By MICHAEL PHILLIS

In pain so bad he couldn’t stand, Chris Meek was rushed to the hospital with a life-threatening ruptured gallbladder. When he emerged from surgery, he learned he had kidney cancer that thankfully hadn’t yet spread.

Meek, a social studies teacher in Wilmington, North Carolina, was 47 at the time. But he remained confused for years about why, as someone seemingly not at risk, he had gotten cancer until Emily Donovan, a parent of students at his school, gave a guest talk about high levels of harmful forever chemicals known as PFAS in North Carolina’s environment. When Donovan mentioned kidney cancer, the possible cause of Meek’s diagnosis finally clicked.

Until then, Meek said, he “had no idea what PFAS was.”

Last year, the Environmental Protection Agency set the first federal drinking water limits for PFAS, or perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl substances, finding they increased the risk of cardiovascular disease, certain cancers and babies being born with low birth weight.

In a decision with consequences for tens of millions of Americans, the Trump administration is expected to soon say whether it intends to stand by those strict standards and defend the limits against a water utility industry challenge in federal court.

PFAS in drinking water created a crisis for many communities

In North Carolina, runoff from a Chemours plant contaminated the Cape Fear River, creating a crisis for cities like Wilmington that use it for drinking water. Amid public outcry, Wilmington effectively eliminated it from tap water.

Other U.S. communities — often near military bases or industrial sites — did the same when test results were frightening and public pressure, local leadership or state law forced PFAS-laden wells offline or prompted installation of expensive filtering systems, according to Mark White, drinking water global practice leader at the engineering firm CDM Smith.

The EPA said the PFAS found in North Carolina, often called GenX chemicals, can be toxic to the kidney. While other types of PFAS may raise kidney cancer risk, little research has focused on the link between kidney cancer and GenX, according to Sue Fenton, director of the Center for Human Health and the Environment at North Carolina State University. Chemours said evidence doesn’t support arguments that GenX at low levels is a health threat. The company has sharply reduced PFAS discharges.

So far, sampling has found nearly 12% of U.S. water utilities are above the recently set EPA limits, but most aren’t above by much. Forcing this group to reduce PFAS more than doubles the rule’s health benefits but roughly triples its costs, the EPA has said.

The Biden administration’s rule set standards for two common types of PFAS at 4 parts per trillion, effectively the lowest level at which they can be reliably detected. Standards for several other PFAS chemicals were set, too, and utilities must meet those levels by 2029.

PFAS have had wide uses over the decades

Manufactured by companies like Chemours and 3M, PFAS were incredibly useful in many applications -– among them, helping clothes to withstand rain and ensuring that firefighting foam snuffed out flames. But the chemicals also accumulate in the body. As science advanced in recent years, evidence of harm at far lower levels became clearer.

EPA Administrator Lee Zeldin has championed fossil fuels and the rollback of major clean air and water rules. His history with PFAS is more nuanced; during his time as a New York congressman, he supported legislation to regulate forever chemicals in drinking water.

“It’s an issue that touches people in a very tangible way across the political spectrum, including in Lee Zeldin’s former district,” said Melanie Benesh, vice president of government affairs at the nonprofit Environmental Working Group.

Zeldin has offered clues about what the EPA could do. The agency estimated the rule would cost about $1.5 billion annually and Zeldin said recently that communities struggling to afford a fix for PFAS that are just above the standard might be handled differently than wealthy places with lots of it.

“What we are going to have to be is extremely thoughtful in figuring this out,” he said.

On Monday, the EPA said it will establish an agency lead for PFAS, develop wastewater limits for PFAS manufacturers and investigate sources that pose an immediate danger to drinking water, among other actions.

EPA decision looms on whether to let the rule stay as it is

Soon, the EPA must tell a federal appeals court in Washington whether the rule should stand or be rewritten, although weakening it could be complicated because the Safe Drinking Water Act prevents new rules from being looser than previous ones. The agency could, however, encourage exemptions and deadline extensions, according to Erik Olson, an attorney with the nonprofit Natural Resources Defense Council supporting the current standards in the court case.

Consider Avondale, Arizona, outside of Phoenix, which produces PFAS results modestly above the limits. Officials have done detailed testing and are planning to enhance water treatment. All told, lowering PFAS may cost Avondale more than $120 million, according to Kirk Beaty, the city’s public utility director.

That’s money a city like Avondale “just doesn’t have sitting in a back room somewhere,” Beaty said, adding he’ll defer to federal experts to dictate what’s acceptable.

“We’re hoping we’re a little further ahead of everybody else. If the regulation changes, well you know, we may let off the gas a little bit, we may not,” he said, adding that it is hard to justify spending extra money to do more than what’s required when the cost falls on residents.

If the government decides higher amounts of PFAS are acceptable, that could confuse people, especially in areas where the public is already concerned.

“If we enter into a gray area over what’s healthy and what’s not healthy, then utilities are at risk of being caught up in a debate for which they have no real responsibility nor expertise to decide on,” said Karine Rougé, CEO for municipal water at Veolia North America, a water operations company.

Industry group says the rule goes too far and is too costly

The American Water Works Association, an industry group, filed the court challenge to the new rule. It agrees that certain PFAS should be regulated but argues the EPA’s standards go too far, underestimate costs and are “neither feasible nor cost-effective.” There are serious consequences for residents’ water bills, it says.

The burden of complying will fall heavily on small utilities that can least afford it. Many water providers already struggle to maintain their existing infrastructure, some experts say. On top of everything else, they face new requirements to replace lead pipes. The AWWA wants the EPA to extend the PFAS and lead deadlines by two years.

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There is money available to help. The Bipartisan Infrastructure Law provided $9 billion for chemicals like PFAS and utilities have won multibillion-dollar settlements against PFAS polluters that help as well.

Meek, who successfully recovered after surgery from cancer and is now 59, is planning to sue over his illness. He once didn’t second-guess using tap water. Now he reaches for bottled water.

Donovan, who introduced Meek to PFAS and helped start Clean Cape Fear, says if the government’s standards are weakened, it’ll relieve pressure on utilities to effectively treat the water.

Previously, “our local utilities could tell us publicly that the water met or exceeded all state and federal guidelines because there weren’t any,” she said.

The Associated Press receives support from the Walton Family Foundation for coverage of water and environmental policy. The AP is solely responsible for all content. For all of AP’s environmental coverage, visit https://apnews.com/hub/climate-and-environment

By JOSH BOAK and ALEXA ST. JOHN, Associated Press

WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump will sign an executive order Tuesday to relax some of his 25% tariffs on autos and auto parts, the White House said, a significant reversal as the import taxes threatened to hurt domestic manufacturers.

Automakers and independent analyses have indicated that the tariffs could raise prices, reduce sales and make U.S. production less competitive worldwide. White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said at a Tuesday briefing that Trump would sign the order later in the day but declined to provide details on the order.

Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, who joined Leavitt at the White House briefing, said the goal was to enable automakers to create more domestic manufacturing jobs.

White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt speaks during a briefing with Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent at the White House, Tuesday, April 29, 2025, in Washington. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci)

“President Trump has had meetings with both domestic and foreign auto producers, and he’s committed to bringing back auto production to the U.S.,” Bessent said. “So we want to give the automakers a path to do that, quickly, efficiently and create as many jobs as possible.”

Stellantis Chairman John Elkann said in a statement that the company appreciates the president’s tariff relief measures.

“While we further assess the impact of the tariff policies on our North American operations, we look forward to our continued collaboration with the U.S. Administration to strengthen a competitive American auto industry and stimulate exports,” he said.

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The Wall Street Journal reported that the order involves changes in how the import taxes would be enforced to prevent multiple tariffs from being charged on foreign-made vehicles and reducing tariffs on parts imported to make autos domestically. The changes would also be retroactive.

The tariffs imposed by Trump were seen by some as an existential threat to the auto sector. Arthur Laffer, whom Trump gave the Presidential Medal of Freedom to during his first term, said in a private analysis that the tariffs without any modifications could add $4,711 to the cost of a vehicle.

New vehicles sold at $47,462 on average last month, according to auto-buying resource Kelley Blue Book.

The modifications come as Trump marks 100 days back in the White House by going to Michigan, a state defined by auto manufacturing. Trump won the state in last year’s election by promising to increase factory jobs.

Still, it remains unclear what impact Trump’s broader tariffs will have on the U.S. economy and auto sales. Most economists say the tariffs — which could ultimately hit most imports — would raise prices and slow economic growth, possibly hurting auto sales despite the relief that the administration intends to offer on its previous policies.

St. John contributed from Detroit.

By PAUL WISEMAN, Associated Press Economics Writer

WASHINGTON (AP) — Job openings in the United States fell in March as President Donald Trump’s trade wars clouded the economic outlook.

U.S. employers posted 7.2 million vacancies in March, down from 7.5 million in February and 8.1 million in March 2024, the Labor Department reported Tuesday. It was the fewest number of openings since September and below the 7.5 million that economists had forecast.

But the department’s Job Openings and Labor Turnover Summary also showed that the number of Americans quitting their jobs — a sign of confidence in the economy — rose modestly. And layoffs fell to the lowest level since June.

Openings remain high by historical standards but have fallen steadily since peaking at 12.1 million in March 2022 when the economy was still bouncing back from COVID-19.

The American job market has proven remarkably resilient. Companies, nonprofits and government agencies continued hire in the face of high interest rates engineered by the Federal Reserve to combat a resurgence of inflation.

The economic outlook is uncertain, largely because of Trump’s policies — huge taxes on imports, purges of federal workers and the deportation of immigrants working in the United States illegally.

Still, federal job cuts by billionaire Elon Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency didn’t have much impact in the March numbers; federal layoffs actually dipped to 8,000 from February’s 19,000, which had been the most since November 2020.

“The job market is continuing to hold its own, but barely,” said Robert Frick, economist with the Navy Federal Credit Union. “While job openings dropped below forecasts, they haven’t hit a post-COVID low.

“Hiring holds steady and layoffs dipped a bit, showing that, overall, employers are clinging to the employees they have. But this is likely the calm before the storm, as layoffs are pending in government contractors and manufacturers, and other sectors affected by government layoffs and tariffs.”

By CHRISTOPHER RUGABER, AP Economics Writer

WASHINGTON (AP) — Americans’ confidence in the economy slumped for the fifth straight month to the lowest level since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic as anxiety over the impact of tariffs takes a heavy toll.

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The Conference Board said Tuesday that its consumer confidence index fell 7.9 points in April to 86, its lowest reading since May 2020. Nearly one-third of consumers expect hiring to slow in the coming months, nearly matching the level reached in April 2009, when the economy was mired in the Great Recession.

The figures reflect a rapidly souring mood among Americans, most of whom expect prices to rise because of the widespread tariffs imposed by President Donald Trump. About half of Americans are also worried about the potential for a recession, according to a survey by The Associated Press-NORC Center.

“Rattled consumers spend less than confident consumers,” said Carl Weinberg, chief economist at High Frequency Economics, in an email. “If confidence sags and consumers retrench, growth will go down.”

A measure of Americans’ short-term expectations for their income, business conditions and the job market plunged 12.5 points to 54.4, the lowest level in more than 13 years. The reading is well below 80, which typically signals a recession ahead.

How this gloomy mood translates into spending, hiring, and growth will become clearer in the coming days and weeks. On Wednesday, the government will report on U.S. economic growth during the first three months of the year, and economists are expecting a sharp slowdown as Americans pulled back on spending after a strong winter holiday shopping season.

And on Friday the Labor Department will release its latest report on hiring and the unemployment rate. Overall, economists expect it should still show steady job gains, though some forecast it could report sharply reduced hiring.

The stark decline in consumer confidence also likely reflected the sharp swings in stock and bond prices that roiled financial markets earlier this month. While all age groups and most income brackets reported lower confidence, the decline was steepest among households earning more than $125,000 and among consumers 35 to 55 years old.

Though major U.S. markets rebounded over the past week, the S&P 500 is still down 6% for the year and the Dow Jones has lost 5%. The growth-heavy Nasdaq is down 10% in 2025.

The Conference Board said that mentions of tariffs in write-in responses reached an all-time high this month, with the duties on the top of consumers’ minds. Trump has imposed a tariff of 10% on nearly all imports, as well as a huge 145% tariff on most goods from China. He has imposed separate import taxes on steel, aluminum, and cars.

More Americans are also now worried that the economy could tip into a recession, with the proportion of consumers expecting a downturn in the next 12 months reaching a two-year high.

Fewer consumers said they were planning to buy a home or car in the next six months. Sales of previously occupied U.S. homes slowed last month in a lackluster start to the spring homebuying season as elevated mortgage rates and rising prices discouraged those looking.

And Americans also said they would spend less on services. The proportion of Americans planning an overseas vacation in the next six months fell to 16.4%, down from 24.1% in December. And the proportion of consumers planning to spend more on dining out plummeted by nearly the most on record in April, the Conference Board said.