PORTLAND — The company that spent $13 million building CarTest centers for Maine’s scrapped emissions testing program won’t get any money back from the state, Maine’s highest court ruled Monday.

The California-based Systems Control Inc. sued the state Department of Environmental Protection after the state-authorized testing program was junked by the Legislature in 1994.

The breach of contract suit was thrown out by a lower court in March, and Systems Control appealed the judgment to the Maine Supreme Judicial Court.

Systems Control estimated the value of the seven-year contract with the state at $42 million.

In its ruling, the court said the DEP repeatedly refused to agree to contract terms that would have compensated Systems Control partially for its investment in the event of a legislative repeal of the program.

“The provision in no way guaranteed, nor could it, that the legislation authorizing the program would not be repealed by a subsequent Legislature,” the court said.

The court voted 6-1, with Kermit V. Lipez dissenting. Lipez said he couldn’t find any language in the contract to support the court’s interpretation.

The state should rely on drafting clear contract language “rather than legal presumptions to protect its interests,” he said.

Dick Spencer, a lawyer for Systems Control, said he was disappointed by the decision. “We will be making a decision within the next few weeks whether to file a petition” for review to the U.S. Supreme Court, he said.

He said the ruling would deter other companies from contracting with the state. “It puts contractors in the state on notice that they are very much at risk,” he said.

A lawyer for the state, Peter J. DeTroy, was not available for comment Monday. But Gov. Angus King was pleased with the decision, said the governor’s spokesman, Dennis Bailey. “He’s very pleased the court sided with the state. He felt all along that the state had a very strong case,” Bailey said.

DEP Commissioner Ned Sullivan welcomed the court’s decision. “While CarTest was designed in good faith to address a serious air pollution problem, it wasn’t the common-sense solution Maine people wanted,” he said. “Now we can really put this experience behind us and move on to investigate more equitable, sensible options.”

The car-testing program was authorized in 1992 by the Legislature to bring the state into compliance with federal laws designed to reduce ground-level ozone, or smog, in areas where it presents the most direct health hazard.

Almost immediately after the program was launched in July 1994, motorists in seven counties complained about the accuracy of the tests, long waits and the cost of repairs and adjustments in emission controls.

A citizen initiative to repeal the program was launched, but the Legislature went ahead and enacted the bill itself without sending it to voters.