Living in an emissions state should I get long or short tube headrs for my L03

 

You don't need long tubes for an LO3, just get shorties.

 

It's really not a question of need, it's a question of availability.

Nobody makes out-of-the-box emissions-legal long-tube headers for 3rd gens. You may be able to fabricate something that looks and acts emissions-legal out of a set of available long-tubes, meaning you'd have to weld A.I.R. tubes onto the primaries and O2 sensor fitting in a collector. Then you'd have to fabricate a y-pipe that routes to the cat so the cat stays in the factory location.

You'll have to use a heated O2 sensor, and ground clearance will be next to nothing. The gains in performance with any emissions-legal engine will be next to nil over shorties, especially if you compare costs.

Most any emissions-legal shorties will handle the performance improvement you're looking for, install relatively easily, and be suitable if some day in the future you decide to do to that LO3 what the factory should have done.