TITLE 19. PUBLIC SAFETY
REGISTRAR'S NOTICE: The
Department of State Police is claiming an exemption from the Administrative
Process Act pursuant to § 2.2-4002 B 6 of the Code of Virginia, which
exempts agency action relating to customary military, naval, or police
functions.
Title of Regulation: 19VAC30-70. Motor Vehicle Safety
Inspection Rules and Regulations (amending 19VAC30-70-10).
Statutory Authority: § 46.2-1165 of the Code of
Virginia.
Effective Date: November 15, 2016.
Agency Contact: Lt. Colonel Tracy Russillo, Agency
Regulatory Coordinator, Department of State Police, P.O. Box 27472, Richmond,
VA 23261-7472, telephone (804) 674-4606, FAX (804) 674-2936, or email
tracy.russillo@vsp.virginia.gov.
Summary:
The amendments include (i) clarifying the use of inspection
lanes and (ii) allowing inspection stations to maintain a copy of the
regulations at the inspection site in either electronic or paper form.
Part II
Inspection Requirements
19VAC30-70-10. Official inspection station requirements.
A. Official inspection stations, except private appointments,
shall be open at least eight hours of each normal business day, and
shall be able to perform inspections 12 months throughout the year, except during
illness of limited duration or normal vacation.
1. Normal business hours, Monday through Friday, are defined
as an eight-hour period of time between 8 a.m. and 6 p.m.
2. Stations are not prohibited from performing inspections at
times other than during normal business hours.
3. A station that advertises inspections beyond normal
business hours shall be able to perform such inspections.
4. If a station desires to maintain business hours that are
different from those defined in this section, written permission must be
obtained from the safety officer and a sign setting forth the inspection hours
must be posted conspicuously at the station where it can be observed by a
person desiring to have a vehicle inspected.
B. At least one full-time safety inspector to perform
inspections and one inspection lane meeting the minimum requirements shall be
available for inspection at all times during the normal business day. All
inspections must be made only at the locations and in the inspection lane
approved by the Department of State Police. All stations shall have other
lanes, bays, or areas in which repairs can be made so the inspection lane can
remain available.
The designated inspection areas, including any location where
customers are permitted to enter when submitting vehicles for inspection, must
be kept clean, and free from excessive dirt, grease, and loose
materials. If requested, customers presenting vehicles for inspection shall be
allowed to observe the inspection process from a safe location designated by
the station.
C. Inspection station facilities must be properly maintained
and must present a businesslike appearance to the general public. Property
adjacent to the inspection station that is owned or controlled by the station
must be free of debris, litter, used parts and junk vehicles. Vehicles properly
contained within fenced storage areas shall be deemed to comply with this
requirement.
D. Inspections shall be performed on a first-come,
first-served basis. "First-come, first-served" means a procedure
whereby customers seeking an inspection shall be attended to in the order that
they arrive to the station. Motorists shall not be required to make an
appointment to obtain an inspection, except that those
appointments required by subdivision A 12 of § 46.2-1158.01 of the
Code of Virginia shall be made. Businesses Stations that
take in motorists' vehicles for inspection at the beginning of the work
day shall not be required to stop the work already taken in inspecting
those vehicles to provide an inspection for a drive-in motorist request,
provided inspections are actually currently being performed at
the time and will continue through throughout the day. Stations
must maintain a procedure to validate when vehicles were brought to the station
for inspection. Inspections shall begin concurrently with repair lanes during
the station's normal business hours, without delay. Stations may suggest to
motorists a timeframe of no greater than three hours during which it may be anticipated
that an inspection may be provided. Stations shall cooperate fully with
Department of State Police personnel regarding any issues detailed in this
section, as with all other investigations.
Stations shall make every effort to keep the designated
inspection lanes available. Stations with more than one repair bay shall not
perform work in the designated inspection lanes when customers are waiting for
an inspection. This will not apply to minor adjustments that require minimal
time to perform. Stations shall not let vehicles occupy the designated
inspection lanes while awaiting parts or customer authorization to complete the
inspection pursuant to 19VAC30-70-60.
A station may inquire about accepting safety inspections by
appointment. If the requirements are met, then the official inspection station
may, in addition to having one lane for the first-come, first-served customers,
also have a second inspection lane designated for customers who have made
appointments for a designated time slot. An additional certified safety
inspector shall be available to perform those inspections that are made by an
appointment. If interested, stations should first contact their supervising
trooper for specific requirements and guidelines.
E. Safety inspectors, managers who supervise inspection
activities, and business owners, through participation in the Official Motor
Vehicle Inspection Program, are representatives of the Department of State
Police and should conduct themselves in a manner to avoid controversy in dealing
with customers presenting vehicles for inspection. The use of profanity or
verbal abuse directed at customers presenting their vehicles for inspection
will be grounds for suspension from participation in the inspection program and
will be considered a Class IV offense as set forth in 19VAC30-70-6.
Controversy that cannot be calmly resolved by the safety
inspector, managers, and owners should be referred to the supervising trooper
for handling.
F. The "Certificate of Appointment" must be framed
under glass or clear plastic and posted in the customer waiting area where it
can be observed and read by a person submitting a vehicle for inspection.
Inspection stations must have garage liability insurance in
the amount of at least $500,000 with an approved surplus lines carrier or
insurance company licensed to write such insurance in this Commonwealth. This
requirement shall not apply to inspection stations that only inspect their
company-owned, government-owned, or leased vehicles.
G. The required "Official Inspection Procedure"
sheet and the "Direct Inquiries" sheet furnished to each station must
both be framed under glass or clear plastic and posted conspicuously in the
customer waiting area where they can be observed and read by a person submitting
a vehicle for inspection.
H. The poster designating the station as an official
inspection station shall be posted in a prominent location, outside or visible
outside the station, to alert passersby that inspection services are available.
Private inspection stations shall not display an outside poster.
I. Each official inspection station shall display a list with
the name(s) names and license expiration date dates
of all employees licensed to inspect at that station, adjacent to the
certificate of appointment. The Official Motor Vehicle Safety Inspection Manual
will be kept at or near the point of inspection for ready reference. The
manual may be kept in written or electronic form.
J. Important -- Any change in name, ownership or location of
any official inspection station cancels the appointment of that station,
and the Department of State Police must be notified immediately. The department
shall be notified when an official inspection station discontinues operation.
K. All inspection supplies, inspection binders and manual,
unused stickers, duplicates of certificates issued, bulletins and other forms
are the property of the Department of State Police and must be safeguarded
against loss.
L. Inspection supplies issued to an inspection station can be
used only by that station and are not to be loaned or reissued to any other
station with the exception of inserts.
1. Stations must maintain a sufficient supply of approval
stickers, trailer and motorcycle approval stickers, rejection stickers and
inserts. When reordering supplies, station owners/managers owners or
managers shall request sufficient supplies to sustain their business for at
least six months. However, it is realized that a few stations will not be able
to comply with the six-month requirement since there is a maximum of 100 books
per order limit. Also, when ordering supplies, the following information should
be considered so that the station does not order an excessive amount of
supplies: each book of approval stickers contains 25 stickers, the rejection
book contains 50 stickers, the month inserts are packaged in strips of 50 each,
and trailer and motorcycle decals are five per strip. In December of each year,
a supply of year inserts will be shipped to each station based on their the
station's previous year's usage. In November, each station shall check its
stock of month inserts and order what is needed for the months of January
through June. In May, the same should be done for the months of July through
December.
2. Inspection stations that exhaust their supply of approval
stickers, trailer and motorcycle approval stickers, rejection stickers, and
inserts shall immediately stop performing new inspections and contact their
supervising trooper or the nearest Safety Division Area Office.
M. All losses of stickers must be reported immediately to the
supervising inspection trooper or the nearest Safety Division Area Office.
N. Every precaution against the loss of stickers must be
taken. If the loss occurs through carelessness or neglect, a suspension of the
station may result.
O. Manuals, bulletins, other regulations and lists of
approved equipment must be available at all times for reference and may be
kept in written or electronic form. Revisions to the Motor Vehicle Safety
Inspection Manual will be sent to each station electronically through the MVIP
system. Revisions to the inspection manual must be inserted in the
manual at the proper location promptly after being received by the inspection
station. Bulletins of temporary interest and pages of bulletins containing the
synopsis of manual revisions will be retained in the front of each station's
inspection manual for 24 months. Each safety inspector shall review the
material contained in each inspection bulletin and manual revision within 15
days of its receipt. The safety inspector shall certify that the revisions have
been reviewed by signing his name and placing the date reviewed by the
signature on the bottom or reverse side of the bulletin or manual revision
cover sheet. Station management shall be responsible to see that each
safety inspector is familiar with all bulletins and manual revisions and shall
be required to furnish evidence to the department that all bulletins and manual
revisions have been reviewed by each licensed inspector.
A copy of the diagram drawn by the investigating trooper,
showing the approved inspection lane or lanes, will be inserted in a
plastic page protector and inserted as the last page of the official inspection
manual at each official inspection station. The name of the station and the
date will be inserted in the top right corner maintained for review and
kept available with the station's inspection supplies.
P. Private appointment may be made of company stations or
government stations that own and operate a minimum of 20 vehicles and they may
inspect only company-owned or government-owned vehicles respectively. When
authorized by the department, they may inspect vehicles of a wholly-owned
subsidiary or leased vehicles.
1. A private station may perform inspections during each month
of the year or may elect to inspect only during certain designated months.
2. A private station not electing to inspect vehicles every
month of the year that finds it necessary to inspect a vehicle during a month
other than those selected for inspection may issue a sticker to the vehicle
from the nearest past inspection month.
Q. All official inspection station owners, managers, and
certified safety inspectors shall comply with the Virginia inspection laws and
the inspection rules and regulations and will adhere to all instructions given
by the supervising trooper or the Safety Division. Reports of violations will
be investigated and, if found to be valid, may result in the suspension of the
station, suspension of the inspector, possible court action, or other
appropriate action, or any combination of these actions. Repeated violations or
serious violations may result in a revocation of the station appointment by the
superintendent.
R. The arrest of any person associated with the inspection program
for a criminal offense of a nature that would tend to immediately reflect upon
the integrity and reputation of the Department of State Police may be grounds
for an immediate suspension and the conviction for such an offense may result
in a revocation of the station's appointment.
S. When a station has been suspended or revoked, it must
release to an employee of the Department of State Police all inspection
supplies, posters, and papers including the certificate of appointment. Failure
to do so is a violation of § 46.2-1172 of the Code of Virginia.
T. The authority of the superintendent to suspend the
designation or appointment of an official inspection station as provided in §
46.2-1163 of the Code of Virginia, or to suspend the certification of an inspector
designated to perform inspections at an official inspection station, and, in
keeping with the provisions of § 46.2-1166 of the Code of Virginia, is hereby
delegated to any of the following supervisory ranks of the Department of State
Police: Lieutenant Colonel, Major, Captain, Lieutenant, First Sergeant and
Sergeant.
U. Each station must purchase and keep in proper operating
condition the following equipment: computer, printer, internet connection,
paper hole punch, black ball point pen or pens or black marker or markers,
sticker scraper with replacement razor blades, tire tread depth gauge, amp
meter, headlight and auxiliary lamp adjustment tools, 12" ruler, 25'
measuring tape, torque wrench or torque sticks, brake pads/shoes/disc/drum measuring
device, dial indicator, micrometer, pry bars, roller jack (at least 4-ton), and
an approved type optical headlight aiming device. Each station that requests an
additional inspection lane that is not in close proximity to the originally
approved inspection lane must purchase an additional approved headlight machine
for each lane that meets the minimum requirements. Stations are required to
have one of the following headlight aiming devices effective January 1, 2013:
the Hopkins Vision1, Hopkins Vision 100, American Aimers Vision 100, American
Aimers Vision 2 Pro, or the Symtech (former L.E.T.) HBA-5, PLA-11, and PLA-12.
This shall not apply to "trailer-only" inspection stations.
VA.R. Doc. No. R17-4923; Filed October 26, 2016, 7:03 a.m.