Veteran's car can't pass emissions test, and he can't get it fixed. Why can't he get a waiver?
CAROL STREAM, Ill. (CBS) -- An Army veteran from Carol Stream, who is battling cancer, relies on his nearly 30-year-old car to get around, but it failed an emissions test, and it's so old he can't get it fixed.
Robert Arthur Kersting said his 1996 Chevrolet Monte Carlo Z34 failed its Illinois vehicle inspection emissions test, which is required to renew its registration.
To pass the emissions test, the Z34 would need a new pump. Documentation from an auto service shop showed a Chevrolet dealership and numerous auto parts stores were contacted, but that part is no longer available.
"I've got a car I love. It runs good. Just can't get this part," he said.
So Kersting sent in a repair waiver application to the Illinois Air Team emissions testing program. He said he sent the form in three times – by fax, by mail, and online. Then, he received, two back-to-back emails.
"One says, 'We're reviewing it,' and a minute later, the email says, 'You've been denied.' It's almost like an auto-rejection, and I was like, 'Oh my god, I wish I could call them back,'" Kersting said.
Kersting said he was able to get a representative from the Illinois Air Team on the phone, and when she learned that his car was nearly three decades old, he said she told him, 'Well, why don't you just go to a junkyard to find the part?'"
"I said, 'I'm 75 years old. I'm lucky I get up and move around every day,'" he said.
The Army veteran said the stress has been overwhelming to resolve this, as he's also battling stage four pancreatic cancer.
"Here I am, a combat Vietnam veteran, and I can't get any leniency, any compassion," he said.
Late Friday afternoon, the Illinois Environmental Protection Agency informed CBS News Chicago that, in order to consider a repair waiver from the vehicle emissions testing requirement, a vehicle must fail a test twice.
The Illinois EPA didn't respond when asked why automated emails sent to drivers don't warn about that requirement for two failed tests before they can apply for a waiver.
The agency said it's reaching out directly to Kersting to help him resolve his situation.
