[Congressional Bills 106th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 269 Introduced in House (IH)]







106th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                H. R. 269

   To amend the Public Health Service Act with respect to employment 
opportunities in the Department of Health and Human Services for women 
              who are scientists, and for other purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                            January 6, 1999

Ms. Slaughter introduced the following bill; which was referred to the 
                         Committee on Commerce

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
   To amend the Public Health Service Act with respect to employment 
opportunities in the Department of Health and Human Services for women 
              who are scientists, and for other purposes.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``HHS Women Scientist Employment 
Opportunity Act''.

SEC. 2. WOMEN'S SCIENTIFIC EMPLOYMENT.

    The Public Health Service Act (42 U.S.C. 201 et seq.) is amended by 
adding at the end the following title:

``TITLE XXVIII--WOMEN'S SCIENTIFIC EMPLOYMENT WITH DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH 
                           AND HUMAN SERVICES

``SEC. 2801. WOMEN'S SCIENTIFIC EMPLOYMENT.

    ``(a) In General.--
            ``(1) In general.--For each agency specified in paragraph 
        (2), the Secretary, in collaboration with the head of the 
        agency, shall--
                    ``(A) establish policies for the agency on matters 
                relating to the employment by the agency of women as 
                scientists, and periodically review and as appropriate 
                revise such policies; and
                    ``(B) monitor the extent of compliance with such 
                policies and take appropriate action in cases in which 
                the Secretary determines that the policies have been 
                violated.
            ``(2) Specified agencies.--The agencies referred to in 
        paragraph (1) are the National Institutes of Health, the 
        Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the Food and Drug 
        Administration, and such other agencies or offices of the 
        Department of Health and Human Services as the Secretary 
        determines to be appropriate.
    ``(b) Certain Functions.--
            ``(1) In general.--In carrying out subsection (a) with 
        respect to a specified agency, the Secretary shall provide for 
        the following:
                    ``(A) Determining the concerns of women scientists 
                employed at the agency.
                    ``(B) Developing a policy defining the standard 
                tenure process for employment at the agency.
                    ``(C) Determining the reason for departure from the 
                agency by interviewing women and men scientists as they 
                leave.
                    ``(D) Distributing yearly to all employees of the 
                agency copies of the policy of the agency on flexible 
                family leave.
                    ``(E) Monitoring the number of women, including 
                minority women, included on the committees, panels, and 
                other working groups (and in meetings) of the agency.
                    ``(F) Making efforts to recruit minority women, 
                based on the small numbers of tenured minority women 
                scientists.
                    ``(G) Developing additional goals related to women 
                and minority women scientists at the agency.
            ``(2) Agency-specific provisions.--With respect to the 
        National Institutes of Health, in carrying out subsection (a), 
        the Secretary shall (in addition to activities under paragraph 
        (1)) provide for the implementation of the recommendations of 
        the group known as the Task Force on the Status of NIH 
        Intramural Women Scientists.
    ``(c) Inclusion of Women on Intramural and Extramural Conferences 
and Other Groups.--
            ``(1) In general.--The Secretary shall establish a policy 
        at each specified agency of requiring inclusion of women 
        scientists in greater numbers on or in conferences, workshops, 
        meetings, international congresses, and other groups funded or 
        sponsored by the agency. Such policy shall provide for the 
        inclusion of not less than one woman scientist in each such 
        group, except as provided in paragraph (2). This paragraph 
        applies whether such groups are held for employees of the 
        agency headquarters, for employees of field offices, or both.
            ``(2) Exclusion; written explanation.--The policy 
        established in paragraph (1) may provide that no woman 
        scientist will be included in a group for purposes of such 
        paragraph if the Secretary provides a waiver of the 
        requirement. The Secretary may grant such a waiver only if--
                    ``(A) the individual with the chief responsibility 
                for the group involved submits to the Secretary a 
                written request for the waiver and the request provides 
                an explanation of the reasons underlying the need for 
                the waiver; and
                    ``(B) the Secretary makes a determination that 
                extraordinary circumstances justify providing the 
                waiver.
    ``(d) Study on Pay Equity.--
            ``(1) In general.--For each specified agency, the Secretary 
        shall provide for a study to identify any pay differences among 
        men and women scientists employed by the agency, both tenured 
        and untenured. The study shall include recommendations on 
        measures to adjust any disparities or inequities, and shall 
        identify a program to communicate information on salary ranges 
        to all employees.
            ``(2) Report.--Not later than 240 days after the date of 
        the enactment of the HHS Women Scientist Employment Opportunity 
        Act, the Secretary shall complete the study required in 
        paragraph (1) and submit to the Committee on Commerce of the 
        House of Representatives, and to the Committee on Labor and 
        Human Resources of the Senate, a report describing the findings 
        made as a result of the study.
    ``(e) Definitions.--For purposes of this section, the term 
`specified agency' means an agency specified in subsection (a)(2).
    ``(f) Authorization of Appropriations.--For the purpose of carrying 
out this section, there are authorized to be appropriated such sums as 
may be necessary for each of the fiscal years 2000 through 2002.''.
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