Air quality scientists slammed Republican Del. Christopher Bouchat and state Sen. Justin Ready’s plans to cross-file legislation that would eliminate the Maryland Vehicle Emissions Inspection Program (VEIP).
“Vehicle emission testing is really important for vehicles that burn gasoline or diesel. We just need to know what’s coming out of them,” Peter DeCarlo, an environmental health and engineering professor at Johns Hopkins University, told The Baltimore Sun. “There will be health burdens if we eliminate that testing.”
VEIP requires most gas-powered vehicles to undergo emissions testing every two years to reduce air pollution, according to the Maryland Motor Vehicle Administration (MVA). The program, managed in partnership with the Maryland Department of the Environment, began in the 1980s as part of the state’s compliance with the federal Clean Air Act. The fee increased from $14 to $30 in July, which is estimated to generate about $31 million annually.
Bouchat, who represents Carroll County, criticized the program, saying it is overly costly to taxpayers and has “outlived its usefulness” because cars are now built cleaner.
DeCarlo and Albert Presto, a mechanical engineering director at Carnegie Mellon University, agreed that while emission technology has improved, inspections remain critical.
“The inspection is the time where those failures or those breakages can get caught and repaired,” Presto said. “It’s reasonable to assume that not inspecting vehicles could lead to worse air pollution.”
DeCarlo said that most cars will pass the inspection, but those that do not must be urgently addressed.
“Those are the ones that typically are the highest polluters,” he said. “The benefit of an inspection program is that it identifies those vehicles and requires them to improve their emissions before they can get back on the road. [Eliminating the program] will certainly impact Maryland’s air quality.”
Bouchat countered by noting that the inspection program “does not improve the output of the vehicle — it’s the manufacturing that does that.” He added, “They’ll want to keep it in perpetuity, even though we’re never going to reach 100 percent. All the new cars are passing, so the overwhelming majority of cars are passing and will continue to.”
Ready added, “I don’t believe the emissions testing is about air and emissions testing anymore,” Ready said. “It may have been at one point — I’m sure it was well intentioned. At this point, it’s become a cash grab for the state.”
John Lazarou, the MVA’s director of media relations, defended the program following Bouchat’s announcement.
“Over the past three decades, the Vehicle Emissions Inspection Program (VEIP) has been a cornerstone program to enforce emissions compliance, reduce harmful air pollutants, and improve air quality. As vehicle technology has improved, the Maryland Motor Vehicle Administration and Maryland Department of Environment have modernized the program for the benefit of Marylanders,” Lazarou said in a statement to The Sun, adding that this includes self-service kiosks, delayed new vehicle testing, and a new contract that assists customers whose vehicles fail initial testing.
However, DeCarlo said the greatest environmental and health risks from eliminating VEIP would occur in urban areas.
“We have a higher density of people and roads in urban areas. And so if we do get an increase in pollution from vehicles because we got rid of testing, those effects are going to be felt the most by people who live near major roadways,” he said.
Have a news tip? Contact Mennatalla Ibrahim at mibrahim@baltsun.com.
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