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On December 18, 2025, the House Energy and Commerce Subcommittee on Environment will hold a hearing on "Examining the Impact of EPA's CERCLA Designation for Two PFAS Chemistries and Potential Policy Responses to Superfund Liability Concerns." In May 2024, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) issued a final rule designating perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA), perfluorooctanesulfonic acid (PFOS), and their salts and structural isomers as hazardous substances under the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act (CERCLA). 89 Fed. Reg. 39124. The rule requires entities to report immediately releases of PFOA and PFOS that meet or exceed the reportable quantity (RQ) of one pound within a 24-hour period to the National Response Center (NRC), state, Tribal, and local emergency responders. At that time, EPA issued a separate PFAS Enforcement Discretion and Settlement Policy Under CERCLA "that makes clear that EPA will focus enforcement on parties who significantly contributed to the release of [per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS)] ... into the environment, including parties that have manufactured PFAS or used PFAS in the manufacturing process, federal facilities, and other industrial parties." Despite EPA stating that it would use its discretion to target active contributors, the final rule was promptly criticized for not excluding passive receivers. Earlier this year, in September 2025, EPA announced that it would retain the CERCLA hazardous substance designations for PFOA and PFOS and intends to develop a CERCLA Section 102(a) Framework Rule going forward. According to EPA, the Framework Rule "will provide a uniform approach to guide future hazardous substance designations, including how the agency will consider the costs of proposed designations."
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