A complaint was filed Tuesday, February 23, 2021 by Wisconsin Manufacturers and Commerce (WMC) and Oconomowoc-based dry cleaner Leather Rich in Waukesha County Circuit Court against the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources (DNR), DNR Secretary Preston Cole, and the Natural Resources Board.

The state’s largest business lobbying group argues the DNR is unlawfully asking businesses to test for PFAS as a hazardous substance under the state’s Remediation and Redevelopment (RR) Program and Voluntary Party Liability Exemption (VPLE) Program. The VPLE Program exempts participants who clean up a contaminated site from future liability if historical contamination is found. The claim states, “Defendants do not have explicit statutory authority, nor an explicit statutory requirement, to implement or enforce any standard, requirement, or threshold related to emerging contaminants, including PFAS, in the RR and VPLE programs.”

Click on following link to access the combined summons and complaint filing.