[Congressional Bills 118th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H. Res. 1375 Introduced in House (IH)]

<DOC>






118th CONGRESS
  2d Session
H. RES. 1375

  Recognizing the threat of extreme weather to children's health and 
well-being, and expressing the sense of Congress that solutions must be 
  rapidly and equitably developed and deployed to address the unique 
                 vulnerabilities and needs of children.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                             July 23, 2024

 Ms. McClellan (for herself, Mr. Grijalva, Mr. Mullin, Mr. Nadler, Mr. 
Cleaver, Mrs. Cherfilus-McCormick, Mr. Peters, Mr. Johnson of Georgia, 
   Mr. Thanedar, Mr. Tonko, Ms. Norton, Ms. Bonamici, Ms. Tlaib, Ms. 
 Adams, Mr. Evans, Ms. Castor of Florida, Ms. Williams of Georgia, Mr. 
Takano, Mrs. Foushee, Ms. Stansbury, Mrs. Watson Coleman, Mr. Cardenas, 
 Mr. Cohen, Mr. Blumenauer, Mr. DeSaulnier, Ms. Wasserman Schultz, Ms. 
Barragan, Mr. Horsford, Ms. Caraveo, Mr. Soto, and Ms. Garcia of Texas) 
submitted the following resolution; which was referred to the Committee 
                         on Energy and Commerce

_______________________________________________________________________

                               RESOLUTION


 
  Recognizing the threat of extreme weather to children's health and 
well-being, and expressing the sense of Congress that solutions must be 
  rapidly and equitably developed and deployed to address the unique 
                 vulnerabilities and needs of children.

Whereas the summer of 2023 was the hottest summer in recorded history with 
        unprecedented wildfire smoke and numerous dangerous air quality days 
        across the United States;
Whereas there is strong scientific consensus that trends of more frequent and 
        intense extreme weather and worsened air quality will continue to 
        escalate in the coming decades;
Whereas the threats of extreme heat and air pollution are closely related, with 
        extreme heat contributing to conditions conducive to wildfires and hot, 
        sunny days linked to increased formation of ozone pollution;
Whereas babies, children, and adolescents are uniquely vulnerable to the health 
        impacts of extreme weather, including heat-related illness, increased 
        respiratory disease, infectious diseases, storm-related displacement, 
        and adverse psychological outcomes;
Whereas young people's vulnerability to extreme weather and poor air quality is 
        inherent to their developing bodies and behavioral patterns, such as the 
        fact that children take more breaths per minute than adults and are 
        disproportionately exposed to pollutants in the air;
Whereas exposure to extreme heat and air pollution during pregnancy have been 
        linked to adverse birth outcomes that can have lasting and sometimes 
        devastating consequences, including preterm birth, low-birth weight, and 
        stillbirth;
Whereas schools across the country are increasingly closing for heat days, and 
        extreme heat is linked to impairment in children's cognition, making it 
        harder for them to learn at school and disrupting academic performance;
Whereas children and adolescents exposed to outdoor labor, including both the 
        children of adult farmworkers and the estimated 500,000 child 
        farmworkers in the United States, are especially vulnerable to the 
        health impacts of extreme heat;
Whereas increased drought occurrence and severity threaten food and water 
        security, and babies, children, adolescents, and pregnant people are 
        more vulnerable to malnutrition;
Whereas young people's respiratory health is threatened by air quality worsened 
        by increasing wildfire smoke, changing dust patterns, and more ozone 
        days;
Whereas children and adolescents are already experiencing a mental health crisis 
        and are more vulnerable than adults to experiencing interruption in 
        education, separation from or harm to caregivers, adverse mental health 
        impacts, and potentially life-altering trauma due to extreme weather 
        disasters;
Whereas the stress of maternal exposure to disasters like hurricanes and 
        wildfires during pregnancy heightens the risk of adverse birth outcomes 
        and adverse mental health outcomes in their children;
Whereas the health of all babies, children, and adolescents is a fundamental 
        building block of a healthy society; and
Whereas young people's unique vulnerabilities to the health harms of extreme 
        weather and air pollution require specifically tailored considerations: 
        Now, therefore, be it
    Resolved, That the House of Representatives--
            (1) expresses the sense that adaptations to and protections 
        from extreme weather conditions must be developed and deployed 
        rapidly and equitably, with consideration for the physical and 
        mental health needs of both the current generation and all 
        future generations of young people;
            (2) expresses the sense that legislation and funding 
        addressing adaptation to and protections from extreme weather 
        conditions must include considerations and solutions tailored 
        to the unique physical and mental health vulnerabilities and 
        needs of babies, children, adolescents, and their families; and
            (3) expresses the sense that adaptive measures may include, 
        but are not limited to--
                    (A) easily accessible public alerts, such as for 
                air quality, wildfires, extreme heat, or anticipated 
                flooding;
                    (B) mutual aid networks, caregiver support, and 
                community resilience programs;
                    (C) language-accessible public information 
                campaigns, such as for air quality, extreme heat, or 
                disaster preparedness;
                    (D) incorporation of education about the unique 
                vulnerabilities of children and pregnant people to 
                extreme weather into professional training for health 
                care professionals, educators, and child care 
                providers;
                    (E) inclusion of education about the consequences 
                of heat exposure and first-aid treatment measures for 
                hyperthermia;
                    (F) improved guidance for schools and child care 
                providers on extreme weather, extreme heat, and air 
                pollution for schools;
                    (G) improved air filtration systems in homes, 
                schools, and child care facilities to address numerous 
                sources of air pollution, including wildfire smoke, 
                vehicle exhaust, and pollen;
                    (H) updated physical and technological 
                infrastructure of schools, child care facilities, and 
                health care delivery systems serving children to 
                withstand extreme weather disruption;
                    (I) expanded access to public shaded green space, 
                particularly in urban heat islands;
                    (J) expanded access to safe places for children and 
                families during extreme weather and air pollution 
                events, such as indoor play spaces, child-friendly 
                cooling centers, and child-friendly ``clean rooms'' 
                during wildfire smoke events;
                    (K) access to diapers, baby bottles and formula, 
                safe and hygienic nursing spaces, and other critical 
                supplies for babies in spaces where families may 
                congregate during and after extreme weather, such as 
                evacuation centers, emergency shelters, and cooling 
                centers;
                    (L) distribution of infant feeding kits before, 
                during, and after emergencies;
                    (M) adequate shade at playgrounds and school bus 
                stops;
                    (N) distribution of appropriate child-sized masks 
                during wildfire smoke events or days of unhealthy air 
                quality; and
                    (O) expanded access to hydration and refilling 
                stations.
                                 <all>