Beginning Jan. 1, 2025, Texas vehicle owners will no longer be required to obtain a safety inspection prior to vehicle registration. House Bill 3297, passed during the 88th Legislature in 2023, abolishes the vehicle safety inspection program for noncommercial vehicles. The new law maintains the annual $7.50 safety inspection fee under a new name: Inspection Program Replacement Fee. The state will collect the fee at the time of vehicle registration. Owners registering a new vehicle will pay a $16.75 Inspection Program Replacement Fee to cover the first two years.
Rep. Cody Harris, of Palestine, TX is a cosponsor of the bill to eliminate the current state inspection system, called inspections as a ‘waste of time’ for the millions of Texas vehicle owners who had to annually renew their state inspection stickers or risk fines for noncompliance. He also said the new measure protects motorists from falling victim to unreputable auto shops who use inspection visits to upsell motorists on unnecessary repairs In Hays County, drivers whose vehicles are registered in Hays will no longer be required to take their vehicles in for an annual inspection. However, State law will still require vehicle emissions inspections in the following 17 counties prior to vehicle registration: Brazoria County, Collin County, Dallas County, Denton County, El Paso County, Ellis County, Fort Bend County, Galveston County, Harris County, Johnson County, Kaufman County, Montgomery County, Parker County, Rockwall County, Tarrant County, Travis County and Williamson County.
