The EPA in May 1999 had issued a complaint against the company alleging that portions of the label text on the product’s container violated federal law. Zinsser said the EPA determined that the text misled customers by making them believe the mildew-proof protection of the product extended beyond the coating itself.

In a statement regarding the EPA agreement, Zinsser said it “maintained and continues to maintain that the label complies with all applicable federal labeling regulations,” and that the company “believes that the EPA misinterpreted individual statements on the labels and product literature in a way that Zinsser never intended.” The EPA agreement concludes “a protracted and costly process of fact-finding and negotiation,” Zinsser said, adding that the company will continue to market and promote the Perma-White product.

Zinsser President Robert Senior said the EPA’s complaint was “purely one of language regarding Zinsser’s use of the term ‘mildew-proof.’ We believe that this term accurately describes the performance of Perma-White and properly informs end users,” Senior said. “Aside from the text of the label, there were no demonstrated concerns about the use or safety of Perma-White. Its performance was never in question.”

Senior said the dispute with the EPA “focused entirely in the interpretation of certain individual statements, graphics, and words on the label and literature.”