EPA v. Philadelphia Sign Company

Case summary

This is a consolidated action pursuant to our Consolidated Rules of Practice (40 C.F.R. ?22.18(b)(2) and (3)), which provide that a proceeding may be simultaneously commenced and concluded by the issuance of a Consent Agreement and Final Order when the parties agree to settle one or more causes of action before the filing of an Administrative Complaint. A review of the Toxic Release Inventory Envirofacts Database (TRI Database) indicated that the Respondent voluntarily submitted a Form R for toluene for the calendar year 1998 which was 173 days late. On February 25, 2003, a letter addressing the above late reporting violation was sent to the company in an effort to gain more insight into the circumstances concerning the above violation. By a FAX transmission dated March 5, 2003, Philadelphia Sign Company provided the requested information. Based on this information, it was determined that the Philadelphia Sign Company had ?otherwise used? (as defined in 40 C.F.R. ? 372.3) greater than 10,000 pounds of toluene during 1998. The Respondent was required to submit the Form R for toluene by July 1, 1999 for calendar year 1998 to the Administrator of EPA and to the State of New Jersey. This failure to submit the Form R, in a timely manner, constitutes a violation of Section 313 of EPCRA, 42 U.S.C. ?11023, and 40 C.F.R ?372.30. The amount of the penalty was initially calculated using the Enforcement Response Policy (ERP) for Section 313 of EPCRA issued by the USEPA Office of Compliance Monitoring, Office of Pesticides and Toxic Substances, on August 10, 1992. The original proposed penalty would have been $12,302. if an administrative complaint had been issued. The original proposed penalty would have been $12,302, if an administrative complaint had been issued

Defendants (1)

• PHILADELPHIA SIGN COMPANYNamed in complaintNamed in settlement

Facilities (2)

• PHILADELPHIA SIGN COMPANY

  707 WEST SPRING GARDEN STREET, BURLINGTON, NJ, 08065

  Registry ID: 110000492075

• PHILADELPHIA SIGN COMPANY

  707 WEST SPRING GARDEN STREET, BURLINGTON, NJ, 08065

  Registry ID: 110000492075

Statutes cited

• EPCRA 313 — Toxic Chemical Release Reporting (TRI)

Enforcement conclusions (1)

• Philadelphia Sign Companyentered 2003-04-01

  Primary law: EPCRA

  Federal penalty: $3,075

Timeline (4 milestones)

• 2003-04-01Complaint Filed/Proposed Order
• 2003-04-01Final Order Issued
• 2003-04-01Enforcement Action Closed
• 2003-04-09Enforcement Action Data Entered