§ 8963 — Interagency Body On Research Related To Per- And Polyfluoroalkyl Substances

(a) The Director of the Office of Science and Technology Policy, acting through the National Science and Technology Council, shall establish, or designate, an interagency working group to coordinate Federal activities related to PFAS research and development. (b) The interagency working group shall include a representative of each of— (1) the Environmental Protection Agency; (2) the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences; (3) the Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry; (4) the National Science Foundation; (5) the Department of Defense; (6) the National Institutes of Health; (7) the National Institute of Standards and Technology; (8) the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration; (9) the Department of the Interior; (10) the Department of Transportation; (11) the Department of Homeland Security; (12) the National Aeronautics and Space Administration; (13) the National Toxicology Program; (14) the Department of Agriculture; (15) the Geological Survey; (16) the Department of Commerce; (17) the Department of Energy; (18) the Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs; (19) the Office of Management and Budget; and (20) any such other Federal department or agency as the Director of the Office of Science and Technology Policy considers appropriate. (c) The Interagency working group shall be co-chaired by the Director of the Office of Science and Technology Policy and, on a biannual rotating basis, a representative from a member agency, as selected by the Director of the Office of Science and Technology Policy. (d) The interagency working group established under subsection (a) shall— (1) provide for interagency coordination of federally funded PFAS research and development; and (2) not later than 12 months after January 1, 2021, develop and make publicly available a strategic plan for Federal support for PFAS research and development (to be updated not less frequently than once every three years) that— (A) identifies all current federally funded PFAS research and development, including the nature and scope of such research and development and the amount of funding associated with such research and development during the current fiscal year, disaggregated by agency; (B) identifies all federally funded PFAS research and development having taken place in the last three years, excluding the research listed under subparagraph (A), including the nature and scope of such research and development and the amount of funding associated with such research and development during the current fiscal year, disaggregated by agency; (C) identifies scientific and technological challenges that must be addressed to understand and to significantly reduce the environmental and human health impacts of PFAS and to identify cost-effective— (i) alternatives to PFAS that are designed to be safer and more environmentally friendly; (ii) methods for removal of PFAS from the environment; and (iii) methods to safely destroy or degrade PFAS; (D) establishes goals, priorities, and metrics for federally funded PFAS research and development that takes into account the current state of research and development identified in subparagraph (A) and the challenges identified in subparagraph (C); and (E) an implementation plan for Federal agencies and, for each update to the strategic plan under this paragraph, a description of how Federal agencies have been following the implementation plan. (e) In developing the strategic plan under subsection (d)(2), the interagency working group shall consult with States, tribes, territories, local governments, appropriate industries, academic institutions and nongovernmental organizations with expertise in PFAS research and development, treatment, management, and alternative development. (f) (d)(2) shall cease on the date that is 20 years after the initial strategic plan is developed. (g) In this section: (1) The term “PFAS” means— (A) man-made chemicals of which all of the carbon atoms are fully fluorinated carbon atoms; and (B) man-made chemicals containing a mix of fully fluorinated carbon atoms, partially fluorinated carbon atoms, and nonfluorinated carbon atoms. (2) The term “PFAS research and development” includes any research or project that has the goal of accomplishing the following: (A) The removal of PFAS from the environment. (B) The safe destruction or degradation of PFAS. (C) The development and deployment of safer and more environmentally friendly alternative substances that are functionally similar to those made with PFAS. (D) The understanding of sources of environmental PFAS contamination and pathways to exposure for the public. (E) The understanding of the toxicity of PFAS to humans and animals.