[Congressional Bills 108th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 1483 Introduced in House (IH)]






108th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                H. R. 1483

To require certain studies regarding the health effects of exposure to 
 depleted uranium munitions, to require the cleanup and mitigation of 
 depleted uranium contamination at sites of depleted uranium munition 
    use and production in the United States, and for other purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                             March 27, 2003

 Mr. McDermott (for himself, Mr. Rangel, Mr. Markey, Mr. Conyers, Mrs. 
Jones of Ohio, Ms. Lee, and Ms. Baldwin) introduced the following bill; 
  which was referred to the Committee on Energy and Commerce, and in 
    addition to the Committee on Armed Services, 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 require certain studies regarding the health effects of exposure to 
 depleted uranium munitions, to require the cleanup and mitigation of 
 depleted uranium contamination at sites of depleted uranium munition 
    use and production in the United States, 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; TABLE OF CONTENTS.

    (a) Short Title.--This Act may be cited as the ``Depleted Uranium 
Munitions Study Act of 2003'' .
    (b) Table of Contents.--The table of contents of this Act is as 
follows:

Sec. 1. Short title; table of contents.
Sec. 2. Findings.
Sec. 3. Purposes.
Sec. 4. Study of health effects of exposure to depleted uranium.
Sec. 5. EPA studies of environmental contamination by depleted uranium.
Sec. 6. Environmental mitigation and cleanup requirements for depleted 
                            uranium.

SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

     Congress finds the following:
            (1) The highest regard should be given to the health and 
        safety of the members of the United States Armed Forces.
            (2) Depleted uranium, a toxic, carcinogenic, and 
        radioactive material with a half-life of 4,500,000,000 years, 
        is used as an ingredient in various munitions used by the 
        United States Armed Forces.
            (3) Depleted uranium munitions were used by the United 
        States Armed Forces in 1991 during the Persian Gulf War and 
        during the conflicts in the former Federal Republic of 
        Yugoslavia (Bosnia, Kosovo, Serbia, and Montenegro) during the 
        1990s, with approximately 300 metric tons of depleted uranium 
        being used during the Persian Gulf War, approximately three 
        metric tons being used in Bosnia, and approximately nine metric 
        tons being used in Kosovo, Serbia, and Montenegro.
            (4) Among the characteristics of depleted uranium munitions 
        are that--
                    (A) they are pyrophoric, resulting in the munition 
                burning upon impact with a target; and
                    (B) the impact of a depleted uranium munition on a 
                target creates aerosol particles, which can be inhaled.
            (5) The United States has provided or sold depleted uranium 
        and depleted uranium munitions to allied nations, and the armed 
        forces of the United Kingdom used depleted uranium munitions 
        during the Persian Gulf War.
            (6) Depleted uranium munitions have been used at numerous 
        United States military installations, proving grounds, and 
        testing facilities.
            (7) No definitive cause has been established for the 
        various illnesses (commonly referred to as Gulf War Syndrome) 
        that affect approximately 130,000 members and former members of 
        the United States Armed Forces who served in Southwest Asia 
        during the Persian Gulf War.
            (8) The Iraqi Government has claimed that depleted uranium 
        from depleted uranium munitions is affecting the health of 
        their people, although such claims have not been independently 
        verified.
            (9) The United States Navy and the British Royal Navy are 
        phasing out use of depleted uranium munitions, and the Canadian 
        Navy has ceased using depleted uranium munitions.
            (10) It has been reported that depleted uranium munitions 
        use has proliferated to more than 20 nations.
            (11) The 1949 Geneva Convention specifically outlines the 
        precautions warring nations must take to avoid harming civilian 
        populations, and it would be a violation of the 1977 Protocol 
        to that Convention to cause superfluous injury or unnecessary 
        suffering to civilians, as depleted uranium munitions may 
        cause.

SEC. 3. PURPOSES.

     The purposes of this Act are--
            (1) to provide for studies of--
                    (A) the health effects resulting from exposure to 
                depleted uranium munitions by inhalation, ingestion, or 
                injection; and
                    (B) environmental contamination caused by depleted 
                uranium at sites where depleted uranium was used in 
                conflict, development, testing, or training and at 
                sites where depleted uranium and depleted uranium 
                munitions were produced; and
            (2) to require the cleanup and mitigation of depleted 
        uranium contamination at sites of depleted uranium munition use 
        and production in the United States.

SEC. 4. STUDY OF HEALTH EFFECTS OF EXPOSURE TO DEPLETED URANIUM.

    (a) Study.--The Director of the Agency for Toxic Substances and 
Disease Registry and the Director of the Center for Disease Control and 
Prevention shall jointly conduct a comprehensive study of the health 
effects of exposure to depleted uranium munitions on uranium-exposed 
veterans and on children of uranium-exposed veterans who were born 
after the exposure of the uranium-exposed veterans to depleted uranium.
    (b) Uranium-Exposed Veterans.--In this section, the term ``uranium-
exposed veteran'' means a member or former member of the United States 
Armed Forces who handled, came in contact with, or had the likelihood 
of contact with depleted uranium munitions while on active duty, 
including members and former members who--
            (1) were exposed to smoke from fires resulting from the 
        burning of vehicles containing depleted uranium munitions or 
        fires at depots at which depleted uranium munitions were 
        stored;
            (2) worked within environments containing depleted uranium 
        dust or residues from depleted uranium munitions;
            (3) were within a structure or vehicle while it was struck 
        by a depleted uranium munition;
            (4) climbed on or entered equipment or structures struck by 
        a depleted uranium munition; or
            (5) were medical personnel who provided initial treatment 
        to members of the Armed Forces described in paragraph (1), (2), 
        (3), or (4).
    (c) Public Health Assessment.--The Directors also shall jointly 
conduct a public health assessment of persons who are thought to have 
an epidemiological link--
            (1) to any United States military installation or facility 
        at which depleted uranium munitions have been, or currently 
        are, used; and
            (2) any production facility in the United States at which 
        depleted uranium or depleted uranium munitions are currently, 
        or have been, produced.
    (d) Report.--Not later than two years after the date of the 
enactment of this Act, the Directors shall submit to Congress a report 
on the results of the study under subsection (a) and the assessment 
under subsection (c). The Directors shall include in the report a list 
of diseases or conditions that are found to exist within the 
populations specified in subsection (a) and their rate of occurrence 
compared to the general population.

SEC. 5. EPA STUDIES OF ENVIRONMENTAL CONTAMINATION BY DEPLETED URANIUM.

    (a) List of Depleted Uranium Sites in United States.--Not later 
than 180 days after the date of the enactment of this Act, the 
Secretary of Defense shall provide to the Administrator of the 
Environmental Protection Agency a list of all sites in the United 
States where depleted uranium munitions have been used or produced and 
a site-specific map of each site.
    (b) EPA Studies.--After receipt of the list and maps under 
subsection (a), the Administrator shall conduct a comprehensive 
environmental study of each site specified on the list evaluating the 
possible contamination of the soil, air, water, and vegetation by 
depleted uranium at that site.
    (c) Report.--Not later than two years after the date of the 
enactment of this Act, the Administrator shall submit to the Secretary 
of Defense and the Committee on Armed Services and the Committee on 
Government Reform of the House of Representatives and the Committee on 
Armed Services and the Committee on Governmental Affairs of the Senate 
a report--
            (1) describing the extent of contamination by depleted 
        uranium at each site studied by the Administrator pursuant to 
        subsection (b);
            (2) providing site-specific recommendations for the 
        mitigation and cleanup of each such site; and
            (3) providing general recommendations regarding the cleanup 
        of sites where depleted uranium has been used on foreign lands.

SEC. 6. ENVIRONMENTAL MITIGATION AND CLEANUP REQUIREMENTS FOR DEPLETED 
              URANIUM.

    (a) Department of Defense Cleanup Plan.--Not later than one year 
after receiving the report required by section 5(c), the Secretary of 
Defense shall develop a plan for the mitigation and cleanup of depleted 
uranium at those sites covered by the report. The plan shall include a 
prioritized schedule for the mitigation and cleanup of such sites. The 
Secretary shall submit a copy of the plan to the Committee on Armed 
Services and the Committee on Government Reform of the House of 
Representatives and the Committee on Armed Services and the Committee 
on Governmental Affairs of the Senate.
    (b) Cleanup.--After filing the plan under subsection (a), the 
Secretary of Defense shall commence, directly or by contract, the 
mitigation and cleanup of depleted uranium at each site covered by the 
report required by section 5(c). The mitigation and cleanup shall be 
conducted in the manner and scope specified in the report.
    (c) Applicability of NEPA.--The cleanup and mitigation required by 
subsection (b) shall be carried out in a manner consistent with the 
National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 (42 U.S.C. 4321 et seq.), 
notwithstanding any exemption to any of the provisions of that Act for 
the Department of Defense or any element thereof.
    (d) Progress Reports.--The Secretary of Defense shall submit annual 
progress reports to the the Administrator of the Environmental 
Protection Agency and the congressional committees specified in 
subsection (a) until the mitigation and cleanup of depleted uranium at 
those sites covered by the report required by section 5(c) are 
complete.
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