Federal law known as the Forever Chemical Regulation and Accountability Act would phase out the manufacture and use of PFAS (per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances, also called "forever chemicals" because they do not break down naturally) across the U.S. economy over a 10-year period. Within one year of enactment, sales of PFAS-containing carpets, food packaging, juvenile products, and certain oil-and-gas products would be banned; cosmetics, clothing, and indoor furniture follow within two years, with outdoor apparel for extreme-weather conditions banned by year five. Manufacturers and industrial users would be required to submit detailed annual reports on their PFAS volumes and releases, with a $100,000-per-report fee if EPA misses its rulemaking deadline, and to file phaseout plans within three years. The bill funds two Centers of Excellence — one urban (a research university paired with a DOE National Lab) and one rural — to advance PFAS detection and remediation science, backed by $25 million from Department of Defense environmental programs. Victims of PFAS contamination would gain two new legal protections: a change to federal law would prevent state statutes of repose (absolute time limits on lawsuits tied to when the contamination occurred) from blocking exposure claims, and a separate bankruptcy provision would bar companies from using a subsidiary's bankruptcy filing to freeze related lawsuits against parent companies and affiliates. Federal agencies would face the same PFAS compliance obligations as private parties, with presidential national security exemptions limited to one year at a time and reported annually to Congress.
Corporate Benefits
- Bankruptcy automatic stay — removed for PFAS and PBT claims against corporate parent companies and affiliates, blocking subsidiary-bankruptcy liability shields
- Liability exposure — CERCLA statute-of-repose preemption extended, allowing PFAS victims to sue chemical companies even after state absolute suit-filing deadlines expire
- Regulatory exemption — no carve-out from phaseout obligations for large industrial PFAS users; reporting fees up to $100,000 per annual submission apply to all manufacturers
Average Household Impact
- Consumer protections — PFAS banned from food packaging, carpets, juvenile products, cosmetics, and indoor and outdoor apparel on staggered 1–5 year timelines
- Drinking water safety — Centers of Excellence required to make PFAS testing available to municipalities and individuals at reasonable cost
- Citizen suit access — any person may sue PFAS manufacturers or users for violations or imminent endangerment, and may recover attorney and expert witness fees
Environmental Concerns
- PFAS production and use — phaseout of all nonessential uses required within 10 years, with EPA authority to accelerate on petition
- PFAS environmental releases — prohibited at any detectable level within 10 years; EPA must finalize release phaseout rules by year seven
- Federal procurement — all federal agencies required to eliminate procurement of PFAS-containing products to the maximum extent practicable, effective immediately on enactment
- PFAS remediation research — two Centers of Excellence established to develop and benchmark PFAS removal and destruction technologies, funded at $25 million through 2036
- State authority — states may impose PFAS requirements more stringent than federal minimums; no federal floor can preempt stronger state rules
Transparency & Accountability
- Manufacturer reporting — annual public disclosures of PFAS volumes, releases, health data, and phaseout plans required for all manufacturers and users
- Essential-use petitions — open public comment periods of at least 180 days required before EPA designates any PFAS use as essential or nonessential
- EPA inspection authority — broad right of entry, record access, and emissions sampling authority over any PFAS manufacturer, user, or equipment maker
- Presidential exemption disclosure — any national security exemption from PFAS rules must be publicly disclosed and reported to Congress annually
- Imminent-hazard notice — companies causing imminent PFAS endangerment must notify local governments, utilities, schools, and the public immediately at their own cost
Congressional Summary
Forever Chemical Regulation and Accountability Act of 2026This bill phases out the release and nonessential use of perfluoroalkyl or polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) and addresses PFAS research, remediation, regulation, and enforcement.The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) must require each manufacturer and user of PFAS to submit annual reports that include specified information about the essential (e.g., critical for health or safety reasons) and nonessential uses of PFAS by such entities. Not later than 10 years after the enactment of this bill, manufacturers and users must fully phase out nonessential uses of PFAS.The bill alsoestablishes specified deadlines to phase out the sale of certain products containing PFAS;requires federal agencies, to the maximum extent practicable, to eliminate the procurement of products known to contain PFAS;imposes a 10-year phaseout of the release of PFAS above a certain threshold of detection;provides enforcement authority to the EPA regarding violations of the requirements of the bill, including through civil and criminal penalties;allows citizen suits against manufacturers and users of PFAS and the EPA; andaddresses actions under state law related to damages from exposure to hazardous substances, including with regard to statutes of repose.The bill exempts from a bankruptcy petition’s automatic stay any proceeding against a non-debtor entity (e.g., a proceeding to obtain property from a non-debtor) with respect to a PBT claim (a claim relating to persistent, bioaccumulative, and toxic chemicals) against the non-debtor entity, the debtor, or the estate.
Details
- Congress
- 119th
- Chamber
- Senate
- Status
- summarized
- Action
- Introduced in Senate
- Action Date
- 2026-03-19
- Date Added
- 2026-06-05
- Source
- Congress.gov →
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