CITY ATTORNEY
Sonia R. Carvalho
CITY MANAGER
Alvaro Nuñez
CITY CLERK
Jennifer L. Hall
20 CIVIC CENTER PLAZA - P.O. BOX 1988, M-31 - SANTA ANA, CALIFORNIA 92702 TELEPHONE (714) 647-6900 - FAX (714) 647-6954 - www.santa-ana.org Councilmember-Requested Item Report
DATE
June 16, 2026
TOPIC
City of Santa Ana opposition to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) proposal to rescind federal drinking water regulations and the drafting of a City ordinance requiring City Council approval of any change to City’s drinking water standards and regulations.
COUNCILMEMBER-REQUESTED ITEM TITLE
Discuss and Consider Directing the City Manager to Direct City Staff to: (1) Draft a Letter from the City of Santa Ana Expressing Opposition to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) Proposals to Rescind Federal Drinking Water Regulations for Certain Contaminants in Drinking Water; and (2) Draft a City Ordinance to Require City Council Approval of any Change to the City’s Drinking Water Standards and Regulations.
DISCUSSION
Numerous studies have shown that exposure to per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) can decrease our immunity and increase our risk for certain types of cancer, birth defects, liver disease, and kidney disease.
On December 16, 1974, President Gerald Ford signed The Safe Drinking Water Act (SDWA) into law. The SDWA is the primary federal law that is intended to ensure safe drinking water for the American public. The SDWA requires the EPA to generate scientifically based standards that apply to all water supplies that serve 25 or more customers and create a process for setting new standards.
On April 10, 2024, President Joe Biden issued the first-ever national and legally enforceable Safe Drinking Water Act standard for PFAS to protect communities from exposure to harmful ‘forever chemicals.’ The rule sets health safeguards, requires public water systems to monitor and reduce the levels of PFAS in our nation's drinking water, and requires the notification of the American public of any exceedances of those levels.
On May 18, 2026, the EPA announced major revisions to federal drinking water Maximum Contaminant Levels (MCLs) for two PFAS compounds: perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA) and perfluorooctane sulfonic acid (PFOS), and a proposal to rescind drinking water standards for
CITY ATTORNEY
Sonia R. Carvalho
CITY MANAGER
Alvaro Nuñez
CITY CLERK
Jennifer L. Hall
20 CIVIC CENTER PLAZA - P.O. BOX 1988, M-31 - SANTA ANA, CALIFORNIA 92702 TELEPHONE (714) 647-6900 - FAX (714) 647-6954 - www.santa-ana.org Councilmember Requested Item
four additional PFAS compounds: perfluorohexane sulfonic acid (PFHxS), hexafluoropropylene oxide dimer acid (HFPO-DA), and perfluorononanoic acid (PFNA), as well as Hazard Index mixtures of these three PFAS chains, plus perfluorobutane sulfonic acid (PFBS).
The recent proposals from the EPA threaten to increase PFAS exposure for approximately 100 million people, cause thousands of deaths, and cause tens of thousands of serious illnesses.
The recent proposals from the EPA are also in extreme conflict with President Biden’s Cancer Moonshot and its commitment to ending cancer as we know it, to Americans having access to clean, safe, drinking water, and to advancing environmental justice by protecting communities that are most exposed to toxic chemicals.
The EPA will accept written comments on the proposed rules in the public docket until July 20, 2026, and it is important for the City of Santa Ana to express opposition to the EPA’s proposals that threaten the quality and safety of our city’s and our nation’s drinking water.
Currently, the State of California has drinking water requirements and standards that exceed those of the EPA. The recent proposals from the EPA have demonstrated that government requirements and standards for drinking water can change and even diminish. The City of Santa Ana has won awards for having the world’s best-tasting, highest-quality tap water, and we need to take action to enact City regulations to protect our communities from exposure to toxic chemicals in our City’s precious drinking water. Adoption of an ordinance that would codify the requirement for City staff to bring any proposed change in the standard of quality and safety of our City’s drinking water to the City Council for public review and scrutiny and approval by the City Council before implementation would allow our City to protect our City’s drinking water in spite of changes to federal and state regulations and standards.
I therefore request that the City Council direct the City Manager to direct City staff to: (1) draft a letter from the City of Santa Ana expressing opposition to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) proposal to rescind federal drinking water regulations for certain contaminants in drinking water and (2) draft a City ordinance to require City Council approval of any change to City’s drinking water standards and regulations.
SUBMITTED BY
Councilmember Phil Bacerra
EXHIBIT
1. Draft Letter to the EPA