Gov. Gavin Newsom signed Leno’s Law (Senate Bill 1392) at the garage owned by the bill’s namesake, entertainer and noted automotive enthusiast Jay Leno. The bill was sponsored by Leno and the Specialty Equipment Market Association (SEMA).
Newsom was joined at the signing ceremony by Leno, SEMA CEO Mike Spagnola, Sen. Dave Cortese and other advocates of the bill, including Francine Mata, co-founder and president of the Sacramento Lowrider Commission and a founding member of the California Lowrider Alliance; and Carmen Vera, co-owner of restoration shop Pasadena Classic Car.
Leno’s Law, authored by Cortese with principal coauthor Sen. Shannon Grove, creates a narrow, phased-in pathway to exemptions from California’s smog-check requirements for qualifying collector vehicles manufactured between 1976 and 1985. Leno’s Law was crafted to provide a carefully limited solution for vehicles typically preserved for shows, parades, charitable functions and historical exhibitions.
“SEMA applauds Gov. Newsom for putting his signature on a historic win for California’s automotive community and for every family, enthusiast and small business working to keep this culture alive,” Spagnola said. “Leno’s Law shows that California can protect clean air while also showing the appropriate reverence for the vehicles that connect generations and tell an important part of our state’s story. We are grateful to Senators Cortese and Grove, Jay Leno, our member companies and the thousands of advocates whose energy fueled this effort with an unrelenting passion for our shared automotive heritage.”
Under the bill, beginning Jan. 1, 2028, qualifying collector vehicles (manufactured before model year 1981) would be exempt from smog-check requirements. The exemption would annually expand by one model year until 2033, when it would apply to vehicles manufactured before model year 1986. To qualify, vehicles must meet the bill’s collector-use requirements, and owners must either carry collector-car insurance or, via a future DMV process to be established by 2030, verify that the vehicle is driven fewer than 1,000 miles per year. The bill does not change California’s existing exemption for pre-1976 vehicles.