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Arizona emissions test: the official wording
Everything in quotation marks here is from 3 sources and was matched to them on November 11, 2026. The quotes are the sources’ words; ours only label them.
About these quotes.
Every Arizona agency page we requested refused our reader, so the quotes are from the Arizona Revised Statutes. The passages quoted from the definitions of Area A and Area B are the first line of each, not the whole boundary. The exemption lines are shown under the statute’s own lead-in. We could not read the rules it refers to, so the checker makes no comparison with their figures.
On this page: where · how often · fee · new and older vehicles · diesel, electric, hybrid · check a vehicle · sources
What does the text call it?
The director shall administer a comprehensive annual or biennial emissions inspection program that shall require the inspection of vehicles in this state pursuant to this article and applicable administrative rules.
The page we point to: Arizona Revised Statutes 49-542, Emissions inspection program. The agency’s own page, which our reader could not open: Arizona Department of Environmental Quality website.
Which counties does the text name?
The quoted text names 4 counties. Some of the names come with limiting words in the quote (part of a county, an urban area, a boundary); the limit is in the quote and in the official source:
- Maricopa County
- Pinal County
- Yavapai County
- Pima County
Boundary excerpt, not the complete boundary
"Area A" means the area delineated as follows: (a) In Maricopa county: Township 8 north, range 2 east and range 3 east
Boundary excerpt, not the complete boundary
Listed under:
"Area A" means the area delineated as follows:
(b) In Pinal county: Township 1 north, range 8 east and range 9 east
Boundary excerpt, not the complete boundary
Listed under:
"Area A" means the area delineated as follows:
(c) In Yavapai county: Township 7 north, range 1 east and range 1 west through range 2 west
Boundary excerpt, not the complete boundary
"Area B" means the area delineated in Pima county as township 11 and 12 south, range 12 through 14 east; township 13 through 15 south, range 11 through 16 east; township 16 south, range 12 through 16 east, excluding any portion of the Coronado national forest and the Saguaro national park.
Such inspection is required for vehicles that are registered in area A and area B, for those vehicles owned by a person who is subject to section 15-1444 or 15-1627 and for those vehicles registered outside of area A or area B but used to commute to the driver's principal place of employment located within area A or area B.
How often is the test?
The director shall administer a comprehensive annual or biennial emissions inspection program that shall require the inspection of vehicles in this state pursuant to this article and applicable administrative rules.
Listed under:
2. For the purposes of determining compliance with minimum emissions standards and functional tests in area A:
A diesel powered motor vehicle applying for registration in area A shall be required to take and pass an annual emissions test conducted at an official emissions inspection station or a fleet emissions inspection station as follows: (i) A loaded, transient or any other form of test as provided for in rules adopted by the director for vehicles with a gross vehicle weight rating of eight thousand five hundred pounds or less. (ii) A test that conforms with the society for automotive engineers standard J1667 for vehicles with a gross vehicle weight rating of more than eight thousand five hundred pounds.
What does the test cost?
The director shall fix, regulate and alter in accordance with this section the fees required to be paid for the full costs of the vehicle emissions inspection program pursuant to this article including administration, implementation and enforcement.
What does the text say about new and older vehicles?
No line we hold for Arizona is set up for a model-year comparison. Lines that mention age or model year, if we hold any, are under “What else does the text say?”.
What about diesel, electric and hybrid vehicles?
Every current line we hold for Arizona that uses the word diesel, electric or hybrid. Some are about one place or one kind of test; each speaks for itself.
Listed under:
2. For the purposes of determining compliance with minimum emissions standards and functional tests in area A:
A diesel powered motor vehicle applying for registration in area A shall be required to take and pass an annual emissions test conducted at an official emissions inspection station or a fleet emissions inspection station as follows: (i) A loaded, transient or any other form of test as provided for in rules adopted by the director for vehicles with a gross vehicle weight rating of eight thousand five hundred pounds or less. (ii) A test that conforms with the society for automotive engineers standard J1667 for vehicles with a gross vehicle weight rating of more than eight thousand five hundred pounds.
Listed under:
The director may adopt rules for purposes of implementation, administration, regulation and enforcement of the provisions of this article including:Listed under:
2. The exemption from inspection of:
(g) Electrically-powered vehicles.
What else does the text say?
Listed under:
The director may adopt rules for purposes of implementation, administration, regulation and enforcement of the provisions of this article including:Listed under:
2. The exemption from inspection of:
(d) New vehicles before the sixth registration year after initial purchase or lease.
Listed under:
The director may adopt rules for purposes of implementation, administration, regulation and enforcement of the provisions of this article including:Listed under:
2. The exemption from inspection of:
(a) Except as otherwise provided in this subdivision, a motor vehicle manufactured in or before the 1966 model year. If the United States environmental protection agency issues a vehicle emissions testing exemption for motor vehicles manufactured in or before the 1974 model year for purposes of the state implementation or maintenance plan for air quality, a motor vehicle manufactured in or before the 1974 model year is exempt from inspection.
Listed under:
The director may adopt rules for purposes of implementation, administration, regulation and enforcement of the provisions of this article including:Listed under:
2. The exemption from inspection of:
(l) Motorcycles.
Listed under:
The director may adopt rules for purposes of implementation, administration, regulation and enforcement of the provisions of this article including:Listed under:
2. The exemption from inspection of:
(k) Collectible vehicles.
Listed under:
The director may adopt rules for purposes of implementation, administration, regulation and enforcement of the provisions of this article including:Listed under:
2. The exemption from inspection of:
(e) Vehicles that are outside of this state at the time of registration, except the director by rule may require testing of those vehicles within a reasonable period of time after those vehicles return to this state.
Check a vehicle against these quotes
Enter a model year, a fuel, and choose the county. The checker repeats the quotes above and, where a figure can be compared, says where your entry falls against it. It does not decide anything about your vehicle.
Which pages could we not read?
We ask for each page with a plain request that names this site, and we don’t work around a refusal. These pages matter for Arizona and did not open for us:
- Arizona Department of Environmental Quality website (refused our reader on November 11, 2026)
- Arizona Department of Transportation website (refused our reader on November 11, 2026)
Where do these quotes come from?
- Arizona Revised Statutes 49-542, Emissions inspection program (azleg.gov; statute or administrative code; read November 11, 2026)
- Arizona Revised Statutes 49-541, Definitions (azleg.gov; statute or administrative code; read November 11, 2026)
- Arizona Revised Statutes 49-543, Emissions inspection costs (azleg.gov; statute or administrative code; read November 11, 2026)
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