And all the other clerks on either side of her seemed to be listening in and didn't seem to bring up any other explanation or disagreement.

I still can't understand how something as inflammatory as messing with a guy's wheels can get such different treatment in the PR of B versus Hang 'em High DC without the press jumping all over it. From what I saw in porschenut's link there's nothing there about denying renewal of a collector's plate if you come in late. It has to be somewhere else in the regs. And it certainly looks like Sept. 1st is the trigger date regardless.

Either that or the commonly heard definition of Boulder as "twelve square miles surrounded by reality" is true (no offense).

Yeah, no joke, reality eludes this town sometimes. Yes resident county, odd same rules don't apply but does give some bite for a argument for somebody here...

They (Boulder clerks) told me that the instated that rule once the law was signed... I think it makes no sense either, since the Sept 1 date is judgment day. I wonder if you signed the car over to a spouse ect, if she could get new plates.

Anybody with a 84 Carrera get collector plates now :eek: even if you plates are good!!!

How going forward are only 75 and early cars considered collectors is beyond me... I can think of a BUNCH of late 70's and 80's cars that are highly collectible and will be a royal pain in the ass to do emissions on every 2.

Jokers all of them.

Rant over.

Ferg

Ferg, I don't think the intent of the law was to correct their interpretation of what is collectible and what isn't. I don't think "collectibility" has anything to do with it whatsoever. The intent, as I understand it, is to make it harder to own an old smoggy gas-guzzler.

There is a great deal of pressure to get Denver's air in line with tougher federal standards, and I think they saw an opportunity to adopt the same policy that California adopted a few years back (no more rolling 25-year period). They're trying to get you to dump your post-'75 car and buy a new hybrid.

Politicians and EPA regulators don't care a whit about your classic car hobby.

Collector plates are nothing more than a way for hobbyists like us to make smog-producing performance mods and get away with it. This new law, I believe, was intended to specifically target this.

Agreed, sort of
 

I think you're right. The only thing I would question with your argument is why don't they just ban all cars regardless of age that can't pass emissions if the politicians and EPA regulators don't care a whit? And why 1975; why not 1962 (which has no significance ... I just pulled that year out of the air presumably like the State Senate did with 1975)?

I've long argued that they should make all cars pass the emissions standards they were required to when the car was built. I can't claim to know for a fact what the Colorado emissions standards were when my '82 dirty little CIS pig was built but I bet they were less stringent than the standards the car has to meet today. Of course if that was the law I probably couldn't do all the mods I'd want to but at least the reg would make some sense. Why does it seem reasonable to expect an older car's owner to make his car do something it was never designed to do re: emissions?

emissions - western slope style
 

As far as I know, emissions remain a Front Range only issue in Colorado. I've never had to pass any emissions test for any car I've owned in the past 20 years, all of them have been registered in Eagle County.

Good news on the '75 being able to get collector plates, though, and I probably will do this, as this exception from testing won't last forever.

Thanks to everyone for their info and links regarding this. It is much appreciated.

---

Tom '75 targa

You are correct sir!
 

The new law added a couple more front range counties to testing (I think it was Weld, Larimer and El Paso) but Eagle wasn't one of them. Probably a good idea when you renew next if your car is newer than 1975 although it may make sense for any car. When I first bought my car the DMV clerk asked me if I wanted collector's plates. I said "No" because I wasn't sure how long I'd keep the car. What an idiot I was!:mad: