Dallas Companies Agree to Pay $120,000 for Illegal Vehicle Imports
A group of Dallas-based companies and their owner will pay a $120,000 penalty to settle charges that they illegally imported over 24,000 motorcycles and recreational vehicles that didn’t comply with the Clean Air Act, announced the Environmental Protection Agency on Jan. 6. Savoia, BMX Imports, BMX Trading, and their owner, Terry Zimmer, allegedly imported the vehicles from several foreign manufacturers into the U.S. through the Port of Long Beach, then sold them on the internet and at a retail location and Dallas. Through inspections at the Port of Long Beach and other ports of entry, EPA says it found out about 11,000 of the vehicles weren’t covered by certificates of conformity, 23,000 were sold without the required emissions warranty, and about 500 didn’t have proper emission control labels, all in violation of the Clean Air Act.
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“Importers of foreign made vehicles and engines must comply with the same Clean Air Act requirements that apply to those selling domestic products,” said Robert Dreher, acting assistant attorney general at the Justice Department’s Environment and Natural Resources Division. “We will continue to vigorously enforce the law to ensure that imported vehicles and engines comply with U.S. laws so that American consumers get environmentally sound products and violators do not gain an unfair economic advantage.”
As part of the settlement, the companies must either stop engaging in Clean Air Act-regulated activities or follow a five-year compliance plan that would include vehicle inspections, emissions testing, and other measures to ensure compliance at various stages of purchasing, importing, and selling vehicles. Zimmer and his three companies will also have to export or destroy 115 of their current vehicles that have catalytic converters or carburetors that do not adhere to the certificate of conformity that they submitted to EPA.
More on the settlement agreement is available (here). The settlement will be subject to a 30-day comment period, with the dates yet to be announced as of press time.