H.R. 6476 — Relief for Farmers Hit with PFAS Act

This section defines key terms used in the Act, including (1) agricultural land (i.e., land used or capable of use for farm products, including associated water and inputs); (2) commercial farm (i.e., a farm producing farm products for income); (3) eligible government (i.e., a state, the District of Columbia, U.S. territory, or Indian tribe); (4) farm product (i.e., any useful plant or animal, including forages, grains, livestock, fruits, and others as determined by the Secretary of Agriculture); (5) perfluoroalkyl or polyfluoroalkyl substance or PFAS (i.e., chemicals meeting specific structural formulas or the latest EPA working definition); (6) program (i.e., the program established under section 3(a)); (7) Secretary (i.e., the Secretary of Agriculture); (8) septage (i.e., waste from septic tanks or similar facilities); and (9) sludge (i.e., solid, semisolid, or liquid waste from wastewater treatment, water supply treatment, or air pollution control facilities).

This section establishes a grant program under which the Secretary of Agriculture provides grants to eligible governments for the purposes described in section 4(a), with eligibility based on a territory containing agricultural land with PFAS soil levels determined unsafe by the Secretary (in coordination with the EPA Administrator) or water used for farm products with PFAS levels determined unsafe by the EPA Administrator (in coordination with the Secretary). In determining eligibility, the Secretary considers state standards and limitations relating to soil and water. Eligible governments must apply through their department of agriculture or similar agency, including a spend plan describing administration of funds, funding priorities, and oversight. Each year, the Secretary must provide at least 30% of total program funding to one or more eligible governments with a population of less than 3,000,000.

This section authorizes eligible governments to use grants under the program for 13 specified purposes related to PFAS contamination of agricultural land, commercial farms, and farm products, including (1) monitoring PFAS-related health complications; (2) buying, selling, or compensating for contaminated land or products (including depopulation or disposal costs); (3) investing in equipment, facilities, and infrastructure for alternative production systems or remediation; (4) assisting producers with enterprise budgets for alternatives, remediation, or relocation; (5) providing financial assistance (including income replacement) to affected farm operators; (6) expanding PFAS testing and data management capacity; (7)-(9) conducting specified research on farm management, impacts, remediation, disposal, production alternatives, uptake, and food safety; (10) developing educational programs on risks and best practices; (11) long-term monitoring and data repositories; (12) aiding marketing for unaffected farms impacted by public perception; and (13) voluntary testing. The section requires eligible governments to prioritize uses that directly assist producers with financial losses from PFAS contamination and directs the Secretary, in awarding grants, to prioritize eligible governments committing funds to purposes (a)(3) through (5) (i.e., infrastructure investments, enterprise budgets, and financial assistance).

This section requires the department of agriculture or similar agency of an eligible government to submit an annual report to the Secretary and Congress during each year of a grant period describing (1) the previous year's grant uses, including purposes under section 4(a), amounts allocated to each such purpose, and compliance with the section 3(c)(2) plan; (2) additional needs identified by agricultural producers in the eligible government's territory; and (3) other information determined appropriate by the Secretary.

This section directs the Secretary of Agriculture to establish a task force composed of Department of Agriculture officers or employees (1) to advise on whether addressing PFAS (i.e., per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances) contamination should be added as an eligible activity under each Department program; (2) to evaluate necessary actions for farms already enrolled in a Department program where PFAS is detected; and (3) to provide technical assistance to eligible governments in addressing PFAS contamination.