Kohler Co. Settlement
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Kohler Co. Settles For $6 Million
Kohler Co. (Kohler), located in Kohler, Wisconsin, is an engine manufacturer, seller, and importer of small off-road (SORE) and large spark-ignition (LSI) gasoline engines. After a four-year investigation beginning in 2015, Kohler settled its case with the California Air Resources Board (CARB) in January 2020. The case settlement is covered by a partial joint consent decree with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (U.S. EPA), U.S. Department of Justice (U.S. DOJ), CARB, and the California Attorney General as parties, along with a partial California consent decree with CARB and the California Attorney General as parties.
On December 24, 2015, Kohler self-disclosed that its engines were not fully compliant with title 13, California Code of Regulations, section 2403 and title 40 Code of Federal Regulations, part 1054. While Kohler disclosed some of its compliance issues, others were discovered during the course of the investigation. These issues included installation of a defeat device, failure to comply with Exhaust Emission Standards, failure to disclose Auxiliary Emission Control Devices (AECDs)/Adjustable Parameters, failure to comply with test procedures, incorrect/absent Production Line Test (PLT) reporting, failure to age emissions components, failure to amend Certification Applications (Submit Running Changes), failure to conduct adequate PLT testing, and failure to comply with Evaporative Emissions Requirements.
Kohler has agreed to implement corporate compliance improvements and new testing, audit, and reporting requirements designed to prevent future violations. The per unit penalty fell into three categories with varying degrees of penalties. Kohler will also forfeit the emission credits associated with the violations. Of the $6 million that California will receive, $4.2 million will fund air pollution research and $1.8 million will fund an innovative project to supply solar-powered generators to low-income residents in California subject to public safety power shutoffs in areas at high risk for wildfires.