Maybe you should have thought about replacing the battery before you bought a HYBRID.

 

Without the HV battery, the HCHII will not meet the emission standard, you shouldn't drive the car this way. Second it will not pass the smog test and you cannot renew your license.

 

You Cali people may be different from the rest of the world, but I can't imagine how this car would not pass a smog test without the battery. A missing catalytic converter, sure, but even without the battery, you're still left with the Civic powerplant, which normally doesn't have a battery to help it along. Meeting AT-PZEV, though, would be exceptionally difficult, and if your MIL is on, any state that requires a test will fail the vehicle until it is repaired.