Columbia, S.C. – The United States Environment Protection Agency resolved a civil enforcement lawsuit against Volkswagen AG and affiliated businesses that alleged Volkswagen violated the Clean Air Act by selling diesel motor vehicles equipped with devices that were not compliant with emissions standards.

Governor Henry McMaster today announced the South Carolina Department of Insurance as the lead agency in administering South Carolina’s $31 million portion of that $2.7 billion settlement.

Under the settlement terms, the lead agency must administer and develop a written Beneficiary Mitigation Plan explaining how the funds will be used within our state to reduce emissions and seek public input for the use of funds.

Governor McMaster encourages all interested parties to submit proposals on the use of these funds directly to the Department of Insurance. The Governor looks forward to working with Director Farmer to develop a plan that addresses critical needs of the State and meets the settlement requirements regarding reduction of emissions.

Interested parties are encouraged to sign up for the Department’s “VW Settlement” email distribution list via doi.sc.gov/notifyme in order to receive important updates on how to submit input to the agency as well as information about a public hearing that will be scheduled to review all proposals on the use of these funds.

The Department will post regular updates regarding this project on the Volkswagen Settlement page of its website, which can be accessed directly by going to vwsettlement.sc.gov.

For More Information:

Email: vwsettlement@doi.sc.gov
Call: 803-737-2420
Online: vwsettlement.sc.gov
Sign Up for Email Updates: doi.sc.gov/notifyme (select “VW Settlement” distribution list under “News Flash”)