Committee approves PFAS warning-label amendment for firefighter gear; bill moves to floor

Members of the Veterans Affairs & Emergency Preparedness Committee voted to approve an amendment requiring warning labels and written notice for personal protective equipment that contains PFAS chemicals and then moved House Bill 1261, as amended, to the full House floor.

The amendment, offered by Representative Scott, would require manufacturers of personal protective equipment containing PFAS to include a warning label on the product and provide written notice to the purchaser; both manufacturer and purchaser were initially required to retain the notice for three years. The amendment passed on a roll call of 15 yays and 11 nays.

The measure addresses concern about longtime firefighter exposure to PFAS — a class of widely used “forever chemicals” that do not break down easily and have been linked in studies to liver enzyme changes, high blood pressure in pregnancy, reduced infant birth weight and some cancers. Representative Scott said, “When our lives or our homes are in danger, we often rely on the actions of our local firefighters … nobody is saving them from the hidden dangers found in the equipment they are required to use and wear.”

Committee members probed the enforcement and penalty language. Under the amendment as drafted, a civil penalty provision would allow fines of up to $5,000 for a first offense and $10,000 for a second. Chair Gillan asked whether the State Fire Commissioner’s Office would oversee enforcement and whether the office had the capacity to take on that role; committee staff responded the commission had not provided comments on capacity but was supportive of the effort.

Several legislators raised concerns that the bill’s language, as written, could expose volunteer fire companies or other purchasers to penalties for paperwork lapses. Representative Krupa urged caution: “What happens when these labels are on a piece of equipment that they use routinely in responding to emergencies … I think that that it's crystal clear that this needs to be amended,” he said, citing the risk that accidental loss or fading of a tag should not result in fines for responders. Representative Paddock likewise warned that resellers and wholesalers who place items in the supply chain can affect documentation, saying the chain of custody for tags needs consideration so that local stations are not unfairly penalized.

Representative Scott told the committee the amendment’s intent is to hold manufacturers responsible and said he would accept language changes on the floor to limit liability to manufacturers. Representative Banta noted that bunker gear typically contains an affixed label and that labels inside the gear generally endure, saying that is the spirit of the amendment.

Representative Monroe, the bill’s prime sponsor, described a long history of local PFAS contamination in his district tied to an airbase and recounted personal experience with cancer diagnoses in his community and among firefighters. “This bill has been a long time coming,” Monroe said, urging support for the legislation and its goal of protecting firefighters’ long-term health.

After discussion the committee approved the amendment and voted unanimously to report House Bill 1261, as amended, to the floor for further consideration.

The committee left open technical edits to the amendment language; Representative Scott indicated he would bring clarifying language on the House floor to isolate manufacturer responsibility and avoid unintended penalties for volunteer stations or purchasers.