II 

117TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION S. 4492 

To provide for the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine 

to study and report on a Federal research agenda to advance the understanding of perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl substances, and for other 

purposes. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

JUNE 23, 2022 

Mr. PETERS (for himself, Mr. MORAN, and Mrs. SHAHEEN) introduced the 

following bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee on 

Commerce, Science, and Transportation 

A BILL 

To provide for the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine to study and report on a Federal 

research agenda to advance the understanding of 

perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl substances, and for 

other purposes. 

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

4 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Federal PFAS Re5 search Evaluation Act’’. 

6 SEC. 2. FINDINGS. 

7 Congress finds that— 


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1 (1) perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl sub2 stances are a group of manmade chemicals that have 

3 been used in a wide range of products since the 

4 1940s, including firefighting foam, carpeting, pack5 aging, and cookware; 

6 (2) there are more than 5,000 types of reg7 istered perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl substances; 

8 (3) perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl sub9 stances are not currently regulated at the Federal 

10 level; 

11 (4) perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl sub12 stances— 

13 (A) have been detected in air, water, soil, 

14 food, biosolids, and more, where they persist for 

15 a long time; 

16 (B) can accumulate and remain in the 

17 human body and in wildlife and other biota for 

18 a long time; and 

19 (C) can lead to serious health effects, in20 cluding cancer, low infant birthweight, liver and 

21 kidney issues, reproductive and developmental 

22 problems, and more; 

23 (5) there remains much unknown about— 

24 (A) the toxicity, human and environmental 

25 health effects, exposure pathways, and effective 


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1 removal, treatment, and destruction methods of 

2 perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl substances; 

3 and 

4 (B) safe alternatives to perfluoroalkyl and 

5 polyfluoroalkyl substances; 

6 (6) Federal research efforts have been frag7 mented at various Federal agencies and have strug8 gled to effectively address the full scope of chal9 lenges presented by perfluoroalkyl and 

10 polyfluoroalkyl substances; 

11 (7) regulatory action and cleanup with respect 

12 to perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl substances de13 pend on— 

14 (A) scientific analysis of toxicity data of 

15 perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl substances; 

16 (B) decisionmaking on how best to deal 

17 with the thousands of perfluoroalkyl and 

18 polyfluoroalkyl substances; and 

19 (C) understanding the significance of the 

20 many exposure pathways for perfluoroalkyl and 

21 polyfluoroalkyl substances that exist; and 

22 (8) a consensus study by the National Acad23 emies would help inform decisions by the Federal 

24 Government, State governments, industry, and other 


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1 stakeholders on how to best address perfluoroalkyl 

2 and polyfluoroalkyl substances. 

3 SEC. 3. DEFINITIONS. 

4 In this Act: 

5 (1) ADMINISTRATOR.—The term ‘‘Adminis6 trator’’ means the Administrator of the Environ7 mental Protection Agency. 

8 (2) DIRECTOR.—The term ‘‘Director’’ means 

9 the Director of the National Science Foundation. 

10 (3) NATIONAL ACADEMIES.—The term ‘‘Na11 tional Academies’’ means the National Academies of 

12 Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. 

13 SEC. 4. NATIONAL ACADEMIES REPORTS. 

14 (a) RESEARCH ASSESSMENTS OF PFAS EXPOSURE

15 AND TOXICITY.— 

16 (1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 90 days after 

17 the date of enactment of this Act, the Director, in 

18 consultation with the Administrator, the Secretary 

19 of Defense, the Director of the National Institutes 

20 of Health, and the heads of other Federal agencies 

21 with expertise relevant to understanding exposure to 

22 and toxicity of perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl 

23 substances, shall enter into an agreement with the 

24 National Academies— 


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1 (A) to conduct a 2-phase study in accord2 ance with this subsection to identify research 

3 and development needed to advance human ex4 posure estimations and toxicity and hazard esti5 mations of individual perfluoroalkyl and 

6 polyfluoroalkyl substances or perfluoroalkyl and 

7 polyfluoroalkyl substances collectively; and 

8 (B) to submit reports describing the re9 sults of the studies in accordance with this sub10 section. 

11 (2) PHASE I STUDY AND REPORT ON HUMAN

12 EXPOSURE ESTIMATION.— 

13 (A) IN GENERAL.—The phase I study 

14 under paragraph (1) shall, at a minimum— 

15 (i) consider lifecycle information on 

16 the manufacture, use, and disposal of 

17 products containing perfluoroalkyl and 

18 polyfluoroalkyl substances to identify po19 tential human exposure sources and path20 ways; 

21 (ii) evaluate— 

22 (I) the fate and transport of 

23 perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl sub24 stances; and 


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1 (II) the breakdown products of 

2 perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl sub3 stances, as related to human expo4 sure; 

5 (iii) if feasible, estimate human expo6 sure to individual perfluoroalkyl and 

7 polyfluoroalkyl substances or perfluoroalkyl 

8 and polyfluoroalkyl substances collectively 

9 to determine relative source contributions 

10 for various exposure pathways (such as air, 

11 water, soil, or food); 

12 (iv) determine which perfluoroalkyl 

13 and polyfluoroalkyl substances are most 

14 likely to contribute to human exposure; 

15 and 

16 (v) identify research that is needed to 

17 advance exposure estimations to individual 

18 perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl sub19 stances or perfluoroalkyl and 

20 polyfluoroalkyl substances collectively. 

21 (B) REPORT.—Not later than 1 year after 

22 the date on which the agreement described in 

23 paragraph (1) is finalized, the National Acad24 emies shall— 


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1 (i) submit to Congress a report con2 taining the findings and recommendations 

3 of the study described in subparagraph 

4 (A); and 

5 (ii) make the report under clause (i) 

6 available on a publicly accessible website. 

7 (3) PHASE II STUDY AND REPORT ON PFAS

8 TOXICITY AND HAZARD ESTIMATION.— 

9 (A) IN GENERAL.—The phase II study 

10 under paragraph (1) shall, at a minimum— 

11 (i)(I) review animal and human tox12 icity information on the perfluoroalkyl and 

13 polyfluoroalkyl substances most likely to 

14 contribute to human exposure, as identified 

15 in the phase I report under paragraph 

16 (2)(B)(i); and 

17 (II) develop an approach for con18 ducting a human health hazard assessment 

19 of the identified perfluoroalkyl and 

20 polyfluoroalkyl substances; 

21 (ii) give consideration as to whether 

22 chemical category-based approaches for as23 sessing hazards would be appropriate for 

24 evaluating perfluoroalkyl and 

25 polyfluoroalkyl substances as a group; and 


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1 (iii) identify research that is needed to 

2 advance toxicity and hazard assessments of 

3 individual perfluoroalkyl and 

4 polyfluoroalkyl substances or perfluoroalkyl 

5 and polyfluoroalkyl substances collectively. 

6 (B) REPORT.—Not later than 1 year after 

7 the date on which the phase I report is sub8 mitted to Congress under paragraph (2)(B)(i), 

9 the National Academies shall— 

10 (i) submit to Congress a report con11 taining the findings and recommendations 

12 of the study described in subparagraph 

13 (A); and 

14 (ii) make the report under clause (i) 

15 available on a publicly accessible website. 

16 (b) RESEARCH ASSESSMENTS OF MANAGEMENT AND

17 TREATMENT ALTERNATIVES FOR PFAS CONTAMINATION

18 IN THE ENVIRONMENT AND DEVELOPMENT OF SAFE AL19 TERNATIVES.— 

20 (1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 90 days after 

21 the date of enactment of this Act, the Director and 

22 the Administrator, in consultation with the Sec23 retary of Defense and the heads of other Federal 

24 agencies with expertise relevant to the development 

25 of alternatives to perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl 


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1 substances and the management and treatment of 

2 perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl substances, shall 

3 jointly enter into an agreement with the National 

4 Academies— 

5 (A) to conduct a 2-phase study in accord6 ance with this subsection to better under7 stand— 

8 (i) the research and development 

9 needed to advance the understanding of 

10 the extent and implications of environ11 mental contamination by perfluoroalkyl 

12 and polyfluoroalkyl substances; 

13 (ii) the best methods to manage and 

14 treat that contamination; and 

15 (iii) the development of safe alter16 natives to perfluoroalkyl and 

17 polyfluoroalkyl substances; and 

18 (B) to submit reports describing the re19 sults of the studies in accordance with this sub20 section. 

21 (2) PHASE I STUDY AND REPORT ON TREAT22 MENT AND REMEDIATION.— 

23 (A) IN GENERAL.—The phase I study 

24 under paragraph (1) shall, at a minimum— 


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1 (i) assess the best available strategies 

2 for treatment, site remediation, and safe 

3 disposal of perfluoroalkyl and 

4 polyfluoroalkyl substances; and 

5 (ii) describe research gaps relating to 

6 the issues described in clause (i), including 

7 socioeconomic considerations and ways 

8 that the Federal Government can address 

9 the research needs. 

10 (B) REPORT.—Not later than 18 months 

11 after the date on which the agreement described 

12 in paragraph (1) is finalized, the National 

13 Academies shall— 

14 (i) submit to Congress a report con15 taining the findings and recommendations 

16 of the study described in subparagraph 

17 (A); and 

18 (ii) make the report under clause (i) 

19 available on a publicly accessible website. 

20 (3) PHASE II STUDY AND REPORT ON ASSESS21 MENT OF SAFE ALTERNATIVES FOR PFAS.— 

22 (A) IN GENERAL.—The phase II study 

23 under paragraph (1) shall, at a minimum— 

24 (i) examine the state of knowledge for 

25 alternatives to perfluoroalkyl and 


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1 polyfluoroalkyl substances in applications 

2 currently, as of the date of the study, 

3 using perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl 

4 substances that contribute to significant 

5 human health or ecological exposures and 

6 potential risk; and 

7 (ii) identify research needs to address 

8 the highest priorities for development of al9 ternatives to perfluoroalkyl and 

10 polyfluoroalkyl substances. 

11 (B) REPORT.—Not later than 3 years after 

12 the date on which the agreement described in 

13 paragraph (1) is finalized, the National Acad14 emies shall— 

15 (i) submit to Congress a report con16 taining the findings and recommendations 

17 of the study described in subparagraph 

18 (A); and 

19 (ii) make the report under clause (i) 

20 available on a publicly accessible website. 

21 SEC. 5. IMPLEMENTATION PLAN. 

22 (a) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 180 days after the 

23 date on which all reports from the National Academies 

24 under section 4 have been submitted to Congress, the Di25 rector of the Office of Science and Technology Policy, in 


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1 coordination with the heads of all relevant Federal agen2 cies, shall submit to Congress an implementation plan for 

3 increased collaboration and coordination of Federal re4 search, development, and demonstration activities with re5 spect to perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl substances. 

6 (b) REQUIREMENT.—In preparing the implementa7 tion plan under subsection (a), the Director of the Office 

8 of Science and Technology Policy shall take into consider9 ation the recommendations included in the reports sub10 mitted to Congress under section 4. 

Æ 


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