Legislative Commission

HB 737 (2019) created the Commission on The Environmental and Public Health Impacts of Perfluorinated Chemicals.

The Commission on The Environmental and Public Health Impacts of Perfluorinated Chemicals is a statutory committee formed by HB 737 (2019) to investigate and analyze the environmental and public health impacts relating to releases of perfluorinated chemicals in the air, soil and groundwater in Merrimack, Bedford and Litchfield. Londonderry was added to the Commission in 2021 with HB 256 (2021).

Established for a period of five years (until November 1, 2024), the Commission is comprised of members representing various public and private entities from the affected communities.

See the state Legislature website for a list of Commission Members and past meetings.

Commission's Directives

As outlined in HB 737, the Commission on The Environmental and Public Health Impacts of Perfluorinated Chemicals is charged with the following tasks:

Obtaining information necessary to delineate the extent of PFAS drinking water contamination from airborne, soil, and groundwater releases.
Assessing and implementing steps necessary to investigate public health impacts from PFAS exposures to air, soil, and drinking water.
Assessing sources and impacts to surface water from wastewater and other discharges from the Merrimack, New Hampshire Saint Gobain plant.
Assessing whether soil regulations are sufficient to contain contaminated materials.
Receiving updates at each commission meeting from the department of environmental services and the department of health and human services on matters including but not limited to, scientific findings and related materials, enforcement actions, and regulatory status.
Receiving ongoing copies of all correspondence between state and federal agencies and responsible parties; including but not limited to, documents related to scientific findings, interim progress and regulatory or enforceable matters from the department of environmental services and the department of health and human services.
Developing prioritized governmental and community actions.
Reviewing the progress made by state and federal agencies, if appropriate, and their partners.
Delineating the potential roles and responsibilities for municipalities, state agencies, and their partners.
Communicating to the public about the environmental and public health impacts of the PFAS exposure investigation and analysis.
Assessing whether current rules or regulations are sufficiently protective of public health and proposing legislation, as necessary, to protect public health.
Recommending legislation, as necessary, to carry out the charge of the commission or resulting from any commission findings.
Assessing whether current penalties and regulatory controls are sufficiently protective of the environment and public health and recommending changes necessary.
Assessing agreements between the state and Saint Gobain and proposing additional actions necessary to achieve the charge of the commission

Commission Meetings

See the meetings by date listed below. Meeting agendas, minutes, recordings and presentations are available by clicking on the date of the meeting in question. For upcoming meetings, you can also click on the date to find the registration link for the meeting's remote option.

Past Meetings, Agendas, Documents, Reports