UNION — Owners of newer model cars in Kentucky would be exempt from tailpipe vehicle emissions testing under legislation filed by a state lawmaker.

        Rep. Paul Marcotte, R-Union, has introduced the bill, which would allow owners of vehicles 4 years old or newer to skip the tests. Owners are now required to test vehicles every other year.

        Fewer than 1 percent of newer cars fail the tests.

        The General Assembly will take up the bill in the legislative session that begins in early February. If passed, the $20 fee to get a vehicle tested would probably go up to offset the lost revenue caused by testing fewer cars.

        Vehicles manufactured since 1968 must be checked every other year at one of the testing stations that opened in September in the three Northern Kentucky counties. The federal government ordered the state to implement the test to help clean Northern Kentucky's air.

        The government had threatened to withhold federal highway funding if the region did not implement the tests.

        Northern Kentucky lawmakers have filed legislation in past sessions that would eliminate the test. They have said the tests are not needed because the region's air is clean enough to meet federal standards.

        Other lawmakers and local officials have warned that eliminating the tests could be costly. The bills have not passed.

        More than $100 million in highway funds could be lost in Northern Kentucky if the federal government decides to impose sanctions for abandoning the tailpipe tests, House Majority Caucus Chairman Jim Callahan, D-Wilder, said.

        Since the inception of the emissions program, about 100,000 vehicles have been tested, according to Envirotest Systems Corp. of Dayton, Ohio. The fail rate is just more than 8 percent.

        The company has spent a little over $5 million to start up the program. This includes land, building, equipment and training.

       Enquirer reporter Jim Hannah contributed to this story.

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