Ace Hardware Inc. Settlement
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$850,000 in Fines Paid by Ace Hardware Inc.
Between November 2003 and April 2007, Ace Hardware Inc. supplied, offered for sale, and sold "Ace Windshield Wash" and two varieties of "Mr. Clean Windshield Wash and Deicer" at retail locations throughout non-Type A areas of California. All three products exceeded the one percent VOC limit set under Consumer Products Regulation section 94509 parts (a) for the "Automotive Windshield Washer Fluid, All other areas" product category. The Ace Windshield Wash product was subject to a previous settlement agreement, but the product continued to be sold at many store locations due to data entry errors in the company's sales restrictions databases. Multiple inspections documented additional violations including sales of the two additional windshield washer fluids. Because this was the second NOV issued to the company for the same product and this violation resulted in significant excess emissions over an extended period of time, the case was pursued with the Office of Legal Affairs. The case was settled on October 2, 2007 for a payment of $850,000.