[Congressional Bills 111th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H. Res. 1280 Introduced in House (IH)]

111th CONGRESS
  2d Session
H. RES. 1280

 Expressing the support of the House of Representatives for the goals 
              and ideals of National Healthy Schools Day.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                             April 20, 2010

  Mr. Tonko (for himself, Ms. Baldwin, Ms. Berkley, Mr. Bishop of New 
 York, Mr. Boswell, Mr. Conyers, Mr. Courtney, Mr. Ellison, Ms. Fudge, 
Mr. Grijalva, Mr. Israel, Mr. Kennedy, Mr. Kirk, Ms. Lee of California, 
 Mrs. McCarthy of New York, Ms. Moore of Wisconsin, Mr. Murphy of New 
York, Ms. Richardson, Mr. Ryan of Ohio, and Ms. Schwartz) submitted the 
following resolution; which was referred to the Committee on Education 
                               and Labor

_______________________________________________________________________

                               RESOLUTION


 
 Expressing the support of the House of Representatives for the goals 
              and ideals of National Healthy Schools Day.

Whereas there are approximately 55,000,000 children and 7,000,000 adults who 
        spend their days in the Nation's more than 125,000 public and private 
        schools;
Whereas children spend an average of 30 to 50 hours per week in school;
Whereas one-third of public school principals report that some environmental 
        factors interfere with classroom instruction;
Whereas environmental hazards that are common in schools include unchecked 
        renovations, pesticide misapplications, unsafe drinking water, and 
        indoor air pollutants such as mold infestations;
Whereas poor air quality and ventilation problems and poor indoor environmental 
        quality is associated with a wide range of problems that include poor 
        concentration, respiratory illnesses, learning difficulties, and cancer;
Whereas about 9 percent of the Nation's students have asthma, which is a leading 
        cause of school absenteeism and is aggravated by poor air quality and 
        ventilation problems;
Whereas school facilities with poor building quality can result in lower test 
        scores, poor attendance, alienated students, low staff morale, high 
        teacher attrition, the inability to provide specialized curricula, 
        reduced learning time, distractions from learning, reduced ability to 
        meet special needs, lack of technological proficiency, health problems 
        for students and staff, and safety hazards;
Whereas healthy and high performance schools are designed to improve indoor 
        environments and reduce energy and maintenance costs, improve lighting, 
        and reduce exposures to toxic substances and provide a healthier and 
        safer learning environment for children and improved academic 
        achievement and well-being;
Whereas healthy and high performance schools are designed with specific 
        environmental factors in mind, such as adequate, safe space for outdoor 
        activities, low-emission construction materials, pollutant source 
        controls, ventilation, durable and easy-to-clean surfaces and floors, 
        moisture and mold controls, temperature and humidity controls, acoustics 
        and noise controls, ergonomics, safety and security, lighting design 
        maximizing natural light, and energy conservation;
Whereas National Healthy Schools Day is an important day to celebrate and 
        promote healthy and green school environments for all children;
Whereas National Healthy Schools Day is coordinated by Healthy Schools Network 
        in collaboration with the Environmental Protection Agency and the 
        Council of Educational Facility Planners--International and is 
        celebrated on the first day of School Building Week; and
Whereas, April 26, 2010, would be an appropriated day to designate as ``National 
        Healthy Schools Day'': Now, therefore, be it
    Resolved, That the House of Representatives--
            (1) supports the goals and ideals of National Healthy 
        Schools Day;
            (2) recognizes the effect that poor quality buildings have 
        on students' health and performance and the importance of 
        having healthy school buildings for the Nation's schoolchildren 
        to attend;
            (3) supports energy efficiency and the use of renewable 
        resources in schools; and
            (4) supports the goals of State educational agencies and 
        local educational agencies of modernizing, renovating, and 
        repairing their facilities to become healthier and safer places 
        to learn.
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