House Armed Services Committee passes National Defense Authorization Act amendments to tackle PFAS crisis

WASHINGTON – Late Wednesday, the House Armed Services Committee voted to include important measures to protect public health from toxic PFAS chemicals in the FY 2021 National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA), the legislation that funds the Department of Defense.

Reps. Elissa Slotkin (D-Mich.), Deb Haaland (D-N.M.), Xochitl Torres Small (D-N.M.) and Chrissy Houlahan (D-Pa.) won amendments to:

(*) phase out the military’s use of PFAS in everyday products,

(*) require Department of Defense (DOD) to meet tough cleanup standards for PFAS contamination,

(*) expand PFAS blood testing to all service members, and

(*) require DOD to notify farmers and nearby communities about PFAS pollution.

“As the U.S. military works to keep us safe, we should make sure that their health, and the health of communities around DOD installations, is protected from these dangerous ‘forever’ chemicals,” said Safer Chemicals Healthy Families Director Liz Hitchcock. “Many thanks to Representatives Slotkin, Haaland, Torres Small and Houlahan for their work on this important legislation—we look forward to continued work with them as Congress moves forward on the 2021 NDAA.”

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