New Texas car registration, sticker system now in effect

HOUSTON (KTRK) -- We all have two stickers on our windshields: One for the inspection and one for your car's registration. Beginning this weekend, one of those stickers is being eliminated.

Here's what you need to know:

You still have to get an inspection, but instead of getting a sticker, the results will be entered into a state database by the person who inspects your car.

When you renew your registration, the state will find the inspection data and you get ONE sticker. So each year around the time your registration expires, you have to get an inspection.

But what if the dates on the stickers are different?

The state is giving people time to have the dates sync up.

For example: Registration sticker expires 3/15 and the inspection sticker expires 9/15: The owner will be able to renew registration in March 2015 and not have to get the vehicle inspected again until 2016 because the inspection sticker is valid at the time of renewal.

What if that's reversed? Your inspection sticker expires 3/15 but registration is good until 9/15: You will need to get an inspection, you won't get a sticker, but you will get a printed inspection report that you should keep in your glove box. You won't have to get another inspection until the next registration is due in 2016. In this case your inspection will go beyond 12 months.

To find out if you're required to get your vehicle inspected before or after your next renewal, just log onto twostepsonesticker.com, and use the calculating tool on that site.