110 HR 6068 IH: Don’t Let the Bed Bugs Bite Act of U.S. House of Representatives 2008-05-15 text/xml EN 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.

I 110th CONGRESS 2d Session H. R. 6068 IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES May 15, 2008 Mr. Butterfield (for himself, Mr. Young of Alaska, Mr. Payne, Ms. Matsui, and Mr. Jefferson) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Energy and Commerce A BILL To establish a grant program to assist States in inspecting hotel rooms for bed bugs.

1.

Short title

This Act may be cited as the Don’t Let the Bed Bugs Bite Act of 2008.

2.

Findings

Congress finds that— (1)on February 12, 2008, a thorough inspection of a hotel in Nashua, New Hampshire, found that 16 of 117 rooms were infested with bedbugs; (2)cimex lectularius, commonly known as bed bugs, travel through the ventilation systems in multi-unit establishments causing exponential infestations; (3)female bedbugs can lay up to 5 eggs in a day and 500 during a lifetime; (4)bedbug populations in the United States have increased by 500 percent in the past few years; (5)in 2004, New York City had 377 bedbug violations and from July to November of 2005, a 5-month span, there were 449 violations reported in the city, an alarming increase in infestations over a short period of time; (6)in a study of 700 hotel rooms between 2002 and 2006, 25 percent of hotels were found to be in need of bedbug treatment; and (7)bed bugs possess all of the necessary prerequisites for being capable of passing diseases from one host to another.

3.

Bed bug inspection grant program

(a)

Administration; Amount

The Secretary of Commerce, in cooperation with the Travel and Tourism Advisory Board, may provide grants to an eligible State to assist such State in carrying out the inspections described in subsection (c). The grants shall be in amounts determined by the Secretary, taking into consideration the relative needs of the State. (b)

Eligibility

A State is eligible for a grant under this Act if the State has established a program whereby not fewer than 20 percent of rooms in lodging facilities in such State are inspected annually for cimex lectularius, commonly know as the bed bug. The Federal share of funding for such a program shall not exceed 80 percent. (c)

Use of grants

A State may use a grant received under this Act to— (1)conduct inspections of lodging facilities for cimex lectularius, including transportation, lodging, and meal expenses for inspectors; (2)train inspection personnel; and (3)educate the proprietors and staff of lodging establishments about methods to prevent and eradicate cimex lectularius. (d)

Application

To receive a grant under this Act, an eligible State shall submit an application to the Secretary of Commerce in such form and containing such information as the Secretary shall determine. (e)

Definition of lodging facility

For purposes of this Act and the requirement under subsection (b) for State programs receiving funding under this Act, the term lodging facility means any individual hotel, motel, or inn that makes available for commercial lodging more than 10 individual rooms. (f)

Authorization of Appropriations

There is authorized to be appropriated $50,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2009 through 2012 to the Secretary of Commerce for the grants authorized under this Act.

4.

Report to Congress

The Secretary of Commerce shall transmit a report to Congress not later than 3 years after the issuance of the first grant authorized under this Act, which shall contain an assessment of the effectiveness of the grant program.