LAKE BARRINGTON, IL — State Representative Martin McLaughlin (R–Barrington Hills) is urging municipalities, public water systems, and other eligible entities throughout the 52nd District to register for the Illinois PFAS Settlement Program before the July 15 registration deadline.
Per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS), commonly known as “forever chemicals,” have been detected in water systems across the country and can pose long-term environmental and public health concerns. Illinois communities that incur costs to investigate, treat, or remove PFAS contamination from their water systems may be eligible to receive financial assistance through settlement funds established to address PFAS-related impacts.
“Communities should not miss this opportunity to secure resources that could help offset the costs of addressing PFAS contamination,” Representative McLaughlin said. “These settlement funds are intended to help local governments and water systems protect public health while reducing the financial burden on taxpayers.”
Representative McLaughlin noted that environmental protection has long been one of his priorities. While serving as Chairman of BACOG and later as Mayor of Barrington Hills, he worked alongside fellow regional leaders to eliminate the use of certain coal tar-based sealcoat products because of their harmful impacts on local waterways and the environment.
“Protecting our water resources requires both prevention and action,” McLaughlin said. “We took important steps years ago to reduce pollutants entering our lakes and streams, and today this PFAS settlement program offers another important tool to help communities address contamination where it exists.”
Representative McLaughlin encourages all eligible municipalities, public water systems, and local governments in the 52nd District to determine their eligibility and complete the required registration before the July 15 deadline to preserve their ability to seek reimbursement for eligible PFAS-related costs.
To learn more about the settlement program, visit www.pfaswatersettlement.com.
A fact sheet about the program can be found here: https://iml.org/file.cfm?key=26530
For additional information, contact the Office of State Representative Martin McLaughlin at (224) 634-8300 or [email protected].
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State Representative Martin McLaughlin serves the residents of the 52nd District which includes the following Northwest Suburban communities in Cook, Lake, and McHenry counties: Algonquin, Barrington, Barrington Hills, Cary, Deer Park, Fox River Grove, Grayslake, Hawthorn Woods, Hoffman Estates, Inverness, Island Lake, Lake Barrington, Lake In The Hills, Lake Zurich, Lakemoor, Libertyville, Long Grove, McHenry, Mundelein, North Barrington, Port Barrington, Round Lake, South Barrington, Tower Lakes, Volo, and Wauconda.