As we leave 2025 behind, the regulatory, litigation, and policy landscape for per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) continues to evolve at a rapid pace. Over the past year, Venable has closely tracked these developments, and in the year ahead we will continue to provide timely analysis and practical guidance as businesses navigate an increasingly complex PFAS landscape.
What Did We Discuss Last Year?
Throughout 2025, Venable's Navigating PFAS: Legal Perspectives webinar series and related publications examined PFAS risk from multiple angles. We covered state and federal regulatory policy, insurance coverage and greenwashing, the range of PFAS litigation, and the broad and evolving definitions of PFAS.
In February, our panelists highlighted federal and state PFAS policy developments—including new TSCA reporting requirements, CERCLA hazardous substance designations, and drinking water standards—while highlighting significant uncertainty driven by political transitions, legal challenges, and administrative resource constraints. Panelists emphasized that frequently shifting federal policies and rapidly expanding state regulations have created a complex compliance and liability landscape for industries across the supply chain.
In April, we explored strategies for managing financial exposure, including the availability of insurance coverage under historical commercial general liability policies and modern environmental policies. This session emphasized the importance of early engagement with insurers, careful policy analysis, and coordinated risk management strategies. We also highlighted the rise in PFAS-related deceptive trade practice lawsuits.
In May, we focused further on the accelerating PFAS litigation landscape. Speakers examined parallels to asbestos litigation, the widening pool of potential defendants, and the diversity of claims, from personal injury and property damage to consumer class actions and false advertising suits. The message was clear: PFAS liability exposure is no longer limited to manufacturers, but can extend to users, distributors, and even downstream companies with indirect connections to PFAS.
We cautioned in June that increasingly broad federal and state definitions of PFAS risk sweeping in thousands of distinct and, in many respects, quite different substances under one umbrella term. The science- and risk-based rationales for these broad definitions are not always clear, and this trend has created significant compliance challenges and unintended consequences for business, innovation, and critical infrastructure. The panel emphasized that "one-size-fits-all" PFAS regulations do not account for important chemical distinctions, particularly for fluoropolymers that are essential to certain industries, including defense, semiconductor manufacturing, and healthcare. The panel discussed the potential environmental, health, safety, and infrastructure benefits of a more nuanced, substance-specific regulatory approach considering the risks and benefits of specific PFAS chemicals or chemical subgroups.
The Challenges of an Increasingly Complex PFAS Regulatory Landscape
Taken together, these regulatory challenges have fundamentally altered PFAS-focused compliance and risk calculations for companies in myriad industries nationwide. The combination of expansive regulatory definitions, retroactive reporting obligations, and aggressive litigation theories has made PFAS risk more diffuse and more difficult to predict and quantify.
One of the most significant challenges is uncertainty. Companies must contend with overlapping federal and state requirements, evolving scientific standards, and regulatory initiatives that may change direction because of litigation, political shifts, or agency resource constraints.
At the same time, the rise of non-environmental PFAS claims, such as greenwashing and false advertising lawsuits, have expanded risk beyond traditional environmental compliance. Statements about products being "PFAS-free," supply chain representations, and historical uses of PFAS are now being scrutinized by regulators, plaintiffs' attorneys, and advocacy groups alike.
As a result, navigating PFAS risk today requires a coordinated, enterprise-wide approach that integrates regulatory compliance, litigation preparedness, insurance strategy, product stewardship, and government affairs.
What's to Come in 2026?
Looking ahead to 2026, PFAS will remain a top-tier issue for regulators, courts, and businesses. On the regulatory front, companies must gear up for looming compliance dates under the TSCA PFAS reporting rule, Safe Drinking Water Act regulations, and other federal and state regulatory programs. Businesses can also expect increased CERCLA enforcement actions and third-party claims associated with ongoing and even historic PFOA and PFOS releases.
State regulatory activity is also expected to intensify, including with respect to product-specific bans, disclosure requirements, and enforcement actions, with hundreds of PFAS-related bills introduced in state legislatures last year alone. This patchwork of state laws will continue to complicate compliance for companies operating nationally or globally.
Venable will also closely monitor potential upcoming bellwether trials in the AFF MDL as well as the developing science, which may influence settlement dynamics, defense strategies, and future claims. Insurance coverage disputes are also likely to increase as policyholders and insurers test the boundaries of PFAS-related exclusions and legacy coverage.
Finally, as we reported in November, EPA has proposed major changes to the TSCA section 8(a)(7) PFAS reporting rule, which currently requires entities that manufactured or imported PFAS at any time between 2011 and 2022 to submit a one-time, chemical-specific report to EPA based on information that is known or reasonably ascertainable. We anticipate a final rule from EPA in the coming months that could make dramatic changes to the scope of the rule. The reporting period is currently set to open April 13, 2026, but is subject to change.
Against this backdrop, proactive planning and a clear understanding of regulatory obligations, historical operations, and evolving risk will be differentiators for companies in 2026.
Conclusion
The past year confirmed that PFAS is no longer an emerging issue, but a mature, rapidly evolving area of law with significant regulatory, litigation, and business implications. As definitions broaden, enforcement expands, and scrutiny continues to mount, organizations must stay informed and agile.
Venable will continue to monitor these developments closely and provide strategic, practical insights to help clients anticipate risk, adapt to change, and navigate the PFAS landscape in the year ahead and beyond.
Venable attorneys across the Environmental, Government Affairs, Food and Drug, Products Liability, Insurance, and Litigation Groups are working together to track these rapidly evolving regulatory, legislative, and litigation developments. Together, we can assist companies in assessing and mitigating exposure and risk, identifying regulatory obligations and developing and implementing compliance strategies, obtaining and verifying supplier information, and pursuing advocacy as EPA and other federal and state agencies pursue PFAS-related rulemakings.