Republican lawmakers do bidding of industry PFAS users, shut people with contaminated water out of hearing.
MADISON, WI — Efforts by the legislative Joint Committee for Review of Administrative Rules (JCRAR) to gut important emergency rules for PFAS contamination drew sharp rebuke from Clean Wisconsin after the hearing on Friday.
Clean Wisconsin director of government relations Carly Michiels had this to say following the vote:
“Today’s action by Republican members of JCRAR to roll back these emergency rules through a sham process is an absolute disgrace. By gutting these rules, JCRAR is doing the bidding of industry PFAS users. To add insult to injury, the hearing completely cut out the people who are dealing with the health consequences of contaminated drinking water and demanding action from their lawmakers.
“While certain members of JCRAR want to believe differently, DNR followed the law through a scientific process in drafting these emergency rules, the only protections in Wisconsin from PFAS contamination. These protections are already incredibly limited only addressing PFAS firefighting foam in testing and training scenarios. It is unfathomable that, when Wisconsin families have to rely on bottled water deliveries for access to clean drinking water, this minor effort to address PFAS contamination was gutted.
“At a time when trust in government is at an all-time low, this action by JCRAR to undo this bi-partisan effort to tackle PFAS contamination only divides us even more, putting industry profits over the health of Wisconsin residents in the process.”
