A judge was asked to fine and hold New Hampshire in contempt over ending car inspections, the New Hampshire Union Leader reported. House Majority Leader Jason Osborne (R-Auburn) responded with a defiant statement saying the policy decision stands. The request marked the latest escalation in the legal fight over the inspection program, the outlet noted.
The request marked an escalation in the litigation over the end of the program, with the company seeking both penalties and a contempt finding. As the New Hampshire Union Leader reported, state officials responded that they had acted within their rights and would not reverse the policy decision to end mandatory inspections.
As the New Hampshire Union Leader reported, Osborne dismissed the legal pressure in blunt terms.
In a statement Monday, House Majority Leader Jason Osborne, R-Auburn, said officials have “had enough of this G(ordon) D(arby) nonsense.”
the New Hampshire Union Leader
He restated the state’s policy choice to end the program, according to the New Hampshire Union Leader.
“Our state made a policy decision to end mandatory vehicle inspections,” Osbourne said.
the New Hampshire Union Leader
Osborne said the threat of fines or a contempt finding would not change the underlying outcome for drivers in the state.
You can fine us and hold us in contempt, but it does not change the truth. Vehicle inspections are dead in New Hampshire.
the New Hampshire Union Leader
He summed up the House GOP’s stance in a single line.
Vehicle inspections are dead in New Hampshire. We will not comply and we will not go back.
Jason Osborne
As the New Hampshire Union Leader reported, the company argued that state officials had violated a six-week-old ruling from the federal judge directing them to reinstate car inspections, citing a preliminary injunction that found the state had ended the program without federal approval. The outlet noted that the Executive Council had voted 3-2 to reject a 60-day contract extension for the vendor while the governor’s administration sought EPA approval to end the program, after which the attorney general advised that the inspection program was suspended.
The full story at the New Hampshire Union Leader details the contempt request, the state’s response, and where the inspection dispute stands in the courts.
For state leaders, the contempt request became another opportunity to restate their resolve in the dispute. Osborne’s response, as the New Hampshire Union Leader reported, left no doubt about the state’s posture, framing the end of inspections as a settled policy that no court order would reverse.
The dispute remained tied up in the courts even as state leaders signaled they would not change course, according to the New Hampshire Union Leader. The company’s push for penalties followed the Executive Council’s refusal to extend its contract, a decision that left the inspection program suspended and set the stage for the contempt request now before the judge.
The reporting also recapped the Executive Council vote that had left the program without a valid contract.
Last month, the Executive Council voted 3-2 to reject granting a 60-day contract extension to Gordon-Darby Holdings while Gov. Kelly Ayotte’s administration seeks the approval of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency to end its inspections program.
the New Hampshire Union Leader
Read the full story at the New Hampshire Union Leader.
