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Bonner Springs council authorizes legal agreement to test for PFAS; council approves pursuing settlement claims
Summary
The council voted unanimously to authorize the city manager to execute a legal-services agreement with outside counsel to test source water for PFAS/AFFF before a March 31 deadline and to pursue settlement funds from 3M and DuPont if eligible; testing costs would be covered via the settlement process if the city qualifies.
The Bonner Springs City Council on Feb. 23 adopted a resolution authorizing the city manager to execute a legal-services agreement to evaluate and, if eligible, pursue settlement claims related to aqueous film forming foam (AFFF)/PFAS contamination.
Local attorney Shane Lillich (Perry & Trent LLC) told the council the first step is source-water testing (pre-filtration) to determine whether PFAS are present at levels that make the city eligible for an existing federal settlement. He said testing done before the March 31 deadline could have its expenses covered by the settlement funds. "If it is determined that there is, we will assist the city with, working with Stag Luisa, to make that claim," Lillich said.
Council members asked whether treated (end-product) testing in Bonner Springs had already been done and whether the city faced any financial risk. Lillich said the city's routine end-product testing through the Kansas Department of Health and Environment has not detected the chemicals at the sensitive source-water levels the settlement uses for eligibility; source testing would be done only if the council approved. He also stated there would be no financial risk to the city for pursuing the testing and potential claim.
Lillich and a remote representative from the lead firm said settlement pools already exist: he summarized that 3M allocated approximately $12.5 billion and DuPont contributed about $1.185 billion to address PFAS-related claims. The exact award a city might receive depends on the PFAS concentration detected at source and the system's flow rate; if eligible, funds could be used for filtration upgrades or other remediation.
The council voted unanimously to adopt the resolution authorizing the city manager to execute the legal-services agreement with Stag Luisa (variation spellings in the record) and Perry & Trent LLC. The clerk recorded yes votes from Gurley, Kipp, Reeves, Shannon, Wood, Long, McMahan, Blanks and others.
Why it matters: PFAS ("forever chemicals") have been linked in studies to health risks at high exposures; the action preserves the city's ability to test source water and pursue settlement money that could fund remediation without up-front municipal expense.
The motion passed and staff were directed to coordinate next steps for source-water testing and legal engagement.
