Title 40
SECTION 90.511
90.511 Suspension and revocation of certificates of conformity.
§ 90.511 Suspension and revocation of certificates of conformity.(a) The certificate of conformity is suspended with respect to any engine failing pursuant to § 90.510(b) effective from the time that testing of that engine is completed.
(b) The Administrator may suspend the certificate of conformity for a family which does not pass an SEA, pursuant to paragraph § 90.510(c), based on the first test or all tests conducted on each engine. This suspension will not occur before ten days after failure of the audit.
(c) If the results of testing pursuant to these regulations indicate that engines of a particular family produced at one plant of a manufacturer do not conform to the regulations with respect to which the certificate of conformity was issued, the Administrator may suspend the certificate of conformity with respect to that family for engines manufactured by the manufacturer at all other plants.
(d) Notwithstanding the fact that engines described in the application may be covered by a certificate of conformity, the Administrator may suspend such certificate in whole or in part if the Administrator finds any one of the following infractions to be substantial:
(1) The manufacturer refuses to comply with the provisions of a test order issued by the Administrator under § 90.503.
(2) The manufacturer refuses to comply with any of the requirements of this subpart.
(3) The manufacturer submits false or incomplete information in any report or information provided to the Administrator under this subpart.
(4) The manufacturer renders inaccurate any test data submitted under this subpart.
(5) An EPA enforcement officer or EPA authorized representative is denied the opportunity to conduct activities related to entry and access as authorized in this subpart and a warrant or court order is presented to the manufacturer or the party in charge of a facility in question.
(6) An EPA enforcement officer or EPA authorized representative is unable to conduct activities related to entry and access as authorized in § 90.506 because a manufacturer has located a facility in a foreign jurisdiction where local law prohibits those activities.
(e) The Administrator shall notify the manufacturer in writing of any suspension or revocation of a certificate of conformity in whole or in part, except that the certificate is immediately suspended with respect to any failed engines as provided for in paragraph (a) of this section.
(f) The Administrator may revoke a certificate of conformity for a family when the certificate has been suspended pursuant to paragraph (b) or (c) of this section if the proposed remedy for the nonconformity, as reported by the manufacturer to the Administrator, is one requiring a design change or changes to the engine and/or emission control system as described in the application for certification of the affected family.
(g) Once a certificate has been suspended for a failed engine, as provided for in paragraph (a) of this section, the manufacturer shall take the following actions:
(1) Before the certificate is reinstated for that failed engine;
(i) Remedy the nonconformity; and
(ii) Demonstrate that the engine conforms to applicable standards by retesting the engine in accordance with these regulations.
(2) Submit a written report to the Administrator, after successful completion of testing on the failed engine, which contains a description of the remedy and test results for each engine in addition to other information that may be required by this regulation.
(h) Once a certificate for a failed family has been suspended pursuant to paragraph (b) or (c) of this section, the manufacturer shall take the following actions before the Administrator will consider reinstating the certificate:
(1) Submit a written report to the Administrator which identifies the reason for the noncompliance of the engines, describes the proposed remedy, including a description of any proposed quality control and/or quality assurance measures to be taken by the manufacturer to prevent future occurrences of the problem, and states the date on which the remedies will be implemented.
(2) Demonstrate that the engine family for which the certificate of conformity has been suspended does in fact comply with these regulations by testing engines selected from normal production runs of that engine family, at the plant(s), port facility(ies) or associated storage facility(ies) specified by the Administrator, in accordance with the conditions specified in the initial test order. If the manufacturer elects to continue testing individual engines after suspension of a certificate, the certificate is reinstated for an engine actually determined to be in conformance with the applicable standards through testing in accordance with the applicable test procedures, provided that the Administrator has not revoked the certificate pursuant to paragraph (f) of this section.
(i) Once the certificate has been revoked for a family and the manufacturer desires to continue introduction into commerce of a modified version of that family, the following actions shall be taken before the Administrator may consider issuing a certificate for that modified family:
(1) If the Administrator determines that the proposed change(s) in engine design may have an effect on emission performance deterioration, the Administrator shall notify the manufacturer, within five working days after receipt of the report in paragraph (f) of this section, whether subsequent testing under this subpart will be sufficient to evaluate the proposed change or changes or whether additional testing will be required; and
(2) After implementing the change or changes intended to remedy the nonconformity, the manufacturer shall demonstrate that the modified engine family does in fact conform with these regulations by testing engines selected from normal production runs of that modified engine family in accordance with the conditions specified in the initial test order. If the subsequent audit results in passing of the audit, the Administrator shall reissue the certificate or issue a new certificate, as the case may be, to include that family, provided that the manufacturer has satisfied the testing requirements of paragraph (i)(1) of this section. If the subsequent audit is failed, the revocation remains in effect. Any design change approvals under this subpart are limited to the family affected by the test order.
(j) At any time subsequent to an initial suspension of a certificate of conformity for a test engine pursuant to paragraph (a) of this section, but not later than 15 days or such other period as may be allowed by the Administrator after notification of the Administrator's decision to suspend or revoke a certificate of conformity in whole or in part pursuant to paragraphs (b), (c), or (f) of this section, a manufacturer may request a hearing as to whether the tests have been properly conducted or any sampling methods have been properly applied.
(k) Any suspension of a certificate of conformity under paragraph (d) of this section shall:
(1) Be made only after the manufacturer concerned has been offered an opportunity for a hearing conducted in accordance with §§ 90.512, 90.513, and 90.514 and
(2) Not apply to engines no longer in the possession of the manufacturer.
(l) After the Administrator suspends or revokes a certificate of conformity pursuant to this section and prior to the commencement of a hearing under § 90.512, if the manufacturer demonstrates to the Administrator's satisfaction that the decision to suspend, revoke, or void the certificate was based on erroneous information, the Administrator shall reinstate the certificate.
(m) To permit a manufacturer to avoid storing non-test engines when conducting an audit of a family subsequent to a failure of an SEA and while reauditing the failed family it may request that the Administrator conditionally reinstate the certificate for that family. The Administrator may reinstate the certificate subject to the condition that the manufacturer commits to recall all engines of that family produced from the time the certificate is conditionally reinstated if the family fails the subsequent audit at the level of the standard and to remedy any nonconformity at no expense to the owner.