H.R. 10462 — Firefighter PFAS Injury Compensation Act of 2026

This section provides the short title of the Act as the Firefighter PFAS Injury Compensation Act of 2026 and sets forth the table of contents.

This section establishes the Firefighter PFAS Injury Compensation Program to compensate firefighters (or their estates) for PFAS-related health conditions. Eligible claimants must have served at least 2 years and submit claims within 2 years after final regulations or the firefighter’s death. The Secretary reviews claims on a no-fault basis within 120 days and awards a base amount of $250,000 for cancer or $50,000 for non-cancer conditions, multiplied by a service modifier of 1–4 based on years served (with possible inflation adjustment). Claimants may receive compensation for only one cancer and one non-cancer condition per firefighter, and determinations may be appealed to the Court of Federal Claims.

This section establishes the PFAS Trust Fund in the Treasury, funded by amounts equivalent to taxes received under sections 4191 and 5000E and by contributions accepted by the Secretary of Health and Human Services. It makes amounts in the fund available without further appropriation to the Secretary to provide compensation through the Firefighter PFAS Injury Compensation Program.

This section imposes a 10 percent excise tax on the sales price of PFAS products sold by the manufacturer, producer, or importer. PFAS means per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances, and PFAS products include any product containing such substances, including firefighter gear. The tax applies to sales after the date of enactment.

This section imposes a 10 percent excise tax on the present value of any qualifying PFAS litigation award paid by a taxpayer after the date of enactment. A qualifying award is a payment under a final court order or settlement that compensates for harm from PFAS exposure, other than personal injury claims.

This section exempts the budgetary effects of the Act and its amendments from both statutory PAYGO scorecards maintained under the Statutory Pay-As-You-Go Act of 2010 and Senate PAYGO scorecards maintained under H. Con. Res. 71.