Trump Administration Waives Harley’s EPA Fine
Fine adjustment stems from racing tuner issue and saves motorcycle company $3 million.
Following a small bit of recent controversy, Harley-Davidson has learned that good things come to those who wait. You might recall an incident last year when Harley-Davidson was fined by the EPA for reportedly selling Screamin’ Eagle Street Performance Tuners that caused its motorcycles to emit higher-than-allowed pollution levels.
The incident was eventually settled with the EPA, with Harley-Davidson removing the tuners from the market and paying $15 million in fines. A total of $12 million of that fine was a civil penalty, while the remaining $3 million was to be spent on a project to replace traditional wood-burning stoves in local communities with cleaner-burning stoves.
Back in February, company executives met with President Donald Trump to discuss how his push for “America First” trade deals might help the company. While it’s unclear whether or not the EPA fines were discussed, we can surmise that the meeting had a positive impact on Harley-Davidson’s fortunes moving forward.
It’s a minor victory for Harley, which claimed no wrongdoing and that the tuners were designed and marketed for off-highway competition use only.
In June, U.S. Attorney General Jeff Sessions stated that our government should no longer seek settlements that require payments to third parties to carry out environmental projects.
Last week, the Trump administration agreed to waive part of the penalty Harley-Davidson Inc. agreed to pay last year to settle the racing tuners case, according to U.S. News & World Report. Thus, Harley is likely to save the $3 million while still owing $12 million of the initial $15 million fine.
It’s a minor victory for Harley-Davidson, who claimed no wrongdoing, as the performance tuners were designed and marketed as being intended for off-highway competition use only.
Harley-Davidson sold approximately 340,000 of those tuners to customers through their dealerships, and many were installed by the service departments of those very same dealerships.
While the tuners increased performance and fuel economy, it also increased tailpipe emissions beyond the level approved by the EPA. Harley-Davidson no longer sells the tuners, although there are aftermarket options available for racers and hobbyists.
