SACRAMENTO, CA - California law now requires all automotive service providers performing automotive maintenance or repair services in the state (including public fleet repair facilities) to properly check and inflate the tires of the light vehicles they are repairing.

The California Office of Administrative Law (OAL) officially approved the "Regulation to Reduce Greenhouse Gas Emissions from Vehicles Operating with Under Inflated Tires" (Section 95550 in Title 17 of the California Code of Regulations), in effect on September 1.

The purpose of the regulation is "to reduce greenhouse gas emissions from vehicles operating with under-inflated tires by inflating them to the recommended tire pressure rating."

According to the Automotive Maintenance and Repair Association, "Along with other stipulations, this regulation, commonly known as the Tire Pressure Regulation, will require automotive service providers to check and inflate each vehicle's tires to the recommended tire pressure rating at the time of performing any automotive maintenance or repair service, as well as to indicate on the vehicle service invoice that a tire inflation service was completed," reported Modern Tire Dealer.

Some of those "other stipulations" include noting the action taken and the recommended psi on a customer's invoice; maintaining the invoices for at least three years; and having tire pressure gauges with an accuracy of at least plus or minus 2 psi.

The California Air Resources Board (ARB) is finalizing a guidance document for public review.

ARB has a list of frequently asked questions about the new regulation on its Web site.