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2022 SESSION
22107439DBe it enacted by the General Assembly of Virginia:
1. That §§ 46.2-113, 46.2-1047, 46.2-1049, and 46.2-1051 of the Code of Virginia are amended and reenacted as follows:
§ 46.2-113. Violations of this title; penalties.
It shall be is unlawful for any person to
violate any of the provisions of this title, or any regulation adopted pursuant
to this title, or local ordinances adopted pursuant to the authority granted in
§ 46.2-1300 this title. Unless otherwise stated, these violations
shall constitute traffic infractions punishable by a fine of not more than that
provided for a Class 4 misdemeanor under § 18.2-11.
If it is found by the judge of a court of proper jurisdiction
that the violation of any provision of this title (i) was a serious
traffic violation as defined in § 46.2-341.20 and (ii) that such
violation was committed while operating a vehicle or combination of vehicles
used to transport property that either: (a) (i) has a gross
vehicle weight rating of 26,001 or more pounds or (b) (ii) has a
gross combination weight rating of 26,001 or more pounds inclusive of a towed
vehicle with a gross vehicle weight rating of more than 10,000 pounds, the
judge may assess, in addition to any other penalty assessed, a further monetary
penalty not exceeding $500.
§ 46.2-1047. Muffler cutout, etc., illegal.
It shall be is unlawful to sell or offer for
sale any (i) muffler without interior baffle plates or other effective muffling
device or (ii) gutted muffler, muffler cutout, or straight exhaust. It shall
be is unlawful for any person to operate on the highways in the
Commonwealth a motor vehicle, moped, or motorized skateboard or foot-scooter
equipped with a gutted muffler, a muffler cutout, chambered pipes,
or a straight exhaust (a) on the highways of the Commonwealth; (b) in
any driveway or on any premises of a church or other place of worship, school,
recreational facility, or business; (c) on any governmental property open to
the public; (d) on the premises of any industrial establishment providing
parking space for customers, patrons, or employees; or (e) on any highway under
construction or not yet open to the public.
§ 46.2-1049. Exhaust system in good working order.
A. No person shall drive and no owner of a vehicle
shall permit or allow the operation of any such vehicle on a highway unless it
is equipped with an exhaust system in good working order and in constant
operation to prevent excessive or unusual levels of noise, provided, however,
that for motor vehicles, such exhaust system shall be of a type installed as
standard factory equipment, or comparable to that designed for use on the
particular vehicle as standard factory equipment or other equipment that has
been submitted to and approved by the Superintendent or meets or exceeds the
standards and specifications of the Society of Automotive Engineers, the
American National Standards Institute, or the federal Department of Transportation.
As used in this section, "exhaust system" means all the parts of a vehicle through which the exhaust passes after leaving the engine block, including mufflers and other sound dissipative devices.
Chambered pipes are not an effective muffling device to
prevent excessive or unusual noise, and any vehicle equipped with chambered
pipes shall be deemed in violation of this section.
The provisions of this section shall not apply to (i) any antique motor vehicle licensed pursuant to § 46.2-730, provided that the engine is comparable to that designed as standard factory equipment for use on that particular vehicle, and the exhaust system is in good working order, or (ii) converted electric vehicles.
B. No law-enforcement officer shall stop a motor vehicle
for a violation of this section. No evidence discovered or obtained as the
result of a stop in violation of this subsection, including evidence discovered
or obtained with the operator's consent, shall be admissible in any trial,
hearing, or other proceeding.
§ 46.2-1051. Local ordinances; vehicle exhaust.
A. The governing body of any county, city, or town
which is located within the Northern Virginia Planning District may
provide, by ordinance, (i) provide that no person shall
operate and no owner shall permit the operation of, either on a highway or on
public or private property within 500 feet of any residential district, any
motor vehicle other than an all-terrain vehicle being used for production
agriculture or silviculture as defined in § 3.2-300, motorcycle, moped,
all-terrain vehicle as defined in § 46.2-100, not being used for
agriculture or silviculture production as defined in § 3.2-300, electric
power-assisted bicycle, motorcycle-like device commonly known as a trail-bike
or mini-bike, off-road motorcycle, or motorized cart commonly known as a
go-cart unless it is equipped with an exhaust system of a type installed as
standard equipment, or comparable to that designed for use on that particular
vehicle or device as standard factory equipment, in good working order and in
constant operation to prevent excessive noise and (ii) regulate noise from a
motor vehicle, motorcycle, moped, or motorized skateboard or scooter operated
on a highway that is not equipped with a muffler and exhaust system conforming
to §§ 46.2-1047 and 46.2-1049, if such noise may be hazardous to the health and
well-being of its citizens.
B. The provisions of subsection E of § 46.2-1300 shall not apply to ordinances adopted pursuant to this section.
2. That § 15.2-919 of the Code of Virginia is repealed.