A gasoline retailer accused of mislabeling pumps has reached an out-of-court settlement with the state - but, because of a misunderstanding in the attorney general's office, the public will never know the details.
Utah Attorney General Paul Van Dam said Wednesday attorneys on his staff negotiated a settlement with Western States Petroleum Inc., owner of Country Cuzzins retail gas stations. However, the attorneys agreed to sign a non-disclosure statement."I'm unhappy with a couple of staffers, that's an understatement," Van Dam said Wednesday. "When a consumer issue comes up, the public needs to know about it. There was nothing sensitive to us in this settlement."
Attorneys for both sides signed the agreement in front of 3rd District Judge David Young. Van Dam said he is happy with the terms of the agreement.
The state, in a civil suit filed earlier this week, had accused Country Cuzzins of selling unleaded gasoline through pumps labeled as regular. State Department of Agriculture inspectors discovered the alleged wrongdoing during routine checks at gas stations.
The suit said the mislabeling happened at three Country Cuzzins stations at least since July 1988.
Country Cuzzins officials were not available for comment Thursday morning. Neither were state agricultural officials.
State Department of Commerce Director Dave Buhler said earlier this month he had met with officials from four major petroleum associations, asking them to voluntarily urge retailers to stop mislabeling unleaded gasoline as regular. Buhler said his office had discovered a problem with some retailers, which he declined to identify.
He said his office would continue to investigate complaints. Unleaded gasoline will damage some engines that require lead.
Van Dam said he does not know whether the state will file suit against other gasoline retailers. The investigation is being conducted by the Agriculture and Commerce departments.
"They brought the facts to us and we filed the suit," he said.
Western States, based in Ogden, buys gas from Utah oil refineries for use in Country Cuzzins stations.
Van Dam said he will issue a memo to his staff telling them never again to sign non-disclosure statements. He said no disciplinary action will be taken. The attorneys were simply unaware of his desires. Van Dam has been in office only since January.