The annual tradition of visiting an auto mechanic to get an inspection sticker could come to an end if a group of Republican lawmakers succeed in repealing Maine’s auto inspection requirement.
Under a bill introduced by Rep. Ann Fredericks (R-Sanford), the mandatory safety inspection requirement would be repealed for the majority of cars that are driven by Mainers on a daily basis.
“Other states have already abolished this antiquated requirement that is an inconvenience,” Fredericks said.
From Frederick’s perspective, advancements in safety standards and auto-making technology mean that annual inspections should no longer be necessary for most personal vehicles, as they’ve become more of a nuisance than a guarantor of public safety.
The bill would not alter inspection rules for commercial vehicles, trailers, semitrailers, and fire trucks, according to the official summary of the legislation.
LD 320 was cosponsored by Sen. Jeff Timberlake (R-Androscoggin), Rep. Donald J. Ardell (R-Monticello), Rep. Lucien J.B. Daigle (R-Fort Kent), Rep. Aaron M. Dana (Passamaquoddy Tribe), Rep. Timothy C. Guerrette (R-Caribou), Rep. Thomas A. Lavigne (R-Berwick), and Rep. Reagan L. Paul (R-Winterport).
Less than half of states nationwide currently have mandatory safety inspection policies in place. Although emissions testing is somewhat more common, it is still not a universal practice.
Among the states that do require regular safety inspections, some mandate that they be conducted annually — as is currently the case in Maine — while others are only every two years.
Supporters of these regular inspections argue that they help to keep poorly maintained and unsafe vehicles off the road, but some evidence suggests that they may not have a substantial impact.
A 2021 report published by the Maine Policy Institute found that between 2015 and 2019, only 3 percent of car accidents involved mechanical difficulties.
Under state law, it is already a Class E crime to operate a “defective vehicle,” meaning that inspection stickers are not the only mechanism for deterring drivers from taking unsafe cars on the road.
Despite this, Maine police have previously pushed back against efforts to repeal the law, arguing that the inspections provide a safety net allowing for problems to be identified and corrected in a timely manner.
Some critics, on the other hand, have said that the system opens the door for dishonest mechanics to charge drivers for unnecessary repairs.
Having been on the books since 1930, this is not the first time that lawmakers have attempted to repeal the requirement for annual safety inspections, nor has this necessarily been a partisan issue.
For example, in 2021, Sen. Dave Miramant (D-Camden), proposed eliminating yearly inspections for cars less than twenty years old.
That bill never made it to a floor vote, however, after being unanimously rejected by the 130th Legislature’s Transportation Committee.
LD 320 has now been referred to the 132nd Legislature’s Transportation Committee where it will eventually receive a public hearing, although one has not yet been scheduled.
Click Here for More Information on LD 320
Disclaimer: The Maine Wire is a project of the Maine Policy Institute.
<span class="dsq-postid" data-dsqidentifier="35066 https://www.themainewire.com/?p=35066">19 Comments
Maine is a nanny state. In fact janet is so concerned about my prostrate she frequently examines it every time she raises taxes.
Why have other States dropped this requirement?
I have read where States that dropped the inspection requirement performed in depth studies to determine if the lack of inspections were leading to more auto accidents, the results were that inspections these days have no impact on motor vehicle accidents. It’s a big waste of time and money !!
The state needs to control everything we do .
Everything we think .
The democrats have destroyed Maine .
It is time for Republicans to get control .
It can’t get too much worse .
No inspection in Florida, yet, I never see dilapidated smoking cars — they’d get puuled over anyway.
Inspections are unnecessary.
Keep the inspections
LOSE the excise tax!
The police can still pull you over for a missing tail light or other small infractions like this so I say GET RID OF IT!
Illegals demand it.
extortion stickers, are all they are… i spend 500 bucks atleast to get one everytime…. differant shop, diffebrant prob… tie rod end one shop ball joint another shop…. people who dont have a sticker on their are usually poor. then u get a ticket for not having one… poor tax
I’m not certain whether links are allowed here so I won’t use one, but Google “NIH study shows no difference state inspections motor vehicle accidents” and you’ll get this:
“Search Labs | AI Overview
“According to a study published by the National Institutes of Health (NIH), research indicates that there is no significant difference in crash rates between states that require regular vehicle inspections and states that do not, suggesting that mandatory state motor vehicle inspections may not have a substantial impact on road safety.”
Follow up to my previous comment: 37 states don’t have an inspection requirement, while 13 do. In an interview of one of the NIH researchers who conducted the study cited below, she said that her group initiated the research with the expectation that the results would show what “common sense” suggested: states that inspected cars for mechanical defects would have fewer accidents, and the researchers hoped to use proof of that to encourage more states to adopt inspections. Imagine her surprise.
To her and the NIH’s credit, they published the results anyway, rather than hide them; not every scientific group, private or governmental, would do that.
If inspections are so important, why do we allow vehicles into our state from states that do not have inspections?
I do most of my own work but inspections I have gotten cheated repeatedly for issues that were not legitimate; muffler shop in Bangor imagined an exhaust gasket leak in my pristine garage queen pick up truck – them trying to replace the gaskets that did not leak would have caused broken bolts which may have made the engine a boat anchor. When I worked for the state getting fleet vehicles inspected was an invitation for fraud – astoundingly expensive bills for a sticker on well maintained vehicles – $5,000 in Rockport was the worst. I never authorized the repairs and took the vehicle elsewhere for an honest inspection that cost less than $400. Fraud is endemic in safety inspections. Think about it… These cockamamie inspections don’t road test brakes.
Maybe I was dreaming but back in the 70’s weren’t the stickers on a 6 month basis?
Our Dems like to be as annoying as possible and regulate everything. Extreme overreach, but the libs from taxachusetts that have invaded our coast don’t care about what happens to them because they’re rich and can easily pay for it all. They are so soft that they are scared of cars that missed inspection. Maybe if they knew how to fix anything (other than themselves) they would realize it’s unnecessary. But maybe they’re still too high to realize it.
Is Maine a nanny state? Damm right it is, Because 40% of the population need one. There a lot of laws that are enforced are due to stickers, Some should go away, some not. Some people have to forced to be responsible, some not.
It’s always under the guise of “safety”, but we all know there are no independent studies that corroborate that statement. It has everything to do with revenue…the state selling millions of stickers; licensing of stations; licensing of inspection mechanics; keeping state employee inspectors on the payroll; and so on and on, BUT,,,the biggest reason is for the sales tax revenue on all those parts that you need to have replaced for “safety”.
Don’t see as many breakdowns on the side of the road as we used to, Aye, Eben?
Makes perfect sense, so Democrats will never vote for it!
These states have no inspection stickers. Here’s the list of the 13 state that do not a sticker!
Alaska, Arkansas, Iowa, Michigan, Minnesota, Mississippi, Montana, North Dakota, South Carolina, South Dakota, Florida, Washington, and Wyoming.