Leno's Law

Had a Fedex shipment show as "delivered" via a text message - no package anywhere around the house. I called and was told the driver verified the delivery was correct. "How did he do that," I asked. "He verified the address with his GPS." "Did he LOOK at the number on the house and on the curb?" "What do you mean?" she replied, "the GPS shows it was delivered to the correct address, somebody must have taken it!" Apparently they pay NO attention to the actual address numbers on the house/curb. If the GPS says they are there, they're there! I hung up and walked down the street to find my package sitting on the porch of the house 3 doors down. I called Fedex back and a different person apologized, saying, "That's been happening a lot."

 

Yeah I shipped some wheels through them and they absolutely trashed them to the point that I had to file a claim. That was super fun. I finally got my insurance claim two months later after fighting with them, speaking with supervisors, etc.

I haven't had to do this with the post office... here's hoping it's an easier task, but I HIGHLY doubt it.

 

Give it eight months, maybe it'll show up like my books did.

 

Sort of related...

Is there a way without using brute force to remove the gauge lenses for cleaning? Mine have 35 years of oily fog behind them.

 

Not a great day for Leno's law. The CA Senate Appropriations Committee voted today to "move to suspense" SB712, which stops all public debate and is often used to kill bills in back room deals.

https://www.capradio.org/articles/2023/05/16/understanding-how-a-california-bill-dies-without-public-debate/

Its not "dead", but a lot of bills are killed this way -- and there is nothing that can be done aside from lobbyists. MAYBE Leno and SEMA are throwing money around. We will never know.

 

Sad, but that thing was dead on arrival. I don't care who was backing it, Sacramento doesn't have the votes and could care less about what makes sense. Follow the money, and Leno simply didn't offer enough (or any?) to the lobbyists and bureaucrats to undermine their environmentalist voters

 

Yeah, seems absurd that anyone would think that such a bill would actually have ANY support from other than the insignificant number of folks (like us) who own cars in that category. Sounds crazy! What will they think of next, remaking Snow White? Oh...wait...

 

It wouldn’t be the first time that something non-sensical has happened in the state Senate. But this doesn’t align at all with the previous step. Around a week prior to this suspension thing, it passed committee 12-2. I hope we are just reading too much into the sausage making process. It seems awfully strange that a bill that passed committee so overwhelmingly would suddenly have nobody but ghosts defending it. That doesn’t seem to add up.

https://www.sema.org/news-media/enews/2025/16/milestone-collector-cars-lenos-law-passes-senate-committee

One angle I heard them taking is that they basically need to remove the roller tests and go OBDII-only for emissions testing. That means any car built before the late 1990s couldn’t be tested. Apparently the number of tests of older cars is very low, so low that many smog shops won’t even do them any more. They aren’t profitable. And when they do perform these tests, the price is like 4x that for a newer car.

If you can stand to listen to a long description of what’s going on, this guy’s YouTube channel has all the details.

 

Hmmm, interesting. I have to admit the bill makes sense to me when viewed from the emissions testing/cost effectiveness point of view for the shops.!

 

sad that it has to be that way, i never understood how someone can start in politics and be worth nothing and in a few years be millionaires.

but i do not like bring that stuff up, you guys out there have it tough. the car i have now start life in California and now is in NY and outside of having the high idle bypass it is stock, here in NYS i only have safety inspection and as i am writing this i am planning on removing all the emissions and putting on headers and straight pipes with no worries. there is a big sticker on my windshield saying the car is California emission compliant right were my NYS stickers have to go lol i am not going to remove it the sticker but everything else i am thinking about. i hope you guys get something in place to help you keep your cars on the road.

 

That's the way NYS does it
If you have a OBD2 plug built in your car it's tested if not safety test only

 

is this over for you guys or is there still a chance,

 

Really depends on the lobbyists and their influence behind the scenes. What happens now will never be seen in public. Not sure SEMA can overcome the green lawyers but its possible. The argument in favor of Leno's law is that it actually costs the state more to do nothing. The argument against is that its admitting "gross polluting" cars are OK for CA.

Bottom line is its easy for a politician to do nothing on this issue. Very little risk and they will be anonymous. Lots of bill die exactly this way in CA.

 

Not dead yet. If it passes it seems very similar to Nevada which isn't that bad. In Nevada we need classic car insurance and plates but there's no smog check required. However, we have to verify the insurance and mileage each year. If it passes its really good news for Hagerty. I wonder if other major insurance companies also join in with this many potential new customers from CA.

What I don't like is THIS LANGUAGE in the CA law about "Historic Vehicles": "under state law means the car “may only be driven in historical exhibitions, parades or historic vehicle club activities.” What it means is a cop can stop any car with historic plates if it sees it on city streets. Or you get a ticket or an accident. Or, CA may have a hotline to tell the DMV someone is violating this requirement. Clearly there are some in CA who are against this change.

IMO, it will fail to pass even with these changes.


California lawmakers narrow Jay Leno bill to end smog checks for vehicles 35 years and older
Amendments would allow exemptions only for cars with historic plates and collector’s insurance

https://www.mercurynews.com/2025/05/28/california-lawmakers-narrow-jay-leno-bill-to-end-smog-checks-for-vehicles-35-years-and-older/

State lawmakers in Sacramento have pumped the brakes on a bill pushed by comedian and famed car collector Jay Leno to make older cars exempt from smog checks in California.

Bill SB 712, dubbed “Leno’s Law,” originally would have allowed vehicles 35 years or older to avoid the state’s requirement to pass a smog check test that most other California vehicles face every two years.

The measure has been embraced by classic car owners, hot rodders and car clubs around the state, who say it is often difficult and expensive for pre-1990 vehicles to pass smog check tests, and there aren’t many of the vehicles left.

But after concerns from health groups that it would increase air pollution by letting smoky old junkers that aren’t used in parades or car shows out of smog checks, legislators have added new restrictions to narrow the bill.

On Friday, the state Senate Appropriations Committee voted 5-1 to advance the bill to the Senate floor. But the committee added two key amendments to limit who is eligible. First, lawmakers required that vehicles 35 years or older seeking the smog check exemption must have a historical vehicle license plate, which costs $25 in addition to regular registration fees and which under state law means the car “may only be driven in historical exhibitions, parades or historic vehicle club activities.”

Second, they required that the owners must have collector’s car insurance, which is usually cheaper than regular insurance, but which often sets limits on how many miles a year the vehicle can be driven, prohibits daily driving and requires the vehicle to be kept in a locked garage.

Because of the Memorial Day weekend holiday, the specific language of the amendments wasn’t made public until Wednesday. Lawmakers said they are trying to find a balance between public health and the state’s long history of car culture.

“The goal has always been to protect legitimate collectors, people who own and maintain older vehicles as a hobby, not as daily drivers,” said Elisa Rivera, a spokeswoman for Sen. Anna Caballero, a Democrat from Merced, who is chairwoman of the Appropriations Committee.

“These amendments help tighten eligibility to ensure that only true collector vehicles, not high-emission cars used for regular transportation, receive the smog check exemption,” she said.

Rivera noted that Caballero’s Central Valley district has some of the highest levels of smog in the United States and some of the highest levels of childhood asthma.

Some car collectors who have tracked the bill carefully were disappointed.

“Any progress is still good. But I’d prefer the amendments didn’t get added,” said Mike Frankovich, who founded Californians for Classic Car Smog Exemptions.

Frankovich, a Pasadena property manager, has a 1940 Ford Coupe, a 1956 Cadillac, a 1965 Volkswagen Beetle, a 1967 Plymouth Satellite, a 1969 Chevy Impala, a 1977 AMC Pacer, a 1986 Chevy Suburban, a 1983 Dodge Van and a 1990 Mustang.

He said there aren’t many shops that even perform smog checks on older cars. Many car collectors don’t want the state’s white historical license plate because they prefer the original license plate that corresponds to the year of their vehicle, he added. And not everyone has access to a garage. He said he hopes the amendments are removed as the bill progresses.

“The majority of legislators in California don’t know how hard it is to get a smog check for collector cars,” he said. “It’s hard to find a place. It’s hard to find all the original equipment. Most cars 35 and older aren’t used as daily transportation. Everyone who has been outside knows that.”

Opponents of the bill said they still think it goes too far.

“Clean air is a necessity. Collecting cars is a hobby,” said State Sen. Aisha Wahab, a Fremont Democrat who voted no on the bill in the committee. “I do not support rolling back progress on a public health issue we have spent decades trying to improve.”

Some 1980s vehicles emit more than 100 times the tailpipe pollution of a new vehicle, said Will Barrett, national senior director for clean air advocacy at the American Lung Association.

“The reality is these vehicles emit a lot more pollution than other cars,” Barrett said. “Giving them a blanket exemption to get out of these programs is problematic.”

Leno’s reaction was unclear Wednesday. The former Tonight Show host, who lives in Burbank and owns an extensive collection of vehicles — including at least 181 cars and 160 motorcycles — put out a statement Friday praising the fact that the bill had cleared the committee and was heading toward a full Senate vote. But the specific language in the amendments hadn’t been released then.

“California helped invent car culture, from lowriders in East L.A. to muscle cars in the Central Valley,” Leno said. “These cars tell our story. SB 712 is about keeping that story alive. These vehicles are only driven occasionally, not daily, and it makes sense to treat them differently.”

Under current state law, every vehicle owner must get a smog check every other year unless their vehicle is 8 years old or newer, is an alternative vehicle like an electric car, or is model year 1975 and older.

If a vehicle fails, the owner must repair it and have it tested again until it passes before they can get it registered.

Over the past two years, approximately 342,000 vehicles with a 1976-1990 model year were given smog check tests, according to the state Bureau of Automotive Repair. About 68,000 of those vehicles, or 20% of all vehicles with those model years, failed the smog check.

“While I have concerns about the amendments, I remain optimistic that we can work to improve the language as the bill continues through the legislative process,” said State Sen. Shannon Grove, a Republican from Bakersfield and the author of the bill.

 

seems like it will get a vote but sounds like they are going to make it so hard that it is not worth it, what is the point of having a car that you cannot just get in and drive when you want, milage limits only concern events, not for me, i just cannot believe for a state that has so many oil wells hidden in plain sight and other environmental impacting industries this law is a problem, but for seeing almost every product sold has a print saying "this product may cause cancer in the state of California" or "not to be sold in California" tells me a lot, good luck guys

 

In Illinois, the law is quite strict about "daily use". However, there are these exceptions:
an antique vehicle can be driven for educational demonstrations at schools or historical society events.
The Illinois Vehicle Code also allows for use during repair and maintenance activities. Transporting a vehicle to a mechanic or restoration facility is permitted, acknowledging the necessity of maintaining its operability and historical condition.

The "daily use" portion of the law is rarely enforced, and there is NO requirement governing emissions.

Mike Flanagan

 

The classic car plate restrictions on driving is common in many (most?) states. CA would be doing nothing unusual by implementing those restrictions - they are the same in the 3 states I have used such registration. Based on my experience with my 328 with classic car plate for almost 10 years now, I doubt any law enforcement officer is going to pull a car over because it has a classic plate. Of course, if they stop it for some moving violation, they MIGHT ask about where you were going, etc. My red classic-plated 328 was parked in front of a diner neat Annapolis, MD when two State Troopers came in to have coffee. We basically walked out at the same time. They saw the car, walked over, asked me what it was like to drive, made the usual Magnum connection, complimented it and went on their way.

HOWEVER, I will say that for "normal" registration, I see no issue with requiring a car to meet the emissions standards that it had to meet for its model year.

 

I am lucky as a '75 owner. It would stink not being able to keep original blue plates or the palm trees / sunset if they are with the car from original ownership - I do think this adds value. However, outweighing it all, its better to run the car and not have to deal with the current requirements, than not.

Here are a couple of my blue plate memories from my baby girl and one of our old Boxer from my youth!

 

This language is totally grey and unpoliceable entirely on purpose. It's impossible to prove a driver isn't using the car for some 'club activity' because nothing on record defines what constitutes a 'club activity'. That means any average classic owner can say they're participating in the 'drive your classic once a week challenge' for 'X club' or 'name your classic activity here'.

This grey area language is for the politicians in CA who want to please their green constituents but still get the law through. Yeah it's worded funky, but the language is on purpose. Lots of bills are passed like this. Remember years ago when Bill Clinton place a fat tax on anyone making over $1m a year? It was called the CEO tax or something like that. The CEOs simply altered the way they were paid so it was all in the form of 'bonuses' quarterly or annually etc. There's still hope. That's politics.

 

The "concerns from health groups" are completely unrealistic and it's a shame no one has argued this point. People aren't suddenly going to start driving their 35-year-or-older-car more because they no longer have to get smog. They're going to continue driving it the way they always have. This will not make pollution worse, it will literally have no impact.

I'm also not interested in losing my blue plates on my 1975 model, is the intent to make this law impact ALL cars 35 years and older—including those year model 1975 and older?

 

I have blue plates too on my car too. The front plate has never been on the car and is still in the DMV envelope. Was once pulled over in a group to get "talked to" about front license plates.

I wrote my third email to my CA Senator last night regarding the bill. Letters, phone calls and email do educate and have an effect. It maybe that legislators don't know what the "rolling road" dynamometer test is, how ODB-1 and older cars need to be tested that way, and how increasingly difficult it is to find a shop willing to do the test, etc. I also encouraged my senator to check with CARB to corroborate William Barrett's dubious claim.

 

Glad to see this bill passing hurdles in the CA Senate as it has become more difficult to find a Star Station that is willing to test at a reasonable cost and has their tailpipe tester recently calibrated. I'm going through this now.

Leave it to politicians to take an exisiting law, 1975 cars and older that was created in 2001, to address the very same concern as now. At that time 30 years or older was the criteria to be smog exempt, no need for historical plates or collector car insurance. This law remains unchanged.

Now comes SB712 for which cars 35 years old BUT AFTER 1975 model year will need to have historical plates and collector insurance. In CA there are an estimated 300K classic cars that are 35 years or older, basically 1% of the cars on the road. You mean these cars becoming smog exempt will immediately deteriorate air quality. These cars will never be daily drivers, once a week at best. Most states that have exemptions are a rolling 25 - 35 year provision. They should just ammend the current law to a rolling 35 years. This would be an easy fix for the DMV rather than waiting until 2027 to give them enough time to prepare, which as we all know will not be enough time.

On a separate note : What about all the gardeners and landscape people that use multiple types of 2 stroke gas powered equipment on a daily basis several times a day !! Now that's real pollution that no pollitician wants to address but our classic cars are the problem ?

 

Have you told your Senator this yet?

 

This. Literally nobody has presented any data on how many pre-1990 cars actually fail smog check, and by how much. Nor has anyone presented data to show total emissions from these vehicles when considering the actual mileage driven. Nobody has talked about how so many people have just simply registered cars outside the state. In other words, no fact and logic applied, just feelings and vague talking points. Unfortunately that’s all you get from California’s ruling political class. We get what we vote for, and we got garbage.

There was however a BAR presentation on roller tests showing how many of those are done anymore in the state. The number is vanishingly small as a percentage of overall smog checks. Obsolescence of roller tests is an important angle here that again isn’t being considered.