PFAS Act

Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill (S. 231) to direct the Administrator of the Federal Emergency Management Agency to develop guidance for firefighters and other emergency response personnel on best practices to protect them from exposure to PFAS and to limit and prevent the release of PFAS into the environment, and for other purposes.

Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may have 5 legislative days to revise and extend their remarks and to include extraneous material on S. 231, the bill now under consideration.

Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today in strong support of S. 231, the Protecting Firefighters from Adverse Substances Act, or the PFAS Act, championed by my Michigan colleagues and dear friends, Congresswoman Debbie Dingell and Senator Gary Peters.

I profoundly thank them for their steadfast and dedicated leadership on addressing PFAS contamination to protect our natural waters in the Great Lakes, our air, and beyond.

Exposure to PFAS chemicals continues to harm the health and well- being of families across America. My home State of Michigan has the most PFAS contaminated sites in the country, thus making it the State's biggest environmental crisis in half a century. But we also have been one of the very few States tracking it.

Although scientific knowledge regarding PFAS continues to develop, we know PFAS chemicals are linked to serious adverse health effects in human beings. The more we find out, the worse the picture appears.

Recently, the EPA sounded the alarm bell and asked its Science Advisory Board, the SAB, to review new analyses and data that suggests that two chemicals, which have been found in many drinking waters and surface waters in Michigan and around the country, are far more toxic than previously thought.

While officials in Michigan have taken steps to address this crisis, there is so much more to be done at every level of government.

Our efforts in Michigan need to be strengthened by Congressional action. In order to adequately address this threat, we need the Federal Government to step it up. That is why I am proud to cosponsor the bill we are considering today, Congresswoman Dingell's and Senator Peters' Protecting Firefighters from Adverse Substances Act.

PFAS are human-made chemicals that have been manufactured since the 1940s and can be found in a wide range of both consumer and industrial products, including firefighting foam and firefighter turnout gear.

While firefighters have dedicated their lives to protecting others in keeping our communities safe, they have, unfortunately, been exposed to these forever chemicals on the job.

The Department of Defense, the National Institute of Standards and Technology, and the Federal Aviation Administration all conduct research on PFAS-free firefighting foam or PFAS-free firefighter gear.

This promising work across our Federal Government is vital to reducing exposure to PFAS, but more progress is needed. Until PFAS-free alternatives are widespread, we must do everything we can to protect firefighters, emergency medical responders, and the communities they serve from unnecessary PFAS exposure.

This bipartisan legislation directs the administrator of the Federal Emergency Management Agency to offer resources to help protect firefighters, emergency response personnel, and the communities they serve from PFAS exposure.

The bill also directs the administrator to provide resources that identify PFAS-free alternatives for firefighting gear and equipment. This

guidance would be developed in consultation with other Federal agencies conducting research on PFAS-free alternatives, as well as a wide range of stakeholders, including firefighting and emergency response personnel, communities dealing with PFAS contamination, fire training academies, manufacturers of firefighting tools and equipment, and voluntary standards organizations.

This is America doing what America does best: innovating. This bill is an important step to protecting our first responders in the line of duty from exposure to harmful chemicals.

It has already passed the Senate with bipartisan support, and today I urge my colleagues to join me in passing the bill here in the House and sending it to the President.

Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time

Mr. Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the gentlewoman from Michigan (Mrs. Dingell).

Mr. Speaker, I yield the gentlewoman from Michigan an additional 1 minute.

Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the gentlewoman from Texas (Ms. Jackson Lee).

Mr. Speaker, I yield an additional 1 minute to the gentlewoman from Texas.

Mr. Speaker, I yield myself the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, we stand here today in strong support of S. 231, the PFAS Act, and certainly recognize the leadership that has come from the Michigan delegation here in the House with Congresswoman Debbie Dingell, who has been steadfast, dedicated, and dogged. You don't travel through Michigan without hearing Congresswoman Dingell talk about PFAS.

We also appreciate the Senate leadership of Senator Gary Peters, particularly in his chairmanship of the Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee, in partnership with the gentlewoman from Texas (Ms. Jackson Lee) who just spoke, along with our full committee chair, Eddie Bernice Johnson, who has been a real role model for leadership and support in this body for bipartisan, collaborative legislation.

As I stand here with the last month of this term upon us in the 117th Congress, I can't help but thank Ranking Member Lucas for his very dedicated and remarkable leadership. One might say it is an anchor of sorts as we move to be bipartisan. Over the course of this term, I have had the privilege of sitting next to him in committee, and I will take the time to let him know that he has taught me a few things this term, which I greatly appreciate.

As we move forward, Mr. Speaker, I encourage all of my colleagues on both sides of the aisle in this Chamber to continue to showcase the best of what America can be, coming together to solve problems and deliver for the American people.

Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentlewoman from Michigan for managing and her leadership and the gentleman from Oklahoma for his leadership.

As a member of the Homeland Security Committee that has dealt with PFAS over the years, I am extremely grateful for this legislation that has come from the Senate and particularly grateful because I use as a backdrop having been on the Homeland Security Committee since its origins, on 9/11, when firefighters rushed in to save lives. Some, of course, tragically lost their lives along with other law enforcement as they were attempting to save people from the burning buildings.

But we do know that their long journey that was taken in order to get coverage and compensation for the terrible exposures that they had in the chemicals in the aftermath of 9/11.

This brings to mind the importance of this legislation having dealt with PFAS in many different forms, particularly in the agriculture arena, the Homeland Security Committee has looked at these chemicals and how they can be made safe, if you will, in the midst of the utilization that they have.

This legislation is extremely important because it works to develop guidance to firefighters and other emergency response personnel on training, education, and best practices to protect them from exposure from PFAS, these chemicals that they are bound to engage when they rush in to save lives and to save property from the terrors of fire.

I am excited about this legislation and hope that it gets to the President's desk because I have seen what chemicals can do in the midst of a 9/11 but also in the midst of an ordinary house fire or business fire.

I applaud the proponents of this bill. I am excited about it reducing and eliminating exposure to PFAS from firefighter foam, personal protective equipment, PPE, prevent the release of the PFAS from firefighting foam into the environment so that it provides for an environmentally safe pathway, and educating firefighters and other emergency response personnel on the foams and non-foam alternative.

Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentlewoman and continue to say that I think what we have here is an important directive for the Department of Homeland Security. Under their jurisdiction are the first responders, and we clearly know the wide range of needs that firefighters face. Look at the West and the series of wildfires that have spread from California to the far Northwest. Fires are never- ending; chemical exposures are never-ending; and firefighters never stop going into places where people are desperate or there is a need.

Mr. Speaker, I am excited about this legislation because it is long overdue. I hope it gets to the President's desk as quickly as possible. I believe that once we pass this, we will give a new lifeline to the Nation's firefighters. As a member of the Fire Caucus, I know that this is a bill long overdue.

Mr. Speaker, as I conclude my remarks celebrating the firefighters and supporting this legislation, let me say: Go USA against Iran.

Mr. Speaker, as a senior member of the House Committee on Homeland Security, I rise in strong support of S. 231, the Protecting Firefighters from Adverse Substances Act.

Known as PFAS, for per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances, the chemicals in this class of approximately 5,000 substances have become notorious for their danger to human health.

Because the chemical bonds that hold the compounds together don't break down easily, they last a very long time. This has led to a commonly used name for the group: ``Forever chemicals.''

According to monitoring by the Environmental Protection Agency, millions of Americans are easily exposed to unsafe levels of PFAS through outlets as simple as drinking water.

PFAS chemicals have been associated with several health problems, including testicular and kidney cancers, reduced immunity, thyroid problems, and reproductive harms.

Our first responders are at the front lines of PFAS exposure. Firefighters have been shown to have a 14% higher risk of dying from cancer than the general U.S. population does.

This is a result of direct exposure to PFAS chemicals in firefighting foam and personal protective equipment.

It is time we do something to protect the brave men and women who, even in the face of danger, continue to put themselves at risk for our safety and protection.

Mr. Speaker, it is urgent that this Congress enact this legislation because agencies such as the Environmental Protection Administration have failed to address known threats presented by PFAS chemicals.

The EPA has known about the risks from PFAS chemicals for decades but failed to act to prevent the spread of this contamination.

Because of such negligence, the persistent and toxic effects of PFAS linger and firefighters are now forced to work around these ``forever chemicals.''

With S. 231, the Department of Homeland Security will be required to develop guidance for firefighters and other emergency response personnel on training and education programs to protect them from exposure to PFAS.

This curriculum would not only educate firefighters on how to protect themselves, but also educate them on how to prevent the release of PFAS into the environment.

Clear and swift action from Congress is needed to address the PFAS crisis, and we need an all-hands-on-deck effort to protect both the health of our first responders and our environment.

Backing our first responders should be a non-partisan issue, so I urge my colleagues to join me in voting for S. 231, the Protecting Firefighters from Adverse Substances Act.

Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.

Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of the PFAS Act.

PFAS refers to a large group of high-strength, high-durability chemicals used in industry and consumer products. They are critical to the reliable and safe function of essential products like cell phones, military aircraft, solar panels, wind turbines, and medical devices. But because of their durability, they don't break down easily and last a long time in the environment. In some cases, but not all, that creates hazards to human health.

There are more than 5,000 strands of PFAS in use, and their tremendous variation means we need to take a thoughtful and nuanced approach to regulating them. We absolutely need to protect the health and safety of firefighters, the military, and individuals exposed to harmful PFAS. That means preventing exposure to unsafe PFAS and addressing PFAS contamination now.

But not all PFAS are harmful, and some are indispensable for things like fighting fires and protecting our servicemen and women from chemical warfare. Others are used for lithium batteries and solar energy equipment. So my concern about some of the legislation on PFAS is that they would ban their use entirely, even when that might not be necessary.

The fact is that we don't fully understand the properties of all PFAS. Maybe a newly created strand has better fire suppression power and dissolves in a solution, or another has absolutely no human health effects and breaks down organically. We simply don't know yet, and we can't shut the door on innovation.

The Science, Space, and Technology Committee is working hard to improve and expand our knowledge about PFAS so that we can make individual determinations about what is safe and what is not.

For example, this summer, the House passed our Federal PFAS Research Evaluation Act which directs the National Academies to study the toxicity, effects, and behavior of different strands of PFAS. It also will study emerging PFAS strands in hopes of finding more harmless strains with effective and useful properties.

This is groundbreaking research, and it can't be done overnight. So while the experts are working on it, my fellow Science, Space, and Technology Committee members and I urge the rest of this body to respect the scientific process.

Do not pass legislation that outright eliminates all 5,000-plus strands of PFAS without the scientific understanding to support that decision.

Here is the good news: The bill we are considering today isn't intended to put us on a path toward banning PFAS. While some of the language could be construed by a creative mind to be broadly anti-PFAS, I know that is not the intention of the sponsors of this bill from Michigan, nor is it the intention of the Science, Space, and Technology Committee.

To further support this, I yield to the gentlewoman from Michigan (Mrs. Dingell) to engage in a colloquy on her intent related to this bill.

Mr. Speaker, reclaiming my time, I thank the gentlewoman for her remarks in agreement. We both share the understanding that instead of banning PFAS, this bill focuses on education, understanding, and knowledge of these chemicals. Specifically, it will ensure that we are protecting our firefighters who rely on PFAS to extinguish fires.

There aren't many alternatives to PFAS when it comes to fighting fires, but firefighters put their lives at risk every day, and this bill will ensure they aren't facing long-term health risks simply because of the equipment and the tools they use daily.

We can mitigate harmful effects by carefully studying what chemicals first responders are exposed to and ensuring they are properly educated about safety procedures and risks.

The curriculum authorized by this bill is just that. We are focusing on education, understanding, and knowledge. I support its passage today. When the time comes, I have every intention of working with the gentlewoman from Michigan to make sure we are targeting the truly bad PFAS--those with health and environmental effects. But for now, I appreciate that my friends on the other side of the aisle are leaving the door open for future development and letting science determine the outcome, not politics.

Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the gentleman from Florida (Mr. Posey).

Mr. Speaker, I yield myself the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, firefighters and emergency response personnel put themselves in harm's way daily with no questions asked. They do this to save lives and protect their communities. Therefore, it is only fitting that Congress does what we can to protect their lives in return.

The bill we are considering today, the PFAS Act, arms our first responders with knowledge and procedures to avoid long-term health effects from harmful chemicals.

This bill is also an example of strong bipartisan collaboration, with all the discussion and refinement that entails. My colleague from Michigan understood my concerns about not getting ahead of the science and banning all PFAS. I understood her desire to take immediate action for her constituents. We worked together to both walk away happy with the result.

My sincere thanks to Congresswoman Dingell, the Science, Space, and Technology Committee staff, and everyone involved in these discussions.

Mr. Speaker, I urge my colleagues to support this legislation, and I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I thank Ranking Member Lucas for yielding.

Ranking Member Lucas, I thank you for all of your hard work on this. I agree with you. The scientific process should be respected and used to inform and direct policymaking to effectively protect human health and our environment.

While it may take time to continue to develop the science around many of the lesser known PFAS compounds, a great deal of science has already been completed and known for years on the most notorious PFAS compounds.

With respect to this bill, the PFAS Act would help protect the health and safety of firefighters, emergency responders, and the communities they serve from these harmful chemicals by developing guidance--not bans--for firefighters and other emergency response personnel on training, education programs, and best practices to protect them from exposure to harmful PFAS and to prevent its release into the environment.

Emergency response teams are frequently exposed to harmful PFAS in firefighting foams and personal protective equipment as they work to keep their communities safe. It is important that we act on behalf of our first responders to mitigate their exposure to these harmful PFAS chemicals and prevent environmental releases while the scientific work must continue, and we gain a full understanding of the effects of all PFAS compounds.

Again, I thank Ranking Member Lucas for continuing to work with us on this important legislation. We wouldn't be here without the gentleman today. It will make a meaningful difference for long-term first responders, their families, and the communities they serve.

Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of S. 231, the Protecting Firefighters From Adverse Substances Act, or the PFAS Act.

I am proud to stand here today in support of this important bipartisan legislation to protect our first responders from forever chemicals, which I am co-leading with my friend and colleague, Representative Brian Fitzpatrick.

This is a significant bill that has already passed the Senate with unanimous consent and bipartisan support thanks to the leadership of Senator Gary Peters.

The PFAS Act would simply direct the U.S. Department of Homeland Security and other Federal agencies to provide important guidance for Federal, State, and local firefighters on training and best practices to reduce, limit, and prevent exposure to PFAS from firefighting foam and turnout gear, as well as provide resources that identify alternatives for firefighting tools and equipment that do not contain harmful PFAS.

Today, by supporting this bill, the House can continue to take bold action, once again, to address the PFAS crisis--this time to protect our firefighters.

Forever chemicals are an urgent threat to public health and, specifically, our firefighters who are on the front line. Emergency response teams

are frequently exposed to harmful PFAS in firefighting foams and personal protective equipment as they work to keep our communities safe.

These manmade chemicals--but specifically the two most notoriously harmful chemicals, PFOA and PFOS--are extremely persistent in the environment, as well, as a result of its use during fire training exercises and real-world emergency response situations. PFAS chemicals are persistent, bioaccumulative, and toxic. These chemicals have been linked to harmful human health effects, including cancer, reproductive and developmental harms, and weaken immune systems.

Nearly every American has some level of PFAS coursing through their blood today.

This important bill is supported by the International Association of Fire Fighters, the International Association of Fire Chiefs, the National Volunteer Fire Council, and first responders all across this country.

We must get this important, commonsense, and bipartisan legislation to the President's desk without delay to protect our firefighters and the communities they serve.

Finally, I thank leadership for bringing the PFAS Act to the floor under suspension today. I express a special thanks to Chair Eddie Bernice Johnson and Ranking Member Frank Lucas--who has really worked with me closely on this--and each of their staff for continuing to work with me to advance this critically important bill to the floor.

Mr. Speaker, I urge all my colleagues to support this PFAS Act. This is an important bipartisan and meaningful bill to protect the health and safety of our first responders from harmful PFAS in the line of duty.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today in strong support of S. 231, the Protecting Firefighters from Adverse Substances Act or the PFAS Act.

PFAS are a group of human-made chemicals that have been manufactured since the 1940's and can be found in a wide range of both consumer and industrial products, including firefighting foam and firefighter turnout gear. These chemicals are sometimes known as ``forever chemicals'' due to their widespread use, persistence in the environment, and a molecular structure that makes them very difficult to break down. There is growing evidence that PFAS are linked to adverse health outcomes including liver damage, thyroid disease, and an increased risk of cancer.

While we still have much to learn about the health risks associated with prolonged exposure to PFAS, work is underway to better understand the exposure pathways of PFAS and to develop alternatives to these chemicals. The Department of Defense, the National Institutes of Standards and Technology, and the Federal Aviation Administration all conduct research on PFAS-free firefighting foam or PFAS-free fighter gear.

This promising work is vital to reducing the release of and exposure to PFAS but more progress is needed. Until PFAS-free alternatives are widespread, we must do everything we can to protect those who are exposed to PFAS in the course of their job and to limit the release of PFAS into the environment. S. 231 directs the Administrator of the Federal Emergency Management Agency to develop guidance for firefighters and other emergency response personnel on best practices to protect them from exposure to PFAS and to limit and prevent the release of PFAS into the environment as well provide resources that identify PFAS-free alternatives for firefighting gear and equipment. This guidance would be developed in consultation with other federal agencies conducting research on PFAS-alternatives as well as a wide range of stakeholders including firefighting and emergency response personnel, communities dealing with PFAS contamination, fire training academies, manufacturers of firefighting tools and equipment, and voluntary standards organizations.

This bill is an important step to protecting our first responders from exposure to harmful chemicals. It has already passed the Senate with bipartisan support and today I urge my colleagues to join me in passing the bill here in the House and sending it to the President.