California’s Senate has passed SB 1392, nicknamed “Leno’s Law,” which would permanently exempt qualifying classic and collector vehicles from the state’s biennial smog check. The bill now heads to the Assembly, where a nearly identical version died in committee last year.

Key Points

• SB 1392 passed the California State Senate with bipartisan support and now moves to the Assembly
• The exemption phases in starting with pre-1981 vehicles, adding one model year annually until it covers pre-1986 vehicles by 2032
• California’s existing smog exemption for vehicles built before 1976 stays in place unchanged
• Owners must carry collector vehicle insurance and meet the bill’s definition of a “collector motor vehicle” under Vehicle Code Section 259
• Bill sponsors say classic and collector cars make up less than 1% of vehicles registered in California

The bill is authored by Senators Dave Cortese (D-San Jose) and Shannon Grove (R-Bakersfield), and it’s built to avoid the sticking point that killed last year’s version. That earlier attempt would have required specialty license plates for exempted cars — a requirement collectors pushed back on because it meant giving up a vehicle’s original plates. “We listened to the feedback of collectors and heard them loud and clear that the original license plates are an important piece of the vehicle’s authenticity, and it’s important to not give those up,” Grove said in a statement announcing the bill’s reintroduction. This version instead defines a “collector motor vehicle” directly in law, with no plate swap required.

The exemption doesn’t apply to every old car overnight. It phases in on a rolling basis, starting with vehicles built before 1981 and adding one additional model year every year until it reaches pre-1986 vehicles by 2032, according to SEMA’s tracking of the bill. California already exempts pre-1976 vehicles from smog checks; this bill extends that cutoff a decade further, but only for cars that qualify as genuine collector vehicles rather than daily drivers.

Cortese framed the bill as a matter of how these cars actually get used. “Classic car owners are not daily commuters — they are preservationists. These vehicles are driven sparingly, carefully maintained, and celebrated as part of California’s automotive heritage,” he said in the same statement, adding that the bill “strikes a thoughtful balance between protecting our environment and supporting a $40.44 billion small business economy” tied to car shows, restoration shops, and swap meets across the state.

The bill carries its nickname from Jay Leno, the car collector and former late-night host, who is listed as a sponsor. “I am very excited about it. We came very close last time. A lot of bills don’t pass on the first go around. I am hopeful this time it will pass,” Leno said in the senators’ announcement. The lowrider community has been especially vocal, submitting more than 1,700 letters of support, and the bill has also drawn backing from the FIA International Historical Commission.

Passing the Senate is the easy part. Last year’s version stalled in the Assembly after clearing its early committees, and SB 1392 faces the same gauntlet now. A signature would put California’s classic car owners in the same camp as states that treat older vehicles as historical property, not emissions liabilities.