{"database": "press", "table": "releases", "rows": [["https://www.shaheen.senate.gov//news/press/shaheen-welcomes-federal-initiative-to-confront-pfas-contamination", "Shaheen Welcomes Federal Initiative to Confront PFAS Contamination", "2017-12-05", "2017", "2017-12", "Democrat", "House", "NH", "Jeanne Shaheen", "S001181", "www.shaheen.senate.gov", null, null, "legacy", "Shaheen Welcomes Federal Initiative to Confront PFAS Contamination \n\t\t\t\n\t\t\tDecember 05, 2017\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t(Washington, DC) \u2014 U.S. Senator Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH) issued the following statement in response to the Environmental Protection Agency\u2019s (EPA) announcement of a cross-agency initiative to confront per and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) contamination. PFAS includes perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA), which is an emerging contaminant that has been found in drinking water systems in several southern New Hampshire towns, and was responsible for the closing of a major water supply well located at the Pease International Tradeport in Portsmouth, New Hampshire. The EPA\u2019s new efforts announced on Monday support Senator Shaheen\u2019s bill, the Safe Drinking Water Assistance Act, which she introduced in April:\r\n\u201cWater contamination has profoundly impacted families in a number of New Hampshire communities. Parents shouldn\u2019t have to live in fear over the safety of their children\u2019s water,\u201d said Senator Shaheen. \u201cI\u2019m glad the EPA is taking a step forward to help address the contamination we\u2019re seeing in water supplies across the country, including New Hampshire, but we must do more. I will continue to work with the administration to ensure that other federal environmental and health agencies are working towards this common goal so that Granite State families, and the millions of others who live in affected communities, have access to safe water supplies.\u201d\r\nThe EPA\u2019s recent announcement backs Senator Shaheen\u2019s bipartisan legislation with Senator Portman (R-OH), the\u00a0Safe Drinking Water Assistance Act, which would establish a government-wide initiative to help expedite the analysis of contaminants, such as PFOA, and provide resources to states dealing with the health challenges posed by these potentially harmful materials. Additionally, Senator Shaheen\u2019s bipartisan amendment to the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) that grants the Department of Defense authorization to fund the first-ever nationwide health study on implications of perfluorinated chemicals in drinking water is expected to be signed into law by the President this month.\u00a0\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\n\t  \n\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t \n\t\t\n\t\t\tPrint\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\tEmail\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\tTweet\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\n\t \n\t\n\t\n\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n    \n\t\n\t\n    \n    \n    \n    \t\n    \t\n\t    \t  \n\t\t    \n\t\t    \tNext Article\n\t\t    \n\t\t    \n\t\t    \tPrevious Article", 1, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"]], "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.shaheen.senate.gov//news/press/shaheen-welcomes-federal-initiative-to-confront-pfas-contamination"], "units": {}, "query_ms": 1.5093088150024414, "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"}