"WASHINGTON — Automaker Daimler AG and subsidiary Mercedes-Benz USA have agreed to pay $1.5 billion to the U.S. government and California state regulators to resolve emissions cheating allegations, officials said Monday.

The U.S. Department of Justice, Environmental Protection Agency and the California attorney general’s office say Daimler violated environmental laws by using so-called “defeat device software” to circumvent emissions testing and sold about 250,000 cars and vans in the U.S. with diesel engines that didn’t comply with state and federal laws.

The settlement, which includes civil penalties, will also require Daimler to fix the vehicles, officials said. In addition, the company will pay $700 million to settle U.S. consumer lawsuits."

Michael Balsamo and Tom Krisher report for the Associated Press September 14, 2020. [2]