The New Hampshire Attorney General’s Office said Friday that the state’s vehicle inspection program is suspended until further notice.
The move comes after a federal judge paused the repeal of the program.
Gordon-Darby, the company contracted to run New Hampshire’s vehicle inspection program, sued the state, saying the removal of the program violated the Clean Air Act because it didn’t receive a waiver from the Environmental Protection Agency.
New Hampshire has filed for the waiver, which is still pending.
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The Executive Council has since ended its contract with Gordon-Darby.
The Attorney General’s Office said inspection stations are no longer authorized to issue state inspection stickers, and vehicles will not be required to get a sticker at this time.
Officials with the departments of Safety and Environmental Services said they are exploring options to comply with the court’s order, but they said they lack the legal authority to operate the program because there is no approved vendor.
New Hampshire is appealing the judge’s ruling.
There are still many questions about the program. New Hampshire drivers want to know why a federal ruling applies to a state program.
“Even though it’s a state law, it’s a state law New Hampshire had to submit to satisfy the Clean Air Act, so it’s under the force of federal law,” said Daniel Pi, a law professor at the University of New Hampshire.
Others wonder why the program was managed by an out-of-state company.
“I’m pretty sure the state contracts with plenty of vendors for services that are both in New Hampshire, out of New Hampshire, national and, in some cases, probably global, for a host of services that are provided by the state,” said Dan Bennett, president of the New Hampshire Automobile Dealers Association.
Drivers said they’re frustrated with how the state has handled the issue.
“It makes me think about education and everything else,” said Chip Colello, of Acworth. “It does need to be more transparent, for sure.”
“You can make it work a little better for the people but still keep them road safe and everybody be safe,” said Sarah Glenfield, of Concord.
Experts said the state is being pulled in multiple directions.
“The main problem isn’t the secrecy,” Pi said. “The main problem is that there is no right answer to the situation that they find themselves in.”
Marty Rouleau, an auto mechanic from Somersworth, had car inspection appointments scheduled for next week. Now with the suspension, those people don’t need them.
“Being an auto body and auto mechanic and having my inspection license for 50 years, I have not been notified officially again as to what’s actually going on,” Rouleau said.
The Attorney General’s Office said drivers are still expected to keep their vehicles in safe operating condition.