The settlement resolves a civil lawsuit initiated by a former contracted sales representative under the False Claims Act’s whistleblower provision. By falsely declaring the country of origin on customs forms, the company avoided the substantial tariffs designed to protect domestic manufacturers from unfairly priced foreign imports. The whistleblower is set to receive approximately $1.3 million of the recovered funds as compensation for exposing the scheme.

Michael Taylor, counsel for the Polyethylene Retail Carrier Committee, praised the Department of Justice for the enforcement action. He noted that such measures are vital to maintaining a level playing field for U.S. workers, as the duties exist specifically to counteract the competitive advantage gained through illicit trade practices. The government continues to maintain active antidumping and countervailing orders against plastic bag imports from several nations, including China, Indonesia, Malaysia, Taiwan, Thailand, and Vietnam.