Strock, Kozberg Release Letter to Legislators, Respond to Calls for SMOG Check II Deal, Seek Legislative Cooperation to Improve Clean Air Programs

For Immediate Release (C-35-96)
Contact: Communications Office (916) 324-9670
September 30, 1996

555 Capitol Mall, Suite 525
Sacramento, CA 95814
(916) 324-9670
FAX (916) 445-5563

SACRAMENTO -- The Wilson Administration today released a letter responding to members of the Legislature who requested suspension of the Smog Check II program.  In their letter to legislators, Secretary of State and Consumers Services Agency, Joanne Corday Kozberg and Secretary of the California Environmental Protection Agency, James M. Strock, stated that the Executive Branch does not have the constitutional authority to suspend statutes which enacted the Smog Check II program.

At the same time, they called on the Legislature to work with the Administration to assess  and make adjustments to the current program while maintaining the clean air benefits and
increasing motorist convenience.

"The Smog Check II program, which will help bring clean air to all Californians, was conceived two years ago by a non-partisan group of legislators working with the Wilson Administration.

While the flexibility included in AB 2515 will help make needed adjustments to the program, we look again to the Legislature for valuable input in the months ahead which will help the state meet its clean air goals and obligations under our State Implementation Plan," said California Secretary for Environmental Protection James M. Strock.

"Although the California Constitution does not allow us to suspend Smog Check II, we look forward to working with the Legislature to ensure that the program will be responsive to the needs of consumers while helping the state meet federal Clean Air requirements," said Joanne Corday Kozberg, Secretary of the State and Consumer Services Agency.

In their letter to legislators, Strock and Kozberg announced steps that the Administration is taking to improve the Smog Check II program including the Governor's recent signature of AB 2515 which will allow more flexibility, greater customer convenience and decreased wait times for scheduling appointments for testing.  The Inspection and Maintenance Review Committee, a panel of experts appointed by the Legislature and the Governor to establish the program, has been reactivated and will hold a series of hearings throughout the state in the coming weeks.  At that time, motorists, environmentalists, local officials, the automobile repair industry and the general public will have an opportunity to discuss the program and offer suggestions for improvement.

In addition, the Administration has increased system capacity thereby relieving testing backlog and has deferred signing contracts for test-only stations to preserve the option of using special licenses.

However, Strock and Kozberg noted, "Smog Check II shifts the focus of inspection and maintenance efforts to the small proportion of the highest polluting vehicles    the gross  polluter, whereas the federal plan that U.S. EPA sought to impose upon California would have subjected motorists to the same testing requirements.   The consequences of arbitrarily suspending all improvements to the smog check program would be dire."    This includes government-run, centralized test-only facilities instead of California's program which achieves the same emissions reductions with greater motorist convenience and less cost.

"Because of the requirements of the federal Clean Air Act, any proposed changes to Smog Check II must include credible, cost-effective alternative emissions reductions that improve air quality for all Californians.  Working together, we will maintain our right to design a program which meets the needs of Californians without dictates from Washington, D.C.  Working together, we will retain and improve a program that cleans the air while avoiding undue expense or inconvenience for motorists," concluded Strock and Kozberg.

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