(a) The Secretary in conjunction with the Department of Motor Vehicles may provide rules for the control of emissions from motor vehicles. Such rules may prescribe requirements for the installation and use of equipment designed to reduce or eliminate emissions and for the proper maintenance of the equipment and the vehicles. Rules pursuant to this section shall be consistent with provisions of federal law, if any, relating to control of emissions from the vehicles concerned and shall not require, as a condition precedent to the initial sale of a vehicle or vehicular equipment, the inspection, certification, or other approval of any feature or equipment designed for the control of emissions from motor vehicles, if the feature or equipment has been certified, approved, or otherwise authorized pursuant to federal law.

(b) Except as permitted or authorized by law, no person shall fail to maintain in good working order or remove, dismantle, or otherwise cause to be inoperative any equipment or feature constituting an operational element of the air pollution control system or mechanism of a motor vehicle and required by rules pursuant to this chapter to be maintained in or on the vehicle. Any failure to maintain in good working order or removal, dismantling, or causing of inoperability shall subject the owner or operator to suspension or cancellation of the registration for the vehicle by the Department of Motor Vehicles. The vehicle shall not thereafter be eligible for registration until all parts and equipment constituting operational elements of the motor vehicle have been restored, replaced, or repaired and are in good working order.

(c) The Secretary shall consult with the Department of Motor Vehicles and furnish it with technical information, including testing techniques, standards, and instructions for emission control features and equipment.

(d) When rules have been issued requiring the maintenance of features or equipment in or on motor vehicles for the purpose of controlling emissions therefrom, no motor vehicle shall be issued an inspection sticker unless all the required features or equipment have been inspected in accordance with the standards, testing techniques, and instructions furnished pursuant to subsection (b) hereof and has been found to meet those standards.

(e) The remedies and penalties provided here apply to violations of this section and provisions of section 568 of this title shall not apply.

(f) As used in this section, "motor vehicle" shall have the same meaning as defined in 23 V.S.A. § 4. (Added 1967, No. 310 (Adj. Sess.), § 16; amended 1971, No. 212 (Adj. Sess.), § 3.)