DOJ drops probe of carmakers that aligned with California on pollution – By Zack Colman and Alex Guillen (Politico) / Feb 7 2020
DOJ was investigating whether Ford, Volkswagen, Honda and BMW illegally coordinated last year.
The Justice Department has ended its antitrust investigation of automakers who formed a voluntary deal with California to reduce air pollution — a probe that was one of a series of punitive Trump administration actions against blue states and their liberal policies.
A spokesperson for Ford and a DOJ official familiar with the investigation confirmed to POLITICO that the probe had been dropped. The news was first reported Friday by The New York Times.
DOJ was investigating whether Ford, Volkswagen, Honda and BMW illegally coordinated last year when they agreed to follow California’s stringent vehicle fuel-economy targets, largely out of concern for climate change.
California Gov. Gavin Newsom had attacked the DOJ inquiry as politically motivated and part of a pattern in President Donald Trump’s feud with the state over environmental rules and other issues.
Continue to article: https://www.politico.com/news/2020/02/07/automakers-california-pollution-doj-probe-112295
