Item 33 - PFAS Legislation - Laserfiche WebLink

Home Browse Search

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