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CONTINGENCIES | 12 Months Ended
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Sep. 30, 2021
Commitments and Contingencies Disclosure [Abstract] |
CONTINGENCIES | CONTINGENCIESManagement regularly evaluates the Company’s contingencies, including various lawsuits and claims which arise in the normal course of business, product and general liabilities, workers’ compensation, property losses and other liabilities for which the Company is self-insured or retains a high exposure limit. Self-insurance accruals are established based on actuarial loss estimates for specific individual claims plus actuarially estimated amounts for incurred but not reported claims and adverse development factors applied to existing claims. Legal costs incurred in connection with the resolution of claims, lawsuits and other contingencies generally are expensed as incurred. In the opinion of management, the assessment of contingencies is reasonable and related accruals, in the aggregate, are adequate; however, there can be no assurance that final resolution of these matters will not have a material effect on the Company’s financial condition, results of operations or cash flows. Regulatory Matters At September 30, 2021, $3.6 was accrued in the “Other liabilities” line in the Consolidated Balance Sheets for environmental actions, the majority of which are for site remediation. The Company believes that the amounts accrued are adequate to cover such known environmental exposures based on current facts and estimates of likely outcomes. Although it is reasonably possible that the costs to resolve such known environmental exposures will exceed the amounts accrued, any variation from accrued amounts is not expected to be material. Other The Company has been named as a defendant in a number of cases alleging injuries that the lawsuits claim resulted from exposure to asbestos-containing products, apparently based on the Company’s historic use of vermiculite in certain of its products. In many of these cases, the complaints are not specific about the plaintiffs’ contacts with the Company or its products. The cases vary, but complaints in these cases generally seek unspecified monetary damages (actual, compensatory, consequential and punitive) from multiple defendants. The Company believes that the claims against it are without merit and is vigorously defending against them. No accruals have been recorded in the Company’s consolidated financial statements as the likelihood of a loss is not probable at this time; and the Company does not believe a reasonably possible loss would be material to, nor the ultimate resolution of these cases will have a material adverse effect on, the Company’s financial condition, results of operations or cash flows. There can be no assurance that future developments related to pending claims or claims filed in the future, whether as a result of adverse outcomes or as a result of significant defense costs, will not have a material effect on the Company’s financial condition, results of operations or cash flows. In connection with the sale of wild bird food products that were the subject of a voluntary recall in 2008, the Company, along with its Chief Executive Officer, had been named as defendants in four actions filed on and after June 27, 2012, which were consolidated, and, on March 31, 2017, certified as a class action in the United States District Court for the Southern District of California as In re Morning Song Bird Food Litigation, Lead Case No. 3:12-cv-01592-JAH-AGS. The plaintiffs alleged various statutory and common law claims associated with the Company’s sale of wild bird food products and a plea agreement entered into in previously pending government proceedings associated with such sales. The plaintiffs alleged, among other things, a class action on behalf of all persons and entities in the United States who purchased certain bird food products. The plaintiffs asserted: (i) hundreds of millions of dollars in monetary damages (actual, compensatory, consequential, and restitution); (ii) punitive and treble damages; (iii) injunctive and declaratory relief; (iv) pre-judgment and post-judgment interest; and (v) costs and attorneys’ fees. The Company and its Chief Executive Officer disputed the plaintiffs’ assertions and have vigorously defended the consolidated action. The parties reached an agreement to settle this matter, which the parties memorialized in a settlement agreement submitted to the Court for approval on December 7, 2018. On January 31, 2019, the Court preliminarily approved the settlement, and on June 11, 2019, the Court granted final approval of the settlement. The settlement became effective on July 12, 2019. During the second quarter of fiscal 2019, the Company paid $42.5 to the settlement fund in accordance with the settlement agreement, and the final payment of $20.0 was made during the fourth quarter of fiscal 2019. During fiscal 2018, the Company recognized a pre-tax charge of $85.0 for a probable loss related to this matter in the “Income (loss) from discontinued operations, net of tax” line in the Consolidated Statements of Operations. During fiscal 2019, the Company recognized a favorable adjustment of $22.5 in the “Income (loss) from discontinued operations, net of tax” line in the Consolidated Statements of Operations as a result of the final resolution of the previously disclosed settlement agreement. In addition, during fiscal 2020 and fiscal 2019, the Company recognized insurance recoveries of $1.5 and $13.4, respectively, related to this matter in the “Income (loss) from discontinued operations, net of tax” line in the Consolidated Statements of Operations. The Company is involved in other lawsuits and claims which arise in the normal course of business. These claims individually and in the aggregate are not expected to result in a material effect on the Company’s financial condition, results of operations or cash flows.

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- Definition The entire disclosure for loss and gain contingencies. Describes any existing condition, situation, or set of circumstances involving uncertainty as of the balance sheet date (or prior to issuance of the financial statements) as to a probable or reasonably possible loss incurred by an entity that will ultimately be resolved when one or more future events occur or fail to occur, and typically discloses the amount of loss recorded or a range of possible loss, or an assertion that no reasonable estimate can be made. + References Reference 1: http://fasb.org/us-gaap/role/ref/legacyRef -Publisher FASB -Name Accounting Standards Codification -Topic 450 -SubTopic 30 -URI http://asc.fasb.org/subtopic&trid=2127197 Reference 2: http://fasb.org/us-gaap/role/ref/legacyRef -Publisher FASB -Name Accounting Standards Codification -Topic 450 -SubTopic 20 -URI http://asc.fasb.org/subtopic&trid=2127163 + Details
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