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House panel hears competing views on bill to tax unused PFAS remediation funds
Summary
The House Ways & Means Committee held a hearing on HB 1212, which would levy a 50% excise tax on PFAS remediation settlement funds not used for cleanup and allow a three‑year window or a remediation trust. Industry groups backed the measure as a cleanup incentive; plaintiff attorneys called it a tax on victims and warned it could chill litigation.
The House Ways & Means Committee on March 7 heard testimony for and against HB 1212, a bill that would prioritize PFAS remediation by taxing remediation payments that are not spent on cleanup.
Sponsor Chairman Stevens told the committee the proposal is meant to prevent ‘‘windfall payments’’ that leave contamination in place and to steer settlement proceeds toward actual cleanup. Stevens asked the panel to "focus on the word cleanup" and said the bill would ensure money awarded for remediation is used for remediation.
Supporters described the measure as an incentive structure. Britney Hall, vice president of government affairs for the Georgia Association of Manufacturers, said the bill "creates a clear financial incentive to do so," explaining it would apply only to…
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