Agricultural products and equipment exemption from certain regulations governing products containing PFAS provision

A bill for an act

relating to environment; exempting agricultural products and equipment from

certain regulations governing products containing PFAS; amending Minnesota

Statutes 2024, sections 18B.28, subdivision 3; 116.943, subdivisions 3, 7, 8;

Minnesota Statutes 2025 Supplement, section 116.943, subdivision 5; repealing

Minnesota Statutes 2024, sections 18B.01, subdivision 15c; 18B.26, subdivision

7; 18C.005, subdivisions 6b, 23a; 18C.111, subdivision 5; 18C.202; Minnesota

Statutes 2025 Supplement, section 18B.26, subdivision 8.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MINNESOTA:

Section 1.

Minnesota Statutes 2024, section 18B.28, subdivision 3, is amended to read:

Subd. 3.

Application.

A person must file an application for experimental use pesticide

product registration with the commissioner. An application to register an experimental use

pesticide product must include:

(1) the name and address of the applicant;

(2) a copy of the United States Environmental Protection Agency permit;

(3) a description of the purpose or objectives of the experimental use;

(4) a copy of the experimental use pesticide labeling accepted by the United States

Environmental Protection Agency;

(5) the name, address, and telephone number of cooperators or participants in this state;

(6) the amount of material to be shipped or used in this state;
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and
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(7) information about any intentionally added PFAS in the product, including PFAS

ingredients, amount, chemical structure, analytical methods, and purposes for which PFAS

are used in the product, including in any product components; and

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(8)
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(7)
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other information requested by the commissioner.

Sec. 2.

Minnesota Statutes 2024, section 116.943, subdivision 3, is amended to read:

Subd. 3.

Information requirement waivers; extensions.

(a) The commissioner may

waive all or part of the information requirement under subdivision 2 if the commissioner

determines that substantially equivalent information is already publicly available. The

commissioner may grant a waiver under this paragraph to a manufacturer or a group of

manufacturers for multiple products or a product category.

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(b) For a pesticide regulated under chapter 18B, a fertilizer, an agricultural liming

material, a plant amendment, or a soil amendment regulated under chapter 18C, a

manufacturer may satisfy the requirements of subdivision 2 by submitting the information

required by that subdivision as part of its annual registration or approval process under

chapter 18B or 18C. For information that is regulated under chapters 18B and 18C, the

commissioner and the commissioner of agriculture must jointly determine whether to make

the information publicly available based on applicable statutes.

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(c)
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(b)
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The commissioner may enter into an agreement with one or more other states or

political subdivisions of a state to collect information and may accept information to a shared

system as meeting the information requirement under subdivision 2.

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(d)
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(c)
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The commissioner may extend the deadline for submission by a manufacturer of

the information required under subdivision 2 if the commissioner determines that more time

is needed by the manufacturer to comply with the submission requirement.

Sec. 3.

Minnesota Statutes 2025 Supplement, section 116.943, subdivision 5, is amended

to read:

Subd. 5.

Prohibitions.

(a) Beginning January 1, 2025, a person may not sell, offer for

sale, or distribute for sale in this state the following products if the product contains

intentionally added PFAS:

(1) carpets or rugs;

(2) cleaning products;

(3) cookware;

(4) cosmetics;

(5) dental floss;

(6) fabric treatments;

(7) juvenile products;

(8) menstruation products;

(9) textile furnishings;

(10) ski wax; or

(11) upholstered furniture.

(b) Paragraph (a) does not prohibit the sale, offer for sale, or distribution for sale of a

product that contains intentionally added PFAS only in electronic components or internal

components.

(c) The commissioner may by rule identify additional products by category or use that

may not be sold, offered for sale, or distributed for sale in this state if they contain

intentionally added PFAS and designate effective dates. A prohibition adopted under this

paragraph must be effective no earlier than January 1, 2025, and no later than January 1,

2032. The commissioner must prioritize the prohibition of the sale of product categories

that, in the commissioner's judgment, are most likely to contaminate or harm the state's

environment and natural resources if they contain intentionally added PFAS.

(d) Beginning January 1, 2032, a person may not sell, offer for sale, or distribute for

sale in this state any product that contains intentionally added PFAS, unless the commissioner

has determined by rule that the use of PFAS in the product is a currently unavoidable use.

The commissioner may specify specific products or product categories for which the

commissioner has determined the use of PFAS is a currently unavoidable use. The

commissioner may not determine that the use of PFAS in a product is a currently unavoidable

use if the product is listed in paragraph (a).

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(e) The commissioner may not take action under paragraph (c) or (d) with respect to a

pesticide, as defined under chapter

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18B

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, a fertilizer, an agricultural liming material, a plant

amendment, or a soil amendment as defined under chapter

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18C

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, unless the commissioner

of agriculture approves the action.

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Sec. 4.

Minnesota Statutes 2024, section 116.943, subdivision 7, is amended to read:

Subd. 7.

Enforcement.

(a) The commissioner may enforce this section under sections

115.071
and
116.072
. The commissioner may coordinate with the commissioners of
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agriculture,
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commerce
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,
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and health in enforcing this section.

(b) When requested by the commissioner, a person must furnish to the commissioner

any information that the person may have or may reasonably obtain that is relevant to show

compliance with this section.

Sec. 5.

Minnesota Statutes 2024, section 116.943, subdivision 8, is amended to read:

Subd. 8.

Exemptions.

(a) This section does not apply to:

(1) a product for which federal law governs the presence of PFAS in the product in a

manner that preempts state authority;

(2) a product regulated under section
325F.072
or
325F.075
;
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or
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(3) the sale or resale of a used product
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.
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; or
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(4) a pesticide; a fertilizer; agricultural liming material; a plant amendment; a soil

amendment; farm equipment, as defined in section 325E.061; or any other product used in

agriculture.

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(b) Subdivisions 4 and 5 do not apply to a prosthetic or orthotic device or to any product

that is a medical device or drug or that is otherwise used in a medical setting or in medical

applications regulated by the United States Food and Drug Administration.

Sec. 6.
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REPEALER.
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(a)

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Minnesota Statutes 2024, sections 18B.01, subdivision 15c; 18B.26, subdivision 7;

18C.005, subdivisions 6b and 23a; 18C.111, subdivision 5; and 18C.202,

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are repealed.

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(b)

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Minnesota Statutes 2025 Supplement, section 18B.26, subdivision 8,

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is repealed.

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APPENDIX

Repealed Minnesota Statutes: 26-07937

18B.01 DEFINITIONS.

Subd. 15c.

Perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl substances.

"Perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl substances" or "PFAS" means a class of fluorinated organic chemicals containing at least one fully fluorinated carbon atom.

18B.26 PESTICIDE REGISTRATION.

Subd. 7.

Notification required; waivers and extensions.

(a) Beginning January 1, 2026, a pesticide registrant must annually provide a statement that a product contains no intentionally added PFAS or, for products that contain intentionally added PFAS, a pesticide registrant must submit to the commissioner the following information:

(1) the name and purpose for which PFAS are used in the pesticide, including in any product components;

(2) the amount of each PFAS in the product, identified by its name, chemical structure, analytical methods, chemical abstracts service registry number, or other unique method approved by the commissioner; and

(3) any additional information required by the commissioner.

(b) The commissioner may waive all or part of the notification requirement under paragraph (a) if the commissioner determines that substantially equivalent information is available. The commissioner may extend the deadline for the submission of the information required under paragraph (a) if the commissioner determines that more time is needed by the registrant to comply with the submission requirement.

Subd. 8.

PFAS prohibitions.

(a) Beginning January 1, 2026, the commissioner may not register a product in the categories listed in section
116.943, subdivision 5
, paragraph (a), if the product contains intentionally added PFAS unless the commissioner determines that the use of PFAS is a currently unavoidable use.

(b) Beginning January 1, 2032, the commissioner may not register a pesticide product that contains intentionally added PFAS unless the commissioner determines that the use of PFAS is a currently unavoidable use.

18C.005 DEFINITIONS.

Subd. 6b.

Currently unavoidable use.

"Currently unavoidable use" means a use of PFAS that is essential for the health, safety, or functioning of society and for which alternatives are not reasonably available.

Subd. 23a.

Perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl substances.

"Perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl substances" or "PFAS" has the meaning given in section
18B.01, subdivision
15c.

18C.111 POWERS AND DUTIES OF COMMISSIONER.

Subd. 5.

Perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl substances.

The Department of Agriculture is the lead state agency for the regulation of fertilizer containing PFAS, including the storage, handling, distribution, use, and disposal of fertilizer containing PFAS. In order to reduce duplication, a distributor, registrant, or guarantor is not required to provide technical data to another state agency if the distributor, registrant, or guarantor has previously submitted the data to the commissioner and the data is available to the other state agencies.

18C.202 PERFLUOROALKYL AND POLYFLUOROALKYL SUBSTANCES.

Subdivision 1.

Notification required.

Beginning January 1, 2026, a product manufacturer must annually provide a statement that a product contains no intentionally added PFAS or, for products that contain intentionally added PFAS, must submit to the commissioner the following information:

(1) the name and purpose for which PFAS are used in the product, including in any product components;

(2) the amount of each PFAS chemical, identified by its name, chemical structure, analytical methods, chemical abstracts service registry number, or other method approved by the commissioner, in the product; and

(3) any additional information required by the commissioner.

Subd. 2.

Notification requirement waivers; extensions.

The commissioner may waive all or part of the notification requirement under subdivision 1 if the commissioner determines that substantially equivalent information is available. The commissioner may extend the deadline for the submission of the information required under subdivision 1 if the commissioner determines that more time is needed by the manufacturer to comply with the submission requirement. With the approval of the commissioner, a manufacturer may supply the information for a category or type of product rather than for each individual product. This may include raw materials used to produce blended fertilizers.

Subd. 3.

Prohibition.

Beginning January 1, 2032, the commissioner must not register or approve a product for use under this chapter if the product contains intentionally added PFAS unless the commissioner determines that the use of PFAS is a currently unavoidable use.