[Congressional Bills 105th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 4584 Introduced in House (IH)]







105th CONGRESS
  2d Session
                                H. R. 4584

    To promote environmental justice, public health, and pollution 
                           reduction efforts.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                           September 16, 1998

Mr. Lewis of Georgia (for himself, Mr. Miller of California, Mr. Brady 
of Pennsylvania, Ms. Norton, Mr. Clay, Mr. Bonior, Mr. Filner, and Ms. 
   Pelosi) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the 
      Committee on Commerce, and in addition to the Committees on 
 Transportation and Infrastructure, Agriculture, and Resources, for a 
 period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for 
consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the 
                          committee concerned

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
    To promote environmental justice, public health, and pollution 
                           reduction efforts.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,
    This Act may be cited as the ``Environmental Justice Act of 1998''.

SEC. 2. PURPOSES AND POLICIES.

    The purposes of this Act are--
            (1) to identify those areas which are subject to the 
        highest levels of toxic chemicals, through all media;
            (2) to require the collection of data on environmental 
        health effects so that impacts on different individuals or 
        groups can be understood;
            (3) to assess the health effects that may be caused by 
        emissions in those areas of highest impact;
            (4) to ensure that groups or individuals residing within 
        those areas of highest impact have the opportunity to 
        participate in developing solutions to environmental and health 
        problems confronting their community;
            (5) to promote technologies and practices that reduce or 
        eliminate pollution; and
            (6) to promote the development and maintenance of parks and 
        green open spaces in polluted communities.

       TITLE I--IDENTIFICATION OF ENVIRONMENTAL HIGH IMPACT AREAS

SEC. 101. DEFINITIONS.

    For the purposes of this Act:
            (1) Administrator.--The term ``Administrator'' means the 
        Administrator of the United States Environmental Protection 
        Agency.
            (2) Environmental high impact areas.--The terms 
        ``Environmental High Impact Areas'' and ``EHIA'' mean the 20 
        counties or other geographic units that are designated pursuant 
        to section 102.
            (3) Secretary.--The term ``Secretary'' means the Secretary 
        of the United States Department of Health and Human Services.
            (4) Toxic chemicals.--The term ``toxic chemicals'' includes 
        all substances as defined in section 101(14) of the 
        Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and 
        Liability Act of 1980; any hazardous waste listed or identified 
        pursuant to the Solid Waste Disposal Act; any pollutant for 
        which air quality standards have been issued pursuant to the 
        Clean Air Act; any pollutant for which water quality standards 
        have been issued pursuant to the Clean Water Act; any pollutant 
        for which a national primary drinking water regulation has been 
        issued pursuant to the Safe Drinking Water Act; all materials 
        registered pursuant to the Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and 
        Rodenticide Act; and all substances and chemicals subject to 
        reporting obligations pursuant to the Emergency Planning and 
        Community Right-to-Know Act. The Administrator may add other 
        substances as deemed appropriate.
            (5) Toxic chemical facilities.--The term ``toxic chemical 
        facilities'' includes all facilities including Federal 
        facilities subject to a permit, inspection or review, or 
        registration requirement pursuant to the authority of the Solid 
        Waste Disposal Act; the Clean Air Act; the Clean Water Act; the 
        Federal Insecticide, Fungicide and Rodenticide Act; and the 
        OSHA Hazard Communication Standard; as well as any facility 
        subject to reporting obligations pursuant to the Emergency 
        Planning and Community Right-to-Know Act. The Administrator 
        shall have the authority to examine the level of toxic 
        chemicals released into the environment by facilities not 
        currently subject to Federal review, inspection, or reporting 
        requirements if (A) a facility is believed to produce a high 
        level of environmental pollution, and (B) the Administrator is 
        petitioned by individuals or groups within such EHIA to conduct 
        the review.

SEC. 102. IDENTIFICATION OF ENVIRONMENTAL HIGH IMPACT AREAS.

    (a) Publication of Method.--Within 12 months after the enactment of 
this Act, the Administrator shall publish for public comment the method 
for selecting the EHIAs.
    (b) Compilation of List.--In selecting a methodology and compiling 
the list of EHIAs, the Administrator shall--
            (1) use the most recent data available;
            (2) take into account the relative toxicity of the toxic 
        chemicals;
            (3) determine, with the best available data, the actual and 
        potential exposures, and toxicity of the toxic chemicals 
        present in each impacted area;
            (4) consider and utilize all appropriate data compiled 
        pursuant to any environmental regulatory authority and other 
        sources, including but not limited to available data on lead-
        based paint and the existence of pollutants from mobile 
        sources;
            (5) distinguish between toxic chemicals which are (A) in a 
        contained, controlled environment such as barrels, factories, 
        warehouses, or lined landfills; and (B) released into the air, 
        water, soil or groundwater of the area; and
            (6) take into account the impact of pollution in high 
        population density areas.
    (c) Determination of Impacted Areas.--Within 18 months after the 
date of enactment of this Act, the Administrator shall publish a list 
of 20 Environmental High Impact Areas that are either counties or other 
appropriate geographic units in which high levels of chemicals are 
present and in which the population is exposed to such chemicals. The 
Administrator shall also take into consideration any geographical areas 
suggested for review by the Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease 
Registry, the National Center for Environmental Health, the National 
Center for Health Statistics, other appropriate Federal agencies, and 
State and local health authorities.
    (d) Revision and Republication.--The Administrator shall revise and 
republish the list described in subsection (a) of this section not less 
than every 5 years, using data compiled for that 5-year period.

                   TITLE II--ENFORCEMENT INITIATIVES

SEC. 201. MANDATORY INSPECTION.

    To assure that facilities with the highest potential for release of 
toxic chemicals into the environment are operating in compliance with 
all applicable environmental, health and safety standards, the 
Administrator, and the Assistant Secretary of the Occupational Safety 
and Health Administration shall conduct compliance inspections or 
reviews of all toxic chemical facilities in Environmental High Impact 
Areas subject to their respective jurisdictions within 1 year after the 
publication of each list of EHIAs under title I.

                   TITLE III--COMMUNITY PARTICIPATION

SEC. 301. TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE GRANTS.

    The Administrator shall make a technical assistance grant available 
to any individual or group of individuals in an EHIA. Such grants shall 
be used to seek guidance from independent experts for the purpose of 
improving understanding of environmental and health concerns related to 
designation as an EHIA. Not more than one grant may be made with 
respect to each EHIA, but the grant may be renewed to facilitate public 
participation where necessary.

       TITLE IV--IDENTIFICATION AND PREVENTION OF HEALTH IMPACTS

SEC. 401. SECRETARIAL STUDY.

    Within 2 years after the publication of each list of EHIAs, under 
title I, the Secretary shall issue for public comment a report 
identifying the methodology used and nature and extent, if any, of 
acute and chronic impacts on human health in EHIAs as compared to non-
EHIAs, including impacts on subgroups within EHIAs. Such impacts shall 
include but not be limited to cancer, birth deformities, infant 
mortality rates, and respiratory diseases. The report shall be 
coordinated by the Administrator of the Agency for Toxic Substances and 
Disease Registry and shall involve the community being assessed. The 
ATSDR shall work closely with the Directors of the National Institute 
for Environmental Health Sciences, the National Center for Health 
Statistics, and other appropriate Federal agencies to coordinate the 
report, relying on the expertise of leading health and environmental 
scientists. The health assessment shall seek to--
            (1) isolate the impacts of environmental pollution;
            (2) segregate the effects of other factors such as health 
        care availability or substance abuse or diet;
            (3) evaluate the levels below which release of toxic 
        chemicals, either individually or cumulatively, must be reduced 
        to avoid adverse impacts on human health; and
            (4) determine the impacts of uncontrolled releases.
In conducting health assessments, the Administrator of the Agency for 
Toxic Substances and Disease Registry and other Federal agencies shall 
consider: the differential sensitivities to exposures for vulnerable 
groups; the effects of low levels of a toxin over a period of time; 
cumulative and synergistic effects of multiple toxins; and 
methodological issues for studying exposures and diseases among small 
numbers of people, including units of measurement and analyses 
sensitive to disease clusters; and demographic information relevant for 
a determination of environmental justice concerns. As a result of the 
report in communities where the Administrator of the Agency for Toxic 
Substances Disease Registry has determined that adverse health impacts 
exist, the agency shall also make this information readily available to 
members of the community by providing information directly to the 
affected communities and tribal governments in the Environmental High 
Impact Areas.

SEC. 402. MORATORIUM.

    If the report under section 401 finds significant adverse impacts 
of environmental pollution on human health in EHIAs, there shall be a 
moratorium on the siting or permitting of any new toxic chemical 
facility in any EHIA shown to emit toxic chemicals in quantities found 
to cause significant adverse impacts on human health. A new toxic 
chemical facility may be cited or permitted in such an EHIA during this 
period only if the Secretary and Administrator agree that--
            (1) there will be no significant adverse impacts to human 
        health;
            (2) the owner or operator of the facility demonstrates that 
        the facility has developed a plan to maintain a comprehensive 
        pollution prevention program; and
            (3) the facility demonstrates that it will minimize 
        uncontrolled releases into the environment.
The moratorium shall continue in effect in such an EHIA until the 
Administrator determines, upon petition of any interested party, that 
the health-based levels identified pursuant to section 401(5) have been 
attained at the EHIA.

                        TITLE V--HEALTH REMEDIES

SEC. 501. HEALTH SCREENING AND TREATMENT GRANTS.

    Within 1 year after the Secretary's biennial health assessment is 
released, in EHIAs shown to have adverse health outcomes related to 
environmental exposures, the Secretary shall establish a grant program 
to make available to public and nonprofit private entities awards for 
the purposes of providing community-wide medical screening and 
diagnostic services for environmentally related illnesses. Treatment 
services shall be provided for community residents with environmentally 
related illnesses if they lack private or public health insurance, and 
shall continue as long as medically necessary. Following community 
screening, the Secretary shall initiate a review of medical services 
within EHIAs to determine if the area or population would qualify as 
``medically underserved'' or a ``health professional shortage area''.

                     TITLE VI--POLLUTION REDUCTION

SEC. 601. POLLUTION REDUCTION/PREVENTION GRANTS.

    In EHIAs where the Secretary has determined that adverse health 
outcomes are related to environmental exposures, the Administrator 
shall immediately take efforts to reduce pollution in the area. The 
Administrator shall first make available to States with EHIAs pollution 
reduction/prevention grants which will involve community 
representatives, public health experts, local business, and government 
officials located within the EHIA in developing effective pollution 
reduction strategies. If within 1 year, the Administrator determines 
that significant steps have not been made to reduce pollution and risk 
to human health, the Administrator may take regulatory steps to reduce 
pollution in the area.

                  TITLE VII--PROMOTION OF GREEN SPACE

SEC. 701. DEVELOPMENT OF PARKS OR RECREATIONAL AREAS.

    Within 1 year after the Secretary's biennial health assessment is 
released, the Secretary of the Interior shall establish a grant program 
to make available to local public or nonprofit private entities within 
EHIAs awards for the development of parks and recreational spaces, and 
provide guidance for promoting environmentally sound use of the land.

                          TITLE VIII--FUNDING

SEC. 801. FUNDING.

    There are authorized to be appropriated to carry out this Act such 
sums as may be necessary.
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