COLUMBUS, Ohio — Some Ohio lawmakers are calling for the federal government to end mandatory E-checks for drivers in Northeast Ohio.

An Ohio House committee is considering a resolution sponsored by state Rep. Bill Roemer that would urge Congress, the Trump administration and the U.S. EPA to eliminate the E-Check program, which requires vehicles registered in Cuyahoga County and the six surrounding counties to get tested every two years.

The resolution would carry no official weight, but Roemer, a Richfield Republican, said he’s hoping it will catch the attention of federal regulators.

He said he got the idea after a business owner approached him at a district even and told the requirements are burdensome and unnecessary.

“I’ve lived in Northeast Ohio my entire life, and I agree,” Roemer said. “So we introduced this resolution.”

The current E-Check program dates back to the 1990s as part of Ohio’s response to tougher federal emissions standards. The state pays $10 million annually to the vendor that runs the program. Lawmakers periodically have proposed doing away with it, citing its inconvenience to drivers. But it’s persevered as a way to comply with federal air-pollution standards.

Roemer said air quality has improved since the E-Check’s inception due to greater efficiency in vehicles and reduced manufacturing activity. But the U.S. EPA passed tougher air-quality standards in 2015, leaving the mandatory E-Check in place. The tougher standards also could result in mandatory E-Checks expanding to other Ohio counties, he said.

“By changing the standards and making them more stringent, you can argue that Northeast Ohio isn’t in compliance, but we can say we really are in compliance based on what the standards were in 2008,” Roemer said.

The resolution, currently before the House Energy & Natural Resources Committee, has attracted no official opposition.

But Stephanie Kroemer, director of energy and environmental policy for the Ohio Chamber of Commerce, told state lawmakers E-Check is a low-cost way to comply with federal air-pollution standards.

“While we certainly would like to see the 2015 standards reversed, retaining the use of cost-effective compliance tools such as E-Check remains vital,” Kroemer said in submitted testimony.

In 2017, the E-Check program removed 1,317 tons of nitrogen oxides — the prevalence of which is associated with asthma — and 1,100 tons of volatile organic compounds, according to the Ohio E.P.A.

Even with the requirements, the Cleveland-Akron area was ranked ninth most-polluted metropolitan area in the country, measured by the presence of particle pollution in the air, according to an annual air-quality evaluation from the American Lung Association.

The Ohio House passed a similar resolution in 2017 by a 72-25 vote that didn’t result in any official action. Among the “yes” votes was Larry Householder, who since has been chosen as Ohio House speaker.

The current resolution has 13 co-sponsors, all of whom are Republicans. Four are from E-Check counties — Reps. Anthony DeVitis, of Green, Diane Grendell, of Chesterland, Stephen Hambley, of Brunswick and Tom Patton, of Strongsville. Former U.S. Rep. Jim Renacci also has testified in favor of the resolution.