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Oregon, Washington Net Millions From VW In Emissions Fraud Settlement

<p>In this Oct. 13, 2015, file photo, a Volkswagen Touareg diesel is tested in the Environmental Protection Agency's cold temperature test facility in Ann Arbor, Mich. Volkswagen will spend more than $15 billion to settle consumer lawsuits and government allegations that it cheated on emissions tests in what lawyers are calling the largest auto-related class-action settlement in U.S. history. The settlement was revealed Tuesday, June 28, 2016, by a U.S. District Court in San Francisco.</p>

Carlos Osorio

In this Oct. 13, 2015, file photo, a Volkswagen Touareg diesel is tested in the Environmental Protection Agency's cold temperature test facility in Ann Arbor, Mich. Volkswagen will spend more than $15 billion to settle consumer lawsuits and government allegations that it cheated on emissions tests in what lawyers are calling the largest auto-related class-action settlement in U.S. history. The settlement was revealed Tuesday, June 28, 2016, by a U.S. District Court in San Francisco.

Oregon says it is in line to receive $85 million from Volkswagen as part of the German automaker's emissions fraud settlement. With more than 13,000 affected residents, the state has the highest per capita ownership of the affected VW cars in the nation.

Neighboring Washington state announced it will receive $129 million from VW as part of the car manufacture’s settlement over deceptive marketing of its diesel cars. More than 22,000 Washingtonians are affected by the settlement.

VW owners in both states will receive at least $5,100 and can decide whether to buy back the vehicle at pre-emission scandal prices. Or they can decide to have their vehicles fixed.

Oregon and Washington are two of 37 states that settled with Volkswagen for $570 million for violating laws prohibiting unfair or deceptive trade practices.

The settlements are part of an overall $15 billion settlement between VW, consumers, states and the federal government.

Under the terms of the agreement, Washington will receive $26 million for violating consumer protection laws. The state is also is eligible to receive $103 million to fund mitigation projects, according to a release.

“Consumers specifically sought these supposedly green vehicles in an effort to make a better choice for the environment, only to discover Volkswagen deliberately deceived them,” Washington Attorney General Bob Ferguson said in a statement Tuesday. “Volkswagen pulled a bait-and-switch on Washington consumers, and our agreement holds them accountable."

Editor's note: This story was updated to clarify that in addition to $26 million Washington will receive in the settlement, the state also is eligible to receive $103 million to fund mitigation projects.

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Conrad Wilson is a reporter and producer covering criminal justice and legal affairs for OPB.