75 Am. U. L. Rev. F. 183 (2026).

Abstract

This Comment argues that the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)’s rescissions of its 2024 per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) regulations are unlawful under the Safe Drinking Water Act (SDWA). It analyzes the SDWA’s anti-backsliding provision, which reflects Congress’s intent to maintain existing public health protections and chemical regulations; examines past judicial interpretations of the provision to argue that the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit should not depart from its health-protective precedent; and argues that the EPA’s rescissions are arbitrary and capricious under the Administrative Procedure Act. The EPA must therefore enforce its Final Rule regulating PFAS in drinking water.

* Note and Comment Editor, American University Law Review, Volume 76; J.D. Candidate, May 2027, American University Washington College of Law; M.A., Political Science with a Certificate in Gender and Development, 2024, University of Florida; B.A., Political Science, 2022, University of Florida. Thank you to my Note and Comment Editor, Lauren Bower, for her time and effort in improving the flow, organization, and structure of this Comment; Professor William Snape, for his insights in strengthening my argument; the Senior Forum Editor, Leyla Izquierdo, for her thoughtful edits; and the Law Review staffers and editors who contributed to this piece.