Largest County in Texas to Receive Over $18 Million in an Emissions Monitoring Lawsuit Against Volkswagen

Harris County will receive over $18 million in a settlement with Volkswagen, Harris County Attorney Christian Menefee announced Monday. The county originally filed a lawsuit with the car manufacturer in 2015 after the company installed technology designed to circumvent emissions monitoring.

When driven on the road, a Volkswagen vehicle would emit up to 40 times the allowable standard in the United States for certain pollutants. Meanwhile, when driven in testing mode so regulators could determine its compliance with federal regulations, the car switched to a mode which showed lower emissions.

In total, the company has paid an estimated $30 billion in settlements and pollution mitigation costs since the scandal, including $20 billion in the United States.

Read the source article at Houston Public Media