Some Sandoval drivers still on emissions hook

EMISSIONS APPLY TO SOME SANDOVAL DRIVERS: Jerry Dusseau and Wayne both live in Corrales. And both recently received notices from the Motor Vehicle Division to renew their Bernalillo County vehicle emissions certificates. Jerry says, “I am a 20-year resident of Sandoval County and retired. During this entire time I have never had to do a vehicle emissions test for any of my cars. The car in reference was purchased in Santa Fe and is registered in Sandoval County. The link included in the (MVD) email was not helpful and added little clarification to the issue. I do shop in Bernalillo County, and obviously living in Corrales it is hard to avoid this.”

He asks, “Have the emissions regulations changed? Why would I have suddenly received this notice? None of my friends and neighbors here in Corrales have received a similar notice.”

And Wayne adds, “My vehicle is registered in Sandoval County, and I do not regularly commute into Bernalillo County; my understanding is that I do not, therefore, have to undergo vehicle emissions testing.”

First, vehicle owners only get emissions notices when it is time to renew their vehicle registration and/or their two-year emissions certificate is expiring.

Second, Ben Cloutier, director of communications for the New Mexico Taxation & Revenue Department, which oversees MVD, says the division “relies on zip codes to send emission notices. Two Bernalillo County zip codes overlap into Sandoval County. We apologize for the inconvenience that this may cause some Sandoval County residents. However, Sandoval County residents that drive into Bernalillo County at least 60 days in a year are required to pass the Bernalillo County emissions test.”

YOU CAN KEEP THAT OLD PLATE:

Helen Horwitz recently swapped her license plate for the “fun chile version. I already had a vanity plate with a special word on it, and kept it for my Chile plate. So, the plates are identical except for the design/color.”

Helen’s concern is this: “Someone told me that I own the old vanity plate and it doesn’t need to be returned to MVD. But if I keep it, and it is stolen, wouldn’t I be liable if it’s put on a vehicle that’s involved in an accident or such?”

First, chances are slim the thieves are driving the same exact vehicle as Helen, so a check of the make, model and VIN against the plate would immediately show it was a stolen plate.

Second, that original plate won’t have a valid registration sticker for that much longer, and an expired plate is another red flag to law enforcement.

And third, Cloutier has explained in the past that when owners sell a vehicle, “drivers are also required to provide the old plates to the MVD to be destroyed or to apply to have the plate and registration number assigned to another vehicle.”

But since Helen simply got a new design, “she owns the (original) plate and doesn’t need to turn it into the MVD.”