If you think there are a lot of unsafe cars on the road NOW, just give it some time.
The Texas Legislature is currently mulling the idea of eliminating yearly vehicle safety inspections for non-commercial vehicles!
House Bill 3297, authored by Rep. Cody Harris (R-Palestine), passed the Texas House and could receive a Senate vote as early as Friday, where if passed would head right to Governor Abbott.
Of course, there is major criticism for this bill, as many say it would out more unsafe cars on Texas roads, and the fact that under the current proposal, the state would continue to collect fees from drivers, even if the inspections were to go away!
Harris, along with other lawmakers who support the bill say that vehicle safety inspections are "an inconvenience for car owners and do little to protect drivers." Rep. Craig Goldman (R-Fort Worth) told NBC DFW last month, "If you have bald tires, that's up to you. I mean, it's a personal responsibility. If you have bald tires go replace your tires."
Greg Cole, head of the Texas Vehicle Inspection Association, which represents state-licensed shops and inspector statewide, vehemently disagrees with the bill saying, "An unsafe vehicle is not only unsafe to the owner of that car and the other occupants, it's unsafe to everybody else on the road.
"We see a lot of unaware people coming in with, 'I didn't know the tires were bad,' they didn't know what a 'wear bar' is."
The lawmakers in support of the bill said that fees would still be collected as the money goes to the state mobility fund "which finances transportation projects," and lawmakers don't want the fund to be impacted even if inspections are eliminated.
LISTEN on the Audacy App
