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RESOLUTION NO. 2021-081 <br />A RESOLUTION OF THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE <br />CITY OF SANTA ANA SUPPORTING FEDERAL PFAS <br />LEGISLATION THAT PROTECTS RATEPAYERS AND <br />WASTEIWASTEWATER AGENCIES <br />WHEREAS, Per- and Polyfluoroalkyl Substances ("PFAS") are a group of man- <br />made chemicals created by chemical manufacturers and despite playing no role in <br />releasing PFAS into the environment, cities and water agencies must find ways to <br />remove them from local water supplies; and <br />WHEREAS, PFAS have been detected in the Orange County Groundwater <br />Basin, managed by Orange County Water District, and are estimated to cost Orange <br />County more than $1 billion, over 30 years —a cost that will likely increase; and <br />WHEREAS, ratepayers are at risk from pending PFAS legislation and associated <br />PFAS costs, and water agencies and stakeholders must take action to inform members <br />of Congress of these devastating impacts; and <br />WHEREAS, all PFAS related legislation must therefore exempt water and <br />wastewater agencies from any liability for PFAS cleanup costs; and <br />WHEREAS, a water utility that complies with applicable and appropriate federal <br />management and treatment standards must not be responsible for current and future <br />costs associated with a PFAS cleanup; and <br />WHEREAS, given the potential for federal legislation, such as the PFAS Action <br />Act of 2021 (H.R. 2467), to expose water agencies that simply receive and treat water <br />supplies, with across-the-board liability for PFAS-related cleanups when they have no <br />responsibility for the presence of PFAS, an explicit exemption from Superfund clean-up <br />liability must be made for water and wastewater agencies; and <br />WHEREAS, under existing law, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency <br />ensures that public health benefits of new drinking water standards are reasonably <br />balanced with the compliance costs that water system ratepayers will ultimately incur, <br />and eliminating this analysis would burden ratepayers of all income levels with <br />astronomical costs to comply with drinking water standards; and <br />WHEREAS, amendments to the Safe Drinking Water Act should not delete the <br />longstanding cost -benefit analysis; and <br />WHEREAS, the Orange County Water District supports providing direct grant <br />funding for PFAS remediation to water and wastewater agencies as provided in the <br />Senate -passed Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (H.R. 3684). <br />Resolution No. 2021-081 <br />Page 1 of 3 <br />