Fund to Address PFAS Contamination

Plan for Administration of the Fund to Address PFAS Contamination (PDF) - Final Version. Adopted by the PFAS Fund Advisory Committee on July 10, 2023

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What is the PFAS Fund and when will funding be available?

The PFAS Fund is a new and evolving program that will provide direct support to PFAS-impacted farmers. It will also purchase and manage PFAS-contaminated agricultural land and fund research to help farmers make informed decisions about how to adjust their operations. Finally, the PFAS Fund will support access to blood testing, medical monitoring, mental health care, and other health-related initiatives.

The PFAS Fund was created in 2022 by Governor Mills to support farmers whose land and/or water are contaminated with per- and poly-fluoroalkyl substances (PFAS). The Legislature appropriated $60 million dollars from the General Fund for this purpose.

The Department was required to develop an implementation plan before money from the PFAS Fund can be spent. From the fall of 2022 through the spring of 2023, an advisory committee, supported by four issue-focused subcommittees, developed a draft Plan for the Administration of the Fund to Address PFAS Contamination.

A public hearing was held on June 12, 2023, to take public comments on the draft plan. The Advisory Committee finalized the plan on July 10, 2023. The Department will initiate rulemaking later this summer. It expects to begin delivering support by the fall of 2023.

Notably, while the plan proposes about $70 million in expenditures over five years, these are preliminary financial estimates. The Department is not presently seeking additional State funding because the PFAS Fund will seek to leverage funding from other sources and will continue to evaluate financial needs going forward.

How does the PFAS Fund intersect with the Department’s other PFAS response efforts?

The Bureau of Agriculture, Food and Rural Resources (BAFRR) has been at the forefront of the Department’s response to the PFAS crisis. BAFRR staff assist impacted farms by conducting comprehensive testing to determine sources of exposure and the levels of PFAS in soil, water, forage, compost, manure, milk, and vegetative and animal tissue. They also work with the Maine Center for Disease Control and Prevention (Maine CDC), to assess results and create mitigation plans to reduce contamination at the farm level, produce safe products, and enable farms to remain viable.

BAFRR also provides financial support for testing (soil, water, and other media), water filtration systems, infrastructure (up to a limit of $150,000 per project), equipment, clean feed, livestock indemnification, etc. The PFAS Fund will build upon and augment the financial support provided by BAFRR.

PFAS Fund Advisory Committee Mission

The PFAS Fund Advisory Committee was established by statute to make recommendations to the Department regarding the administration of the Fund to Address PFAS Contamination. The Advisory Committee met for the first time in November 2022.

The PFAS Fund Advisory Committee was instrumental in developing the draft PFAS Fund Implementation Plan. They were aided by four subcommittees that developed and recommended implementation strategies.

Enabling Statute, Reports, and Other Documents

Public Meetings & Public Hearings

Subscribe to be notified about PFAS Fund updates, advisory committee meetings, and public hearings.

Questions may be directed to PFASFund.DACF@maine.gov.

Upcoming Meetings & Hearings

Meeting Archive

Title Date Location Additional Information
PFAS Fund Advisory Committee Public Meeting October 24, 2024 Deering 101, 90 Blossom Lane, Augusta and via Zoom Join on Zoom
Meeting Recording (YouTube)

Agenda (PDF)

Meeting Presentation

Chat.txt

Adam Nordell, Defend Our Health public comments

Donald Flewelling, Upward Utility public comments

Kat Taylor, public comments
PFAS Fund Advisory Committee Public Meeting September 19, 2024 Room 101, Deering Building, 90 Blossom Lane, Augusta, ME OR Zoom Meeting Recording (YouTube)

Agenda (PDF)

Meeting Presentation (PDF)
PFAS Fund Advisory Committee Public Meeting June 14, 2024 Room 101, Deering Building, 90 Blossom Lane, Augusta, ME Meeting Recording (YouTube)

Agenda (PDF)

PFAS Fund Update (PDF)

Response Kit Table of Contents (PDF)

Meeting Minutes (PDF)
PFAS Fund Advisory Committee Public Hearing January 11, 2024 Somerset Room, Augusta Civic Center at Agricultural Trades Show 10:00-11:30, PFAS Fund Advisory Committee Public Hearing: Join the PFAS Fund Advisory Committee and DACF staff to learn about-and help shapethe programs being supported by the PFAS Fund. You will hear how DACF has assisted PFAS-impacted farms to date and learn about the status of new programs being developed by the PFAS Fund, tentative timeframes for availability, and application processes. You will also be asked to share your ideas for research priorities and implementation strategies. Zoom link for the 10-11:30 session.

11:30-1:00, Meet the Staff: Staff from DACF's PFAS Response and PFAS Fund programs will be available for conversations about the Departments PFAS response activities.
Meeting Recording (YouTube)

PFAS Fund Presentation (PDF)

PFAS Response Presentation (PDF)
PFAS Fund Advisory Committee Meeting December 4, 2023 Zoom Only This is a working meeting of the PFAS Fund Advisory Committee. Members of the public are welcome to observe in person or online. Kindly RSVP to PFASFund.DACF@maine.gov if you plan to come in person so that we can be sure to have enough chairs. Public comments will be taken at subsequent public hearings. Join Zoom Meeting
Meeting Recording (YouTube)

Agenda (PDF)
PFAS Fund Advisory Committee Meeting July 10, 2023 Marquardt Building, Room 118, 32 Blossom Lane, Augusta, ME Meeting Recording (YouTube)

DRAFT - PFAS Fund Implementation Plan Version 4 (PDF)

Summary of Public Comments (PDF)

Meeting Presentation Slides (PDF)
PFAS Fund Draft Implementation Plan Public Hearing June 12, 2023 Room 118 of the Marquardt Building, 32 Blossom Lane, Augusta, ME and Zoom Meeting Recording (YouTube)

DRAFT - PFAS Fund Implementation Plan (PDF)

Public hearing 6-12-23 Introductory Presentation (PDF)

John ODonnell Public Comment (PDF)

Leslie Forstadt Public Comment (PDF)

MOFGA Public Comment (PDF)

Maine Farmland Trust (PDF)
PFAS Fund Advisory Committee Meeting May 10, 2023 Deering Building, Room 101, 90 Blossom Lane, Augusta, ME Meeting Recording (YouTube)

Agenda (PDF)

Plan for Administration of the Fund to Address PFAS Contamination - Draft (PDF)

Meeting Presentation Slides (PDF)
PFAS Fund Advisory Committee Meeting May 1, 2023 Deering Building, Room 101, 90 Blossom Lane, Augusta, ME Meeting Recording (YouTube)

Agenda (PDF)

Draft of PFAS Fund Implementation Plan (PDF)

Meeting Presentation Slides (PDF)
PFAS Fund Advisory Committee Meeting February 13, 2023 Marquardt Building, Room 118, 32 Blossom Lane, Augusta, ME Meeting Recording (YouTube)

Agenda (PDF)

Maine PFAS Screening Levels 6/28/21 (PDF)

Definitions (PDF)

DRAFT Report to Legislature (PDF)

PFAS Land Sub-Committee (PDF)

Health Sub-Committee (PDF)

Financial and Business Support Subcommittee Report (PDF)
PFAS Fund Advisory Committee Public Hearing January 11, 2023 Piscataquis/Sagadahoc Rooms, Augusta Civic Center, 76 Community Drive, Augusta Meeting Recording (YouTube)
PFAS Fund Advisory Committee Meeting December 12, 2022 Room 101, Deering Building, 90 Blossom Lane, Augusta, ME Meeting Recording (YouTube)

Agenda (PDF)

Discussion Guide - Setting Initial Priorities (PDF)

Assessing PFAS in Agricultural Settings (PDF)

Committee Presentation (PDF)
PFAS Fund Advisory Committee Meeting November 14, 2022 Room 101, Deering Building, 90 Blossom Lane, Augusta, ME Meeting Recording (YouTube)

Agenda, Meeting Ground Rules, Draft Remote Meeting Policy (PDF)

Minutes (PDF)

Statute establishing the PFAS Fund and advisory committee (PDF)

What the law says we may and must do (PDF)

PFAS Emergency Relief Fund Handout (PDF)

Guidance on PFAS Exposure, Testing and Clinical Follow-Up (NASEM 2022) (PDF)

Findings and Recommendations for a PFAS Study Plan (DACF 2022) (PDF)

Grant Funding for the Establishment of PFAS Laboratories in Maine (PDF)

DEP Follow-up (PDF)

Meeting Presentations PDFs (ZIP)

PFAS Fund Advisory Committee Members

The composition of the PFAS Fund Advisory Committee was established by statute.

Seat Number Name Additional Info
1 Stacy Brenner, Co-Chair Member of the Senate; appointed by the President of the Senate
2 Rick Bennett Member of the Senate; appointed by the President of the Senate
3 Jessica Fay, Co-Chair Member of the House of Representatives; appointed by the Speaker of the House of Representative
4 Randy Hall Member of the House of Representatives; appointed by the Speaker of the House of Representative
5 Amanda Beal Commissioner of Maine Department of Agriculture, Conservation and Forestry or the Commissioner’s designee
6 Melanie Loyzim Commissioner of Maine Department of Environmental Protection or the Commissioner’s designee
7 Nancy Beardsley Commissioner of Maine Department of Health and Human Services or the Commissioner’s designee
8 Diane Rowland Dean of Maine Agricultural and Forest Experiment Station or Dean of University of Maine Cooperative Extension; appointed by the President of the University of Maine
9 Sherry Hamel Representing the financial sector; expertise in agricultural finance and lending; appointed by Commissioner of DACF
10 Jim Buckle Representing the agricultural sector; appointed by Commissioner of DACF
11 Steve Crane Representing the agricultural sector; appointed by Commissioner of DACF
12 Jenni Tilton Flood Representing the agricultural sector; appointed by Commissioner of DACF
13 Katia Holmes Representing the agricultural sector; appointed by Commissioner of DACF
14 Adrienne Lee Representing the agricultural sector; appointed by Commissioner of DACF
15 Rebecca Boulos Expert in public health; appointed by Commissioner of DACF