Settlement
Click here to see a diagram of the settlement at at glance
View the actual settlement in three parts (PDF format):
Memorandum
of Agreement and Consent Decree (US vs. Exxon Corp.) (August 29, 1991)
Agreement
and Consent Decree (US vs. State of Alaska) (September 20, 1991)
Governments'
Memorandum in Support of Agreement and Consent Decree (October
8, 1991)
What was the settlement with Exxon?
The settlement
among the State of Alaska, the United States government and Exxon
was approved by the U.S. District Court on October 9, 1991. It
resolved various criminal charges against Exxon as well as civil
claims brought by the federal and state governments for recovery of
natural resource damages resulting from the oil spill. The
settlement had three distinct parts:
Criminal Plea Agreement.
Exxon was fined $150 million, the
largest fine ever imposed for an environmental crime. The court
forgave $125 million of that fine in recognition of Exxon’s
cooperation in cleaning up the spill and paying certain private
claims. Of the remaining $25 million, $12 million went to the North
American Wetlands Conservation Fund and $13 million went to the
national Victims of Crime Fund.
Criminal Restitution.
As restitution for the injuries
caused to the fish, wildlife, and lands of the spill region, Exxon
agreed to pay $100 million. This money was divided evenly between
the federal and state governments.
Civil Settlement.
Exxon agreed to pay $900 million with
annual payments stretched over a 10-year period. The final payment
was received in September 2001. The settlement contains a
"reopener window" between September 1, 2002 and September
1, 2006, during which the governments may make a claim for up to an
additional $100 million. The funds must be to restore resources that
suffered a substantial loss or decline as a result of the oil spill,
the injuries to which could not have been known or anticipated by
the six trustees from any information in their possession or
reasonably available to any of them at the time of the settlement
(September 25, 1991). CLICK HERE for more information on the status of the reopener.