SEMA formulates the federal position as a terrifying recipe for overreach where the EPA won’t allow a tram to become a racing car. That would end amateur races and with it all races, because there would be no way to develop new professional racers.
“It would be like trying to keep major league baseball going without sandlot games, little league or minor league teams,” said David Goch, general counsel of SEMA.
Modifying exhaust systems for road vehicles can be legalized in a number of ways, most notably by excluding an executive order from the California Air Resources Board, better known as CARB. The EPA relies on CARB to confirm that products comply with the Clean Air Act. Between fees and independent testing, an application costs about $ 6,500 to $ 9,000 per device and takes two to nine Months to process, said the board.
CARB offers an automatic exemption for racing cars, but stores must keep detailed records. Anyone who makes, sells, installs, or uses a racing part will be held responsible if that part is illegally used on a public road.
CARB has used this rule to sue non-state corporations who have sold defeat devices in California, including Mr. Willis, the Louisiana shopkeeper who is standing in front of a criminal CARB suit.
“People who make devices or programs that are modified enough to roll coal, that is, between civil and criminal cases,” said Allen Lyons, director of emissions certification and compliance at CARB. Some parts companies avoid risk by not selling in California.
Actions against emissions tampering may increase beyond California and the EPA. In Utah, an environmental group successfully sued the men who run the Diesel Brothers discovery show and created a template for others to follow.
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