Press Release  AG Campbell Opposes EPA’s Proposed Rollback of PFAS Forever Chemicals Limits in Drinking Water  

BOSTON — Massachusetts Attorney General Andrea Joy Campbell today joined a coalition of 19 attorneys general in filing a comment letter opposing the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) proposed rollback on limits to four poly- and perfluoroalkyl (PFAS) “forever” chemicals found in drinking water. EPA’s proposed rollback would strip the agency of its own authority to require public drinking water systems to test for such PFAS contamination, report their presence in the public drinking water supply, and treat drinking water to remove the dangerous chemicals.  

“Forever chemicals and the serious health and environmental risks they pose do not go away just because the EPA chooses to walk away from its obligation to protect our drinking water. I am proud to join this coalition in opposing these proposed rollbacks, which defy the EPA’s own research and put the health and safety of our residents at risk,” said AG Campbell.  

Nearly 10,000 water sources/sites in the United States have tested positive for PFAS contamination, and more than 170 million people drink water contaminated with these chemicals. PFAS enters groundwater and surface water through manufacturing materials, discharges, and emissions from manufacturing facilities and other sources. These chemicals can be toxic to people and animals even at the lowest concentrations and pose a long-term health risk because they do not degrade and it is difficult to remove them from the environment. PFAS exposure has been linked to serious health issues affecting the thyroid, liver, kidney, immune system, blood, and reproductive systems. 

The Federal Safe Drinking Water Act tasks EPA with protecting the nation’s drinking water from harmful pollution. In 2024, EPA issued a final rule under the Safe Drinking Water Act, establishing the agency’s authority to set national drinking water standards in order to regulate the presence and concentration of four known PFAS chemicals found in public drinking water. Prior to implementing the final rule, the EPA went through a years-long process that included scientific research, analysis, and public feedback. Now, the EPA is proposing to eliminate the rule in its entirety without providing reason or analysis on how the rollback would impact drinking water or public health. 

The comment letter filed by AG Campbell and the coalition reminds the EPA that the rollback of the rule is illegal, arbitrary, and violates the Safe Drinking Water Act, which includes specific provisions preventing the EPA from rescinding its own rules and regulations without proper cause.    

AG Campbell has long advocated for the strong regulation of PFAS in drinking water in numerous submissions to EPA and in the D.C. Circuit supporting the PFAS rule now being attacked. In 2022, the Massachusetts Attorney General Office filed a lawsuit against 15 companies for knowingly marketing, manufacturing, and selling PFAS-containing aqueous film-forming foam (AFFF) to government entities, counties, municipalities, local fire departments, businesses and residents in Massachusetts, despite knowing the serious dangers and health risks posed by PFAS chemicals, causing millions of dollars in damages. The defendants in that action are alleged to have caused the contamination of countless water supplies in Massachusetts, including more than 126 public drinking water systems in 86 communities with serious levels of PFAS contamination such as in Weymouth, Abington, Rockland, Cape Cod and Stow. That lawsuit remains ongoing. 

AG Campbell is joined in filing these comments by the attorneys general of: Arizona, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Hawaii, Illinois, Maine, Maryland, Minnesota, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, Oregon, Rhode Island, Washington, Wisconsin, and the District of Columbia.  

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