I have 3 cars. I have to get smog checks on each car every 2 years. In the 20 years or so that smog checks have been required, my cars have been through30 smog checks. I have only failed one smog test--a crack in the pipe between the filler cap and the tank.

So if my experience is typical, we are conducting millions of unnecessary smog tests every year in the great state of California. At a cost of about $49 each. That's a lot of wasted money.

Don't get me wrong. I am all for clean air and sensible measures to achieve same. But let's get practical.

Would it make sense to not require any tests at all for the first 5 years of a new cars life? And then only require smog tests every 3 years for cars over 5 years old?

Before I write Assemblyman Gaines on this subject, I would like to know what other people think.