Twenty AGs Called on Congress to Include Key PFAS Provisions in FY 2021 National Defense Authorization Act

OCTOBER 5, 2020

Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel led a coalition of 20 attorneys general in sending a letter urging congressional leaders to ensure that the Fiscal Year 2021 National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) includes provisions to “help safeguard the public and environment against the highly persistent and toxic class of chemical compounds known as per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS).” The AGs urged Congress to provide the Department of Defense with “the tools necessary to conduct appropriately protective remediation and removal of PFAS contamination,” including “additional funding and authorization for PFAS clean-up, robust resources for ongoing and new studies, innovative research and development of safe PFAS disposal mechanisms, and alternatives to PFAS-laden firefighting [foam].” The coalition also emphasized the importance of provisions to protect the health of service members and their families, and urged Congress to direct the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to designate certain types of PFAS as “hazardous substances” under the Superfund program, which would help marshal additional cleanup resources.