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On August 18, 2026, a unanimous panel of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit upheld EPA’s designation of perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA) and perfluorooctanesulfonic acid (PFOS) as hazardous substances under the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act (CERCLA or Superfund). In Chamber of Commerce of the United States v. EPA, the court rejected challenges to EPA’s interpretation of CERCLA Section 102(a), the adequacy of its notice and comment process, its analysis of costs and benefits, and its decision to proceed despite uncertainty about future response actions and costs.

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On August 18, 2026, a unanimous panel of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit upheld the 2024 designation by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) of perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA) and perfluorooctanesulfonic acid (PFOS) as hazardous substances under the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act (CERCLA or Superfund). (See Chamber of Commerce of the United States of America, et al. v. EPA, No. 24-1193 (D.C. Cir. Aug. 18, 2026).)

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On July 22, 2025, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia (D.C.) Circuit granted a motion by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to lift the abeyance in consolidated litigation challenging the agency’s National Primary Drinking Water Regulation (NPDWR) for PFAS, finalized by the Biden administration in April of 2024.

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On June 5, 2025, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit granted the EPA’s third request to continue holding in abeyance consolidated litigation challenging the agency’s national drinking water regulation for six per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS), including PFOA and PFOS. The court’s order in American Water Works Association, et al. v. EPA, No. 24-1188, gives the agency until July 21, 2025, to advise the court how it intends to proceed.

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On May 14, 2025, EPA announced its intent to rescind the national drinking water standards for hexafluoropropylene oxide dimer acid (HFPO-DA or GenX), perfluorononanoate (PFNA), and perfluorohexanesulfonic acid (PFHxS), as well as the hazard index used to evaluate the combined risk of those compounds and perfluorobutane sulfonic acid (PFBS). These Maximum Contaminant Levels (MCLs) were finalized in April 2024 under the prior administration. EPA says it will reconsider the regulatory determinations “to ensure that the determinations and any resulting drinking water regulation follow the legal process laid out in the Safe Drinking Water Act” (SDWA).

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On May 12, 2025, EPA announced that it will again revise the reporting timeline for manufacturers of per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) under Section 8(a)(7) of the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA). The data submission window will now open on April 13, 2026 and close on October 13, 2026, replacing the previous window of July 11, 2025 to January 11, 2026. For small manufacturers reporting exclusively as article importers, EPA’s interim final rule provides an alterative end date of April 13, 2027—a change consistent with Administrator Zeldin’s call to not “overburden[] small businesses and article importers.”

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While the Trump administration’s PFAS policy framework is beginning to take shape, uncertainties remain across the regulatory, litigation and legislative fronts. On April 28, EPA Administrator Lee Zeldin announced a set of PFAS-related actions outlining a coordinated regulatory approach to addressing PFAS contamination. However, the Agency’s only two finalized PFAS rules—both issued during the Biden administration—remain stayed in federal court, and it still unclear whether the current Administration will defend, revise or withdraw them. At the same time, congressional interest appears to be intensifying. On May 1, a bipartisan PFAS Task Force was relaunched in the House of Representatives, signaling renewed legislative focus on PFAS policy.

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Continuing with the Trump administration’s deregulatory agenda, the White House issued a Presidential Memorandum on April 9 titled Directing the Appeal of Unlawful Regulations. It instructs executive agencies to repeal regulations that, in the administration’s view, are “unlawful” in light of ten recent U.S. Supreme Court decisions. The directive builds on Executive Order 14219 and the broader “Department of Government Efficiency” initiative and calls for a sweeping review and repeal process.

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On April 10, 2025, at the request of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit extended the stay by 30 days in American Water Works Association, et al. v. EPA, No. 24-1188 (D.C. Cir. 2024) to give new leadership time to evaluate the maximum contaminant levels (MCLs) established for six PFAS under the Safe Drinking Water Act. 89 Fed. Reg. at 32,532-33; 40 C.F.R. §§ 141.900-905. The court had previously granted EPA’s February 7 request for a 60-day stay to allow for initial review of the rule. The EPA has until May 12, 2025, to file future motions in the MCL challenge.

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House Republicans have introduced a joint resolution under the Congressional Review Act (CRA) to nullify a rule issued by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) late in the prior administration. The rule narrowed the availability of expedited review pathways for certain new chemical substances—including per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS)—under the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA). The resolution, H.J.Res.76, introduced by Reps. Clay Higgins (R-LA) and William Timmons (R-SC), seeks to nullify EPA’s December 2024 rulemaking, Updates to New Chemicals Regulations Under the Toxic Substances Control Act (89 Fed. Reg. 102773).

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