Conference Agenda

Per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) are persistent synthetic chemicals detected widely in U.S. surface water, groundwater, and public drinking water systems, with growing evidence linking exposure to adverse health outcomes. Although the EPA introduced and then rescinded the national drinking water standards for selected PFAS, the economic benefits of mitigating PFAS via drinking water treatment remain largely unquantified. We estimate willingness to pay (WTP) for PFAS-free drinking water in U.S. using a contingent valuation survey administered online in August 2025 (N = 1,229). The survey uses a single-bound dichotomous-choice format to elicit support for a national program that would remove PFAS from all public drinking water systems, under scenarios of PFAS non-detection and detection in the respondent’s local system. Respondents are randomly assigned to receive information about PFAS exposure through everyday consumer products and to different question orders. We estimate WTP using logit models and complementary nonparametric methods. After excluding scope-inconsistent responses, perfect separation arises in fixed-effects specifications, which we address using Firth’s penalized likelihood estimator. Results show a negative and statistically significant bid effect and higher program support when PFAS are detected locally. Information about PFAS exposure via common consumer-products. Scaling estimated WTP to the U.S. household population implies aggregate benefits in the range of $87–$148 billion depending on local PFAS detection and information on exposure to PFAS via other goods. These benefits exceed available national cost estimates for compliance. The findings provide timely benefit estimates relevant to ongoing evaluation of PFAS drinking water standards.