{"abstract":"Today's action revises the motor vehicle Inspection/ Maintenance (I/M) Program Requirements. EPA announced its intent to amend the I/M Program Requirements in December 1994 and held stakeholders' meetings on January 24, 1995 and January 31, 1995. This action creates an additional, less stringent enhanced I/M performance standard which allows areas that can meet the 1990 Clean Air Act requirements for Reasonable Further Progress and attainment to implement an I/M program that falls below the originally promulgated enhanced I/M performance standard. Because the new low enhanced I/M performance standard eliminates the need for the special enhanced performance standard for El Paso, Texas, today's action repeals that special performance standard. This action also revises the high enhanced I/M performance standard to include a visual inspection of the positive crankcase ventilation (PCV) valve on all light-duty vehicles and light-duty trucks from model years 1968 to 1971, inclusive, and of the exhaust gas recirculation (EGR) valve on all light-duty vehicles and light-duty trucks from model years 1972 through 1983, inclusive. The low enhanced performance standard contains similar testing requirements, which are necessary to ensure full compliance with the Clean Air Act's requirement that all federal performance standards for enhanced I/M programs be based upon a model program that includes, at a minimum, two inspections per subject vehicle: an emission inspection and a visual inspection. Today's action also changes the waiver cost requirements by extending the deadline for implementing the minimum expenditure to qualify for a waiver specified in the Clean Air Act; allowing the application of pre-inspection repairs toward meeting the waiver expenditure requirements under limited circumstances; allowing the cost of primary emission control components replaced by family or friends to apply toward the waiver cost requirement; and removing the bar against issuing hardship exemptions more than once per vehicle lifetime. EPA is also including revised regulatory language to change the population cutoff for basic I/M from 50,000 persons to 200,000 persons. Lastly, this rule makes clarifying amendments to the I/M requirements for areas undergoing redesignation. EPA will soon publish a separate Supplemental Notice of Proposed Rulemaking proposing an additional performance standard for attainment and moderate (with less than 200,000 population) ozone nonattainment areas not otherwise required to implement basic I/M programs in the Ozone Transport Region. That proposed standard is based on minimum statutory requirements for these particular areas and would afford them flexibility beyond that provided by this final action.","action":"Final rule.","agencies":[{"raw_name":"ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY","name":"Environmental Protection Agency","id":145,"url":"https://www.federalregister.gov/agencies/environmental-protection-agency","json_url":"https://www.federalregister.gov/api/v1/agencies/145","parent_id":null,"slug":"environmental-protection-agency"}],"body_html_url":"https://www.federalregister.gov/documents/full_text/html/1995/09/18/95-23106.html","cfr_references":[{"chapter":null,"citation_url":null,"part":51,"title":40}],"citation":"60 FR 48029","comment_url":null,"comments_close_on":null,"correction_of":null,"corrections":[],"dates":"This rule will take effect on October 18, 1995.","disposition_notes":null,"docket_ids":["FRL-5294-9"],"dockets":[],"document_number":"95-23106","effective_on":"1995-10-18","end_page":48037,"executive_order_notes":null,"executive_order_number":null,"full_text_xml_url":null,"html_url":"https://www.federalregister.gov/documents/1995/09/18/95-23106/inspectionmaintenance-flexibility-amendments","images":{},"images_metadata":{},"json_url":"https://www.federalregister.gov/api/v1/documents/95-23106?publication_date=1995-09-18","mods_url":"https://www.govinfo.gov/metadata/granule/FR-1995-09-18/95-23106/mods.xml","not_received_for_publication":null,"page_length":9,"page_views":{"count":82,"last_updated":"2026-08-25 12:15:05 -0400"},"pdf_url":"https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/FR-1995-09-18/pdf/95-23106.pdf","presidential_document_number":null,"proclamation_number":null,"public_inspection_pdf_url":null,"publication_date":"1995-09-18","raw_text_url":"https://www.federalregister.gov/documents/full_text/text/1995/09/18/95-23106.txt","regulation_id_number_info":{},"regulation_id_numbers":[],"regulations_dot_gov_info":{"checked_regulationsdotgov_at":"2011-09-21T08:46:05Z"},"regulations_dot_gov_url":null,"significant":null,"signing_date":null,"start_page":48029,"subtype":null,"title":"Inspection/Maintenance Flexibility Amendments","toc_doc":null,"toc_subject":null,"topics":[],"type":"Rule","volume":60}