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EPA Increases Maximum Civil Penalties

On January 13, 2020, the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) issued a final rule adjusting the maximum and minimum civil penalties for violations of the laws that the EPA administers and enforces. The maximum penalty for a violation of the chemical control portion of the Toxic Substances Control Act (Title I of TSCA) is now $40,576, if the violation occurred after November 2, 2015 and the penalty is assessed on or after January 13, 2020. For a TSCA violation that occurred after November 2, 2015, but where the penalty was assessed between February 6, 2019 and January 13, 2020, the maximum penalty is $39,873. The maximum penalty for a TSCA violation, as originally enacted, was $25,000.

The increases in maximum civil penalties are mandated by the Federal Civil Penalties Adjustment Act of 1990, as amended in 2015. Under this law, federal agencies are required to annually review and adjust, based on inflation, the maximum civil penalties that may be imposed for violations of the laws they enforce.

Grimaldi Law Offices has been advising clients for over 20 years on chemical and product regulation. For knowledgeable advice and in-depth analysis on your chemical regulatory compliance obligations, contact Grimaldi Law Offices at (415) 463-5186 or email us at [email protected].

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Ms. Grimaldi maintains a diverse environmental law practice focusing on chemical and product regulation and litigation defense. Her practice areas include Proposition 65, California's Safer Consumer Products Regulations, California's Rigid Plastic Packaging Container Act and the federal Toxic Substances Control Act. Ms. Grimaldi graduated from the University of California Hastings College of the Law magna cum laude and holds a Bachelor of Science Degree in Bacteriology from University of California, Davis. Prior to attending law school, she worked as a research assistant in laboratories at the University of California, San Francisco Cancer Research Institute and at the University of California, San Francisco School of Medicine.