The Justice Department on Wednesday said it will stop prosecuting people and companies that sell “defeat devices” to bypass vehicles’ pollution control systems.
Although the Trump administration said it may still pursue civil penalties against such violators of the Clean Air Act, the shift represents an about-face on what had been a major enforcement area for both the first Trump White House and Biden administration ever since the Volkswagen cheating scandal came to light near the end of the Obama administration.
DOJ “is exercising its enforcement discretion to no longer pursue criminal charges under the Clean Air Act based on allegations of tampering with onboard diagnostic devices in motor vehicles,” the department wrote on X. “DOJ is committed to sound enforcement principles, efficient use of government resources, and avoiding overcriminalization of federal environmental law. In partnership with the @EPA, DOJ will still pursue civil enforcement for these violations when appropriate.”
In President Donald Trump’s first term, EPA ramped up enforcement of vehicle-related issues, including on defeat devices, which can include software code or aftermarket hardware that deactivates pollution control systems to improve engine performance. EPA and the Justice Department under Trump pursued major civil cases against Fiat Chrysler, now known as Stellantis, and the German automaker Daimler.
