SB577: SB577 "Coordinated PFAS Remediation Act"; enact

PFAS, sometimes called 'forever chemicals,' have shown up in water, soil, and drinking water systems across Georgia. Several counties and cities have already sued companies over the cost of cleaning up this contamination. This bill, called the Coordinated PFAS Remediation Act, would stop that piecemeal approach starting July 1, 2026. From that date on, only the Environmental Protection Division (part of the Department of Natural Resources) could bring PFAS lawsuits on behalf of the state and local governments; local governments themselves would be barred from filing or continuing their own PFAS claims. Pending local government lawsuits would be paused until the division moves to take them over, or dismissed if the division does not act within 180 days. The Attorney General would represent the division and could hire outside lawyers, with annual public reports on legal fees. Any money won through judgments or settlements would go to the Georgia Environmental Finance Authority, which would fund the Attorney General's litigation costs and put remaining money toward PFAS cleanup or drinking water projects. Claims by individuals, such as for personal injury, would not be affected.

• Creates a new chapter of Georgia law (O.C.G.A. Title 12, Chapter 18) reserving all PFAS contamination claims to the state, handled exclusively by the Environmental Protection Division after July 1, 2026.
• Bars local governments (counties, cities, and related public entities) from filing or continuing their own PFAS lawsuits after that date, with pending suits paused and possibly dismissed if the division doesn't step in within 180 days.
• Lets the division sue as a class action or file separate suits in different courts on behalf of different local governments, without being blocked by usual claim-splitting rules.
• Requires the division to consult with, and local governments to cooperate with, any local government whose property is involved in a PFAS case.
• Directs judgment and settlement proceeds to the Georgia Environmental Finance Authority, which pays litigation costs and puts leftover money toward drinking water or PFAS cleanup funds.
• Requires the Attorney General to publicly report annually, starting September 1, 2027, on any outside lawyers hired and the fees paid, and on how settlement money was used.

Local governments such as counties, cities, and water and sewer authorities that have filed or might file PFAS lawsuits; the Environmental Protection Division and the Attorney General, who take over that litigation; the Georgia Environmental Finance Authority, which manages the money; and residents who rely on public drinking water systems affected by PFAS contamination.

Local governments currently suing companies over PFAS contamination in their water systems would lose that authority and hand their cases to the state. This centralizes both the legal strategy and any settlement money, which could change how quickly cleanup funds reach specific communities and who controls that decision.

• Section 1 adds Chapter 18 to Title 12, defining PFAS, PFAS claims, and local governments, and stating legislative findings that piecemeal litigation could deplete resources for cleanup (O.C.G.A. § 12-18-2, § 12-18-3).
• O.C.G.A. § 12-18-4 reserves all PFAS claims to the state starting July 1, 2026, bars local governments from bringing new claims, and requires pending local government suits to be paused, with dismissal if the division doesn't intervene within 180 days.
• O.C.G.A. § 12-18-4(c) exempts personal injury, wrongful death, and private property claims brought by individuals or private entities from the new restrictions.
• O.C.G.A. § 12-18-5 authorizes the division to sue, settle, and collect on PFAS claims, including as a class action or as separate suits in different courts, with the Attorney General providing legal representation and able to hire private counsel.
• Section 2 amends O.C.G.A. § 50-23-5 so the Georgia Environmental Finance Authority receives PFAS lawsuit proceeds in a segregated account, funds Attorney General litigation costs, and directs remaining money to drinking water or PFAS remediation funds.
• Both the Attorney General and the Authority must file annual public reports, starting September 1, 2027, on legal fees and disbursement of settlement funds.
• O.C.G.A. § 12-18-6 clarifies the new chapter does not impair contracts made before July 1, 2026, or affect rights already vested by that date.

1. 2026-02-26Senate Read and Referred (Senate)
2. 2026-02-25Senate Hopper (Senate)

• Sam Watson (R, SD-011)Primary sponsor
• Lee Anderson (R, SD-024)
• Chuck Payne (R, SD-054)
• Bill Cowsert (R, SD-046)

• PFAS contamination
• drinking water
• local government lawsuits
• environmental cleanup
• Attorney General litigation