[Congressional Bills 106th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 5514 Introduced in House (IH)]







106th CONGRESS
  2d Session
                                H. R. 5514

   To amend the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act to require the 
Secretary of Health and Human Services to establish a tolerance for the 
     presence of methyl mercury in seafood, and for other purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                            October 19, 2000

 Mr. Pallone introduced the following bill; which was referred to the 
                         Committee on Commerce

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
   To amend the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act to require the 
Secretary of Health and Human Services to establish a tolerance for the 
     presence of methyl mercury in seafood, 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 ``Seafood Safety and Mercury Screening 
Act of 2000''.

SEC. 2. REQUIREMENT OF ESTABLISHMENT OF TOLERANCE FOR METHYL MERCURY IN 
              SEAFOOD.

    Chapter IV of the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act (21 U.S.C. 
341 et seq.) is amended--
            (1) in section 402(a)(2)(A), by inserting ``methyl mercury 
        in seafood,'' after ``food additive,'';
            (2) in section 402(a)(2), by inserting after ``section 512; 
        or'' the following: ``(D) if it is seafood that bears or 
        contains methyl mercury that is unsafe within the meaning of 
        section 406A(a); or''; and
            (3) by inserting after section 406 the following section:

               ``tolerance for methyl mercury in seafood

    ``Sec. 406A. (a) In General.--Not later than one year after the 
date of the enactment of the Seafood Safety and Mercury Screening Act 
of 2000, the Secretary shall by regulation establish a tolerance for 
the presence of methyl mercury in seafood, which shall be based on a 
scientific analysis of the health risks attributable to such substance. 
Any seafood containing methyl mercury shall be deemed unsafe for 
purposes of section 402(a)(2)(D) unless the quantity of such substance 
is within the limits of the tolerance.
    ``(b) Standard.--
            ``(1) In general.--The Secretary shall ensure that the 
        tolerance under subsection (a) is safe, and shall modify or 
        revoke the tolerance if the Secretary determines that it is not 
        safe.
            ``(2) Determination of safety.--As used in this section, 
        the term `safe', with respect to a tolerance for methyl mercury 
        in seafood, means that the Secretary has determined that there 
        is a reasonable certainty that no harm will result from 
        aggregate exposure to methyl mercury, including all anticipated 
        dietary exposures and all other exposures for which there is 
        reliable information.
    ``(c) Pregnant Women, Infants, and Children.--In establishing or 
modifying a tolerance under subsection (a), the Secretary shall ensure 
that there is a reasonable certainty that no harm will result to 
pregnant women, infants, and children from aggregate exposure to methyl 
mercury.
    ``(d) Sampling System.--Not later than 18 months after the date of 
the enactment of the Seafood Safety and Mercury Screening Act of 2000, 
the Secretary, after consultation with the Secretary of Agriculture, 
shall establish a system for the ongoing collection and analysis of 
samples of seafood to determine the extent of compliance with the 
tolerance under subsection (a). Such system shall provide statistically 
valid monitoring, including market-basket studies, with respect to such 
compliance.
    ``(e) Public Education and Advisory System.--
            ``(1) Public education.--The Secretary, in cooperation with 
        private and public organizations, including the cooperative 
        extension services and appropriate State entities, shall design 
        and implement a national public education program regarding the 
        presence of methyl mercury in seafood. The program shall 
        provide--
                    ``(A) information to the public regarding Federal 
                standards and good practice requirements and promotion 
                of public awareness understanding and acceptance of 
                such standards and requirements;
                    ``(B) information to health professionals so that 
                they may improve diagnosis and treatment of mercury-
                related illness and advise individuals whose health 
                conditions place them in particular risk; and
                    ``(C) such other information or advice to consumers 
                and other persons as the Secretary determines will 
                promote the purposes of this section.
            ``(2) Health advisories.--The Secretary, in consultation 
        with the Secretary of Agriculture and the Administrator of the 
        Environmental Protection Agency, shall work with the States and 
        other appropriate entities to--
                    ``(A) develop and distribute regional and national 
                advisories concerning the presence of methyl mercury in 
                seafood.;
                    ``(B) develop standardized formats for written and 
                broadcast advisories regarding methyl mercury in 
                seafood; and
                    ``(C) incorporate State and local advisories into 
                the national public education program required in 
                paragraph (1).''.

SEC. 3. CONSIDERATION OF REPORT OF NATIONAL ACADEMY OF SCIENCES.

    In carrying out section 406A of the Federal Food, Drug, and 
Cosmetic Act (as added by the amendment made by section 2 of this Act), 
the Secretary of Health and Human Services, acting through the 
Commissioner of Food and Drugs, shall consider the findings made by the 
National Academy of Sciences regarding the Environmental Protection 
Agency's recommended level for methyl mercury exposure and the presence 
of methyl mercury in seafood, as such findings are described in the 
report issued by such Academy in July 2000.

SEC. 4. REPORT.

    Not later than 180 days after the date of the enactment of this 
Act, the Secretary of Health and Human Services, acting through the 
Commissioner of Food and Drugs, shall submit to the Congress a report 
on the progress of the Secretary in establishing the tolerance required 
by the amendments made by section 2. The report shall include a 
description of the research that has been conducted with respect to the 
tolerance.
                                 <all>