On the recordJanuary 9, 2020
I want to thank Mr. Shimkus for yielding to me. He has really poured his heart and soul into this issue and has worked very hard on it, is so knowledgeable about it. And he is spot on. Tragically, there is no science here. The EPA was not allowed to testify here. This is a solution that will never become law. It completely overreaches. You are going to hear from some of our Members, including Dr. Bucshon, who is a heart surgeon, about the impact this could have on new technologies and devices that get implanted into people's hearts. You will hear about automobiles and aircraft that use these very specialized chemicals and materials in their manufacturing processes that probably have nothing to do with what we are trying to fix here. You will hear, and it is true, that this is the first time we are going to throw science out the window and make a political decision. So, Mr. Speaker, I must rise in opposition to H.R. 535, the PFAS Action Act of 2020, and urge my colleagues, sadly, to do the same. We all want a solution to the country's PFAS challenges. And while there is more work to be done, I would say, thanks to Mr. Shimkus and others, Congress has already acted to provide some funding for reducing PFAS in drinking water in rural and economically distressed areas. We require the Federal Government to enter into cooperative cleanup agreements for Federal facilities with PFAS contamination. But we all know more needs to be done.…
