A Groupon deal almost forced a couple of Portland, Ore., limousine companies to drive right out of business.

Officials of the Pacific Northwest city, which prides itself on being progressive, balked when the daily discounter hashed out a deal with Towncar.com and Fiesta Limousine to give customers a bargain ride to Portland International Airport. 

The two companies had to give refunds to hundreds of customers, or face fines they say would have bankrupted them. Now they're fighting back in federal court.

"It seems inappropriate that the city tells me that I have to charge you more," Mike Porter, owner of TownCar.com, told FoxNews.com. "We are fighting against the city telling us what we should charge the consumer."

In Portland, it is illegal for limo drivers to charge LESS than $50 for rides from downtown to the airport, a 30-mile trip. The idea is to keep regular taxis profitable by not letting anyone undercut them. The Groupon deal provided a discount of $32 for livery service from downtown.