White House ends California talks on mileage dispute

The Trump administration has announced it has broken off talks with California in a dispute over mileage standards, moving the two closer to a possible court battle that threatens to roil the auto industry.

The administration wants to block tougher Obama-era mileage standards for vehicles.

It has threatened to revoke California's unique authority to set its own mileage standards as part of that.

California has used a waiver that Congress granted it under the 1970s Clean Air Act to help deal with its punishing smog. About a dozen states follow California's mileage standards; that group accounts for about one-third of U.S. auto sales.

Lawmakers and automakers had urged a settlement and warned that different standards could bring years of court battles and raise costs for automakers and consumers.