Hawaii receives $2.5 million from Volkswagen under emissions settlement

Hawaii is cashing in millions after the Volkswagen emissions fraud case.

Attorney General Doug Chin and Office of Consumer Protection Executive Director Stephen Levins announced Wednesday that the state has received $2.5 million from the car company.

The payment is a part of a settlement involving 43 states claiming that Volkswagen used "deceiving" practices, violating state consumer protection laws.

The state received $2,744 per VW car registered in Hawaii. In separate settlements, Volkswagen is paying out to consumers with two- and three-liter diesel engines after a federal lawsuit brought by the United States and Federal Trade Commission.

Under the national settlement, Volkswagen must:

Provide cash payments to affected individual consumers.
Buy back or modify Volkswagen and Audi two-liter and three-liter diesel vehicles.
Pay $20 million to the states for a fund to pay future training initiatives.
Invest $2 billion over the next 10 years for the development of non-polluting cars, or zero emission vehicles, and supporting infrastructure.

As a result of the lawsuit against Volkswagen, Hawaii's allocation under the Environmental Mitigation Trust increased by nearly $1 million, meaning the state can now ask for over $8 million to support future mitigation projects.