,,ii #aaith ,,congress #ast ,session ,s4 #cdfj ,,in ,,the ,,senate ,,of ,,the ,,united ,,states ,december #aa1 #bjbe,mrs4 ,gillibrand introduced the following bill2 which was read twice and referred to the ,committee on ,environment and ,public ,works ,a ,,bill ,to amend the ,toxic ,substances ,control ,act to codify a ,federal cause of action and a type of remedy available for individuals significantly exposed to per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances1 to encourage research and accountability for irresponsible discharge of those substances1 and for other purposes4 #a4 ,short title ,this ,act may be cited as the ,,pfas ,accountability ,act of #bjbe4 #b4 ,findings ,congress finds that-- 7#a7 the ,centers for ,disease ,control and ,prevention has detected numerous perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl substances 7referred to in this ,act as ,,pfas7 in the blood serum of individuals in the ,united ,states1 all of which come from manufacturing and use of ,,pfas by humans1 as there is no natural source of ,,pfas in human blood2 7#b7 peer-reviewed studies by other organizations have detected ,,pfas in the drinking water of at least #bjj1jjj1jjj individuals in the ,united ,states2 7#c7 ,,pfas are introduced into the market every year1 and little research is conducted to ensure the safety of ,,pfas for individuals2 7#d7 as of the day before the date of enactment of this ,act1 a ,federal statutory cause of action does not exist for individuals harmed by the long-term effects of ,,pfas exposure2 and 7#e7 ,,pfas exposure1 even at low levels1 has been linked to chronic diseases1 including cancer1 reproductive and developmental harms1 and harms to the immune system4 #c4 ,purposes ,the purposes of this ,act are-- 7#a7 to encourage ,,pfas research and provide accountability for irresponsible ,,pfas manufacturing and irresponsible use of ,,pfas in manufacturing by codifying-- 7,a7 a ,federal cause of action for individuals significantly exposed to ,,pfas2 and 7,b7 a medical monitoring remedy for those individuals2 7#b7 to help address harm to individuals significantly exposed to ,,pfas by-- 7,a7 codifying that harm as an injury at law and equity2 and 7,b7 shifting the costs of medical monitoring from those individuals to the parties responsible for the exposure2 and 7#c7 to provide incentives for industry to fund ,,pfas safety research4 #d4 ,cause of action and remedies 7a7 ,in general ,the ,toxic ,substances ,control ,act is amended by inserting after section #bd 7#ae ,u4,s4,c4 #bfbc7 the following3 #be4 ,individuals exposed to perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl substances 7a7 ,definition of ,,pfas ,in this section1 the term ,,pfas means a perfluoroalkyl or polyfluoroalkyl substance with at least #a fully fluorinated carbon atom4 7b7 ,cause of action ,an individual who is significantly exposed to ,,pfas or has reasonable grounds to suspect that the individual was significantly exposed to ,,pfas may bring a claim1 individually or on behalf of a class of similarly situated individuals1 in any district court of the ,united ,states for appropriate legal and equitable relief against any person that-- 7#a7 engaged in any portion of a manufacturing process that created the ,,pfas to which the individual was significantly exposed1 including any telomer1 fluorosurfactant1 or toll manufacturing process leading to the creation of the ,,pfas to which the individual was significantly exposed2 and 7#b7 foresaw or reasonably should have foreseen that the creation or use of ,,pfas would result in human exposure to ,,pfas4 7c7 ,medical monitoring 7#a7 ,in general ,a court may award medical monitoring to an individual or class of individuals bringing a claim under subsection 7b7 if-- 7,a7 the individual or class has been significantly exposed to ,,pfas2 7,b7 as a result of that exposure1 the individual or class has suffered an increased risk of developing a disease associated with exposure to ,,pfas2 7,c7 as a result of that increased risk1 there is a reasonable basis for the individual or class to undergo periodic diagnostic medical examinations of a nature or frequency that is different from or additional to what would be prescribed in the absence of the exposure2 and 7,d7 those medical examinations are effective in detecting a disease associated with exposure to ,,pfas4 7#b7 ,presumption of significant exposure 7,a7 ,individuals ,an individual plaintiff shall be presumed to have been significantly exposed to ,,pfas under paragraph 7#a77;,a7 if the individual-- 7i7 demonstrates that-- 7,i7 the defendant engaged in any portion of a manufacturing process that created the ,,pfas to which the individual was significantly exposed1 including any telomer1 fluorosurfactant1 or toll manufacturing process leading to the creation of the ,,pfas to which the individual was significantly exposed2 and 7,,ii7 the ,,pfas described in subclause 7,i7 were released into #a or more areas where the individual would have been exposed for a cumulative period of not less than #a year2 or 7ii7 offers testing results that demonstrate that ,,pfas or metabolites of ,,pfas have been or are currently detected in the body or blood serum of the individual4 7,b7 ,class actions ,in a class action1 a presumption of significant exposure to ,,pfas under paragraph 7#a77;,a7 shall be established for the class by-- 7i7 demonstrating that-- 7,i7 the defendant engaged in any portion of a manufacturing process that created the ,,pfas to which the class members were significantly exposed1 including any telomer1 fluorosurfactant1 or toll manufacturing process leading to the creation of the ,,pfas to which the class members were significantly exposed2 and 7,,ii7 the ,,pfas described in subclause 7,i7 were released into #a or more areas where a representative portion of the class members would have been exposed for a cumulative period of not less than #a year2 or 7ii7 offering testing results that demonstrate that ,,pfas or metabolites of ,,pfas have been or are currently detected in the bodies of a representative portion of class members that share sufficient common exposure characteristics with the class4 7#c7 ,rebutting the presumption 7,a7 ,in general ,a defendant may rebut a presumption of significant exposure with respect to an individual plaintiff or class member for which testing results are not offered under subparagraph 7,a77ii7 or 7,b77ii7 of paragraph 7#b7 by offering results for that individual or class member of testing that-- 7i7 uses a generally accepted method for detecting the particular ,,pfas or metabolites of ,,pfas at issue2 7ii7 is performed by an independent provider agreed on by both parties2 and 7iii7 confirms that the relevant ,,pfas or metabolites of ,,pfas likely were not present in the body of the individual or class member at the relevant time in a sufficient quantity to qualify as significant exposure under paragraph 7#a77;,a74 7,b7 ,costs ,a defendant shall be responsible for the costs of testing under subparagraph 7,a74 7,c7 ,independent provider ,if both parties cannot agree on an independent provider under subparagraph 7,a77ii71 the court shall appoint an independent provider4 7#d7 ,increased risk of developing disease 7,a7 ,in general ,if there is insufficient toxicological data to reasonably determine whether an individual or class has suffered an increased risk of developing a disease associated with exposure to any individual ,,pfas or group of ,,pfas under paragraph 7#a77;,b71 a court may lower the standard for scientific proof with regard to the increased risk of developing that disease until independent and reliable toxicological data is available with respect to that individual ,,pfas or group of ,,pfas4 7,b7 ,ordering studies ,to make available independent and reliable toxicological data described in subparagraph 7,a7 with respect to an individual ,,pfas or group of ,,pfas1 a court may order new or additional epidemiological1 toxicological1 or other studies or investigations of that individual ,,pfas or group of ,,pfas as part of a medical monitoring remedy awarded under paragraph 7#a74 7d7 ,sense of ,congress ,it is the sense of ,congress that courts should encourage more reliable and independent research into the latent health effects of ,,pfas4 7e7 ,effect on ,state law claims and remedies ,nothing in this section-- 7#a7 preempts1 alters1 bars1 or precludes any ,state law claims or remedies1 including any ,state law claims or remedies for an injury addressed by this section2 or 7#b7 provides an exclusive claim or remedy4 4 7b7 ,clerical amendment ,the table of contents for the ,toxic ,substances ,control ,act 7,public ,law #id-dfi2 #ij ,stat4 #bjjc7 is amended by inserting after the item relating to section #bd the following3 ,sec4 #be4 ,individuals exposed to perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl substances4 4