January 2024 PFAS Legislative Developments
January Legislation Tracking (January 1 – January 31)
Current Trends in Legislation – January 2024
Federal Legislature
- One new bill introduced that seeks to establish a compensation fund for military firefighters who may have been exposed to PFAS.
Federal Regulations
- 89 FR 1822: Under the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA), the EPA has finalized a significant new use rule (SNUR) for 329 per- and poly-fluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) that are designated as inactive on the TSCA Chemical Substance Inventory. The effective date is to be 3/11/2024. This final SNUR will require persons to notify EPA at least 90 days before commencing any manufacture (including import) or processing of the 329 PFAS that are designated as inactive on the TSCA Chemical Substance Inventory (TSCA Inventory) and that are not subject to an existing SNUR, including the existing SNURs cited at 40 CFR 721.9582 and 721.10536, for any use.
State Legislature
- Sixty two bills were introduced.
- Fifteen states introduced bills.
- Two New Jersey bills were enrolled as law.
- Multiple states introduced bills that are identical in substance in both the House and Senate.
- Water quality standards, firefighting foam, and manufacturer disclosure of information germane to PFAS were the most common topics the legislature addressed.
State Regulations
- No notable developments in state regulations
New Bills This Period
PFAS Legislation
Federal
- One bill introduced.
State
- Sixty Two (62) bills introduced.
- Two (2) in AK.
- Three (3) in CA.
- One (1) in CO.
- Four (4) in FL.
- Eleven (11) in HI.
- Two (2) in IL.
- Two (2) in IN.
- One (1) in KY.
- Three (3) in MA.
- Thirteen (13) in NJ.
- One (1) in NY.
- Six (6) in RI.
- Three (3) in VT.
- Five (5) in VA.
- Five (5) in WA.
Signed into Law
Two bills in New Jersey (NJ) were passed into law related to PFAS in January 2024.
Bill S3176 was enacted into law. This requires the DEP and Drinking Water Quality Institute to perform a study concerning regulation and treatment of PFAS in drinking water.
Bill A4125 was enacted into law. This prohibits the sale, manufacture, distribution, and use of firefighting foam containing intentionally added PFAS. It also requires the DEP to establish a collection and disposal program, and appropriates $250,000 for the purpose.
Highlighted Bills – PFAS Legislation
Federal
Federal Bill: HR 6946
- Bill Name: Military Firefighters Compensation Fund
- Sponsors: Marilyn Strickland
- Introduced: 1/10/2024
- Status: Referred to the House Committee on Armed Services
- Summary: The intent is to direct the Secretary of Defense to establish a compensation fund for military firefighters exposed to PFAS if they were employed at a military installation, facility of the National Guard, or a formerly used defense site during a period when PFAS would have been present at such facility.
State
State Bill: SB 903 (CA)
- Bill Name: An act relating to product safety
- Sponsors: Skinner
- Introduced: 1/4/2024
- Status: Introduced 1/4/2024
- Summary: The intent is to enact subsequent legislation to phase out the sale of products with avoidable PFAS-use to address the imminent threat of further contamination of the environment in the state.
State Bill: SB 81 (CO)
- Bill Name: A BILL FOR AN ACT CONCERNING MEASURES TO INCREASE PROTECTIONS FROM PFAS CHEMICALS
- Sponsors: Lisa Cutter
- Introduced: 1/22/2024
- Status: Assigned to Business Labor & Technology
- Summary: This bill amends existing regulations regarding the planned phaseout of PFAS in the state. The bill addresses products including medicine, outdoor apparel, cookware and artificial turf among other products.
State Bill: HB 1531 (FL)
- Bill Name: Climate Resilience and Drinking Water Standards
- Sponsors: Joseph
- Introduced: 1/8/2024
- Status: In Water Quality Supply & Treatment Subcommittee
- Summary: The bill proposes various means to monitor water quality in the state. Specifically regarding PFAS, the bill mandates that PFAS levels in community water sources be monitored according to “national primary drinking water regulations,” and that by 9/1/2024 the department shall establish an enforceable maximum contaminant level for forever chemicals.
State Bill: HB 1655 (FL)
- Bill Name: An act relating to preventing contaminants from discharging into wastewater facilities and waters of the state
- Sponsors: Gossett-Seidman
- Introduced: 1/9/2024
- Status: In Water Quality Supply & Treatment Subcommittee
- Summary: The bill establishes within the DEP a pre-treatment initiative regarding the presence of PFAS in water. The department shall provide written guidance to all wastewater facilities with industrial pre-treatment programs on or before 9/1/2024, which includes, but is not limited to, the industry types and other known vulnerable sites that should be included as part of each wastewater facility’s inventory of probable sources of PFOS, PFOA, or 1,4-dioxane discharge.
State Bill: HB 1896 (HI)
- Bill Name: A bill for an Act Relating to Environmental Protection
- Sponsors: Lowen
- Introduced: 1/18/2024
- Status: To be referred to Commerce and Consumer Affairs
- Summary: The purpose of this Act is to prohibit the manufacture, sale, offer for sale, distribution for sale, and distribution for use of any food packaging, food service ware, cosmetic, or personal care product that contains intentionally added PFAS.
- Note: SB2427 is identical bill introduced in Senate.
State Bill: SB 2101 (HI)
- Bill Name: A bill for an Act Relating to Health
- Sponsors: Gabbard
- Introduced: 1/16/2024
- Status: Referred to House Committee on Health & Human Services/Senate Committee on Agriculture and Environment Senate Committee on Ways and Means
- Summary: This bill generally addresses waste combustion facility monitoring and requires the owner of any waste combustion facility to develop a plan to continuously monitor or sample emissions of PFAS, among other contaminants.
- Note: HB2785 is identical bill introduced in House.
State Bill: SB 2369 (HI)
- Bill Name: A Bill for an Act Relating to Toxic Chemicals
- Sponsors: Gabbard
- Introduced: 1/19/2024
- Status: Referred to Senate Committee on Agriculture and Environment/House Committee on Health & Human Services Senate Committee on Commerce and Consumer Protection/Senate Committee on Ways and Means
- Summary: The purpose of this Act is to establish a long-term task force to increase publicly available information, and proactively plan for future regulation regarding PFAS and other regulated chemical substances. The working group shall proactively plan for the remediation of PFAS contamination throughout the State.
- Note: HB2797 is identical bill introduced in House
State Bill: SB 2705 (IL)
- Bill Name: PFAS Product Ban
- Sponsors: Laura Fine
- Introduced: 1/10/2024
- Status: Introduced 1/10/2024
- Summary: This amends The PFAS Reduction Act. Among other stipulations, it requires the manufacturer of a product sold, offered for sale, or distributed in the State that contains intentionally added PFAS to submit information to the EPA; a manufacturer of a product with intentionally-added PFAS must provide the Board with testing results that demonstrate the amount of each of the PFAS in the product.
State Bill: HB 4627 (IL)
- Bill Name: PFAS Reduction Act Registry
- Sponsors: Anna Moeller
- Introduced: 1/30/2024
- Status: To be referred to environment and agriculture
- Summary: This amends the PFAS Reduction Act. It authorizes the EPA to participate in a safe chemical clearinghouse and directs manufacturers of PFAS or products containing intentionally added PFAS to register the PFAS to provide information through a data collection interface established cooperatively by the clearinghouse and the Agency.
State Bill: HB 1085 (IN)
- Bill Name: A Bill for an Act to amend the Indiana Code concerning health
- Sponsors: Ryan Dvorak
- Introduced: 1/8/2024
- Status: Referred to Committee on Environmental Affairs
- Summary: This bill Requires the Indiana department of health to establish maximum contaminant levels for PFAS in water provided by public water systems. It also provides that the maximum contaminant levels established by the department: (1) must be protective of public health, including the health of vulnerable subpopulations; and (2) may not be less stringent than any maximum contaminant level or health advisory promulgated by the US EPA.
State Bill: HB 116 (KY)
- Bill Name: AN ACT relating to perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl substances
- Sponsors: N. Kulkarni
- Introduced: 1/3/2024
- Status: Introduced 1/3/2024
- Summary: This bill creates a PFAS Working Group. The Group shall review the latest research on the effect that exposure to PFAS has on people within the state, and develop recommendations to mitigate these effects. The Group shall submit a report to the Governor and to the Legislative Research Commission on or before 12/1/2024, and each 12/1 thereafter, detailing all working group activity since its previous report. The bill also requires a manufacturer of a product sold, offered for sale, or distributed in the Commonwealth that contains intentionally added PFAS to submit to the secretary information that includes: (a) A brief description of the product; (b) The purpose for which PFAS are used in the product; (c) The amount of PFAS in the product, among other information.
State Bill: HB 4288 (MA)
- Bill Name: An Act protecting our soil and farms from PFAS contamination
- Sponsors: The committee on Agriculture
- Introduced: 1/29/2024
- Status: referred to the committee on House Ways and Means
- Summary: The bill stipulates that an individual or entity engaged in the practice of farming shall be immune from suit and civil liability for any damages resulting from claims based on harms caused by PFAS present in soil, water, or agricultural products resulting from standard agricultural practices. The bill also provides for the creation of an Agricultural PFAS Relief Fund, that shall be used exclusively to assist farmers in the commonwealth who have suffered losses or incurred costs resulting from standard agricultural practices that may have resulted in the presence of PFAS in soil, water, or agricultural products.
State Bill: SB 2564 (MA)
- Bill Name: An Act relative to toxic-free kids
- Sponsors: Committee on Consumer Protection and Professional Licensure
- Introduced: 1/26/2024
- Status: referred to the committee on House Ways and Means
- Summary: The bill requires that no manufacturer, wholesaler or retailer shall knowingly sell, offer for sale or distribute for use a children’s product or product component containing regulated PFAS.
- Note: Last January (2023), an identical bill was introduced (H.D. 2081)
State Bill: S 1042 (NJ)
- Bill Name: Protecting Against Forever Chemicals Act
- Sponsors: Greenstein
- Introduced: 1/9/2024
- Status: Referred to Senate Environment and Energy Committee
- Summary: The act generally establishes requirements, prohibitions, and programs for regulation of PFAS. Among other stipulations, beginning two years after the effective date of this act, no person shall sell, offer for sale, or distribute for sale any cosmetic product, carpet or fabric treatment, food packaging or cookware (among other things) that contain intentionally added PFAS.
- Note: A1421 identical bill introduced in House
State Bill: S 1044 (NJ)
- Bill Name: AN ACT concerning certain notifications for elevated PFAS levels in drinking water
- Sponsors: Greenstein
- Introduced: 1/9/2024
- Status: Referred to Senate Environment and Energy Committee
- Summary: The act requires public water systems and landlords to provide certain notice of elevated PFAS levels in drinking water and requires the DEP to establish an educational program on the issue.
- Note: A2325 identical bill introduced in House
State Bill: A 2787 (NJ)
- Bill Name: AN ACT restricting the discharge of certain firefighting foams
- Sponsors: Greenwald
- Introduced: 1/9/2024
- Status: Referred to Assembly Environment Natural Resources and Solid Waste Committee
- Summary: This bill restricts the discharge of firefighting foams containing PFAS for training or testing purposes. For training purposes, the discharge of such foam is prohibited; for testing purposes, it can only be done if the testing facility has implemented appropriate containment, treatment, and disposal measures.
State Bill: S 7934 (NY)
- Bill Name: AN ACT to amend the environmental conservation law
- Sponsors: Pete Harckham
- Introduced: 1/3/2024
- Status: REFERRED TO ENVIRONMENTAL CONSERVATION
- Summary: This bill directs the department of environmental conservation to establish a PFAS removal treatment installation grant program and a PFAS removal treatment maintenance rebate program.
State Bill: H 7356 (RI)
- Bill Name: COMPREHENSIVE PFAS BAN ACT OF 2024
- Sponsors: Cortvriend
- Introduced: 1/31/2024
- Status: Referred to House Environment and Natural Resources
- Summary: It is the intent of the general assembly to ban all uses of PFAS by 12/31/32, unless the use of PFAS in a product is considered unavoidable. Except as provided otherwise in the bill, on and after 1/1/2027, no person shall manufacture, sell, or offer for sale in the state any covered product that contains intentionally added PFAS. On or before 1/1/2018, a manufacturer of PFAS or a product or product component containing intentionally added PFAS shall register the PFAS or the product or product component containing intentionally added PFAS on a publicly accessible data collection interface.
- Note::S2152 identical bill introduced in Senate
State Bill: S 2055 (RI)
- Bill Name: MAKING AN APPROPRIATION OF $15,200,000 TO BE USED TO PURCHASE PFAS-FREE FIREFIGHTING GEAR
- Sponsors: Felag
- Introduced: 1/12/2024
- Status: Referred to Senate Finance
- Summary: $15,200,000 is appropriated for the purchase of firefighter and rescue personnel protective gear that is PFAS free.
State Bill: H 674 (VT)
- Bill Name: Protecting Soils and Waters from Forever Chemicals Act
- Sponsors: David Templeman
- Introduced: 1/5/2024
- Status: Referred to the Committee on Environment and Energy
- Summary: This bill proposes to prohibit the land application of septage in the State. The bill would prohibit the landfill disposal of waste containing PFAS in excess of State standards or from municipalities lacking a solid waste management implementation or from facilities lacking certification from the State. The bill would also ban the use of sludge for daily cover at a landfill.
State Bill: S 261 (VT)
- Bill Name: An Act Relating to Liability for Discharge of PFAS
- Sponsors: Brian Campion
- Introduced: 1/12/2024
- Status: Referred to the Committee on Committee on Judiciary
- Summary: This bill proposes to provide that any person who releases PFAS from a large facility shall be held strictly, jointly, and severally liable for any harm resulting from the release.
State Bill: SB 243 (VA)
- Bill Name: An Act Regarding PFAS Advisory Committee
- Sponsors: Jeremy S. McPike
- Introduced: 1/9/2024
- Status: Referred to Committee on Agriculture Conservation and Natural Resources
- Summary: The bill requires the owner or operator of a publicly owned treatment works to monitor PFAS levels in effluent influent and biosolids at least quarterly and report all such monitoring data on an applicable discharge monitoring report required by federal regulations. The bill requires the Department of Environmental Quality to develop a PFAS action plan to identify and address sources of certain PFAS detected in a public water system’s raw water source perform outreach efforts regarding PFAS contamination report annually on its activities and work with certain entities in developing its PFAS action plans. The bill requires certain facilities that manufacture or use PFAS to report the use of such chemicals to the Department and to monitor such PFAS at least quarterly unless at another frequency at the direction of the Director of the Department. The bill also directs the Department and the Virginia Department of Health to jointly establish a PFAS Advisory Committee to assist with PFAS-related activities and appoint such committee’s members to include legislative members and a wide range of non-legislative citizen members and to report annually to the Governor and the General Assembly on the Committee’s activities and recommendations.
State Bill: SB 462 (VA)
- Bill Name: An Act Relating PFAS Reporting
- Sponsors: David W. Marsden
- Introduced: 1/9/2024
- Status: Referred to Committee on Agriculture Conservation and Natural Resources
- Summary: The bill requires all facilities that have engaged since 1/1/2021 in the manufacture of or knowing use in the production process of one or more chemicals listed as PFAS target analytes to produce a one-time report on the use of such chemicals. The report shall be limited to facilities that discharge to (i) a surface water under a Virginia Pollutant Discharge Elimination System permit issued by the Department of Environmental Quality (the Department) or (ii) a publicly owned treatment works under an industrial pretreatment program permit or other written authorization issued by a local permit control authority. The report shall be submitted to the Department and if such facility discharges to a publicly owned treatment works also to the local permit control authority no later than 10/1/2024. The bill also requires certain facilities to perform a limited PFAS discharge characterization during the one-year period from 10/1/2024 to 9/30/2025 for each waterway discharge outfall consisting of representative quarterly monitoring using the applicable laboratory test method as specified in the bill. Such facilities shall report results to the Department and if the facility discharges to a publicly owned treatment works also to the local permit control authority within 30 days after the end of each quarter.
State Bill: HB 1295 (VA)
- Bill Name: An Act Relating to Drinking Water
- Sponsors: Ellen H. Campbell
- Introduced: 1/10/2024
- Status: Introduced 1/10/2024
- Summary: The bill directs the State Board of Health to adopt regulations to utilize point-of-use or point-of-entry drinking water treatment or filtration to remove or significantly reduce concentrations of contaminants of concern that meet or exceed any maximum contaminant level or health advisory for the same contaminant adopted by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. The bill also establishes the Rural Water Supply Program and Fund to allow the Department of Health’s Office of Drinking Water to test and treat contaminated drinking water for individuals on private wells and small rural public water systems.
Updates on Previously Highlighted Bills
Federal
State
None at this time
