{"database": "press", "table": "releases", "rows": [["https://www.blumenthal.senate.gov/newsroom/press/release/blumenthal-joins-colleagues-in-demanding-trump-administration-stop-stalling-toxic-chemical-cleanups-protect-military-families-and-nearby-communities", "Blumenthal Joins Colleagues in Demanding Trump Administration Stop Stalling Toxic Chemical Cleanups, Protect Military Families & Nearby Communities", "2025-11-20", "2025", "2025-11", "Democrat", "Senate", "CT", "Richard Blumenthal", "B001277", "www.blumenthal.senate.gov", "blumenthal", "https://www.blumenthal.senate.gov/newsroom/press", "scraper", "[Hartford, CT] \u2013 Today, U.S. Senator Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.) joined 27 of his Democratic Senate colleagues in demanding that the Trump administration reverse its decision to delay the cleanup of toxic chemicals at military installations across the country, including the Bradley Air National Guard Base in Windsor Locks, and take action to protect military families and nearby communities by addressing contamination at the affected sites.\n\nIn a letter to Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth, the senators called on the Trump administration to immediately restore the previous timetable for remediating per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) contamination at U.S. military bases and to reverse plans that would further delay long-overdue cleanups.\n\n\u201cFor years, communities contaminated by PFAS from nearby DOD installations in our states have waited for the DOD to take action. We request that the Department reverse its decision, return to the previous timetable released in December 2024, and accelerate efforts to remediate confirmed PFAS contamination,\u201d the senators wrote.\n\nAt least 700 military sites in the United States are known or suspected to have PFAS contamination from DOD activities. DOD\u2019s delayed timetable would postpone cleanup efforts at approximately 150 of them, in some cases for nearly a decade. Specifically, DOD pushed back the time frame of the Remedial Investigation/Feasibility Study (RI/FS) phase for these bases, which involves collecting detailed information on the nature and extent of the PFAS contamination and conducting a study to evaluate potential options for cleanup.\n\nPFAS chemicals are widespread contaminants found in many industrial applications and especially around U.S. military installations. PFAS exposure is linked to an array of health problems, including various cancers, reduced immune function, reproductive challenges, birth defects, thyroid issues, and more. The use of PFAS-containing firefighting foam at Department of Defense (DOD) facilities, and the subsequent stormwater runoff, is a significant source of drinking water pollution. This contamination poses serious health risks to service members and their families, as well as surrounding communities.\n\nThe letter, led by Senator Kirsten Gillibrand (D-N.Y.), was signed by Blumenthal and Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) and Senators Angela Alsobrooks (D-Md.), Michael Bennet (D-Colo.), Cory Booker (D-N.J.), Tammy Duckworth (D-Ill.), Dick Durbin (D-Ill.), John Fetterman (D-Pa.), Maggie Hassan (D-N.H.), Martin Heinrich (D-N.M.), John Hickenlooper (D-Colo.), Mark Kelly (D-Ariz.), Andy Kim (D-N.J.), Angus King (I-Maine), Ben Ray Luj\u00e1n (D-N.M.), Jeff Merkley (D-Ore.), Jon Ossoff (D-Ga.), Alex Padilla (D-Calif.), Gary Peters (D-Mich.), Jacky Rosen (D-Nev.), Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), Brian Schatz (D-Hawaii), Adam Schiff (D-Calif.), Jeanne Shaheen (D-N.H.), Elissa Slotkin (D-Mich.), Chris Van Hollen (D-Md.), and Ron Wyden (D-Ore.).\n\nThe full text of the senators\u2019 letter to Secretary Hegseth can be found here.\n\nA full list of military installations affected by the delays can be found here.\n\nInformation on the military installations affected by the Trump administration in Connecticut can be found below.\n\nInstallation Type\n\nInstallation Name\n\nEstimated RI/FS End Date Released in December 2024\n\nEstimated RI/FS End Date Released March 31, 2025\n\nNational Guard\n\nBradley International Airport\n\n9/2029\n\n9/2035\n\n-30-", 1, "2026-03-30T01:40:41Z", "2026-04-06T19:52:45Z"]], "columns": ["url", "title", "date", "year", "month", "party", "chamber", "state", "member_name", "bioguide_id", "domain", "scraper", "source", "date_source", "text", "has_text", "collected_at", "updated_at"], "primary_keys": ["url"], "primary_key_values": ["https://www.blumenthal.senate.gov/newsroom/press/release/blumenthal-joins-colleagues-in-demanding-trump-administration-stop-stalling-toxic-chemical-cleanups-protect-military-families-and-nearby-communities"], "units": {}, "query_ms": 0.9993119165301323, "source": "dwillis/congress-press", "source_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press", "license": "MIT", "license_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press/blob/main/LICENSE"}