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LEGAL PROCEEDINGS, ENVIRONMENTAL MATTERS, AND OTHER EVENTS | 3 Months Ended
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Mar. 31, 2014
LEGAL PROCEEDINGS, ENVIRONMENTAL MATTERS, AND OTHER EVENTS |
LEGAL PROCEEDINGS, ENVIRONMENTAL MATTERS, AND OTHER EVENTS | NOTE K — LEGAL PROCEEDINGS, ENVIRONMENTAL MATTERS, AND OTHER EVENTS The Company is involved in various legal actions arising in the ordinary course of business. The Company maintains liability insurance against certain risks arising out of the normal course of its business, subject to certain self-insured retention limits. The Company routinely establishes and reviews the adequacy of reserves for estimated legal, environmental, and self-insurance exposures. While management believes that amounts accrued in the consolidated financial statements are adequate, estimates of these liabilities may change as circumstances develop. Considering amounts recorded, routine legal matters are not expected to have a material adverse effect on the Company’s financial condition, results of operations, or cash flows; however, the Company is currently involved in certain environmental compliance matters, as further described below, for which the outcome and related financial impact cannot be determined at this time. Environmental Matters The Company’s subsidiaries store fuel for use in tractors and trucks in 65 underground tanks located in 20 states. Maintenance of such tanks is regulated at the federal and, in most cases, state levels. The Company believes it is in substantial compliance with all such regulations. The Company’s underground storage tanks are required to have leak detection systems. The Company is not aware of any leaks from such tanks that could reasonably be expected to have a material adverse effect on the Company. The Company has received notices from the Environmental Protection Agency and others that it has been identified as a potentially responsible party under the Comprehensive Environmental Response Compensation and Liability Act, or other federal or state environmental statutes, at several hazardous waste sites. After investigating the Company’s or its subsidiaries’ involvement in waste disposal or waste generation at such sites, the Company has either agreed to de minimis settlements or determined that its obligations, other than those specifically accrued with respect to such sites, would involve immaterial monetary liability, although there can be no assurances in this regard. Certain ABF Freight branch facilities operate under storm water permits under the federal Clean Water Act (“CWA”). The storm water permits require periodic monitoring and reporting of storm water samples and establish maximum levels of certain contaminants that may be contained in such samples. ABF Freight received, in late March, a sixty-day Notice of Intent to Sue under the provisions of the CWA from a citizens group alleging multiple violations since 2009 by ABF Freight of the requirements of a storm water permit in force at the ABF Freight branch located in Kent, Washington. Primary regulation of storm water environmental issues at the terminal has been delegated by the EPA to the Washington State Department of Ecology. The Company has begun an investigation of the allegations in the Notice of Intent to Sue letter. If the branch was in violation of the CWA, the Washington Department of Ecology could assess civil penalties against ABF Freight and seek injunctive relief to prevent future violations at the site. If the Department of Ecology declines to take action during the sixty days following the receipt of the Notice of Intent to Sue letter, the CWA allows the citizen’s group to file suit against the Company and to seek to collect fines and obtain injunctive relief for the alleged violations. As of the date of this report, the Company has not been advised of the commencement of an enforcement action by the Washington Department of Ecology. Due to the nature of the materials in the runoff samples, it is unlikely that this matter will involve any remediation of contaminates. The cost of any fines or the cost of remediation that may be required cannot currently be reasonably estimated due to the early stages of the process. Therefore, no liability has been established at March 31, 2014, in connection with this matter. At March 31, 2014 and December 31, 2013, the Company’s reserve, which was reported in accrued expenses, for estimated environmental cleanup costs of properties currently or previously operated by the Company totaled $0.9 million. Amounts accrued reflect management’s best estimate of the future undiscounted exposure related to identified properties based on current environmental regulations, management’s experience with similar environmental matters, and testing performed at certain sites.

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- Definition The entire disclosure for legal proceedings, legal contingencies, litigation, regulatory and environmental matters and other contingencies. + References No definition available. + Details
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