The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has fined Ross Stores, Inc. $55,000 for selling six unregistered disinfectants, in locations including a store on Oahu.

According to the EPA, these violations stem from an inspection of a Ross Dress for Less store at Pearlridge Center in Aiea on Feb. 3, 2021, as well as another store in Concord, Calif., on March 9, 2021. The Hawaii Department of Agriculture inspected the Ross store in Hawaii.

The six unregistered products that Ross offered for sale were:

>> CIF Power & Shine Multi-Purpose Wipes (Ocean Fresh), CIF Power & Shine Multi-Purpose Wipes (Citrus Fresh), and Domestos Professional Disinfecting Surface Wipes

>> CIF Multi-Purpose Disinfectant Spray and Domestos Multi-Purpose Disinfectant Spray

>> An iPhone screen protector marketed as Avalanche Antimicrobial Tempered Glass

These wipe and spray products claimed “elimination of 99.9% of bacteria (or germs),” while the iPhone screen protector claimed to be “antimicrobial,” according to the EPA.

But California-based Ross Stores did not register the products with the EPA as required under the Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and Rodenticide Act, or FIFRA.

Before terms such as “sterilize, disinfect, and sanitize” can be used on a product’s label, the EPA requires companies to submit data to support such claims. The EPA said this is because “consumers who rely on ineffective products to disinfect may face an increased risk of exposure to bacteria or viruses.”

Additionally, under federal law, products that claim to kill, destroy, prevent, or repel bacteria or viruses are considered pesticides, and all such products distributed or sold in the U.S. must be registered by the EPA.

This, according to the EPA, is “to ensure they perform as intended and will not harm people, other species, or the environment when used as directed.”

“It’s crucial that all Americans can trust that the disinfectant products they buy are safe and effective,” said EPA Pacific Southwest Administrator Martha Guzman in a news release. “This settlement is proof of EPA’s commitment to enforce laws that protect consumers and public health.”