Brimer v. PrimeSource Building Products, Inc.

On August 25, 2015, citizen enforcer Russell Brimer and settling party PrimeSource Building Products, Inc. (“PrimeSource”) entered into an out-of-court settlement agreement.  Brimer had alleged that PrimeSource sold vinyl/PVC hardware cloth containing the phthalate chemical di(2-ethylhexyl)phthalate (“DEHP”) in the State of California without providing the requisite health hazard warnings.

As part of the settlement, PrimeSource agreed not to sell any vinyl/PVC hardware cloth in California after August 26, 2015, unless the cloth contains less than 1,000 parts per million of DEHP when analyzed using state or federally approved testing methodologies or carry appropriate health hazard warnings.  Should PrimeSource provide Brimer with written certification by January 15, 2016 that all vinyl/PVC hardware cloth sold in California qualifies as reformulated products under the agreement, Brimer agreed to waive a portion of the civil penalty that would otherwise be applied.

The Settlement Agreement requires settlement payments of $42,500, divided therein between civil penalties, 75% of which are paid to California’s Office of Environmental Health Hazard Assessment, and compensation to citizen enforcer Brimer and his counsel for their successful enforcement of this matter in the public interest.