AB312: Bill Text

AB312,,36 (a) “Brownfield property” means abandoned, idle, or underused industrial or commercial facilities or sites, the expansion or redevelopment of which is adversely affected by actual or perceived environmental contamination.

AB312,,37 (b) “PFAS” has the meaning given in s. 292.315 (1).

AB312,,38 (c) “Public works” means the physical structures and facilities developed or acquired by a local unit of government or a federally recognized American Indian tribe or band in this state to provide services and functions for the benefit and use of the public, including water, sewerage, waste disposal, utilities, and transportation.

AB312,,39 (2) Brownfields. The department may not require the owner of a brownfield property to conduct testing for the presence of PFAS unless the department has information that reasonably supports the belief that the property previously had a substantial amount of uncontained PFAS.

AB312,,40 (3) Construction projects. The department may not prevent, delay, or otherwise impede any construction project or project of public works on the basis of a presence of PFAS contamination unless the department determines any of the following:

AB312,,41 (a) The project poses a measurable risk to public health or welfare.

AB312,,42 (b) There is a substantial risk that the project would lead to worsening environmental conditions.

AB312,,43 (c) The entity proposing to complete the project is, as a result of negligence, responsible for the original contamination.

AB312,,44 (4) PFAS testing. In conducting testing for PFAS, the department shall comply with all of the following:

AB312,,45 (a) The department may not collect samples from lands not owned by the state without written permission from the landowner to collect samples, to test those samples, and to publicly disclose the results of that testing.

AB312,,46 (b) The department may not publicly disclose the results of any PFAS testing conducted on samples taken from lands not owned by the state unless the department notifies the landowner of the test results at least 72 hours before publicly disclosing the test results.

AB312,,47 (c) The department may not take any enforcement action based on the results of any PFAS testing conducted on samples taken from lands not owned by the state unless that testing determines that PFAS levels exceed any applicable limit under state or federal law or another applicable state or federal law requires the department to take enforcement action against the landowner.

AB312,,48 (d) The department shall respond to requests from any person to conduct PFAS testing on samples taken from the person’s property if funds are available to do so, if there is a reasonable belief that PFAS contamination may be present on the property, and if existing information such as public water supply testing data is not available.

AB312,11 Section 11. Nonstatutory provisions.

AB312,,50 (1) Portable treatment system pilot. The department of natural resources shall contract with an entity to conduct a pilot project in which surface water is partially or fully diverted to a portable treatment system and treated water is returned to the surface water. Project activities under this subsection shall be conducted at locations with surface water with the highest concentration of perfluoroalkyl or polyfluoroalkyl substances and where a responsible party has not been identified or the responsible party is unable to pay for remediation. The department of natural resources and the entity contracted under this subsection shall evaluate the success of the pilot project by conducting tests upstream and downstream of the locations where the portable treatment system is used.

AB312,,51 (2) Remedial action at sites contaminated by PFAS. The department of natural resources shall begin response and remedial actions at any site contaminated by perfluoroalkyl or polyfluoroalkyl substances where a responsible party has not been identified or the responsible party is unable to pay for remediation.

AB312,,52 (3) PFAS testing cost reduction. The department of natural resources and the Board of Regents of the University of Wisconsin System shall enter into a memorandum of understanding to jointly ensure that the state laboratory of hygiene reduces the costs of conducting testing for perfluoroalkyl or polyfluoroalkyl substances by at least 10 percent on or before the first day of the 25th month after the effective date of this subsection. The state laboratory of hygiene shall prepare a report on its efforts to reduce the cost of testing for perfluoroalkyl or polyfluoroalkyl substances and the timeline for receiving testing results. The state laboratory of hygiene shall deliver the report required under this subsection to the joint committee on finance and the standing committees with jurisdiction over natural resources and the environment no later than August 31, 2025.

AB312,,53 (4) Innocent landowner grant program. The department of natural resources shall provide a grant to any person who owns property that is contaminated by perfluoroalkyl or polyfluoroalkyl substances and the person has not been identified as the responsible party for the contamination. Grants under this subsection may be used to cover costs associated with additional testing; environmental studies; engineering reports; clean drinking water supplies, including temporary potable water, filtration, or well replacement; remediation costs; legal fees; and any other cost resulting from land spreading of contaminated biosolids by other parties, detection of groundwater contamination, or other contamination events affecting the property. The department of natural resources shall accept applications for grants and award grants under this subsection on an ongoing basis. Grants awarded under this subsection may not exceed $250,000. The department of natural resources may require the recipient of a grant under this subsection to provide matching funds in an amount greater than 20 percent of the amount of the grant.

AB312,,54 (5) PFAS studies and reporting. (a) In this subsection, “PFAS” means perfluorooctanesulfonic acid (PFOS), perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA), perfluorohexanesulfonic acid (PFHxS), perfluorononanoic acid (PFNA), perfluoroheptanoic acid (PFHpA), perfluorodecanoic acid (PFDA), and any other perfluoroalkyl or polyfluoroalkyl substance for which a standard has been promulgated under state or federal law.

AB312,,55 (b) The department of natural resources and the Board of Regents of the University of Wisconsin System shall enter into a memorandum of understanding to jointly do all of the following, with the assistance of other University of Wisconsin institutions, the department of natural resources, other relevant state agencies, county land and water conservation departments, and other local 3rd parties, if available:

AB312,,56 1. Study and analyze the cost, feasibility, and effectiveness of different methods of treating PFAS before they are released into a water system or water body.

AB312,,57 2. Conduct a cost-benefit analysis of different options for disposing of biosolids or sludge that contains or may contain PFAS.

AB312,,58 3. Study and analyze the cost, feasibility, and effectiveness of different destruction and disposal methods for PFAS.

AB312,,59 4. Study and analyze the migration of PFAS into the bay of Green Bay, including where the PFAS are entering the bay and what effects PFAS may have in the bay.

AB312,,60 5. Create a comprehensive, interactive map showing all available PFAS testing data and whether each data point on the map exceeds any applicable state or federal standard for PFAS. Such data may not contain any personally identifiable information unless the entity to which the data applies is required to test and disclose its results under state or federal law.

AB312,,61 (c) The Board of Regents of the University of Wisconsin System shall require the University of Wisconsin-Madison division of extension to provide the map and reports on the studies required under this subsection to the joint committee on finance and the standing committees with jurisdiction over natural resources and the environment no later than 2 years after the effective date of this paragraph.

AB312,,62 (6) Reports to legislature on progress under this act. For a period of 3 years after the effective date of this subsection, the department of natural resources shall, every 6 months, submit a report to the join committee on finance and the to the standing committees with jurisdiction over natural resources and the environment. The first report under this subsection shall be submitted no later than 6 months after the effective date of this subsection. The report shall include a detailed description of the department’s expenditures under this act and a detailed description of the department’s progress in implementing the provisions of this act.

AB312,,63 (7) PFAS testing. In the 2023-25 fiscal biennium, the department of natural resources shall conduct additional PFAS testing activities.

AB312,,64 (8) Fire fighting foam. The department of natural resources shall survey or resurvey local fire departments about their use and possession of PFAS-containing fire fighting foam, send communications and information regarding such foam, and contract with a 3rd party to collect such foam.

AB312,,65 (end)