View Comments For a second time, U.S. Rep. Debbie Dingell, D-Dearborn, on Wednesday secured House passage of legislation that would combat contamination across the country by PFAS, the so-called "forever chemicals" once prevalent in household items and fire-retardant materials that have been linked to health problems. The bill, with Dingell as its prime sponsor, passed 241-182, with 23 Republicans joining the Democratic majority to approve the measure. It now goes to the Senate, where its chances of passage have increased with Democrats in marginal control of the chamber. While the legislation touches on many aspects of regulating PFAS — which is short for per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances, the bonds of which are so strong they don't degrade or do so only slowly in the environment — the main parts of the bill would require the federal government to label the two most widely known chemicals as hazardous and require national drinking water standards to be developed.