Rashid Bill Targeting Forever Chemicals in Illinois Water Passes General Assembly

SPRINGFIELD, Ill – Today, the Illinois General Assembly based legislation from Rep. Abdelnasser Rashid (D-Bridgeview) that would create the PFAS Wastewater Citizen Protection Committee to protect Illinois’ water from dangerous long-lasting chemicals.

HB 2955 tasks the committee with developing a PFAS Action Plan to address the monitoring, mitigation, and elimination of PFAS in the state’s wastewater systems, and with identifying how to pay for that work so the costs fall on the manufacturers that produce PFAS rather than on wastewater agencies, taxpayers, and ratepayers. PFAS, or per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances, are widely used, break down slowly, and contaminate water and soil, making them an ongoing risk to Illinois communities.

“Access to safe, clean water is a basic human right that must be safeguarded,” said Rep. Abdelnasser Rashid. “For too long, corporations have treated our water like a personal dumping ground, contaminating the water our families rely on with cancer-causing chemicals while sticking local communities with the cleanup bill. This legislation puts the health of Illinois families first and makes clear that the companies profiting from these chemicals, not our taxpayers and ratepayers, should be responsible for cleaning them up.”

Passage of HB 2955 comes one year after the landmark passage of HB 2516, which made Illinois one of the first states to ban the sale of a broad range of consumer products containing PFAS. HB 2516, also sponsored by Rep. Rashid, was signed into law by Governor Pritzker in 2025.