PFAS in Florida Drinking Water: What the Current Rules Say

PFAS ("forever chemicals") come up often in conversations about drinking water, and the regulatory picture has been moving. Here's where things actually stand, based on EPA's own published record.

The 2024 Rule

In April 2024, EPA finalized its first National Primary Drinking Water Regulation for PFAS, setting enforceable Maximum Contaminant Levels (MCLs) of 4.0 parts per trillion (ppt) for PFOA and PFOS individually, along with limits for PFHxS, PFNA, HFPO-DA (GenX), and certain mixtures involving those compounds plus PFBS.

What Changed in 2026

On May 20, 2026, EPA proposed rescinding the national drinking water regulations specifically for PFHxS, PFNA, HFPO-DA, and PFBS-containing mixtures, citing a determination that the earlier rulemaking process didn't satisfy Safe Drinking Water Act procedural requirements. At the same time, EPA said it would keep the PFOA and PFOS MCLs in place, while proposing to give utilities an option to request until 2031 (extended from the original 2029 deadline) to reach compliance. As of this writing, the proposed rescission is just that — proposed — so the original 2024 regulations remain technically in effect unless and until a final rule changes them; the public comment period on the rescission closed July 20, 2026.

What This Means for South Florida Utilities

Utilities are required to test for PFAS under EPA's UCMR5 (Fifth Unregulated Contaminant Monitoring Rule) program regardless of the MCL rulemaking status, and results are published in each utility's Consumer Confidence Report. On our city pages, we report each utility's actual PFAS testing results exactly as published — detected levels, non-detects, and any specific utility actions (like taking a well offline) — rather than a regional generalization, because results vary meaningfully by utility and even by treatment plant within the same utility.

Where Filtration Fits In

Where a utility's own testing shows PFAS detections, or for households on private wells with no municipal testing at all, reverse osmosis is commonly recommended because RO membranes are effective against a broad range of dissolved contaminants — see our reverse osmosis page. This is general information, not a claim about your specific water; check your city's page or request a water test for your address.