H.R. 6476

[Congressional Bills 119th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 6476 Introduced in House (IH)]

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119th CONGRESS
1st Session
H. R. 6476

To authorize the Secretary of Agriculture to provide grants to States, 
territories, and Indian Tribes to address contamination by 
perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl substances on farms, and for other 
purposes.

_______________________________________________________________________

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

December 4, 2025

Ms. Pingree (for herself, Mr. Lawler, and Mr. Golden of Maine) 
introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on 
Agriculture

_______________________________________________________________________

A BILL

To authorize the Secretary of Agriculture to provide grants to States, 
territories, and Indian Tribes to address contamination by 
perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl substances on farms, and for other 
purposes.

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

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

This Act may be cited as the ``Relief for Farmers Hit with PFAS 
Act''.

SEC. 2. DEFINITIONS.

In this Act:
(1) Agricultural land.--
(A) In general.--The term ``agricultural land'' 
means any land that is used, or capable of use without 
substantial modification, for production of farm 
products.
(B) Inclusions.--The term ``agricultural land'' 
includes irrigation water, livestock water, surface 
water, groundwater, and agricultural inputs on or 
associated with land described in subparagraph (A).
(2) Commercial farm.--The term ``commercial farm'' means a 
farm on which a person produces any farm product with the 
intent that the farm product be sold or otherwise disposed of 
to generate income.
(3) Eligible government.--The term ``eligible government'' 
means--
(A) a State;
(B) the District of Columbia;
(C) a territory of the United States; and
(D) an Indian Tribe.
(4) Farm product.--
(A) In general.--The term ``farm product'' means 
any plant or animal that is useful to humans.
(B) Inclusions.--The term ``farm product'' 
includes--
(i) forages;
(ii) sod crops;
(iii) grains;
(iv) food crops;
(v) dairy products;
(vi) poultry and poultry products;
(vii) bees;
(viii) livestock and livestock products;
(ix) products of aquaculture;
(x) fruits;
(xi) berries;
(xii) vegetables;
(xiii) flowers;
(xiv) seeds;
(xv) grasses;
(xvi) Christmas trees; and
(xvii) other similar products, as 
determined by the Secretary.
(5) Perfluoroalkyl or polyfluoroalkyl substance; pfas.--The 
term ``perfluoroalkyl or polyfluoroalkyl substance'' or 
``PFAS'' means a chemical that--
(A) contains at least one of--
(i) R-(CF2)-CF(R')R'', where both the CF2 
and CF moieties are saturated carbons, and none 
of the R groups can be hydrogen;
(ii) R-CF2OCF2-R', where both the CF2 
moieties are saturated carbons, and none of the 
R groups can be hydrogen; or
(iii) CF3C(CF3)RR', where all the carbons 
are saturated, and none of the R groups can be 
hydrogen; or
(B) is covered by the most recent working 
definition of PFAS issued by the Administrator of the 
Environmental Protection Agency.
(6) Program.--The term ``program'' means the program 
established under section 3(a).
(7) Secretary.--The term ``Secretary'' means the Secretary 
of Agriculture.
(8) Septage.--The term ``septage'' means waste, refuse, 
effluent, sludge, and any other materials from septic tanks, 
cesspools, or any other similar facilities.
(9) Sludge.--The term ``sludge'' means--
(A) solid, semisolid, or liquid waste generated 
from a municipal, commercial, or industrial--
(i) wastewater treatment plant;
(ii) water supply treatment plant; or
(iii) wet process air pollution control 
facility; and
(B) any other waste having similar characteristics 
and effect.

SEC. 3. ESTABLISHMENT.

(a) In General.--The Secretary shall establish a program under 
which the Secretary shall provide grants to eligible governments for 
the purposes described in section 4(a).
(b) Eligibility.--
(1) In general.--To be eligible to receive a grant under 
the program, the territory of an eligible government shall 
contain--
(A) agricultural land that contains any soil with 
levels of PFAS that the Secretary, in coordination with 
the Administrator of the Environmental Protection 
Agency, determines to be unsafe; or
(B) water used for the production of farm products 
with levels of PFAS that the Administrator of the 
Environmental Protection Agency, in coordination with 
the Secretary, determines to be unsafe.
(2) Consideration.--In determining the eligibility of an 
eligible government for a grant under the program, the 
Secretary, in consultation with the Administrator of the 
Environmental Protection Agency, shall consider State standards 
and limitations relating to soil and water.
(c) Applications.--
(1) In general.--To receive a grant under the program, the 
Department of Agriculture or similar agency of an eligible 
government shall submit to the Secretary an application at such 
time, in such manner, and containing such information as the 
Secretary may require.
(2) Spend plan.--An application submitted under paragraph 
(1) shall contain a plan describing how the eligible government 
will administer the funding received under the program, 
including funding priorities and oversight.
(d) Set-Aside.--Each year, the Secretary shall provide not less 
than 30 percent of the total funding provided under the program to 1 or 
more eligible governments with a population of less than 3,000,000.

SEC. 4. PURPOSES.

(a) In General.--An eligible government may use a grant received 
under the program to provide funding for any of the following purposes:
(1) Monitoring (including through blood serum testing) the 
PFAS-related health complications of a person, and members of 
the household of that person, if agricultural land the person 
lives or works on is found to be contaminated by PFAS.
(2) Buying, selling, or providing compensation for 
agricultural land or farm products found, through test results 
provided to the eligible government, to be contaminated by 
PFAS, including costs associated with the depopulation or 
disposal of farm products, premortem or postmortem.
(3) Investing in agricultural equipment, facilities, and 
infrastructure to ensure that agricultural land that, or a 
commercial farm any agricultural land of which, is found to be 
contaminated by PFAS maintains profitability while the 
producers on the agricultural land, in response to the PFAS 
contamination--
(A) transition to an alternative production system; 
or
(B) implement remediation strategies (including 
disposal), technological adaptations, or other 
modifications to the operations of the agricultural 
land or commercial farm.
(4) Assisting the producers on agricultural land that, or a 
commercial farm any agricultural land of which, is found to be 
contaminated by PFAS in developing an enterprise budget for--
(A) alternative production systems;
(B) remediation strategies;
(C) technological adaptations;
(D) transitioning to an alternative revenue stream; 
or
(E) relocating a farming operation to new 
agricultural land.
(5) Providing financial assistance to a person the 
commercial farm of which is found to be contaminated by PFAS, 
including income replacement.
(6) Evaluating and expanding the capacity of PFAS testing 
and data management in the territory of the eligible 
government.
(7) Conducting research that--
(A) supports short-term farm management decisions 
with respect to agricultural land that has been 
contaminated by PFAS; and
(B) assesses future options for viable uses of 
agricultural land and water used for agricultural 
production that has been contaminated by PFAS.
(8) Conducting research that quantifies the impact of PFAS 
on commercial farms and agricultural communities in the 
territory of the eligible government.
(9) Conducting research on--
(A) soil and water remediation systems;
(B) the viability of those systems for PFAS-
contaminated commercial farms;
(C) the composting or disposal of PFAS-contaminated 
crops or livestock;
(D) implementing alternative production systems in 
response to PFAS contamination;
(E) the PFAS uptake of various farm products; and
(F) food safety relating to PFAS contamination.
(10) Developing and implementing educational programs for 
owners of agricultural land, including determining best 
practices for--
(A) informing residents about the potential of 
being near or on a site on which sludge or septage 
application was licensed or permitted by the eligible 
government or the Federal Government; and
(B) providing information and guidance on buying or 
selling agricultural land on which sludge or septage 
was applied.
(11) Long-term monitoring of agricultural land contaminated 
by PFAS and establishing a corresponding centralized data 
repository.
(12) Assisting owners and operators of commercial farms not 
directly affected by PFAS contamination with marketing efforts 
whose branding and marketing may be affected by the public 
perception of PFAS contamination in the territory of the 
eligible government.
(13) Voluntary testing of farm products, agricultural land, 
or other locations that are suspected to be contaminated with 
PFAS.
(b) Priority.--
(1) In general.--In using funding received under the 
program, an eligible government shall prioritize purposes that 
directly assist producers who are experiencing financial losses 
due to agricultural PFAS contamination.
(2) Department of agriculture priority.--In providing 
grants under the program, the Secretary shall prioritize the 
provision of grants to eligible governments that will use the 
grant funds for the purposes described in paragraphs (3) 
through (5) of subsection (a).

SEC. 5. REPORTS.

Each year of the period of a grant received under the program, the 
department of agriculture or similar agency of an eligible government 
shall submit to the Secretary and Congress a report describing--
(1) the uses of the grant during the previous year, 
including--
(A) the purposes described in section 4(a) for 
which the grant was used;
(B) the amount of the grant allocated to each 
purpose described in section 4(a); and
(C) the extent to which the funding received under 
the program, including funding priorities and 
oversight, was administered in accordance with the plan 
described in section 3(c)(2);
(2) any additional needs identified by agricultural 
producers in the territory of the eligible government; and
(3) any additional information the Secretary determines to 
be appropriate.

SEC. 6. TASK FORCE.

The Secretary shall establish a task force composed of officers or 
employees of the Department of Agriculture--
(1) to provide advice to the Secretary relating to whether 
addressing PFAS contamination should be added as an eligible 
activity under each program of the Department of Agriculture;
(2) to evaluate necessary actions for farms already 
enrolled in a Department of Agriculture program where PFAS is 
detected; and
(3) to provide technical assistance to eligible governments 
in addressing PFAS contamination.

SEC. 7. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.

There is authorized to be appropriated to the Secretary to carry 
out this Act $500,000,000 for the period of fiscal years 2026 through 
2029.
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