Protecting Our Rights to Tune and Mod

Protecting Our Rights to Tune and Mod

The bipartisan Recognizing the Protection of Motorsports Act of 2019 (RPM Act of 2019) needs your voice to take effective action.

Imagine looking at your car after 125 hours of tuning and modification. You’ve invested over $12,500 of awesome merchandise intended to increase speed and improve driveability. You’ve driven thousands of miles on the dyno to identify that knock on numerous occasions. And finally, you are now ready to bring your baby on the track to test it amongst the other racers, only to find that your hard work and nonrefundable time spent is prohibited from use. This has been the case for drivers all over the U.S., and now is our chance to change the rules for racers!


It has been almost 60 years since the Clean Air Act was passed in 1963. Although the intention of this act was an undeniably good one (to reduce air pollution and improve our environment on a national level), this law has now cracked down on racers who are interested in converting their street cars into racecars. According to the EPA’s interpretation, this means that vehicles, including cars, trucks, and motorcycles designated for street use, are prohibited from being converted into racecars. It wasn’t until 2015 that the EPA finally deemed these modifications to be illegal. Even though the vehicles are no longer driving on the street, they were required to remain emissions-compliant.

 

The bipartisan Recognizing the Protection of Motorsports Act of 2019 (RPM Act of 2019) seeks to challenge this relatively new change to the act and protect driver’s rights to race their cars, along with protecting the motor industry’s rights to sell modification and tuning products. The industry has produced over $2 billion dollars in the market with over 1,300 racetracks operating across the United States of America, according to SEMA.


Many companies in the motor vehicle industry, including associations like SEMA, or education specialists like The Tuning School, are pledging to support the RPM Act of 2019. You can too, by sending a letter to your members of Congress and asking them to support the bill.

  

Steps to Getting Your Voice Heard

1. Sign the petition here: www.sema.org/rpm
2. Send a letter to your Congress Representative with the information below:


Subject:

The Recognizing the Protection of Motorsports (RPM) Act of 2019


Message:

As a constituent, I respectfully request that you cosponsor H.R. 5434/S. 2602, the Recognizing the Protection of Motorsports Act of 2019 (RPM Act).  The bipartisan RPM Act protects the right to convert an automobile into a racecar used exclusively at the track.


Modifying a vehicle into a racecar is an integral part of America's automotive heritage.  Many types of racing, including NASCAR, were founded on the premise that street vehicles-including motorcycles-can be converted into dedicated race vehicles.  Racing events are an economic driver for many communities and a source of affordable family-friendly entertainment for millions, with participants that range from professionals to novices using converted race vehicles. 


Congress never intended for the Clean Air Act to apply to motor vehicles modified for competition use only.  However, the EPA maintains that Clean Air Act requires converted street vehicles competing on the track to remain emissions-compliant even though they are not driven on public streets or highways.  


The RPM Act clarifies in Federal Law that transforming motor vehicles into racecars used exclusively for competition does not violate the Clean Air Act.  It is imperative that Congress passes the RPM Act in order to provide long-term certainty to racers and motorsports parts businesses.  


Thank you for your consideration.

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