Jay Leno Makes Pit Stop at the Capitol to Speak on ‘Leno’s Law’ to Protect Classic Cars

Jay Leno made a pit stop at the State Capitol Tuesday to speak on Senate Bill 712 by Senator Shannon Grove (R–Bakersfield), known as Leno’s Law, and attend the Senate Transportation Committee hearing on the bill.

SB 712 would exempt, on an ongoing or “rolling” basis, collector cars whose model year is 35 years or older from the state’s smog check law, according to Senator Grove.

“The bill would also exempt classic cars from the smog check program upon transfer of a vehicle. These classic cars are infrequently driven, carefully maintained, and make up only a fraction of cars on the road. They are typically owned for their historical significance and collector value.”

“Exempting them from the biennial smog check would strengthen California’s ‘car culture’ by helping preserve these historical treasures,” Grove explained.

Mr. Leno must have the golden touch as SB 712 was passed out of the Senate Transportation Committee with bipartisan support.

“I’m thrilled to see SB 712 advance with the support of my colleagues,” said Senator Grove. “These classic cars aren’t just hobby vehicles—they represent generations of craftsmanship, culture, and community pride. With this bill, we’re protecting small businesses, empowering car enthusiasts, and preserving a vital piece of California’s heritage.”

“California helped invent car culture—from lowriders in East L.A. to muscle cars in the Central Valley. These cars tell the story,” said Jay Leno. “SB 712 is about keeping that story alive. These vehicles are driven occasionally, not daily, and it just makes sense to treat them differently. I’m proud to be working with Senator Grove, and I thank the committee for recognizing the importance of preserving our automotive legacy.”

Senator Dave Cortese (D–San Jose), Chairman of the Senate Transportation Committee, co-authored the bill, and expressed his strong support of SB 712.

“These cars are rarely on the road, meticulously maintained, and represent a very small fraction of California’s total vehicle emissions. This is a long-overdue, common-sense law that both protects hobbyists and collectors and continues to safeguard our environment. I fully support ‘Leno’s Law,” said Sen. Cortese.

As Senator Grove explained, “The legislation comes at a time when collectors and small businesses face increasing regulatory and financial hurdles. California’s classic cars make up a tiny fraction of vehicles on the road but generate massive economic and cultural value. According to the Specialty Equipment Market Association (SEMA), California’s specialty automotive aftermarket industry supports over 149,000 jobs, contributes $40.44 billion to the state’s economy, and pays over $6.16 billion in state and local taxes.”

“This bill ensures California remains a welcoming home for car culture—whether you’re restoring a ‘76 Trans Am, cruising in a lowrider, or just visiting your local classic car show,” added Grove. “We’re embracing the history, innovation, and pride of these collector cars.”

Leno, who drives electric cars during the week, said that collector cars are taken out on weekends to shows, parades, or driven to an event – they are not daily drivers. 

“I keep my cars running perfectly,” Leno said during the hearing. Yet he said, in California, owners can’t even get the smog equipment to make the cars legal. 

“Hot rodding started here in California,” Leno added, reiterating California’s car culture.

He noted that he’s all for clean air and the environment. “My garage is solar. I use biodegradable products for their storage.” But he said, the bureaucracy and hoops collector car owners have to jump through “is an awful lot of work for 1% of the vehicles.”

Bill Magavern with the Coalition for Clean Air testified in opposition to SB 712 and said “the bill should be called the smog and soot bill.”

“My wife was caught behind a parade of classic cars the other day and came home with a headache,” he said.

But as Mr. Leno, and Senators Grove and Cortese confirmed, the amount of collector cars that would qualify for SB 712 is about 1% of the vehicles in California, and would not, and do not cause a demonstrable amount of air pollution.

Sen. Bob Archuleta (D-Pico Rivera) addressed Leno, referring to him as a “movie star. But here you’re a just a car enthusiast.” He told Leno he owns a 1967 Olds442. Stock. Sen. Archuleta said he was proud to support the bill, and supported the lowrider bill that lifted the restrictions on lowrider cruising, and recognized it as a cultural and artistic tradition developed by California’s Latinos. Archuleta said he supported that bill “as a former police officer.”

Sen. Suzette Valladares (R-Santa Clarita) said when she was a kid, her dad build engine for a 1957 Chevy. She said she remembers sitting in 1969 Malibu without engine. Her dad gave her a 1947 Chevy truck for her wedding. She identified the connection between her dad, brothers, and family through the classic cars her dad build and rebuilt.

Sen. Catherine Blakespear (D-Encinitas) was one of the buzz kills on the committee. She said she would not able to support SB 712, particularly as the chairwoman of the Environmental Quality committee. She said the bill should have to go through her committee, but will not.

“Smog checks are because of air pollution cars cause,” she said. “Older vehicles will have a real impact on the air quality.”

“I look at this, that this is very simple bill – cars are part of the California culture,” said Senator Tony Strickland (R-Huntington Beach). He reiterated that it’s only 1% of the cars.

Senator Caroline Menjivar (she/her/ella) (D-San Fernando Valley) began her comments with, “remember this rhetoric you are using for other topics that are about less than 1% of the population.” She said she shares the same Environmental Quality committee concerns, and demanded from Sen. Grove, “Where are the checks and balances in your bill?”

She argued some with Sen. Grove about what the bill says and does not say, and said she wasn’t worried about the lowrider collectors, and indicated that her concern lies with the population that doesn’t take care of their cars.

“We’re not helping people pollute,” Sen. Grove retorted, “we are just helping car collectors be able to continue.”

Sen. Kelly Seyarto (R-Murrieta) said “the issues are not difficult. Collector cars – there’s not a plethora of them driving all over our highways. It’s such a minuscule part of our environmental issues. Yet here we are arguing about people going out and being able to drive or cruise… ” and noted that lawmakers all get on planes and fly to and from the Capitol every week.

“I have an older car can’t get tags, and can’t drive it. Some of our systems don’t make sense to normal people,” Sen. Seyarto said. “The regulatory framework makes our lives really really difficult and inconvenient.” 

Sen. Monique Limon (D-Santa Barbara) said she had a problem “with the enforcement piece” of the bill. “We are removing an insurance piece -so  how they will be able to classify a collector car… to be able to certify if it is a collector car?”

“Are the enforcement mechanisms in place to prevent a Honda Civic used as a collector?”

Senator Grove corrected Simon by explaining that the bill’s language comes from existing law and just makes it for cars 35 year old and older. “I’m not doing anything in this bill that isn’t already in law – except exempting from Smog.” 

The committee passed SB 712, which now heads to the Senate Appropriations Committee.