Knight-Ridder/Tribune News Service, Sept 22, 1999 pK0744 Court rules EPA cannot seek penalties if state regulators already have. Michael Mansur.
Full Text: COPYRIGHT 1999 Knight-Ridder/Tribune News Service KANSAS CITY, Mo. _ A federal appeals court has ruled that the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency cannot seek penalties against a company for violating hazardous-waste laws if state regulators already have taken enforcement actions.
The ruling from a three-judge panel of the 8th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in St. Louis may affect federal enforcement actions across the nation, far beyond the interests of Harmon Industries, a Blue Springs, Mo., manufacturer of railroad safety equipment that initiated the federal court litigation. EPA hit the company with a $2.7 million penalty in 1991.
``This is going to affect EPA throughout the (judicial) circuit and, possibly, throughout the country,'' Robert Payne, corporate counsel at Harmon Industries, said Monday. ``Others will look at this as a well-reasoned resolution to the question.''
Harmon Kaslow
William Reilly EPA Administrator
Mississippi | MissouriEPA and Justice Department officials said no decision on an appeal had been made.
``But the EPA is concerned that this ruling will have a negative impact on the federal enforcement program,'' said Cristine Romano, a Justice Department spokeswoman in Washington. ``It creates doubt whether EPA can assist states in enforcing hazardous-waste cases.'' Kansas City lawyer Terry Satterlee, who represented Harmon in the litigation, said some lawyers are speculating whether the case might also affect the way EPA enforces its federal clean-air and clean-water laws. ``But that's yet to be determined,'' Satterlee said.
This is the first time that a federal court has ruled on the enforcement authority of EPA in states that have authority to enforce the hazardous-waste law known as the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act, Satterlee said.
Environmental leaders in Missouri raised concerns about the decision. ``This is a concern because of...