<?xml version="1.0" encoding="UTF-8"?><BillSummaries>
<item congress="115" measure-type="hr" measure-number="4114" measure-id="id115hr4114" originChamber="HOUSE" orig-publish-date="2017-10-24" update-date="2019-03-21">
<title>Environmental Justice Act of 2017</title>
<summary summary-id="id115hr4114v00" currentChamber="HOUSE" update-date="2019-03-21">
<action-date>2017-10-24</action-date>
<action-desc>Introduced in House</action-desc>
<summary-text><![CDATA[<p><b>Environmental Justice Act of 2017</b></p> <p>This bill requires agencies to address the disproportionate impact of environmental and human health hazards on communities of color, indigenous communities, and low-income communities resulting from agencies' programs and policies.</p> <p>This bill provides statutory authority for: </p> <ul> <li>the interagency Federal Working Group on Environmental Justice,</li> <li>certain environmental justice requirements established under Executive Order 12898, </li> <li>a guidance titled &quot;Environmental Justice Guidance Under the National Environmental Policy Act,&quot; </li> <li>a guidance titled &quot;EPA Policy on Consultation and Coordination with Indian Tribes: Guidance for Discussing Tribal Treaty Rights,&quot;</li> <li>the National Environmental Justice Advisory Council, </li> <li>the Environmental Justice Small Grants Program, </li> <li>the Environmental Justice Collaborative Problem-Solving Cooperative Agreement Program, and</li> <li>the Community Action for a Renewed Environment grant programs. </li> </ul> <p>The bill amends the Federal Water Pollution Control Act (commonly known as the Clean Water Act) to require the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to address potential cumulative impacts of pollutant discharges when issuing or renewing permits under the National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System permit program. The bill amends the Clean Air Act to require the EPA to address potential cumulative impacts of a major stationary source of air pollutants when issuing or renewing permits for those sources.</p> <p>The bill states that the authorization to bring citizen suits under certain environmental laws does not preclude the right of an individual to bring a civil action for deprivation of implied rights under those laws or common law. The bill amends the Civil Rights Act of 1964 to allow a person aggrieved by the failure of a covered entity to comply with the Act to bring an action against the entity in a federal or state court for discriminatory practices.</p>]]></summary-text>
</summary>
</item>
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<dc:language>EN</dc:language>
<dc:rights>Pursuant to Title 17 Section 105 of the United States Code, this file is not subject to copyright protection and is in the public domain.</dc:rights>
<dc:contributor>Congressional Research Service, Library of Congress</dc:contributor>
<dc:description>This file contains bill summaries for federal legislation. A bill summary describes the most significant provisions of a piece of legislation and details the effects the legislative text may have on current law and federal programs. Bill summaries are authored by the Congressional Research Service (CRS) of the Library of Congress. As stated in Public Law 91-510 (2 USC 166 (d)(6)), one of the duties of CRS is "to prepare summaries and digests of bills and resolutions of a public general nature introduced in the Senate or House of Representatives". For more information, refer to the User Guide that accompanies this file.</dc:description>
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</BillSummaries>
