The Environmental Protection Agency proposed on December 11, 2025, to disapprove a revision to Ohio's State Implementation Plan submitted by the Ohio Environmental Protection Agency on July 9, 2025. This revision, prompted by Ohio's E-Check Ease Act, seeks to introduce an alternative self-attestation program for vehicle emissions compliance in lieu of mandatory on-board diagnostic inspections. The proposal affects the Cleveland-Akron-Lorain metropolitan area, classified as a serious nonattainment area for the 2015 ozone National Ambient Air Quality Standards. EPA's action underscores the revision's incompatibility with Clean Air Act requirements for enhanced vehicle inspection and maintenance programs, potentially hindering efforts to reduce ozone precursors and achieve air quality goals.
Background on Ohio's Vehicle Inspection Program
Ohio's E-Check program operates as the state's federally approved vehicle inspection and maintenance initiative in seven northeast Ohio counties: Cuyahoga, Geauga, Lake, Lorain, Medina, Portage, and Summit. Established to address ozone nonattainment, the program annually tests about 880,000 vehicles with a gross vehicle weight rating up to 10,000 pounds. It uses a hybrid network of centralized facilities and decentralized service centers, focusing on on-board diagnostic system checks to identify and repair high-emitting vehicles. EPA fully approved the program in 1995 (60 FR 16989) and approved revisions in 1997 (62 FR 646).
The Clean Air Act, under sections 182(b)(4) and 182(c)(3), mandates basic or enhanced inspection and maintenance programs in ozone nonattainment areas based on severity. Enhanced programs, required for serious classifications like Cleveland-Akron-Lorain effective January 16, 2025 (89 FR 101901), must meet performance standards outlined in EPA regulations at 40 CFR part 51, subpart S. These include mandatory on-board diagnostic inspections, proof of repairs for failing vehicles, and enforceable compliance mechanisms. Ohio's program has historically contributed emission reductions essential for reasonable further progress and attainment under multiple ozone standards.
In March 2025, the Ohio General Assembly passed the E-Check Ease Act, amending Ohio Revised Code 3704.14(C)(2) to allow motorists to obtain an alternative emissions certificate through self-attestation. Vehicle owners would declare, to the best of their knowledge, compliance with state and federal emissions requirements without actual inspection. The act specifies no civil or criminal penalties for false attestations, only requiring resubmission or a standard inspection upon rejection. Implementation hinges on EPA approval of a corresponding State Implementation Plan revision, which Ohio submitted in July 2025, including a demonstration under Clean Air Act section 110(l) claiming no interference with attainment or progress.
EPA's Evaluation Process
EPA reviewed Ohio's submission against Clean Air Act provisions, implementing regulations, and program guidance. The state's package included the E-Check Ease Act text, a section 110(l) analysis assuming full adoption of self-attestation within a year, and responses to over 650 public comments. Commenters largely favored eliminating E-Check entirely, with some supporting self-attestation as a modernization and others opposing it for potential air quality harm. EPA's proposal, detailed in the Federal Register notice, concludes the revision fails to meet enhanced program criteria and risks backsliding on air quality improvements.
Key to EPA's assessment is the Cleveland-Akron-Lorain area's serious nonattainment status, necessitating an enhanced program. The notice cites 2023 data showing 880,832 vehicles tested, with 55,789 (6.6 percent) failing initially. Ohio's analysis did not quantify emission impacts from the change, a gap EPA highlights as evidence of potential interference.
Key Inconsistencies with Federal Requirements
The proposed disapproval rests on several statutory and regulatory conflicts. First, the self-attestation option eliminates mandatory on-board diagnostic inspections, explicitly required by Clean Air Act sections 182(c)(3)(C)(vii) and 202(m)(3), and EPA regulations at 40 CFR 51.373(g)-(h). These mandate direct checks of emission control systems to ensure proper function and repairs, which self-declarations cannot replicate.
Second, the proposal lacks proof of corrective action for failing vehicles, contravening Clean Air Act section 182(a)(2)(B). Under the act, rejected attestations allow simple resubmission without repair evidence, undermining the program's repair assurance function.
Third, enforcement is inadequate. Clean Air Act sections 182(a)(2)(B) and 182(c)(3)(B) require mechanisms to ensure compliance, including penalties for fraud, as per 40 CFR 51.361(a)(10). Ohio's law imposes no penalties beyond resubmission, failing to deter noncompliance.
Additionally, EPA finds the revision violates section 110(l)'s anti-backsliding rule by potentially increasing emissions. Without inspections, high-emitting vehicles—such as the 55,000 that failed in 2023—could operate unrepaired, forgoing reductions from both failed-test repairs and pre-inspection fixes prompted by check engine lights.
EPA contrasts this with permissible flexibilities, like model year exemptions, remote testing, or clean screening (approved in notices like 66 FR 18156 and 72 FR 14235), which maintain objective inspections. Self-attestation, however, lacks statutory basis and replaces required testing entirely.
Perspectives and Implications
Stakeholders offer varied views. Supporters in public comments see self-attestation as reducing burdens on motorists and modernizing the program, aligning with technological advances. Critics, including environmental advocates, argue it weakens air quality protections, potentially exacerbating ozone levels in a region struggling with attainment.
Short-term implications include continued enforcement of Ohio's existing program if disapproval is finalized, avoiding immediate emission increases. Long-term, the decision could influence other states' program designs, emphasizing strict adherence to federal standards. It highlights tensions between state flexibility and national air quality goals, with potential for judicial review if Ohio challenges the disapproval.
The proposal also underscores broader political forces, such as state efforts to ease regulatory burdens amid public fatigue with inspections, balanced against federal mandates to protect public health in nonattainment areas.
In summary, EPA's proposed disapproval reinforces Clean Air Act requirements for effective vehicle emissions programs. Potential next steps include Ohio withdrawing or revising the submission to incorporate compliant flexibilities, such as remote on-board diagnostic testing or expanded exemptions. Ongoing debates may center on balancing convenience with environmental efficacy, with challenges arising from evolving vehicle technologies and air quality needs. Future trajectories could involve congressional amendments to inspection mandates or enhanced state-federal collaboration on program innovations, ensuring progress toward ozone standards without compromising enforcement.
