“If a company thinks they will avoid accountability when they violate Texas laws, endanger Texans, and pollute our environment, they’re dead wrong. Volkswagen and Audi are finding that out the hard way, and now they are paying the price,” Paxton said in a statement.
In 2015, Volkswagen disclosed it had used sophisticated software to evade emissions requirements in nearly 11 million vehicles worldwide. It also misled the EPA, which started looking into the matter in 2014.
Paxton’s office did not immediately respond to a question seeking more details of the settlements.
Volkswagen’s U.S. subsidiary in 2021 unsuccessfully argued that under the Clean Air Act, the landmark U.S. environmental law, only the federal government can pursue emissions claims.
In 2022, Ohio settled with VW for $3.5 million, which was a fraction of what the state had previously sought. VW said in prior court papers that Ohio’s claims could have totaled “$350 million per day, or more than $127 billion per year, over a multi-year period.”
