A bill that would limit the maximum contaminant levels for certain per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances in New York’s drinking water passed the state Legislature last week.
If signed into law by the Gov. Kathy Hochul, it would set requirements for drinking water to have levels below four parts per trillion for PFOA and PFOS, and below 10 ppt for three other types of PFAS, including PFNA, HFPO-DA, known as GenX chemicals, and PFHxS.
This comes shortly after the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency proposed to roll back the federal requirement on these three PFAS chemicals, which were established under the Biden administration in 2024.
State Sen. Rachel May, D-Syracuse, who co-sponsored the bill, said this was part of the reason the bill was introduced.
“Codifying the federal limits established in 2024 is critical to protecting New Yorkers from prolonged exposure to these harmful ‘forever chemicals,’ especially in light of the proposed federal rollbacks,” May said in a statement.
Environmental Advocates NY commended the Legislature for passing the bill.
“With the EPA abandoning its mission to protect New Yorkers from poisons in our water, our state needs to step up and today the Assembly unanimously joined the Senate in doing that,” said Rob Hayes, director of clean water at Environmental Advocates NY, in a press release.
EPA Administrator Lee Zeldin visited Binghamton earlier this week and argued his department had to roll back the requirements because they didn’t abide by the proper process outlined by the Safe Water Drinking Act, which caused them to “inherit some legal cases.”
“This isn’t a proposal to rescind it, and then that’s the end of it,” Zeldin said. “If you violate the Safe Drinking Water Act, what’s going to happen is you’re going to get sued.”
He said the Biden administration didn’t allow for a proper comment period, so his administration will reevaluate the regulations. However, according to the federal register, under the Biden administration, the comment period was opened on March 29, 2023 and closed May 30, 2023. Per the EPA’s website, comment periods generally last between 30 and 90 days.
“What we’re going to do is reconsider the maximum contaminant levels on those four, which by the way, could end up yielding a stricter maximum contaminant level than the one that was previously set. We’ll see what the process ends up yielding,” Zeldin said.
The American Water Works Association filed a lawsuit against the EPA in June 2024. The American Chemistry Council, which represents the chemical and water utility trade industries, also filed suit.
“Water utilities are actively addressing PFAS in their communities, and successful solutions depend on careful planning, sound engineering and affordability for each impacted community. Providing adequate time to research options, select the best approach based on local circumstances, and implement necessary infrastructure and equipment upgrades is the right path to long-term success,” said David LaFrance, CEO of the American Water Works Association, in a press release.
Hochul has until the end of the year to sign the bill.
May hopes another PFAS regulatory bill will be signed too.
“I am also hopeful that my PFAS Discharge Disclosure Act will soon be signed into law. By requiring industrial permit holders to test and report PFAS discharges, the bill will help us better understand where these chemicals are entering our environment. We cannot control what we don’t measure, and it is long past time we gained clearer understanding of where PFAS is coming from,” May said.