Notice2024-00705
Notice of Lodging of Proposed Consent Decree Under the Clean Air Act
Primary source
Metadata and text below are from the Federal Register, a public-domain U.S. government work. Always verify the official published version before relying on it for any legal matter.
Published
January 17, 2024
Issuing agencies
Justice Department
Full Text
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<title>Federal Register, Volume 89 Issue 11 (Wednesday, January 17, 2024)</title>
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[Federal Register Volume 89, Number 11 (Wednesday, January 17, 2024)]
[Notices]
[Page 2983]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [<a href="http://www.gpo.gov">www.gpo.gov</a>]
[FR Doc No: 2024-00705]
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DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE
Notice of Lodging of Proposed Consent Decree Under the Clean Air
Act
On January 10, 2024, the Department of Justice lodged a proposed
Consent Decree with the United States District Court for the District
of Columbia in the case captioned United States v. Cummins Inc., Case
No. 1:24-cv-00088.
The United States filed a Complaint in this lawsuit seeking civil
penalties and injunctive relief from Defendant Cummins Inc.
(``Cummins'') for alleged violations of title II of the Clean Air Act,
as amended, 42 U.S.C. 7521-7590, and the regulations promulgated
thereunder, which aim to protect human health and the environment by
reducing emissions of nitrogen oxides (``NO<INF>X</INF>'') and other
pollutants from mobile sources of air pollution, including new motor
vehicles. The State of California has filed a separate Complaint
alleging corresponding claims for civil penalties and injunctive relief
against Cummins under the Clean Air Act's citizen suit provisions, 42
U.S.C. 7404(a)(1), and California laws and regulations.
The United States' Complaint alleges that Cummins violated the
Clean Air Act through the company's production and sale of diesel motor
vehicle engines--along with associated engine control and emission
control systems--that were installed in nearly one million pickup
trucks sold in the United States under the RAM 2500 and RAM 3500 model
names. The United States alleges that Cummins' applications to the U.S.
Environmental Protection Agency for Certificates of Conformity for
those trucks did not disclose multiple software-based features that
affect their emission control systems. In addition, the United States
alleges that some of these undisclosed software features qualify as
illegal ``defeat devices'' that bypass, defeat and/or render
inoperative emission control systems in more than 630,000 model year
2013-2019 RAM 2500 and RAM 3500 trucks, causing those vehicles to emit
substantially higher levels of NO<INF>X</INF> during certain normal
real world driving conditions, as compared to the vehicles'
NO<INF>X</INF> emissions levels during federal emission tests.
When the United States' Complaint was filed, the United States also
lodged a proposed Consent Decree among the United States (on behalf of
the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency), the State of California (on
behalf of the California Air Resources Board), and Cummins (the ``Joint
Consent Decree''). If approved by the Court, the Joint Consent Decree
would resolve the claims against Cummins in the United States'
Complaint on agreed terms and conditions. The Joint Consent Decree also
would partially resolve the claims against Cummins in the California
Complaint. A separate proposed Consent Decree between Cummins and
California (the ``California Partial Consent Decree'') was lodged
concurrently with the proposed Joint Consent Decree. The California
Partial Consent Decree would resolve the remaining claims in the
California Complaint, including claims brought by the California
Attorney General.
The Joint Consent Decree would require Cummins to: (i) pay the
United States a $1.478 billion civil penalty; (ii) pay the California
Air Resources Board a $164 million penalty; and (iii)) take various
steps to remedy the alleged violations, including conducting vehicle
recall campaigns to replace the software in model year 2013-2019 RAM
trucks and satisfying mitigation requirements to offset the excess
NO<INF>X</INF> emissions from those trucks.
The California Partial Consent Decree would require Cummins to pay
$33 million in civil penalties to the California Attorney General and
make an additional payment to fund actions or projects that reduce
NO<INF>X</INF> emissions through mitigation programs administered by
the California Air Resources Board.
Taken together, the Joint Consent Decree and the California Partial
Consent Decree would require Cummins to pay more than $2 billion to
resolve the violations alleged by the United States and California,
including $1.675 billion in civil penalties.
The publication of this notice opens a period for public comment on
the United States' proposed Joint Consent Decree. Comments should be
addressed to the Assistant Attorney General, Environment and Natural
Resources Division, and should refer to Untied States v. Cummins Inc.,
DJ Ref. No. 90-5-2-1-12300. All comments must be submitted no later
than thirty (30) days after the publication date of this notice.
Comments may be submitted either by email or by mail:
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To submit comments: Send them to:
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By email............................ <a href="/cdn-cgi/l/email-protection#48383d2a2b2725252d263c652d2d3b662d263a2c083d3b2c2722662f273e"><span class="__cf_email__" data-cfemail="b3c3c6d1d0dcdeded6ddc79ed6d6c09dd6ddc1d7f3c6c0d7dcd99dd4dcc5">[email protected]</span></a>.
By mail............................. Assistant Attorney General, U.S.
DOJ--ENRD, P.O. Box 7611,
Washington, DC 20044-7611.
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During the public comment period, the proposed Joint Consent Decree
may be examined and downloaded at this Justice Department website:
<a href="https://www.justice.gov/enrd/consent-decrees">https://www.justice.gov/enrd/consent-decrees</a>.
We will provide a paper copy of the proposed Joint Consent Decree
upon written request and payment of reproduction costs. Please mail
your request and payment to: Consent Decree Library, U.S. DOJ--ENRD,
P.O. Box 7611, Washington, DC 20044-7611.
Please enclose a check or money order for $45.75 (25 cents per page
reproduction cost) payable to the United States Treasury.
Patricia A. McKenna,
Assistant Section Chief, Environmental Enforcement Section, Environment
and Natural Resources Division.
[FR Doc. 2024-00705 Filed 1-16-24; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4410-15-P
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