PFAS Pesticide Bill Shifts to Transparency Requirements
Published Thursday, July 2, 2026
This week, Assembly Bill 1603 by Assemblymember Nick Schultz, D-Burbank, was significantly amended in the Senate Agriculture Committee, narrowing the bill's scope and prompting California Farm Bureau to remove its opposition and move to a neutral position.
The previous version of the bill would have prohibited the registration of new pesticide products containing intentionally added PFAS ingredients and classified existing agricultural PFAS pesticides as restricted materials beginning in 2028. Those provisions have been removed. PFAS stands for per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances, also known as “forever chemicals.” Instead, the amended bill focuses on increasing transparency by requiring the California Department of Pesticide Regulation to identify pesticides containing intentionally added PFAS ingredients in its pesticide use reporting database, include PFAS use trends in annual reporting, and publish a list of registered pesticides containing PFAS ingredients.
A coalition of agricultural stakeholders raised significant concern about earlier versions of the bill that would have created unnecessary regulatory burdens. With those provisions removed, the remaining requirements are largely informational and focused on transparency.
The bill passed the state Senate Agriculture Committee on July 1 and will next be considered by the Senate Appropriations Committee.
Staff contact: Isabella Quinonez, iquinonez@cfbf.com.
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