Updated Jan. 18, 2024 to add link to the US EPA Cummins Settlement Nationwide Recall Program Overview.
It's the largest ever civil penalty assessed in a federal Clean Air Act case.
Though not admitting wrong-doing, diesel engine maker Cummins has agreed to pay a record $1.675 billion civil penalty in a vehicle test cheating settlement. In addition, it has agreed to spend more than $325 million to remedy the violations, which included the use of software “defeat devices” that circumvented emissions testing and certification requirements.
The Justice Department, Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), California Air Resources Board (CARB) and the California Attorney General’s office shared the details of the proposed settlement on January 10th. Here are more detail as per the press release:
Under the settlement, Cummins must complete a nationwide vehicle recall to repair and replace the engine control software in hundreds of thousands of RAM 2500 and RAM 3500 pickup trucks equipped with the company’s diesel engines. Cummins will also extend the warranty period for certain parts in the repaired vehicles, fund and perform projects to mitigate excess ozone-creating nitrogen oxides (NOx) emitted from the vehicles and employ new internal procedures designed to prevent future emissions cheating. In total, the settlement is valued at more than $2 billion.
Nox pollution contributes to the formation of harmful smog and fine particulate matter in air. Children, older adults, people who are active outdoors, and people with heart or lung diseases are particularly at risk for health effects related to smog or particulate matter exposure. Nitrogen dioxide formed by Nox emissions can aggravate respiratory diseases, particularly asthma, and may also contribute to asthma development in children.
“Today’s landmark settlement is another example of the Biden-Harris administration working to ensure communities across the United States, especially those that have long been overburdened by pollution, are breathing cleaner air,” said EPA Administrator Michael Regan. “Today we’ve reaffirmed that EPA’s enforcement program will hold companies accountable for cheating to evade laws that protect public health.”
“The Justice Department is committed to vigorously enforcing environmental laws that protect the American people from harmful pollutants,” said Attorney General Merrick B. Garland. “The types of devices we allege that Cummins installed in its engines to cheat federal environmental laws have a significant and harmful impact on people’s health and safety. This historic agreement makes clear that the Justice Department will be aggressive in its efforts to hold accountable those who seek to profit at the expense of people’s health and safety.”
“Cummins installed illegal defeat devices on more than 600,000 RAM pickup trucks, which exposed overburdened communities across America to harmful air pollution,” said David M. Uhlmann, Assistant Administrator for EPA’s Office of Enforcement and Compliance Assurance. “This record-breaking Clean Air Act penalty demonstrates that EPA is committed to holding polluters accountable and ensuring that companies pay a steep price when they break the law.”
“Today’s agreement, which includes the largest-ever Clean Air Act civil penalty, stands as notice to manufacturers that they must comply with our nation’s laws, which protect human health and the health of our environment,” said Assistant Attorney General Todd Kim of the Justice Department’s Environment and Natural Resources Division. “We appreciate the work of our partners, the EPA and the State of California, in helping us reach this significant settlement.”
“Cummins knowingly harmed people’s health and our environment when they skirted state emissions tests and requirements,” said California Attorney General Rob Bonta. “Today’s settlement sends a clear message: If you break the law, we will hold you accountable. I want to thank our federal and state partners for their collective work on this settlement that will safeguard public health and protect consumers across the country.”
“The collaboration between California and its federal partners makes it clear that companies will be held accountable for violating essential environmental laws that are in place to provide the clean air that communities across California and the nation want and deserve,” said CARB Executive Officer Dr. Steven Cliff. “California’s air quality regulations protect public health and are backed by a world-class emissions testing laboratory that ensures CARB’s enforcement efforts are rigorously supported with data and science, which CARB was pleased to contribute to this landmark case.”
To read the full Justice Department press release, click here.
For more info read the US EPA Cummins Settlement Nationwide Recall Program Overview here.
December 2023, Cummins made this statement: "The company has cooperated fully with the relevant regulators, already addressed many of the issues involved, and looks forward to obtaining certainty as it concludes this lengthy matter. Cummins conducted an extensive internal review and worked collaboratively with the regulators for more than four years. The company has seen no evidence that anyone acted in bad faith and does not admit wrongdoing."
To read the Cummins press release click here.
