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2023 - 2024 LEGISLATURE
SENATE SUBSTITUTE AMENDMENT 3,
TO SENATE BILL 312
November 14, 2023 - Offered by Senators Pfaff, Wirch, Hesselbein, Agard,
Carpenter, L. Johnson, Larson, Smith, Spreitzer and Taylor.
SB312-SSA3,1,6 1An Act to renumber 281.58 (8e); to amend 281.61 (6) and 281.75 (7) (c) 2. a.;
2and to create 66.0811 (4), 196.49 (7), 281.58 (8e) (bm), 281.75 (5m), 292.315,
3292.32 and 292.34 of the statutes; relating to: programs and requirements to
4address PFAS, modifying administrative rules related to emergency utility
5services and test wells for community water systems, and making an
6appropriation.
Analysis by the Legislative Reference Bureau
This bill creates several new programs and requirements relating to PFAS,
which is defined in the bill to mean any perfluoroalkyl or polyfluoroalkyl substance.
Municipal PFAS grant program
The bill requires the Department of Natural Resources to create a municipal
PFAS grant program, which applies only to types of PFAS for which there is a state
or federal standard, a public health recommendation from the Department of Health
Services, or a health advisory issued by the federal Environmental Protection
Agency. Under the bill, the municipal PFAS grant program provides all of the
following grants:
1. Grants to municipalities (defined under current law as a city, town, village,
county, county utility district, town sanitary district, public inland lake protection

and rehabilitation district, or metropolitan sewage district) for PFAS testing at
municipal water systems and municipal wastewater treatment facilities, or for
reimbursement for such testing if performed at properties owned, leased, managed,
or contracted for by municipalities and if there are promulgated standards for those
types of PFAS.
2. Grants to nonmunicipal entities regulated as public or community water
systems, distributed in equal shares up to $1,800, to test their drinking water supply
for PFAS, if required to do so by DNR, or for reimbursement for such testing.
3. Grants to privately owned landfills, in equal shares up to $15,000, to test for
the presence of PFAS in leachate.
4. Grants to municipalities to test for PFAS levels at municipally owned, leased,
managed, or contracted locations where PFAS may be present, including testing for
PFAS levels in leachate at landfills. If the property to be tested is not owned by the
municipality, DNR may not issue a grant unless the property owner gives the
municipality written consent to enter the property and conduct testing. These grants
are not available to municipalities that receive a grant under this program to test for
PFAS at municipal water systems and municipal wastewater treatment facilities.
For these grants, DNR may require matching funds of up to 20 percent from the
applicant.
5. Grants to municipalities and privately owned landfills to dispose of
PFAS-containing biosolids or leachate at facilities that accept such biosolids or
leachate or to purchase and install on-site treatment systems to address PFAS
contained in biosolids or leachate. For these grants, DNR may require matching
funds of up to 20 percent from the applicant and the grants may not be used for costs
associated with landspreading.
6. Grants for capital costs or debt service, including for facility upgrades or new
infrastructure, to municipalities that are small or disadvantaged or in which rates
for water or wastewater utilities will increase by more than 20 percent as a direct
result of steps taken to address PFAS contamination. When issuing these grants,
DNR must give priority to projects that are necessary to address an exceedence of an
applicable state or federal standard.
7. Grants to municipalities for capital costs or other costs related to PFAS that
are not otherwise paid from the segregated environmental improvement fund,
including costs for addressing landfills or other contaminated lands owned, leased,
managed, or contracted for by municipalities or costs incurred by fire departments;
grants to municipalities for the preparation and implementation of pollutant
minimization plans; and grants to municipalities for costs incurred by public utilities
or metropolitan sewerage districts for pretreatment or other PFAS reduction
measures in certain circumstances. For these grants, DNR may require matching
funds of up to 20 percent from the applicant.
For all of the grants provided under the municipal PFAS grant program, DNR
may not require a grant recipient to take any action to address PFAS unless PFAS
levels exceed any applicable standard under state or federal law or unless another
applicable state or federal law allows DNR to require a grant recipient to take such
action. The bill also prohibits DNR from publicly disclosing the results of any PFAS

testing conducted under this grant program unless DNR notifies the grant recipient
at least 72 hours before publicly disclosing any test result, with certain exceptions.
Current law provides that whenever a state agency is authorized to provide
state funds to any county, city, village, or town for any purpose, funds may also be
granted by that agency to any federally recognized tribal governing body for the same
purpose.
Innocent landowner grant program
The bill also requires DNR to create an innocent landowner grant program,
which applies only to types of PFAS for which there is a state or federal standard, a
public health recommendation from the Department of Health Services, or a health
advisory issued by the federal Environmental Protection Agency.
Under the program, DNR may provide grants to an eligible person who owns,
leases, manages, contracts for, or holds a department-issued solid waste facility
license for property that is contaminated by PFAS. DNR may also provide grants to
a person who is applying on behalf of multiple eligible persons that are located in the
same geographic area, if the applicant will be the entity performing any authorized
activities. Under the program, an “eligible person” is 1) a person that spread
biosolids or wastewater residuals contaminated by PFAS in compliance with any
applicable license or permit, 2) a person that owns land upon which biosolids or
wastewater residuals contaminated by PFAS were spread in compliance with any
applicable license or permit, 3) a fire department or municipality that responded to
emergencies that required the use of PFAS or that conducted training for such
emergencies in compliance with applicable federal regulations, 4) a solid waste
disposal facility that accepted PFAS, and 5) a person that owns, leases, manages, or
contracts for property on which the PFAS contamination did not originate.
The total amount of grants awarded to each eligible person may not exceed
$250,000 and DNR may require grant recipients to provide matching funds of not
more than 5 percent of the grant amount. The bill requires DNR to give priority to
applications for grants under this program that address PFAS contamination in
wells serving a private water supply.
Limitations on DNR actions relating to PFAS
Under the bill, DNR may not require the owner of a property to test for PFAS
under the current spills law without probable cause that the property had or
currently has an amount of PFAS that is likely to pose a substantial present or
potential hazard to human health or the environment.
Under the bill, DNR may not prevent, delay, or otherwise impede any
construction project or project of public works based on a presence of PFAS
contamination unless DNR determines that 1) the project poses a substantial risk
to public health or welfare, 2) there is a substantial risk that the project will create
worsening environmental conditions, 3) the entity proposing to complete the project
is, as a result of negligence or intentional conduct, responsible for the original
contamination, or 4) DNR is specifically required under the federal Clean Water Act
to prevent, delay, or otherwise impede the project. “Public works” is defined to mean
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, and privately owned landfills
that accept residential waste.
In addition, under the bill, if DNR seeks to collect samples from lands not owned
by the state based on permission from the landowner, such permission must be in
writing, and DNR must notify the landowner that such permission includes the
authority to collect samples, to test those samples, and to publicly disclose the results
of that testing. The landowner may revoke such permission at any time prior to the
collection of samples. Under the bill, DNR also may not publicly disclose such PFAS
testing results unless it notifies the landowner of the test results at least 72 hours
before publicly disclosing them. The bill also requires DNR, or a third-party contract
by DNR, to respond in a timely manner to requests from any person to conduct PFAS
testing on samples taken from the person's property if practicable and 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.
The bill also requires DNR, in the 2023-25 fiscal biennium, to increase its
voluntary PFAS testing activities.
Fire fighting foam
The bill requires DNR to survey or resurvey local fire departments about their
use and possession of PFAS-containing fire fighting foam, send communications and
information, and contract with a third party to voluntarily collect PFAS-containing
firefighting foam.
Well compensation grant program
Under current law, an individual owner or renter of a contaminated private
well, subject to eligibility requirements, may apply for a grant from DNR to cover a
portion of the costs to treat the water, reconstruct the well, construct a new well,
connect to a public water supply, or fill and seal the well. The bill provides that a
grant for costs to treat the water may be used to cover the cost of a filtration device
and up to two replacement filters.
In addition, under the bill, if DNR determines that a claimant who is applying
for a grant under the well compensation grant program on the basis of PFAS
contamination would be eligible for a grant under the innocent landowner grant
program created under the bill, and funding under that program is available, DNR
must refer the claimant's application to that program instead of processing it under
the well compensation grant program. If the claimant is denied under the innocent
landowner grant program, DNR must refer the claim back to the well compensation
grant program.
Portable water treatment system pilot project
The bill requires DNR to contract with an entity to conduct a pilot project in
which PFAS-contaminated surface water is partially or fully diverted to a portable
treatment system and treated water is returned to the surface water. DNR and the
entity must conduct tests to evaluate the success of the pilot project.

Remedial action at sites contaminated by PFAS
The bill allows DNR, or a contracted third party, to begin response and remedial
actions, including site investigations, at any PFAS-contaminated site where a
responsible party has not been identified or where the responsible party qualifies for
a grant under the innocent landowner grant program. The bill directs DNR to
prioritize response and remedial actions at sites that have the highest levels of PFAS
contamination and sites with the greatest threats to public health or the
environment because of PFAS.
Assistance for testing laboratories
The bill requires DNR and the Board of Regents of the University of Wisconsin
System to enter into a memorandum of understanding to ensure that the state
laboratory of hygiene provides guidance and other materials, conducts training, and
provides assistance to laboratories in this state that are certified to test for
contaminants other than PFAS in order for them to become certified to test for PFAS,
and to assist laboratories certified to test for PFAS in this state to reduce their testing
costs and shorten the timeline for receiving test results.
Under the bill, the Board of Regents, in coordination with DNR, may provide
grants to laboratories in this state that are certified to test for PFAS, or that are
seeking such certification, to assist with up to 40 percent of the costs of purchasing
equipment necessary for testing for PFAS.
The bill requires the state laboratory of hygiene to prepare a report on these
efforts and provide the report to the legislature.
PFAS studies and reporting
The bill requires DNR and the Board of Regents of the University of Wisconsin
System to enter into a memorandum of understanding to 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; 2) conduct a cost-benefit analysis of
different options for disposing of biosolids or sludge that contains or may contain
PFAS; 3) study and analyze the cost, feasibility, and effectiveness of different
destruction and disposal methods for PFAS; 4) study and analyze the cost, feasibility,
and effectiveness of different methods for remediating PFAS that leave the
contaminated medium in place and methods that remove the contaminated medium;
5) study and analyze the migration of PFAS into the bay of Green Bay; 6) study and
analyze the migration of PFAS into the Wisconsin and Mississippi Rivers and their
tributaries; 7) create a comprehensive, interactive map showing all available PFAS
testing data and, for each data point, whether it exceeds any applicable state or
federal standard for PFAS; and 8) conduct any additional studies related to PFAS,
as approved by the Joint Committee on Finance. Such data may not contain any
personally identifiable information unless the entity to which the data applies is a
municipal entity that is required to test and disclose its results under state law.
DNR reporting requirements
The bill requires DNR to report to the legislature once every six months for a
period of three years to provide a detailed description of DNR's expenditures under

the bill and a detailed description of DNR's progress in implementing the provisions
of the bill.
Clean Water Fund Program and Safe Drinking Water Loan Program
Under current law, the Department of Administration and DNR administer the
Safe Drinking Water Loan Program (SDWLP), which provides financial assistance
to municipalities, and to the private owners of community water systems that serve
municipalities, for projects that will help the municipalities comply with federal
drinking water standards. DNR establishes a funding priority list for SDWLP
projects, and DOA allocates funding for those projects. Also under current law, DNR
administers the Clean Water Fund Program (CWFP), which provides financial
assistance to municipalities for projects to control water pollution, such as sewage
treatment plants.
Under the bill, if DNR, when ranking SDWLP or CWFP projects or determining
an applicant's eligibility for assistance under those programs, considers whether an
applicant that intends to extend service outside municipal boundaries because of
water contamination is “small” or “disadvantaged,” DNR must determine the
applicant to be small or disadvantaged if the area receiving the extended service
would normally be determined to be small or disadvantaged, regardless of whether
the existing service area would normally be determined to be small or
disadvantaged.
Public water utility projects
Under current law, a public utility may not engage in certain construction,
expansion, or other projects unless the Public Service Commission grants a
certificate of authority (CA) for the proposed project. Under the bill, if a water public
utility or a combined water and sewer public utility (water utility) fails to obtain a
CA before commencing a project for which one is required, PSC may not investigate,
impose a penalty against, or bring an action to enjoin the water utility if 1) the water
utility undertook the project in response to a public health concern caused by PFAS,
the presence of which was unknown to the water utility until shortly before it
commenced the project and the water utility provides evidence showing that the
utility has exceeded or is likely to exceed the applicable state or federal standard for
that type of PFAS; 2) the water utility promptly notifies PSC of the work and, within
30 days after commencing the work, submits the appropriate application and
supporting documentation to PSC; and 3) the total cost of the project is not greater
than $2,000,000.
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