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Bureau of Automotive Repair reviews 2024 accomplishments and plans for 2025 across licensing, SmogCheck and enforcement
Summary
Deputy chiefs reported modernization milestones, new programs and enforcement changes: completion of the SimplyGov licensing modernization, vehicle safety systems inspection rollouts, DAD 2 and data collection work for SmogCheck, and a new statewide investigations branch in enforcement.
The Bureau of Automotive Repair reviewed 2024 accomplishments and outlined plans for 2025 across its three divisions: Licensing, SmogCheck Engineering & Information Services, and Field Operations & Enforcement.
Patrick Durey, chief of the Bureau of Automotive Repair, introduced the year-in-review agenda and said the bureau will follow with division-level updates. Linda Janssen, deputy chief for Licensing, Administration and Consumer Assistance, said the bureau completed the enforcement and licensing modernization contract (SimplyGov) in October and moved to maintenance and operations, launched the vehicle safety systems inspection license and reorganized licensing staff to separate business licensing from technician/inspector licensing. She reported 4,585 vehicles repaired through the consumer assistance program in 2024 and 21,575 vehicles retired; Cars for Schools has “over a hundred vehicles currently assigned to schools statewide.” Janssen said the bureau aims to maintain an average application processing time of under one week in 2025 and will award new dismantler contracts by June 30, 2025.
Clay Leake, deputy chief of SmogCheck Engineering and Information Services, described work on equipment standards and data systems. He said the department adopted a rule package updating inspection equipment requirements and is certifying a next‑generation data acquisition device (DAD 2) that will be used in SmogCheck inspections. Leake said expanded dynamic data collection is being used to detect anomalies and fraud and that the bureau is supporting the Department of Motor Vehicles’ Digital Experience (DXP) modernization. He also described upcoming efforts: surveys and a possible contracted network to support inspection of older pre‑OBD vehicles (per legislative direction), a referee-fee package, a continuous-testing pilot regulation, formalizing public-agency remote OBD testing, integration of vehicle safety and noise inspections into the California Vehicle Inspection System (CalVIs), and outreach to ensure industry systems run supported operating systems (Windows 11 timelines).
Bill Thomas, deputy chief for Field Operations and Enforcement, said the bureau created a Statewide Investigations Branch, a Field Support Services unit and reworked consumer complaint handling to reduce cycle time. He said investigators and field staff focused on education: the bureau conducted more than 1,200 educational interactions in 2024 and closed roughly 30 disciplinary cases. Thomas reported receipt of over 16,000 complaints in 2024 — a rise he described as partly positive because it means consumers are using the bureau’s complaint process — and said enforcement will continue to emphasize education while also pursuing bad actors through more targeted investigations and the new statewide investigative capability.
Ending: Bureau leaders urged stakeholders to participate in rulemaking workshops and said they will present more demonstrations and updates — including online licensing and renewal improvements — at future advisory meetings.
