2023 Colorado Revised Statutes › Title 25 - PUBLIC HEALTH AND ENVIRONMENT (§§ 25-1-101 — 25-59-106) › ENVIRONMENTAL CONTROL (§§ 25-6.5-101 — 25-18.9-105) › Article 7 - AIR QUALITY CONTROL (§§ 25-7-101 — 25-7-1604) › Part 1 - AIR QUALITY CONTROL PROGRAM (§§ 25-7-101 — 25-7-147) › Section 25-7-144 - Tampering with motor vehicle emission control systems - violations - exceptions - rules - reporting - definitions

(1)
On or after January 1, 2024, except as provided otherwise in this section, a person shall not:
(a)
Tamper with any emission control system;
(b)
Sell, offer for sale, or possess for sale to an end user; advertise; manufacture; install; or use any part or component that is intended for use with, or as part of, any motor vehicle if the primary effect of using the part or component with the motor vehicle is to bypass, defeat, or render inoperative, in whole or in part, the emission control system; or
(c)
Except with respect to a motor vehicle sold at wholesale or for which the associated ownership document is a salvage certificate of title, a nonrepairable title, or, if issued by another state, a similar document:
(I)
Sell, lease, or rent a motor vehicle with an emission control system that has been tampered with;
(II)
Offer to sell, lease, or rent a motor vehicle with an emission control system that has been tampered with; or
(III)
Transfer or offer to transfer title to, or the right to possess, a motor vehicle with an emission control system that has been tampered with.
(2)
(a)
Except as provided in subsection (2)(b) of this section, on or after January 1, 2024, a person shall not operate a motor vehicle with an emission control system that has been tampered with if:
(I)
The motor vehicle or its engine has been granted a certificate of conformity under the federal act as meeting the federal environmental protection agency's motor vehicle emission standards or, under
42 U.S.C. sec. 7507
, also known as "section 177" of the federal act, California's motor vehicle emission standards; and
(II)
The person knew or, through the exercise of reasonable care, should have known that the emission control system was tampered with.
(b)
A person does not operate a motor vehicle in violation of this subsection (2) if another person tampered with the emission control system in relation to, or after committing, theft of the motor vehicle, and the person operating the motor vehicle is neither a complicitor of nor an accessory to the theft.
(c)
If a complaint alleging a violation of this subsection (2) is filed against a person who has already been found to have violated this subsection (2) on a previous occasion, the person is strictly liable, and evidence demonstrating the mental state required in subsection (2)(a)(II) of this section need not be shown to prove a subsequent violation.
(3)
The following activities constitute separate offenses under this section:
(a)
Selling, offering for sale, or possessing for sale to an end user; advertising; manufacturing; installing; or using a part or component of a motor vehicle in violation of subsection (1)(b) of this section; and
(b)
Selling, leasing, or renting a motor vehicle; offering to sell, lease, or rent a motor vehicle; or transferring or offering to transfer a title or a right to possess a motor vehicle in violation of subsection (1)(c) of this section.
(4)
A person does not violate subsection (1)(b) or (1)(c) of this section if the person engages in the conduct for the purpose of:
(a)
Having the motor vehicle's emission control system, or an element or device of an emission control system, repaired, replaced, removed for repair, or removed for replacement to bring the motor vehicle in compliance with emission control standards under the federal act or state law; or
(b)
Dismantling a motor vehicle for parts to be sold for repair or replacement purposes.
(5)
(a)
On and after July 1, 2025, a person is not subject to penalties or an enforcement action for a violation of this section with respect to any motor vehicle for which the person self-reports to the division that the person is not in compliance with this section. If a complaint has been filed against the person with respect to one or more motor vehicles, the person is not subject to penalties or an enforcement action for a violation of this section with respect to any additional motor vehicles for which the person self-reports that the person is not in compliance with this section.
(b)
The commission may determine by rule the form, manner, and substance of information required for self-reporting under this subsection (5).
(c)
Notwithstanding subsection (5)(a) of this section, if a person self-reports pursuant to this subsection (5) that the person is not in compliance with this section with respect to a motor vehicle, but the person does not become compliant with this section within twelve months after the date of self-reporting with regard to the motor vehicle:
(I)
The person is subject to penalties or an enforcement action for a violation of this section with respect to that motor vehicle; and
(II)
A certification of emissions control required pursuant to section
42-4-310
shall not be issued until the motor vehicle is brought into compliance with the standards described in subsection (2)(a)(I) of this section.
(d)
Nothing in this subsection (5) prevents a directive to repair issued pursuant to this section from requiring compliance with the standards described in subsection (2)(a)(I) of this section.
(6)
The commission may adopt rules as necessary to implement this section.
(7)
(a)
On or before January 1, 2025, and on or before January 1 of each year thereafter, the department of public health and environment may:
(I)
Prepare an annual report summarizing the complaints filed pursuant to this section and any enforcement actions taken and penalty amounts assessed pursuant to section
25-7-122(1)(j)
; and
(II)
Submit the report to the house of representatives energy and environment committee and the senate transportation and energy committee, or their successor committees.
(b)
Notwithstanding section
24-1-136(11)(a)(I)
, the reporting authorization set forth in subsection (7)(a) of this section continues indefinitely.
(8)
As used in this section, unless the context otherwise requires:
(a)
(I)
"Emission control system" means a device or element of design that:
(A)
The original manufacturer installs on or in a motor vehicle or a motor vehicle engine; and
(B)
Is certified to comply with emission control standards under the federal act or state law.
(II)
"Emission control system" includes a catalytic converter and all components required to operate selective catalytic reduction as part of a diesel emissions control system.
(b)
"Manufacturer" means any person that manufactures or assembles new and unused motor vehicles of a type required to be registered pursuant to section
42-3-103
.
(c)
"Motorcycle" means an autocycle or a motor vehicle that uses handlebars or any other device connected to the front wheel to steer and that is designed to travel on not more than three wheels in contact with the ground; except that the term does not include a farm tractor, low-speed electric vehicle, or low-power scooter.
(d)
"Motor vehicle" has the meaning set forth in section
42-1-102(58)
; except that the term does not include a motorcycle.
(e)
"Tamper" means to deactivate, dismantle, defeat, bypass, alter, modify, remove, or otherwise render inoperable, in whole or in part, mechanical or electrical parts or components of an emission control system.
Added by 2022 Ch. 485,§5, eff. 8/10/2022.
2022 Ch. 485, was passed without a safety clause. See Colo. Const. art. V, § 1(3).