The Clean Air Act encourages members of the public to report refrigerant violations to EPA. What can the agency offer to a person whose information leads to a penalty against a violator?
- AA share of the refrigerant that was recovered from the violator
Recovered refrigerant is handled under the recovery and reclamation rules and is never distributed as a reward.
- BA no cost technician certification issued by the agency
Certification comes from passing an approved exam through a certifying organization, not from reporting a violation.
- CPermanent immunity from future inspections of the informant's own shop
No provision exempts any shop from inspection, and cooperating with enforcement does not create such an exemption.
- A monetary award of up to ten thousand dollars
Why D is correct
The law authorizes an award of up to ten thousand dollars for information that leads to a penalty, which is the mechanism used to encourage reporting of violations that inspectors would otherwise never observe.
What this question is testing
Tests recall of the informant award provision and the ability to reject invented rewards such as free certification or inspection immunity.
On the job
In practice these reports usually come from technicians, former employees, or building staff who watched a charge get dumped. The number is worth knowing because it comes up in shop conversations and on the exam, but the more useful point for a technician is that enforcement really does rely on witnesses. Assuming that nobody saw it is a poor compliance strategy.
Memory technique
One number for the tipster, ten thousand. Penalties against the violator are a separate and much larger story.
Exam tip
Ten thousand dollars is the award figure that shows up on the Core exam. Do not confuse it with the per day penalty amounts assessed against violators.
Where to look it up
Up to ten thousand dollars may be awarded for information leading to a penalty against a violator.