Cummins Inc. will pay a $1.67 billion fine to settle allegations that it violated the Clean Air Act by using emissions sensor defeat devices on hundreds of thousands of pickup truck engines, making the diesel engine manufacturer liable for the second-largest civil environmental penalty ever.
Key Facts
The Department of Justice announced that the company installed “defeat devices” or parts that circumvent or disable embedded vehicle sensors that ensure the vehicle complies with legal pollution limits, in 630,000 Ram pickup trucks from 2013 to 2019.
The department further stated that Cummins also used undisclosed emissions control devices in 330,000 Ram trucks from 2019 to 2023, according to a statement from the Department of Justice.
Attorney General Merrick Garland stated in the release that the fine is the largest civil penalty secured by the Department of Justice and the second-largest civil environmental penalty ever, coming behind BP’s $20.8 billion penalty for the massive oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico in 2010.
Preliminary estimates from the Department of Justice indicate that the defeat devices on some engines led to thousands of excess tons of nitrogen oxides, which Garland said could cause respiratory issues like asthma and respiratory infections due to prolonged exposure.
Important Quote
“I want to emphasize that the company has not seen any evidence that anyone acted with bad intent and does not admit to any wrongdoing,” said John Mills, Cummins’ director of external communications, to Forbes, adding that the engine maker is making billions of dollars in investments in clean energy technology and electric vehicle manufacturing.
Background
Device recalls and related maintenance recalls have cost Cummins roughly $59 million. The company announced it would conduct a review to investigate the defeat devices when it began in 2019. Two years prior to the investigation, Volkswagen found itself embroiled in an inquiry regarding its use of defeat devices. The company later agreed to plead guilty to three criminal charges and pay a criminal fine of $2.8 billion and a civil penalty of $1.5 billion for selling 590,000 diesel vehicles in the U.S. that used these devices.
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