The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit ruled Monday that President Donald Trump's administration cannot put off a rule from the Barack Obama administration that requires automakers to pay more expensive fines for vehicles that violate fuel efficiency rules.
New York Attorney General Eric Schneiderman praised the decision.
"[Monday's] court order is a big win for New Yorkers' and all Americans' health and environment," Schneiderman said in a statement.
"As we've proven again and again, when the Trump administration puts special interests before public health and our environment, we'll take them to court — and we will win," Schneiderman said in the statement.
Automakers have said the fees would cost the industry more than $1 billion, and fuel costs are making it more difficult for companies to sell
The penalty would be placed on automakers whose fleets did not meet minimum fuel efficiency standards. All agencies were required to increase their civil penalty rates in a 2015 act, and the Department of Transportation issued a new rule to raise the penalty by $8.50 per tenth of a mile per gallon, the statement said.
The Trump administration delayed that rule, Schneiderman's statement noted.
The rule would reduce carbon emissions by 1.8 billion metric tons and would save consumers a net of $1,650 by using a vehicle from the model year 2025 that follows the standards, the statement said.
Automakers said the increases would cost $1 billion and the declining costs of fuel would make it more difficult for companies to sell cars that meet the standards, The Hill reported.
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