[Congressional Bills 118th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H. Res. 1178 Introduced in House (IH)]

<DOC>






118th CONGRESS
  2d Session
H. RES. 1178

  Proclaiming a Declaration of Environmental Rights for Incarcerated 
                                People.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                             April 29, 2024

Ms. Pressley submitted the following resolution; which was referred to 
                     the Committee on the Judiciary

_______________________________________________________________________

                               RESOLUTION


 
  Proclaiming a Declaration of Environmental Rights for Incarcerated 
                                People.

Whereas criminal legal systems in the United States are sustaining an 
        incarceration crisis that has put millions of people behind bars, torn 
        families apart, destabilized communities, and allowed others to profit 
        from the mistreatment of human beings;
Whereas, in the United States, almost 2,000,000 people are incarcerated in 
        Federal, State, local, and Tribal prisons and jails, immigration 
        detention facilities, juvenile secure facilities, and treatment and 
        rehabilitation facilities;
Whereas the duration of prison sentences is trending upwards and nearly 57 
        percent of the Federal and State prison population is now serving a 
        sentence of 10 years or more;
Whereas every year of incarceration in a prison or jail for a person is 
        associated with a 2-year reduction in average life expectancy;
Whereas people incarcerated in prisons and jails are more likely than the 
        general public to have at least 1 preexisting physical or mental health 
        condition or disability, which makes incarcerated people more 
        susceptible to environmental health threats;
Whereas incarceration and systemic patterns of environmental justice violations 
        in the permitting and siting of carceral facilities has greatly 
        increased the exposure of incarcerated people, carceral facility staff, 
        and communities surrounding carceral facilities to toxic and dangerous 
        conditions;
Whereas toxic environments in and around carceral facilities harm the physical, 
        mental, and social well-being of those impacted by incarceration;
Whereas exposure to environmental hazards harms the vitality of incarcerated 
        communities by reducing the availability of programming in carceral 
        facilities;
Whereas the adverse environmental health impacts of incarceration 
        disproportionately harm Black people and other minorities in the United 
        States, including Indigenous, Latino, and LGBTQ+ people, who are more 
        likely to be incarcerated in the United States;
Whereas pregnant, post-natal, and breastfeeding people are at higher risk of 
        adverse health outcomes from exposure to environmental stressors in 
        carceral facilities, yet those people often lack proper medical care or 
        options to minimize exposure to environmental health threats;
Whereas privatized healthcare providers profit from the poisoning of 
        incarcerated populations and often provide incarcerated people with 
        inadequate care;
Whereas nearly 33 percent of Federal and State prisons are located within 3 
        miles of a federally declared toxic superfund site, which are 
        disproportionately located in or near low-income communities and 
        communities of color;
Whereas people incarcerated in prisons and jails often perform extremely 
        hazardous labor, including electronic waste recycling, forest 
        firefighting, and asbestos removal, without sufficient protection and 
        for meager or no compensation, with the average hourly wage for 
        incarcerated workers being as low as $0.14 and some incarcerated workers 
        earning no wages at all;
Whereas measurements of heat indices inside prison cells have ranged from below 
        freezing to in excess of 150 degrees Fahrenheit;
Whereas incarcerated people often drink and bathe in water contaminated with 
        lead, arsenic, manganese, harmful bacteria, and other hazardous 
        substances and do not have the same access to safer alternatives as non-
        incarcerated people;
Whereas poor ventilation in carceral facilities contributes to hazardous air 
        quality, which in turn leads to psychological distress, cognitive 
        impairment, and the proliferation of infectious respiratory diseases, 
        allergens, and other respiratory issues;
Whereas incarcerated people are commonly confined to spaces where they are 
        exposed to mold, asbestos, and pests;
Whereas the diets of incarcerated people are regularly below standards requisite 
        for good health;
Whereas food safety standards and preparation guidelines are not uniformly 
        enforced and followed in carceral facilities;
Whereas the constant noise and artificial light that is common in prison 
        environments can act as a form of torture that induces progressively 
        severe mental stress and anxiety;
Whereas incarcerated people with little or no access to natural light are more 
        likely to be depressed and engage in harmful behavior that can extend 
        the duration of their incarceration;
Whereas conditions of incarceration should be conducive to rehabilitation;
Whereas the cumulative and chronic health impacts of incarceration can transform 
        short sentences into long-term or lifelong punishment; and
Whereas many incarcerated people endure conditions that are cruel, inhumane, 
        unsafe, and not conducive to rehabilitative justice: Now, therefore, be 
        it
    Resolved, That the House of Representatives--
            (1) declares that incarcerated people have the right to 
        healthy and safe environments, and the right to advocate for 
        protecting and improving their environmental health;
            (2) proclaims this Declaration of Environmental Rights for 
        Incarcerated People, founded on the principles that--
                    (A) incarcerated people have inherent dignity and 
                personhood;
                    (B) the right to humane treatment is inviolable and 
                without distinction of any kind, including the nature 
                of a crime committed;
                    (C) incarcerated people have the right to a healthy 
                environment;
                    (D) environmental standards in carceral facilities 
                should protect the health of the most vulnerable people 
                with an adequate margin of safety;
                    (E) disregard and contempt for the environmental 
                health of incarcerated people undermines the pursuit of 
                justice;
                    (F) the right of incarcerated people to a healthy 
                environment should be universally recognized and 
                protected by law;
                    (G) legal remedies for inhumane conditions should 
                be universally available to incarcerated people and 
                their advocates, without hindrance or delay, in courts 
                of law;
                    (H) incarcerated people have the right to, and 
                should be proactively supplied with, information and 
                education regarding exposure pathways to environmental 
                hazards in the facilities in which they are 
                incarcerated;
                    (I) incarcerated people have the right to discuss 
                the environmental health conditions of carceral 
                facilities among themselves;
                    (J) incarcerated people have the right to advocate, 
                without fear or threat of retaliation, to protect and 
                improve their environmental health;
                    (K) incarcerated people have the right to refuse to 
                work or labor in unsafe or hazardous conditions, and 
                have the right to receive alternative work 
                opportunities, without threat of retaliation or impact 
                on release decisions; and
                    (L) decarceration should serve as a principal 
                strategy to reduce the environmental health harms of 
                criminal legal systems; and
            (3) supports efforts to enact legislation guided by the 
        principles described under paragraph (2).
                                 <all>