HR6476-119

What This Bill Does

The Relief for Farmers Hit with PFAS Act creates a large agricultural contamination relief program. It defines agricultural land broadly to include irrigation water, livestock water, surface water, groundwater, farm infrastructure, and agricultural inputs; defines eligible governments to include States, territories, the District of Columbia, and Indian Tribes; and defines PFAS using the one-fully-fluorinated-carbon standard. USDA must make grants to eligible governments when agricultural soil or water used for farm products contains unsafe PFAS, considering State standards and EPA maximum contaminant levels. Applications must explain administration, priorities, oversight, and evaluation, and at least 30 percent of annual funds must go to governments with populations under 3 million. Grant uses are unusually broad: health monitoring and blood serum testing; compensation or purchase of contaminated land or farm products; livestock depopulation and disposal; equipment, infrastructure, remediation, alternative production, and disposal costs; income replacement; enterprise budgets; testing and data capacity; research; education for landowners near sludge or septage sites; long-term monitoring and repositories; marketing help for unaffected farms harmed by perception; and voluntary testing. Eligible governments must prioritize direct assistance to producers with financial losses, and USDA must prioritize several high-need uses. The bill also requires annual government reports to USDA and Congress, creates a USDA task force on PFAS in agricultural programs, and authorizes $500 million for fiscal years 2026 through 2029.

Who Benefits and How

PFAS-affected farmers benefit because grant money can replace income, buy contaminated products, pay for equipment or infrastructure changes, and compensate losses. Small-State and Tribal agriculture programs benefit from the 30 percent population set-aside. Agricultural communities benefit from blood testing, health monitoring, education, testing capacity, and long-term data repositories. Farm product producers benefit from marketing assistance when perception of PFAS contamination hurts otherwise unaffected products. USDA programs benefit from a task force that can clarify whether PFAS losses should fit existing agricultural assistance programs.

Who Bears the Burden and How

USDA grant administrators must create and oversee a new multi-year program, evaluate State standards and EPA contaminant levels, prioritize direct assistance, and run the task force. Eligible government grant administrators must submit plans, rank uses, track payments, prevent misuse, and file annual reports to USDA and Congress. PFAS testing laboratories and remediation vendors may see demand, but participating governments must manage procurement and documentation. Federal taxpayers fund the $500 million authorization.

Key Provisions

• Defines agricultural land, farm products, eligible governments, PFAS, septage, and sludge for program eligibility.
• Establishes USDA grants for governments addressing unsafe PFAS in agricultural soil or water used for farm products.
• Requires at least 30 percent of annual funds for eligible governments with populations under 3 million.
• Provides direct assistance for compensation, testing, equipment, infrastructure, remediation, income replacement, research, education, monitoring, and marketing.
• Requires annual reports from eligible governments to USDA and Congress.
• Establishes a USDA task force on PFAS eligibility across USDA programs.
• Authorizes $500 million for fiscal years 2026 through 2029.