AB 1603 sets a timeline to end PFAS pesticides by 2035
Tulare, CA — Currently, an estimated 2.5 million pounds of toxic PFAS “forever chemicals” pesticides are used annually on California crops, resulting in PFAS residues on produce consumed across the nation. California Assemblymember Nick Schultz (D–44) has introduced AB 1603, legislation to phase out PFAS pesticides. Co-sponsored by the Environmental Working Group, the statewide coalition Californians for Pesticide Reform, Pesticide Action & Agroecology Network, and the Center for Environmental Health, the bill would establish a progressive timeline to end use of PFAS pesticides in California by 2035, while giving growers time for transition to safer alternatives.
“As a father, I don’t want my kids eating strawberries contaminated with chemicals that will stay in their bodies for decades,” said Assemblymember Schultz. “AB 1603 is a vital step toward ensuring California’s agricultural legacy is defined by health and innovation, not by the accumulation of toxic PFAS in our soil and water. We are providing a clear, responsible road map for our farmers to transition away from these persistent chemicals while re-establishing California as a global leader in food safety,” he added.
AB 1603:
- requires transparency and public notification of PFAS pesticide use
- prohibits new state approvals of pesticides containing PFAS
- prohibits the use, sale, and manufacture of 23 PFAS pesticides already banned in the European Union beginning in 2030, and
- fully prohibits the use, sale, and manufacture of PFAS pesticides in California beginning in 2035.
While PFAS pesticides remain in use during the phase-out period, the bill would ensure greater oversight and public awareness of where and how these chemicals are being applied.
Each year an estimated 2.5 million pounds of PFAS pesticides are applied to California agricultural fields. Between 2018 and 2023, approximately 15 million pounds were applied across 58 counties, with the highest use in Fresno, Kern, San Joaquin, and Imperial counties. These pesticides are used on some of the state’s most widely grown and economically important crops, including almonds, pistachios, wine grapes, and tomatoes, raising concerns about both environmental contamination and human exposure.
An analysis of California Department of Pesticide Regulation (CDPR) data by the Environmental Working Group found that 37% of tested non-organic fruits and vegetables grown in California contained residues of PFAS pesticides, and that 51% of non-organic produce categories tested had at least some detectable PFAS contamination. Because California supplies more than half of the nation’s conventionally-grown fruits and vegetables, this raises concerns about widespread dietary exposure across the United States.
PFAS are known as “forever chemicals” because they do not break down in the environment and can accumulate in human bodies over time. Scientific research has linked PFAS exposure to a range of serious health harms, including immune system suppression, elevated cholesterol, reproductive and developmental effects, and increased risk of testicular and kidney cancers. For most people, food and drinking water are the primary pathways of exposure, making the use of these chemicals in agriculture especially concerning.
“Farmers shouldn’t be locked into using chemicals that persist in our environment and our bodies. AB 1603 makes clear that California must fully invest in its Sustainable Pest Management Roadmap and support growers transitioning to organic and ecological systems that don’t rely on petrochemical and forever pesticides,” said Sarah Aird, Policy Director with Californians for Pesticide Reform.
The stakes are particularly high in California’s Central Valley, where communities are already grappling with severe PFAS drinking water contamination and the costs of cleanup. In Fresno, for example, 2,164,095 pounds of PFAS pesticides were applied to crops in the county between 2018-2023, according to a November 2025 Environmental Working Group analysis and interactive map, which used data from the California Department of Pesticide Regulation’s Pesticide Use Reports.
PFAS in City of Fresno groundwater have been reported at levels exceeding federal safety standards by 600%, and PFAS contamination appears to be affecting water serving roughly 142,000 homes and businesses. In December the City of Fresno filed a suit against more than 40 companies, including major chemical manufacturers, alleging that PFAS contamination has polluted local groundwater. New federal drinking water standards are expected to place hundreds of California wells out of compliance, particularly in the Central Valley, and early sampling has detected PFAS in rural private wells, raising concerns about widespread contamination.
Fresno is not the only county in California at risk, however. According to the Nov 2025 EWG report, which used CDPR Pesticide Use Report data, between 2018 and 2023, PFAS pesticides were applied in the following amounts in these major agricultural counties:
Fresno: 2,164,095 lbs (primarily on almonds, pistachios, tomatoes, cotton, grapes) Kern: 1,683,634 lbs (primarily on almonds, pistachios, grapes, oranges, carrots) San Joaquin: 923,776 lbs (primarily on almonds, wine grapes, walnuts, tomatoes, cherries) Imperial: 898,555 lbs (primarily on alfalfa, bermudagrass, onions, broccoli, carrots) Tulare: 843,830 lbs (primarily on almonds, pistachios, grapes, walnuts, oranges) Madera: 819,904 lbs (primarily on almonds, pistachios, wine grapes, grapes, tomatoes) Merced: 811,612 lbs (primarily on almonds, alfalfa, tomatoes, cotton, pistachios) Kings: 659,783 lbs (primarily on cotton, pistachios, almonds, tomatoes, walnuts) Monterey: 551,108 lbs (primarily on wine grapes, strawberries, lettuce, broccoli) Santa Barbara: 288,673 lbs (primarily on strawberries, broccoli, wine grapes, cauliflower, carrots) Ventura: 240,039 lbs (primarily on strawberries, cabbage, celery, lemons, peppers) San Luis Obispo: 183,095 lbs (primarily on wine grapes, strawberries, broccoli, cauliflower, lettuce) Santa Cruz: 38,067 lbs (primarily on strawberries, Brussels sprouts, apples, lettuce)
Farmworkers, farmers and communities near fields where pesticides are used are especially at risk of exposure. “Farmworker communities already face unacceptable exposure from toxic pesticides, and now PFAS—forever chemicals that persist in our water, land, and bodies—are being intentionally added to these products. We don’t yet understand the long-term health risks, and they’re not even being recorded as PFAS by the CDPR. That’s not being health-protective —it’s allowing permanent pollution in already overburdened communities. That’s why AB 1603 is so important,” said Angel Garcia, Co-Director of the statewide coalition Californians for Pesticide Reform.
While the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency approves pesticides for use nationally, California has the authority to independently evaluate and restrict pesticide use within the state. To date, California has not taken comprehensive action to address PFAS pesticides, even as other governments have begun to restrict their use. The European Union has already disallowed nearly two dozen PFAS pesticides that are widely used in California agriculture.
AB 1603 would begin to close that gap by halting new PFAS pesticide approvals, requiring transparency while these products remain in use, and ultimately phasing them out entirely. Supporters say the bill represents a critical step toward protecting California’s food supply, drinking water, and frontline communities from long-lasting chemical contamination.
“The chemical industry’s insatiable greed has turned all of our bodies into sacrifice zones, especially in predominantly Latino farmworking communities, for profit-driven motives,” said Sakereh Maskal, Policy and Advocacy Director of the Pesticide Action & Agroecology Network. “Given that 98% of [U.S.] American bodies contain some level of PFAS, it’s clear that the chemical industry will stop at nothing to prioritize profit over people.”
“The scale of this contamination is staggering,” said Susan Little, EWG’s Legislative Director in California. “Millions of pounds of PFAS are used on everyday California crops without any plan to phase them out.”
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Californians for Pesticide Reform (CPR) is a diverse, statewide coalition of 200+ member groups working to strengthen pesticide policies in California to protect public health and the environment. Member groups include public and children’s health advocates, clean air and water groups, health practitioners, environmental justice groups, labor, education, farmers and sustainable agriculture advocates from across the state.