Cliff notes: illegal to: Delete/defeat/bypass. And replacement of OEM smog device is NOT illegal under certain conditions.
Identical to Certified Configuration,
The EPA will typically find that a person has a reasonable basis for conduct if that conduct:
(1) is solely for the maintenance, repair, rebuild, or replacement of an emissions-related element of design; and
(2) restores that element of design to be identical in all emissions-related respects to the certified configuration (or, if not certified, the original configuration) of the vehicle,engine, or piece of equipment.
Seem pretty clear to me, they want the "delete" crowd, and not the AM performance parts crowd. And this is why I always ran atleast performance cats. Nothing in this article says I am running a non-compliant vehicle on public roads. Or that an "Identical to Certified Configuration" would be prosecuted.
Bingo!
Thanks for pulling this info out from those 2 .pdf's & posting it here Juice.
By the letter of the law, even though we may live in (and vehicle registered in) a county or State that meets the Fed EPA's population density exemption clause (so Federal mandate to require vehicle emissions certification for registration is not made mandatory but on State\county voluntary adoption basis), the law still applies to the vehicle to be maintained according to the OEM Emissions Information sticker that is placed under the hood on our S197's (whether Fed EPA OBDII or CARB OBDII) to meet the Clean Air Act....just that due to the Fed exemption the EPA will not try to enforce the rules within that exempted State or county due to States Rights clause in the US Constitution. But if we travel outside of that "safe haven" w\ that illegal emissions equipped vehicle into another State\county that is under Fed EPA\CARB emissions mandate & we're there for a specified period of time then that vehicle is required by law to abide by that area's Fed\CARB emissions rules so the vehicle must go thru the emissions certification process & legally pass it to REMAIN in that area, whether it is registered there or not.....that is the law.....and the REGISTERED OWNER of the found non-compliant vehicle can be fined by the EPA for non-compliance.
In Bernalillo Co in NM (the only smog county in NM) the time period is 60 consecutive days....not concurrent days.
So just because we may live\register our vehicles in a "safe haven" State\county, we ain't granted a
national exemption from the Clean Air Act so if we like to travel w\ our modded vehicles, better be aware of this & check on the destination's rules to know our options cause if we get pulled over by law enforcement in the Fed mandated areas they do have the right to perform a visual vehicle inspection & based on what they find from it can either force us to get the vehicle smog tested & impound it if it doesn't pass or leave the area.....AND have the option\obligation to report us to the Fed EPA for non-compliance.
Keep this 1 in our back pockets if weren't already aware.............
Also you can plainly see from the exert that Juice has posted, The Fed EPA ain't the big, bad jerks about compliance issues surrounding mods that they are recently being made out to be IF we really knew the rules....
The larger question concerning mods w\ emissions is how your State\county\local govs either interpret the existing Fed EPA rules or expand upon them........
Expanded example: such as is the current case w\ CARB as this OBDII std is a
purely State driven expansion of the
existing long standing Fed EPA rules & is why the EPA grants a Fed exemption to any State along w\ California that
voluntarily adopts CARB OBDII emissions certification since CARB stds exceed the
min Fed EPA OBDII stds because the States have the jurisdiction to do so also under the States Rights clause of the US Constitution).
Now an interpreted example: under the same Fed EPA OBDII emissions certifications concerning non emissions-specific devices\components (such as LTH's or catch cans for example) the Fed EPA doesn't outright outlaw their usage but only require proof that their usage doesn't adversely affect emissions (the emissions specific devices\components\OBDII tune emissions monitors from passing a legal OBDII monitor emissions certification check) thus the "certified condition" clause, but since the Fed EPA has also added the "original condition" clause in the same sentence as a backup if "certified condition" can't be established (more of an issue under CARB than it is under Fed EPA but an issue still the same), the State\county officials\smog testers can then use this to "disqualify" such non emissions specific device usage because it isn't the
original OEM manuf part in the OEM designed location that was initially covered under the initially issued Fed EPA CoC when the vehicle was built, thus refuse to test\certify instead of just checking the PCM to ensure that the OBDII emissions monitors are enabled\functioning properly & required OBDII monitors have passed component checks, check to ensure that the REQUIRED emissions-specific devices\components are in place, whether OEM or aftermarket, within reasonable proximity to the OEM location & unaltered in it's design (the meaning of certified condition & the legal purpose of a visual inspection) then allow the OBDII process itself to determine actual modded vehicle emissions compliance or non compliance....regardless of the presence of any non emissions specific aftermarket devices installed upstream of the required emissions specific devices\components.
This 2nd example right there is the BIG issue currently concerning basic engine FBO mods & emissions compliance on modern computer controlled vehicles & is left to the States to decipher......NOT the Fed EPA as they have already provided a legal pathway around the "original condition" clause. So the easiest way (but usually more costly) currently to legally (stand up in court) overcome that is to buy either Fed EPA certified, OBDII compliant (or CARB certified CARB OBDII compliant) aftermarket emissions-specific devices\components to obtain either the written documentation w\ the device\component or can point to the said device\component manufacturer's web site where they are required to display this documentation on said device\component to satisfy the "certified condition" clause. Myself I prefer the written documentation as too many smog testers won't take the time to either look this stuff up or are knowledgeable enough of the rules.
This is the BS that really needs to be cleaned up & all it takes is to put a list in the rules of all non emissions specific engine devices\components\tuning whether OEM (there are a few of these) or aftermarket in design to be exempted from compliance concerns in the Fed EPA Clean Air Act......I'll wager that the Fed EPA already knows about these thus the existence of the "certified condition" clause..... so IMHO the issue ain't squarely on the Fed EPA alone.....there's enough "blame" to go around if we're really honest about it all.....
This is what I am currently in the process of application myself to maintain my Stang's current performance metrics\curves but also meet the EPA's "certification condition" clause so that wherever I drive it in the USA it will be legal regardless of registration point\length of stay & if I ever decide to bump it up I'll know exactly what, where & how to legally get there so's I can "have my cake & eat it too"...........
Also working on the legal-ease speak to counter any uninformed potential smog testers\State\county officials concerning the Fed EPA rules..........