1.This Act may be cited as the
Children's Environmental Health
Protection Act
.
2.Congress finds that—
(1)a growing body of
scientific knowledge demonstrates that children may suffer disproportionately
from environmental health risks and safety risks;
(2)those risks arise
because—
(A)the neurological,
immunological, digestive, and other bodily systems of children are still
developing;
(B)children eat more
food, drink more fluids, and breathe more air in proportion to their body
weight than adults;
(C)the size and
weight of children may diminish their protection from standard safety features;
and
(D)the behavior
patterns of children may make children more susceptible to accidents because
children are less able to protect themselves; and
(3)each Federal
agency, to the extent permitted by law and appropriate, and consistent with the
mission of each Federal agency, should—
(A)place a high
priority on the identification and assessment of environmental health and
safety risks that may disproportionately affect children, including where
children live, learn, and play;
(B)ensure that the
policies, programs, activities, and standards of the Federal agency address
disproportionate risks to children that result from environmental health or
safety risks; and
(C)participate in
the implementation of, and comply with, this Act.
3.In this Act:
(1)The
term Administrator means the Administrator of the Environmental
Protection Agency.
(2)The
term Director means the Director of the Office of Management and
Budget.
(3)Environmental
health and safety risk
(A)The term environmental health and safety
risk means an environmental risk to the health or safety of a child that
is posed by or otherwise attributable to a substance—
(i)that the child is
likely to ingest; or
(ii)to
which the child may otherwise be exposed.
(B)The
term environmental health and safety risk includes an
environmental risk that is posed by or otherwise attributable to—
(i)air
that is inhaled by, or that otherwise comes into contact with, a child;
(ii)water used by a
child for drinking or recreation;
(iii)soil;
and
(iv)chemicals and
other substances with which a child may come into contact.
(4)The term Federal agency means—
(A)any department,
agency, or other instrumentality of the Federal Government;
(B)any independent
agency or establishment of the Federal Government (including any Government
corporation); and
(C)the Government
Printing Office.
(5)The
term Secretary means the Secretary of Health and Human
Services.
(6)The term Task Force means the Task Force to
Address Environmental Health and Safety Risks to Children established by
section 4(a).
4.Task force to
Address Environmental Health and Safety Risks to Children
(a)The
Administrator, in consultation with the Secretary, shall establish a task force
to be known as the Task Force to Address Environmental Health and Safety
Risks to Children
.
(b)The
Task Force shall report to the President, in consultation with—
(1)the Domestic
Policy Council;
(2)the National
Science and Technology Council;
(3)the Council on
Environmental Quality; and
(4)the Office of
Management and Budget.
(c)The
Task Force shall be composed of—
(1)the Administrator
of the Environmental Protection Agency, who shall serve as a Co-Chairperson of
the Task Force;
(2)the Secretary of
Health and Human Services, who shall serve as Co-Chairperson of the Task
Force;
(3)the Secretary of
Education;
(4)the Secretary of
Labor;
(5)the Attorney
General;
(6)the Secretary of
Energy;
(7)the Secretary of
Housing and Urban Development;
(8)the Secretary of
Agriculture;
(9)the Secretary of
Transportation;
(10)the Secretary of
Homeland Security;
(11)the
Director;
(12)the Chairperson
of the Council on Environmental Quality;
(13)the Chairperson
of the Consumer Product Safety Commission;
(14)the Assistant to
the President for Economic Policy;
(15)the Assistant to
the President for Domestic Policy;
(16)the Assistant to
the President for, and Director of the Office of, Science and Technology
Policy;
(17)the Chairperson
of the Council of Economic Advisers; and
(18)such other
officials of Federal agencies as the Administrator and the Secretary may, from
time to time, designate.
(d)A
member of the Task Force may delegate the responsibilities of the member under
this Act to 1 or more subordinates.
(e)The
Administrator, in consultation with the Secretary as a co-chair of the Task
Force, shall, after providing notice and an opportunity for public
participation and comment and, if determined to be appropriate by the
Administrator and the Secretary, using a consensus-based approach—
(1)recommend to the
President Federal strategies to improve children’s environmental health and
safety, including—
(A)statements of
principles, general policy, and targeted annual priorities to guide the Federal
approach to complying with this Act;
(B)a coordinated
research agenda for the Federal Government, including steps to implement the
review of research databases described in paragraph (2)(A);
(C)recommendations
for appropriate partnerships among the Federal Government, State, local, and
tribal governments, and the private, academic, and nonprofit sectors;
(D)proposals to
enhance public outreach and communication to assist families in evaluating
risks to children (including where children live, learn, and play) and in
making informed consumer choices;
(E)an identification
of high-priority initiatives that the Federal Government has undertaken or will
undertake in advancing the protection of children’s environmental health and
safety;
(F)a statement
regarding the desirability of new legislation to advance the protection of
children’s environmental health and safety; and
(G)other proposals
to enhance the health and safety protection of children by Federal and State
governments and by communities and families;
(2)not later than
180 days after the date of enactment of this Act, develop or direct to be
developed—
(A)a review of
existing and planned data resources; and
(B)a proposed plan,
which shall be reviewed by the Administrator and the Secretary, and other
Federal agencies as the Administrator and the Secretary consider appropriate,
and which shall be made available for public comment for a period of not less
than 30 days—
(i)for
use in ensuring that researchers and Federal research agencies have access to
information on all research conducted or funded by the Federal Government that
relates to adverse health risks in children resulting from exposure to
environmental health and safety risks; and
(ii)that—
(I)promotes the
sharing of information on academic and private research; and
(II)includes
recommendations to encourage that such data, to the extent permitted by law, is
available to the public, the scientific and academic communities, and all
Federal agencies; and
(3)submit to
Congress (including the Committee on Environment and Public Works of the Senate
and the Committee on Energy and Commerce of the House of Representatives) and
the President, make available to the public, and provide to the Office of
Science and Technology Policy and the National Science and Technology Council
for use in establishing research priorities, a biennial report on research,
data, or other information that would enhance understanding and analysis of,
and response to, environmental health and safety risks, including—
(A)a description
provided by Federal agencies and other agencies identified by the Task Force of
key data needs relating to environmental health and safety risks that have
arisen in the course of carrying out projects and activities of the Federal
agencies; and
(B)a description of
the accomplishments of the Task Force.
5.
(a)This Act applies only
to the Executive branch.
(b)This Act does not create
or establish any substantive or procedural right, benefit, or trust
responsibility, enforceable at law or equity, by a party against the United
States (including any agency, officer, or employee of the United
States).
(c)This Act does not
create or establish any right to judicial review involving the compliance or
noncompliance with this Act by—
(1)the United States (including any agency,
officer, or employee of the United States); or
(2)any other person.