NC H864

Secretary of Environmental Quality may order PFAS manufacturers to pay public water systems' actual and necessary costs to remove, correct, or abate PFAS contamination if the manufacturer discharged or released PFAS that caused or contributed to contamination exceeding permissible concentration levels.

PFAS manufacturer is defined as persons producing PFAS compounds through electrochemical fluorination, telomerization, fluorocarbon polymerization, and fluoropolymer production, but excludes customers using raw PFAS feedstock for commercial goods or intermediary products.

Responsible parties are jointly and severally liable for all contamination costs, and responsible parties retain rights of contribution; costs include procurement, implementation, maintenance, and operation of technology to reduce PFAS in finished drinking water.

Public water systems must reimburse ratepayers through future rate reductions if they previously expended funds on PFAS abatement that were included in rates charged, and subsequently recover those funds from responsible parties.

Department of Environmental Quality receives $300,000 in nonrecurring funds for fiscal year 2024-2025 to implement the act, with an established PFAS Public Water Protection Fund; Department must report to legislature by December 15, 2024, and annually thereafter on fund usage and abatement orders issued.

Section 1 applies retroactively to costs incurred by public water systems on or after January 1, 2017, regardless of when EPA established maximum contaminant levels for the PFAS compounds.