May 1, 2025 (InsideEPA.com's Daily Briefing) –
From Inside PFAS Policy
A group of House lawmakers has introduced legislation that would bar federal agencies from procuring cookware, furniture, carpets and rugs containing two legacy PFAS and prioritize the procurement of PFAS-free products in these categories, mirroring a measure that lawmakers previously failed to add into annual defense legislation.
The legislation, titled the PFAS-Free Procurement Act, aims to “prioritize the procurement of safer, PFAS-free products,” says a May 1 press release from Rep. Chris Pappas (D-NH), a co-sponsor of the bill.
Specifically, the bill would bar federal agencies from renewing or entering into contracts for the procurement of certain “covered” items that contain perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA) and perfluorooctane sulfonic acid (PFOS) -- the two most studied per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS). The covered items are nonstick cookware and cooking utensils, and furniture, carpets and rugs treated with stain-resistant coatings.
In addition, the bill would require agencies to “prioritize” the procurement of these covered items, “where available and practicable, that do not contain PFAS.” The bill defines PFAS as “harmful perfluoroalkyl or polyfluoroalkyl substances.”
The legislation would take effect six months after its enactment.
In addition to Pappas, co-sponsors of the bill are Reps. Brian Fitzpatrick (R-PA), who is co-chair of the bipartisan Congressional PFAS Task Force; Mike Lawler (R-NY), Haley Stevens (D-MI) and Pat Ryan (D-NY).
PFAS are linked to various health impacts, such as cancer, liver damage and developmental harm, Pappas’ press release notes.
“PFAS and other toxic forever chemicals continue to pose health risks to Granite Staters and communities nationwide,” Pappas said in the release. “We must take comprehensive and commonsense action to combat PFAS contamination and ensure the well-being of Americans.”
The bill would call on federal agencies “to prioritize procuring PFAS-free products to protect federal employees and individuals who visit federal facilities, like veterans at VA and seniors at Social Security offices,” Pappas said, adding that the bill would provide “an important step forward” for the federal government in taking the lead in addressing PFAS contamination.
The lawmakers may be teeing up the bill for inclusion in the fiscal year 2026 National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA), after previous failed attempts in the last two years. House supporters failed last June in their effort to include a very similar bipartisan measure in the FY25 NDAA.
The lawmakers advocating for the measure were unable to obtain approval from the Rules Committee for consideration in that bill on the floor last June.
And such a provision was included in the FY24 NDAA but was removed after conferencing with the Senate on the legislation.
The FY25 NDAA, however, did allow for a measure targeting the Defense Department’s procurement of cleaning products, effectively requiring the department to prioritize PFAS-free options. The FY25 NDAA called for DOD to procure cleaning products identified by EPA’s Safer Choice labeling program “to the maximum extent possible,” according to a joint explanatory statement released alongside the bill. Safer Choice is a voluntary program that labels products that avoid use of certain toxic chemicals, including intentionally added PFAS.
The House legislation also comes the same week EPA Administrator Lee Zeldin announced a multi-media plan to respond to PFAS, generally maintaining much of the Biden administration’s regulatory agenda to address PFAS though he provided few details on upcoming actions. Among the actions is one that appears to continue the Biden EPA’s efforts to call on industry to conduct toxicity tests under section 4 of the Toxic Substances Control Act to gauge risks posed by certain PFAS. -- Suzanne Yohannan (syohannan@iwpnews.com)
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