AUSTIN - The start of 2025 is almost here! When we turn the page on the calendar we are also going to see some new laws, or new sections of old ones, added to the books in Texas. Some of the changes include the elimination of mandatory vehicle inspections and ore ways to protect Texans’ personal data online. Others clarify changes to government organizations, add courts and change the wording, but not the meaning, of written laws.
Here are the new changes taking effect on Jan. 1, 2025: Related Texas won't require vehicle inspections starting Jan. 1, do you still need emissions testing? While vehicle safety inspections are going away for some Texans, residents in certain counties will still need emissions tests.
In 2023, the Texas legislature voted to remove mandatory vehicle safety inspections for noncommercial vehicles. Instead, the $7.50 fee will be assessed as an "inspection program replacement fee" that is added when the vehicle is registered with the Department of Motor Vehicles.
New vehicles from the two most recent model years that have not been registered before will pay an initial fee of $16.75 that will cover two years. It does not remove emissions inspections where they are required.
Counties that require emissions tests are: Brazoria, Fort Bend, Galveston, Harris, Montgomery, Collin, Dallas, Denton, Ellis, Johnson, Kaufman, Parker, Rockwall, Tarrant, Travis, Williamson and El Paso counties. Bexar County will require emissions beginning in 2026. Commercial vehicl.
