As states typically do, one state gets a law passed and others soon follow. This time, it is New Jersey who is leading the way. In December, we broke the news that after one guy smoked out an Assemblyman in New Jersey, Senator Linda Greenstein pushed a bill through that basically makes it illegal to modify a diesel.
The law states, “retrofitting any diesel-powered vehicle with any device, smoke stack or other equipment which enhances the vehicle’s capacity to emit soot, smoke or other particulate emissions, as well as purposely releasing significant quantities of soot, smoke or other particulate emissions into the air and onto the roadways and other vehicles while operating the vehicle.”
After passing 36-0 in favor of the bill in New Jersey, Illinois State Representative Will Guzzardi is pushing a bill banning diesel modifications too (HB3553)!
“No person shall retrofit any diesel-powered vehicle with any device, smoke stack, or other equipment that enhances the vehicle’s capacity to emit soot, smoke, or other particulate emissions, or shall purposely release significant quantities of soot, smoke, or other particulate emissions into the air and onto roadways and other vehicles while operating the vehicle.”
While there is no specific event attributed to Guzzardi’s actions, one can only imagine what caused him to follow suit with Greenstein.
We do agree that there needs to be something done about people blacking out freeways and random smoking out people, but laws like this greatly affect our entire industry. If this bill passes, it will only be a matter of time before it snowballs across the entire country.