title
RESOLUTION AUTHORIZING THE COUNTY’S PARTICIPATION IN THE SETTLEMENT OF LITIGATION PENDING IN FEDERAL DISTRICT COURT, PURSUANT TO N.J.S.A. 40:20-1
body
WHEREAS, the County of Passaic (“County”) is a body politic and corporate pursuant to N.J.S.A. 40:18-1 and vested with all rights contained therein; and
WHEREAS, pursuant to N.J.S.A. 40:20-1, the Board of County Commissioners of the County of Passaic (“Board”) is vested with managing the property, finances, and affairs of the County; and
WHEREAS, the State of New Jersey, operating through the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection (“DEP”), is a Plaintiff in litigation against certain E.I. DuPont companies (“DuPont”) and the 3M Company (“3M,” and, together “the Defendants”), in several matters and under several docket numbers in the United States District Court for the Districts of New Jersey and South Carolina; and
WHEREAS, the State and the Defendants settled that litigation, the terms of which are set forth in two Judicial Consent Orders (“JCOs”) presently pending judicial approval in the United States District Court for the District of New Jersey; and
WHEREAS, in addition to resolving the State’s claims against the 3M and DuPont Defendants in the subject litigations, the State also overextended the legal doctrine of parens patriae to the exclusion of the Counties in resolving all New Jersey political subdivision claims, whether past, present, and future, against 3M and DuPont for PFAS contamination; and
WHEREAS, in anticipation of a final approval hearing before Chief Judge Bumb, some county governments filed papers with the United States District Court for the District of New Jersey to intervene and object to the entry of the JCOs. The County Intervenors/Objectors argued that the terms of the JCOs with respect to the county governments were unreasonable because county governments were not guaranteed any funding from the State’s settlement of their claims against the 3M and DuPont Defendants and instead would be required to apply to the State for funding to be provided at its discretion; and
WHEREAS, Chief Judge Bumb held an in-person hearing on the approval of the JCOs in January 2026, at which time outside counsel for several counties presented oral argument in opposition to the entry of the JCOs. At the conclusion of the hearing, the Court authorized a period of negotiations between the county governments, the State and the Defendants to attempt to revise the terms of the settlements. Eighteen of New Jersey’s twenty-one counties participated in negotiations (“Participating Counties”); and
WHEREAS, the County operates a fire training academy, and the County is currently investigating the discharge of AFFF and PFAS that was utilized there, as well as the extent of required cleanup of AFFF and PFAS contamination in soil, groundwater, and surface water, and the County has potential claims against the 3M and DuPont Defendants to recover such investigation and cleanup costs; and
WHEREAS, as a result of the Participating Counties’ settlement negotiations with the State, the JCO settlements between the State and the 3M and DuPont Defendants are proposed to be revised. Specifically, the State will file an Implementation Plan with the Court outlining the terms of the Participating Counties’ settlement with the State set forth in a Confidential Term Sheet to be attached to the filing. The Confidential Term Sheet provides that the State shall direct the Settling Defendants, as defined in the JCOs (the 3M and DuPont Defendants), to pay the Participating Counties certain funds in annual installments (“Settlement Funds”) directly into a Qualified Settlement Fund for the Counties’ use described below; and
WHEREAS, the Settlement Funds will be used by the Participating Counties for the sole purpose of investigating and remediating PFAS contamination at county-owned fire training academies and airports where PFAS contamination is known or suspected, or at other county-owned property that requires PFAS investigation or abatement work as approved by DEP, which approval will not be unreasonably withheld; and
WHEREAS, the Participating Counties must accept or reject the terms of the proposed settlement in accordance with forthcoming deadlines established by the Court; and
WHEREAS, the terms of the proposed settlement have been reviewed by County Counsel, as well as the Keefe Law Firm (which was retained by the County on February 24, 2026 pursuant to Resolution No. R-26-0151 to represent the County in connection with litigation on PFAS contamination within the County), and the proposed settlement and revisions to the proposed JCOs are recommended as advantageous and in the best interests of the County and its taxpayers; and
WHEREAS, this matter was presented to the Administration and Finance Committee and is being recommended to the Board for approval.
NOW, THEREFORE, LET IT BE RESOLVED, pursuant to N.J.S.A. 40:20-1, the Board of County Commissioners of the County of Passaic authorizes the County’s acceptance of the proposed settlement and proposed revisions to the JCOs described in this Resolution.
LET IT BE FURTHER RESOLVED, that the Clerk of the Board, County Counsel, County Administrator, Chief Financial Officer, and Director of the Board are authorized to take any action necessary to carry out the purpose of this Resolution, including authorizing outside legal counsel to sign documents for the purpose of memorializing the County’s acceptance of the above-referenced proposed settlement.
NB April 28, 2026