Wausau council rejects proposal to sell PFAS settlement payments, citing loss of funds and conflicts

The Wausau Common Council on Nov. 25 unanimously rejected a proposal to sell or assign future PFAS settlement payments to a buyer offering a discounted lump-sum payment. The motion to approve the master payment purchase agreement and joiner agreement failed on a roll call, 0-11.

Council debate centered on whether accepting a discounted lump sum would shortchange the city's recovery from PFAS-related claims. Alder Rasmussen opposed the deal, saying it would be "shortsighted" to collect less than the full settlement and warned that selling the future payments could forfeit a substantial portion of the recovery.

Alder Killian added that the proposal appeared to favor rapid cash at the cost of long-term value and questioned the timing and purpose: "This proposal doesn't appear to serve any long term interests or benefits for our residents ... we shouldn't be taking any action tonight that may lessen the amount we receive."

Alder Veil summarized the scale of the trade-off presented in the proposal, saying it amounted to "about $55,000 a year for 8 more years" and "in the aggregate, it is between $400,000 and $500,000." Council members also raised concerns that players associated with the law firm handling the class action could be connected to the buyers or sellers in the structured payment arrangement, and several members urged patience to collect the full settlement over time.

The motion to table the item until the next meeting was proposed but died for lack of a second. The primary motion to approve the agreement then failed, 0-11.

The failure means the city will not assign those future PFAS settlement payments under the terms presented and will instead retain the structured, recurring payments as arranged in the settlement documents unless a new proposal is brought forward.