(a)
The department shall prescribe the form of the certificate of compliance or noncompliance, repair cost waivers, and economic hardship extensions.
(b)
The certificates, repair cost waivers, and economic hardship extensions shall be in the form of an electronic entry filed with the department, the Department of Motor Vehicles, and any other person designated by the department. The department shall ensure that the motor vehicle owner or operator is provided with a written report, signed by the licensed technician who performed the inspection, of any test performed by a smog check station, including a pass or fail indication, and written confirmation of the issuance of the certificate.
(c)
(1)
The department shall charge a fee to a smog check station, including a test-only station, and a station providing referee functions, for a motor vehicle inspected at that station that meets the requirements of this chapter and is issued a certificate of compliance, a certificate of noncompliance, repair cost waiver, or economic hardship extension.
(2)
The fee charged pursuant to paragraph (1) shall be calculated to recover the costs of the department and any other state agency directly involved in the implementation, administration, or enforcement of the motor vehicle inspection and maintenance program, and shall not exceed the amount reasonably necessary to fund the operation of the program, including all responsibilities, requirements, and obligations imposed upon the department or any of those state agencies by this chapter, that are not otherwise recoverable by fees received pursuant to Section 44034.
(3)
Except for adjustments to reflect changes in the Consumer Price Index, as published by the United States Bureau of Labor Statistics, the fee for each certificate, waiver, or extension shall not exceed seven dollars ($7).
(4)
Fees collected by the department pursuant to this subdivision shall be deposited in the Vehicle Inspection and Repair Fund. It is the intent of the Legislature that a prudent surplus be maintained in the Vehicle Inspection and Repair Fund.
(d)
(1)
Motor vehicles exempted under paragraph (4) of subdivision (a) of Section 44011 shall be subject to an annual smog abatement fee of twelve dollars ($12). The department may also, by regulation, subject motor vehicles that are exempted under paragraph (5) of subdivision (a) of Section 44011 to the twelve dollar ($12) annual smog abatement fee. Payment of the annual smog abatement fee shall be made to the Department of Motor Vehicles at the time of registration of the motor vehicle.
(2)
Except as provided in subdivision (a) of Section 44091.1, fees collected pursuant to this subdivision shall be deposited on a daily basis into the Vehicle Inspection and Repair Fund.
(e)
The sale or transfer of the certificate, waiver, or extension by a licensed smog check station or test-only station to any other licensed smog check station or to any other person, and the purchase or acquisition of the certificate, waiver, or extension, by any person, other than from the department, the department’s designee, or pursuant to a vehicle’s inspection or repair conducted pursuant to this chapter, is prohibited.
(f)
Following implementation of the electronic entry certificate under subdivision (b), the department may require the modification of the analyzers and other equipment required at smog check stations to prevent the entry of a certificate that has not been issued or validated through prepayment of the fee authorized by subdivision (c).
(g)
The fee charged by licensed smog check stations to consumers for a certificate, waiver, or extension shall be the same amount that is charged by the department.