[House Hearing, 117 Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]






 
                 TOXIC AIR: HOW LEADED AVIATION FUEL IS

                      POISONING AMERICA'S CHILDREN

=======================================================================

                                HEARING

                               BEFORE THE

                      SUBCOMMITTEE ON ENVIRONMENT

                                 OF THE

                   COMMITTEE ON OVERSIGHT AND REFORM

                        HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                    ONE HUNDRED SEVENTEENTH CONGRESS

                             SECOND SESSION

                               __________

                             JULY 28, 2022

                               __________

                           Serial No. 117-98

                               __________

      Printed for the use of the Committee on Oversight and Reform
      
      
      
 [GRAPHIC(S) NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT]
 


                       Available on: govinfo.gov
                           oversight.house.gov
                             docs.house.gov
                             
                             
                             
                              ______                       


             U.S. GOVERNMENT PUBLISHING OFFICE 
48-388PDF           WASHINGTON : 2022 
                            
                             
                             
                             
                CAROLYN B. MALONEY, New York, Chairwoman

Eleanor Holmes Norton, District of   James Comer, Kentucky, Ranking 
    Columbia                             Minority Member
Stephen F. Lynch, Massachusetts      Jim Jordan, Ohio
Jim Cooper, Tennessee                Virginia Foxx, North Carolina
Gerald E. Connolly, Virginia         Jody B. Hice, Georgia
Raja Krishnamoorthi, Illinois        Glenn Grothman, Wisconsin
Jamie Raskin, Maryland               Michael Cloud, Texas
Ro Khanna, California                Bob Gibbs, Ohio
Kweisi Mfume, Maryland               Clay Higgins, Louisiana
Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, New York   Ralph Norman, South Carolina
Rashida Tlaib, Michigan              Pete Sessions, Texas
Katie Porter, California             Fred Keller, Pennsylvania
Cori Bush, Missouri                  Andy Biggs, Arizona
Shontel M. Brown, Ohio               Andrew Clyde, Georgia
Danny K. Davis, Illinois             Nancy Mace, South Carolina
Debbie Wasserman Schultz, Florida    Scott Franklin, Florida
Peter Welch, Vermont                 Jake LaTurner, Kansas
Henry C. ``Hank'' Johnson, Jr.,      Pat Fallon, Texas
    Georgia                          Yvette Herrell, New Mexico
John P. Sarbanes, Maryland           Byron Donalds, Florida
Jackie Speier, California            Mike Flood, Nebraska
Robin L. Kelly, Illinois
Brenda L. Lawrence, Michigan
Mark DeSaulnier, California
Jimmy Gomez, California
Ayanna Pressley, Massachusetts

                      Russ Anello, Staff Director
               Katie Thomas, Subcommittee Staff Director
                    Amy Stratton, Deputy Chief Clerk
                      Contact Number: 202-225-5051

                  Mark Marin, Minority Staff Director
                                 ------                                

                      Subcommittee on Environment

                    Ro Khanna, California, Chairman
Jim Cooper, Tennessee                Ralph Norman, South Carolina, 
Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, New York       Ranking Minority Member
Rashida Tlaib, Michigan              Bob Gibbs, Ohio
Jimmy Gomez, California              Pat Fallon, Texas
Raja Krishnamoorthi, Illinois        Yvette Herrell, New Mexico
Cori Bush, Missouri

                         C  O  N  T  E  N  T  S

                              ----------                              
                                                                   Page
Hearing held on July 28, 2022....................................     1

                               Witnesses

Cindy Chavez, Supervisor, County of Santa Clara (California)
Oral Statement...................................................     5
Marciela Lechuga, Resident, Reid-Hillview Airport Buffer Zone
Oral Statement...................................................     7
Bruce Lanphear, Professor, Health Sciences, Simon Fraser 
  University
Oral Statement...................................................     8
George Braly, Chief Executive Officer, General Aviation 
  Modifications, Inc.
Oral Statement...................................................    10
Chris D'Acosta, Chief Executive Officer, Swift Fuels
Oral Statement...................................................    11

Written opening statements and statements for the witnesses are 
  available on the U.S. House of Representatives Document 
  Repository at: docs.house.gov.

                           Index of Documents

                              ----------                              


  * Aircraft Owners and Pilots Association Statement for the 
  Record; submitted by Rep. Herrell.

  * Letter from County of Santa Clara Response to FAA re Leaded 
  Fuel; submitted by Rep. Lofgren.

  * Letter from FAA to County of Santa Clara re Ban of Leaded 
  Fuel; submitted by Rep. Lofgren.

  * Letter from Members of Congress Representing Santa Clara 
  County to Department of Transportation; submitted by Rep. 
  Lofgren.

Documents entered into the record during this hearing and 
  Questions for the Record (QFR's) are available at: 
  docs.house.gov.


                 TOXIC AIR: HOW LEADED AVIATION FUEL IS

                      POISONING AMERICA'S CHILDREN

                              ----------                              


                        Thursday, July 28, 2022

                   House of Representatives
                Subcommittee on Environment
                          Committee on Oversight and Reform
                                                   Washington, D.C.

    The subcommittee met, pursuant to notice, at 2:05 p.m., in 
room 2154, Rayburn House Office Building, and via Zoom; Hon. 
Rho Khanna (chairman of the subcommittee) presiding.
    Present: Representatives Khanna, Tlaib, Herrell, Fallon, 
and Flood.
    Also present: Representative Lofgren.
    Mr. Khanna. The committee will come to order.
    Without objection, the chair is authorized to declare a 
recess of the committee at any time.
    I now recognize myself for an opening Statement.
    Thank you to the panel for being here, both in person and 
virtually. I am honored to welcome two residents of San Jose 
today: Maricela Lechuga and County of Santa Clara supervisor, 
Cindy Chavez. Maricela lives in East San Jose, blocks away from 
Reid-Hillview Airport. Her Mexican-American family has lived in 
the area for generations, and you will hear her powerful 
firsthand testimony about how leaded fuel impacts her family 
and her neighborhoods' day-to-day lives. It really is a 
heartbreaking story. Supervisor Chavez is a powerhouse who is a 
national leader in the fight to get lead out of aviation fuels. 
She is a fighter for the working class and cares deeply about 
the most vulnerable in our community. She has been a leader for 
decades. I am also happy to welcome Ranking Member Herrell to 
her first subcommittee hearing as ranking member, and I am 
looking forward to working together. And we are going to have 
our Ranking Member Comer give you a formal introduction.
    I am holding this hearing today because I am outraged that 
our Federal agencies have failed to prevent lead poisoning near 
their small general aviation airports. There are 20,000 such 
airports across the country, mostly sited in communities of 
color and low-wealth communities. Not only is this historic 
injustice, but, worse, it is still ongoing. The Federal 
Aviation Administration has chosen a path of delay, holding up 
the approval of a lead-free alternative fuel for no Stated 
reason. Worse, in similar tactics to those we have seen in our 
committee's investigation of climate delay and disinformation, 
the fossil fuel industry and other special interests have also 
sought to delay the phase-out of leaded aviation fuel.
    Lead in aviation fuel, or avgas, is an urgent, little-known 
health crisis. A study last year found that children living in 
my district in East San Jose have blood lead levels higher than 
kids had during the height of the drinking water crisis in 2014 
in Flint, Michigan. It is a disgrace. We have with us today 
Congresswoman Zoe Lofgren, who has been highlighting, and 
leading, and fighting on this issue for decades, and so honored 
for her leadership and her joining us here today on our 
committee.
    What happens when kids ingest lead from the exhaust fumes 
of private planes or flight schools near their homes, or lead 
dust that has settled on surfaces, airborne lead penetrates 
deep into the lungs and nasal passages before crossing into the 
brain and bloodstream. Lead poisoning is devastating. It 
damages every organ and slowly severs neural connections. Kids 
struggle with seizures, learning disabilities, and low IQ. Lead 
exposure can predict differences in a child's future income, 
health, and educational attainment.
    Though lead was banned from cars and trucks over 25 years 
ago, the aging piston engine aircraft fleet still uses lead. 
These are mostly hobbyists and private planes, and aircraft for 
emergency response, and flight schools. Sixteen million people 
in the U.S., including 3 million children, live within 1 
kilometer of an airport facility that uses avgas. Six hundred 
schools are located within a half a kilometer. One study in 
Michigan showed starkly how blood levels in children rise and 
fall in close tandem with local air traffic patterns.
    Despite this toxicity of lead, the Federal Aviation 
Administration and EPA have not acted with the urgency to phase 
lead out of aviation fuel. Viable unleaded alternatives have 
existed globally since the 1980's and currently include our 
witness, Chris D'Acosta's company's Fuel 94 UL, which is 
approved for two-thirds of the piston engine aircraft and 
common motor gas. Neither of these work for the whole fleet, 
however. Our witness today, Mr. George Braly, has a fuel that 
he says is commercially ready and can be used by the entire 
fleet. Even though FAA engineers said that the fuel is safe, 
FAA headquarters has not signed the last piece of paper.
    For years, oil companies and aircraft interest groups have 
worked together to prevent this fuel from getting FAA approval 
and spread disinformation about its qualities. Industry groups 
appear more concerned about disrupting business than about 
kids. In a recent hearing, the head of Aircraft Owners and 
Pilots expressed opposition to local bans on leaded avgas, 
saying, ``We are concerned about the terrible precedent that 
Santa Clara county in California has pursued by preventing the 
sale with 100 low-lead planes at their two airports.'' However, 
the FAA's public-private partnership to phaseout leaded fuel by 
2030, the EAGLE Initiative, doesn't formally involve the 
communities that are facing lead poisoning from aviation fuel.
    The FAA must immediately commit to a faster timeline to 
reach a lead-free aviation future. They should stop deferring 
to powerful industry interests. They should help, rather than 
obstruct, communities that want to ban leaded fuel and bring 
innovative alternatives. The FAA just received $15 billion from 
President Biden's infrastructure laws to improve airports. Why 
not use a portion of that funding on new infrastructure for 
unleaded fuel? The EPA also has a role to play by ruling as 
soon as possible that leaded avgas is a danger to public health 
and safety.
    Quickly phasing out leaded aviation also fits with the 
broader climate goals of the aviation industry to phaseout 
fossil fuels by 2050 by making aviation cleaner and safer. The 
FAA and EPA must not repeat past injustices and should instead 
exhibit the leadership we need to repair mistakes and protect 
kids and adults from these toxic fumes.
    I now recognize Ranking Member Comer for an opening 
Statement and any recognition.
    Mr. Comer. Well, thank you, Chairman Khanna, and I want to 
thank our witnesses today for joining us. I want to 
congratulate our new ranking member of the subcommittee, 
Congressman Yvette Herrell from New Mexico. She is a very 
effective policymaker. She has moved up the chain very quickly 
in Congress because she is very effective, she is prepared, and 
I know that she will do a tremendous job leading this 
subcommittee. I also want to thank Congressman Ralph Norman for 
his service as the previous ranking member of the subcommittee. 
So we look forward to great things from Congresswoman Herrell 
in the future.
    And, Mr. Chairman, I will yield back to you to where 
Congresswoman Herrell can deliver the opening Statement.
    Mr. Khanna. Thank you. Ranking Member Herrell?
    Ms. Herrell. Thank you, Chairman Khanna. It is very 
exciting to be here, and thank you, Ranking Member Comer. I 
want to also thank the witnesses for appearing today, and I am 
honored to participate in a subcommittee hearing for the first 
time as ranking member, and I am excited to lead my Republican 
colleagues on the subcommittee.
    I would like to first thank Chairman Khanna for inviting 
the administrators of the EPA and FAA to testify today on such 
an important issue. Republicans have been calling on Democrats 
to invite Biden administration witnesses for over a year and a 
half so that we can conduct the important work of the Oversight 
Committee and hold the Federal Government accountable to the 
American people.
    As Mr. Khanna correctly noted in his letter to EPA 
Administrator Regan and FAA Acting Administrator Nolan, it is 
unconscionable that each official refused to testify at today's 
hearing. That is why I, along with Ranking Member Comer, called 
upon Chairwoman Maloney to issue subpoenas to EPA and to the 
FAA to compel their testimony. The American people deserve to 
hear testimony from senior-level Biden administration 
witnesses.
    Mr. Chairman, I ask for unanimous consent to submit this 
letter to Chairman Maloney into the record.
    Mr. Khanna. Yes.
    Ms. Herrell. I pledge to work with Chairman Khanna to 
ensure that administration witnesses appear before us in the 
future to answer our questions on behalf of our constituents.
    General aviation is an important industry that serves many 
purposes throughout the United States. In my home state of New 
Mexico alone, the general aviation industry contributes 
billions of dollars to the economy and supports tens of 
thousands of jobs. General aviation aircraft connect small 
towns across the country with the outside world, transporting 
blood supplies, vital transplant organs, and other lifesaving 
elements, and treat millions of acres of crop land each year. 
The industry plays a vital role in the protection of our 
environment by conducting wildfire surveys, patrolling 
parklands, and mapping soil erosion and wetland losses. General 
aviation aircraft also fight wildfires, mitigating their spread 
into towns and saving millions of acres of land.
    New Mexico is currently battling the largest recorded 
wildfire in the state's history. Aerial firefighting has played 
a critical role in its containment. The Hermit's Peak Cap 
Canyon fire have burned over 340,000 acres of land and damaged 
hundreds of buildings. Although I am encouraged that the fire 
has reached a 95-percent containment level, I will continue to 
advocate for relief assistance and work to ensure that New 
Mexico is better prepared in the future. The people of New 
Mexico are resilient, and we will get through this tough 
chapter in our history.
    The general aviation industry is in the middle of a 
transition from leaded fuel to unleaded fuel, a transition that 
the car industry made a few decades ago, as mentioned. The 
exposure to lead can have devastating health effects on humans, 
and this committee would be hard pressed to find someone who 
did not want to find a solution to this complex problem. 
Private companies are working toward this success. Swift Fuel 
sells 94 unleaded fuel alternative to 100 leaded fuel that can 
be used in over 60 percent of single-engine piston planes. I 
would like to think Swift Fuel CEO Chris D'Acosta for appearing 
as a witness today and for his company's commitment to finding 
a replacement fuel for the entire fleet of single-engine piston 
aircraft. The private sector will innovate as long as the 
public sector removes red tape and helps implement the 
transition.
    I am grateful that the industry, relevant stakeholders, and 
despite the refusal to testify today, the FAA are working 
together to find a solution through the EAGLE Program. And with 
that, thank you, Mr. Chairman, and thank you to today's 
witnesses.
    Mr. Khanna. Thank you, Ranking Member Herrell.
    I ask unanimous consent that the gentlelady from 
California, Representative Zoe Lofgren, be allowed to 
participate in today's hearing and have an opening Statement.
    Ms. Lofgren. Well, thank you, Mr. Chairman. I will be 
brief. I want to first express my gratitude to you and the 
ranking member for allowing me to participate. Reid-Hillview 
Airport is located in the district I represent, and, of course, 
the constituents who are being adversely impacted are also in 
your district and in Congressman Panetta's district. I am 
outraged, honestly, that the EPA and the FAA would refuse to 
come and testify before you. Unfortunately, that is in keeping 
with their lack of response to the letters and the 
communications that we have directed toward them. It is 
shocking and unacceptable that the administration would refuse 
to engage in this serious health issue, and I am hoping that 
this hearing will help us advance the cause of saving children 
from the scourge of lead poisoning. And I yield back with 
gratitude.
    Mr. Khanna. Well, thank you, Representative Lofgren. Thank 
you for your participation today and for your leadership on 
this issue.
    I would now like to introduce our panel of witnesses. Our 
first witness will be Cindy Chavez, Santa Clara County 
supervisor. Our second witness will be Maricela Lechuga, who is 
a resident of San Jose. Our third witness will be Dr. Bruce 
Lanphear, a professor of health sciences at Simon Fraser 
University. Our fourth witness is Chris D'Acosta, CEO of Swift 
Fuels. Our final witness will be George Braly, CEO of General 
Aviation Modifications. Mr. Braly has a hard stop at 3:30.
    The witnesses will be unmuted so we can swear them in. 
Please raise your right hand.
    Do you swear or affirm that the testimony you are about to 
give is the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth, 
so help you God?
    [A chorus of ayes.]
    Mr. Khanna. Let the record show that the witnesses answered 
in the affirmative.
    Without objection, your written Statements will be made 
part of the record.
    With that, Supervisor Chavez, you are recognized for your 
testimony.

  STATEMENT OF CINDY CHAVEZ, SUPERVISOR, COUNTY OF SANTA CLARA

    Ms. Chavez. Thank you very, very much. I wanted to start 
with just to say to Chairperson Khanna how really honored I am 
to be joining you and, Ranking Member Herrell, at your first 
meeting as ranking member--congratulations--to the committee 
and to Congresswoman Lofgren.
    We are here today because childhood lead exposure from lead 
in aviation fuel we know is a national public health crisis. 
The government mobilized over 40 years ago to ban lead paint. 
It mobilized nearly 50 years ago to ban lead in automobile 
fuel, but lead in aviation fuel remains virtually unregulated. 
In fact, it is the Nation's last major unregulated source of 
airborne lead. I know that my colleague, Maricela Lechuga, and 
I'm so excited she's here with us, is going to talk more about 
the community that is impacted, and I am going to talk a little 
bit about how the County of Santa Clara is approaching this.
    Reid-Hillview Airport and East San Jose is an important 
example of the environmental injustices posed by leaded 
aviation gas. Reid-Hillview is one of the highest lead-emitting 
airports in the country, and it is of the most densely 
populated neighborhoods of any airport in the Nation. In 2017, 
Reid-Hillview was in the top 1.5 percent in annual lead 
emissions out of all landing facilities in the national airport 
system. It is located in the east side of San Jose, surrounded 
by over 52,000 people and 13,000 children within 1.5 miles of 
this airport.
    Sadly, situations like Reid-Hillview are far too common. 
Nationally, over 60 percent of the 50 highest-emitting airports 
are located in communities with largely racial minority 
populations than the national average. In absence of the 
Federal Government taking action on leaded avgas, Santa Clara 
County had no choice but to take action itself to better 
understand the crisis and its impacts on our children and 
families.
    The board supervisors commissioned a study on the effects 
of lead exposure from leaded avgas on the blood lead levels of 
children in the neighborhood surrounding Reid-Hillview Airport. 
The peer-reviewed study was conducted by Dr. Sammy Zuron, a 
leading expert in lead exposure. The study examined over 
300,000 blood lead-level tests from children living in the 
neighborhood surrounding Reid-Hillview Airport. Among sample 
children less than half a mile from Reid-Hillview, there was an 
increase in blood lead levels twice as high as the increase 
caused by the Flint system failures during the height of the 
Flint, Michigan water crisis.
    But this situation is not like Flint because there is no 
way to stop lead exposure from avgas without Federal Government 
action. Our residents in east San Jose live with this exposure 
day after day, and they have for over 80 years. It is important 
to note the study found a clear correlation between the sale of 
leaded avgas at Reid-Hillview Airport and elevated lead blood 
lead levels in children in east San Jose. The results are 
consistent with multiple studies done across this country.
    With these facts in hand, we had a duty to protect children 
in our community. On January 1st, Santa Clara County became the 
first airport operator in the country to fully transition to 
the sale of unleaded gas at our airports. The transition has 
provided immediate protection to surrounding communities, 
preventing the emission of hundreds of pounds of lead in the 
air in just six months. Aircraft operators are using the 
unleaded avgas available, even though they have the option to 
fill up with leaded avgas elsewhere. In the six months since 
the transition, fuel vendors at Reid-Hillview have sold 90 
percent as much leaded avgas as they sold in the first six 
months of 2021.
    Santa Clara County's transition virtually had no impact on 
airport operations. The total operations at Reid-Hillview are 
actually up by four percent in the first six months of 2020 
relative to 2022. There has not been a single incident, a 
safety incident, related to the unleaded avgas reported in the 
past seven months. While the county maintains an emergency 
protocol for aircraft operators who need access to leaded fuel, 
the county has received zero requests to access it.
    Tragically, there are aviation industry interests who have 
submitted complaints to the FAA seeking to force the county to 
sell leaded avgas. The FAA for its part has initiated an 
investigation into the county. Any attempt by the FAA to compel 
the county to sell leaded avgas would be morally reprehensible. 
We cannot turn a blind eye to the facts, and the facts are that 
our children are being poisoned, plain and simple.
    Thank you for the opportunity to testify.
    Mr. Khanna. Thank you, Supervisor Chavez. Ms. Lechuga, you 
are now recognized.

STATEMENT OF MARICELA LECHUGA, RESIDENT, REID-HILLVIEW AIRPORT 
                          BUFFER ZONE

    Ms. Lechuga. Dear Honorable Chairman Khanna, Ranking Member 
Herrell, and member of the Subcommittee on the Environment. My 
name is Maricela Lechuga. I live five blocks away from the 
Reid-Hillview Airport. I have 3 siblings and about 30 first 
cousins just on my mom's side, and we mostly all grew up in 
this area. It's not a coincidence that roots of East San Jose 
are deep with Mexican-American families like mine as well as 
newly arrived immigrants from all over the world. In the 
1940's, when my grandfather, Gustavo Perez, arrived in San Jose 
as a bracero, there was only one area in the city that welcomed 
him to make a home. East San Jose was reserved for the 
undesirable class of Mexican peons like him and global labor 
leader, Cesar Chavez.
    A 1937 official area description of the neighborhood below 
the flight path of what is now Reid-Hillview Airport described 
it as extremely undesirable from a racial standpoint as it had 
the largest concentration of Mexicans in the community, as well 
as Italians and Portuguese of a lower social stratum. In 1939, 
the airport was relocated to its current location where planes 
continue to fly over a community that is predominantly Latino 
and immigrant. Within the 1.5 mile area surrounding the 
airport, 61 percent of the population is Latino. Seventy-nine 
percent of residents primarily speak a language other than 
English at home.
    It's also densely populated. The area is home to 
approximately 52,000 residents, including 12,800 children, and 
21 schools and childcare centers. While redlining was 
officially in effect between 1936 and 1939, we know how racism 
continued to influence land use decisions well after that, 
especially before the Voting Rights Act when our community's 
political voice was completely washed out by at-large 
elections. It wasn't until 1978 that East San Jose residents 
had the opportunity to vote for a city council member from a 
pool of candidates living within our district. The 
councilmember's name was Blanca Alvarado. Happy birthday, 
Blanca. She happens to be turning 91 years old today.
    Land use decisions of the past continue to influence all 
aspects of our everyday lives, from the quality education we 
receive to the air we breathe. Studies show that Latinos, 
recent immigrants, and low-income communities in the U.S. are 
far more likely to live, play, and work in places that expose 
us to toxic chemicals, including lead, increasing our risk for 
cancer and other serious health conditions. For decades, the 
planes from the Reid-Hillview Airport have used lead-based 
fuel, poisoning our neighborhood. In 2021, a Mountain Data 
Group study confirmed that those closest to the airport 
experience a lead increase in excess of what the children in 
Flint, Michigan, experienced during the Flint water crisis.
    No amount of lead is safe. Airborne lead exposure is a 
literal injustice that seeps into our bodies through our lungs 
into our bloodstream and bones, where it becomes unextractable. 
As a woman in childbearing age, I should not have to worry 
about how the lead in my bones might impact a future pregnancy 
or health of the baby. I happen to be an attorney, but I hate 
that I have to be an exception amongst family and neighbors, 
many of which struggled in school and opted for vocational 
training as opposed to higher education.
    Families and teachers should not have to wonder whether 
lead exposure is to blame for a child's learning or behavior 
issues. Children, kids should not have to play in the hot sun 
and experience nosebleeds from the dry hot air. We have 
requested trees for shade, but pilots need fields clear in case 
of emergency landings. The Little League baseball fields were 
closed because pilots refused to use unleaded fuel. Instead of 
a rose garden, like the white neighborhood has, we got a lead 
garden. Our children are just as worthy as the children living 
in more affluent neighborhoods, and we also deserve roses.
    In the words of the wise poet, Amanda Gorman, ``Being 
American is more than the pride we inherit. It is the past we 
step into and how we repair it.'' This is the chance for 
Congress to help right a historical wrong by banning the use of 
lead-based fuel and allowing us to close the Reid-Hillview 
Airport to repurpose the land in a way that will repair the 
injuries committed against East San Jose families. Thank you.
    Mr. Khanna. Thank you. Thank you for that moving testimony.
    I have been informed that votes have been called. To 
accommodate members voting, the committee will take a short 
recess. We just have one vote, and so we can reconvene 
approximately at 3 p.m., and that would give everyone a chance 
to cast their vote.
    The committee stands in recess.
    [Recess.]
    Mr. Khanna. The committee is reconvened. I appreciate the 
witnesses' patience. We had an important vote, actually a vote 
on the CHIPS bill to fund a lot of the semiconductor 
manufacturing. We may have one more vote coming up. It is 
unclear, but I wanted to at least get the committee's testimony 
to proceed because I know you all have been very patient, so I 
appreciate that.
    So why don't I recognize Dr. Lanphear? You are recognized 
for your five-minute testimony.

  STATEMENT OF BRUCE LANPHEAR, M.D., MPH, PROFESSOR OF HEALTH 
               SCIENCES, SIMON FRASER UNIVERSITY

    Dr. Lanphear. Thank you very much. It's an honor to 
participate on this panel and in this hearing. I'm a physician 
with expertise in public health. I've conducted studies on the 
sources of lead exposure and the health impacts of lead 
poisoning for over 25 years. I've served on science advisory 
committees in the EPA, the CDC, NIH, and the American Academy 
of Pediatrics.
    Lead is a cumulative poison. Children, especially low-
income children in minority communities, are often heavily 
exposed to lead from paint and house dust in older, poorly 
maintained rental housing, soil in smelter communities, lead 
service lines, and aircraft emissions. Hundreds of studies have 
shown that exceedingly low levels of lead diminish children's 
reading abilities and cognitive abilities. What is more 
striking, for a given exposure, the decrements in reading and 
intellectual abilities are larger at the lowest measurable 
levels. This video that you will see, which measured lead in 
parts per billion, shows how lead harms children's brains. 
Hopefully, the video is playing.
    [Video shown.]
    Lead-associated IQ deficits extend beyond childhood. 
Children with higher blood lead levels were less likely to 
achieve the same social standing as their parents. Let's go to 
the next.
    [Video shown.]
    Let's go to the next slide. Lead increases a child's risk 
of developing ADHD. In a national study, we found that the 
fraction of children with ADHD increased from 5 to 13 percent 
as blood lead levels increased. One in 5 cases of ADHD in 
American children, representing 600,000 children, were due to 
lead exposure.
    Next slide.
    In 2013, the EPA concluded that lead is a causal risk 
factor for coronary heart disease, the leading cause of death 
worldwide. Fifteen studies conducted in the United States and 
Europe all showed that lead increased the risk of heart 
disease.
    Next slide.
    [Video shown.]
    Next slide.
    We're going to go quickly here. Airborne lead increases 
children's blood lead levels beginning at the lowest measurable 
levels and well below .15 microgram per cubic meter, the EPA's 
existing air lead standard. The EPA estimated that over 450 
tons of lead were emitted by piston engine aircraft every year, 
70 percent of all lead emissions.
    Next slide.
    We can see that lead particles from aircraft exhaust are 
exquisitely small, small enough to go directly up the olfactory 
nerve into the brain.
    Next slide.
    I want to just show a couple quick slides of the Reid-
Hillview Airport study.
    Next slide.
    Here you can see as air traffic increased, we see 
children's blood lead levels increase, but only for those 
children who live near the airport.
    Next slide.
    We can also see that as the number of risk factors for 
children increase, we can see that the percent of children that 
exceed 3.5 microgram per deciliter, the action level set by 
CDC, the percent of children increases sharply from 2 percent 
of children in the study to 5.7 percent who live near the 
airport, and up to 13.9 percent who live near the airport 
during maximum traffic, who live downwind and our lower SES.
    Next slide.
    In summary, we can say that low-level lead poisoning is a 
major risk factor for cognitive deficits, ADHD, and coronary 
heart disease in Americans, affecting children and adults. And 
lead exposure from aircraft emissions is a major source of lead 
exposure for the 16 million people who live near airports. The 
recent report on Reid-Hillview Airport has confirmed that lead 
exposure from aircraft emissions is an urgent public health 
problem. Fortunately, lead poisoning is preventable.
    Thank you.
    Mr. Khanna. Thank you. Thank you for that powerful 
presentation, and I want to recognize Mr. Braly. I know you 
have to leave at 3:30. So, Mr. Braly, you are recognized.
    [No response.]
    Mr. Khanna. Mr. Braly, I think you have to unmute.
    Mr. Braly. Testing. OK.

  STATEMENT OF GEORGE BRALY, CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER, GENERAL 
                     AVIATION MODIFICATIONS

    Mr. Braly. My name is George Braly. I'm an aerospace 
engineer. We operate a very high technology, but small 
aerospace engineering company in Oklahoma. And we decided we 
had the capability and the infrastructure with one of the 
world's state-of-the-art engine test facilities, and after 
watching the frustration of no solution for 20 years, we 
decided in 2009 to tackle the problem and see if we could find 
a solution. We adopted a historically, fairly common scientific 
approach to the problem that had not been followed previously, 
and, frankly, within a matter of months, we had a workable 
solution. And we started in to get it approved by the Federal 
Aviation Administration.
    That has been an exercise in enormous frustration. However, 
after over 12 years of effort, enormous amounts of 
certification activity involving over 100--and I'm not 
kidding--over 100 senior-level FAA engineers and managers, last 
March, the Wichita Aircraft Certification Regional Office, or 
branch office, their certification team, which has more 
experience certifying fuels than every other FAA aircraft 
office in the country put together, everybody else put 
together, they made a finding, sent us an email saying that we 
had completed all of the regulatory requirements to authorize 
the issuance of Federal Aviation Administration Approved Model 
List supplemental type certificates that cover all of the spark 
ignition piston engines in the FAA's data base. That is every 
single, without exception, aircraft piston engines, spark 
ignition piston engine, and the associated aircraft in the 
United States, and they were simply waiting on permission from 
headquarters to do something really hard: pick up a ballpoint 
pen and put a signature on a piece of paper.
    Yes, go ahead. I mean, laugh. I mean, I laugh with you, but 
it's just amazing the bureaucratic mumbo jumbo that has gone on 
since March the 4th. Literally, I can't imagine how 
embarrassing this ought to be to somebody responsible in the 
FAA. Every single day for, I believe, the last 147 days, the 
FAA has been in defiance of its own regulations, which require 
them to sign and issue their certificates. And with respect to 
the chairman and the Members of Congress, in 2018, you have 
passed an act, and that act mandated, ordered, directed the FAA 
to sign and deliver those certificates when all of the required 
certification matters had been accomplished.
    The emails we have from the FAA Regional Office in Wichita 
says we have done that. So they are not only in defiance of 
their, you know, Administrative Procedures Act regulatory 
requirements to sign and hand us those certificates, they are 
actually in defiance of Congress. And Congress can hold them in 
contempt from that.
    And this a complete solution. If those certificates had 
been signed in March as the law required them to be signed, I 
feel fairly confident that by some time in the month of August 
or the month of September, there would be railroad cars of high 
octane unleaded aviation gasoline in California going to 
airports like Reid-Hillview, and San Martin, and the flight 
school in Bakersfield, and, you know, Robinson Helicopter in 
Los Angeles, which is at risk of losing their production if 100 
low lead is banned in Los Angeles. It is not a solution in 8, 
or 9, or 10 years, like the FAA has proposed to spend another 
$115 million taxpayer dollars if they can talk Congress into 
funding a search for a solution to a problem for which the 
solution has already been found and approved by the cognizant 
FAA engineers.
    One very senior FAA engineer that was involved in the 
whistleblowing on the 737 Max project made the observation that 
the 737 Max problem happened because FAA management was not 
listening to their engineers. Well, this is exactly the same 
problem. FAA management is not listening to their highly 
experienced engineers that have told them this project is ready 
for signature.
    Mr. Chairman, I thank you for your patience and your close 
attention.
    Mr. Khanna. Thank you so much, Mr. Braly. Now I would like 
to recognize Mr. D'Acosta.

  STATEMENT OF CHRIS D'ACOSTA, CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER, SWIFT 
                             FUELS

    Mr. D'Costa. Thank you, Chairman Khanna and Ranking Member 
Herrell. Thank you very much for giving me the opportunity to 
be here today. My name is Chris D'Acosta. I serve as CEO of 
Swift Fuels, LLC, which a privately held firm that's based in 
West Lafayette, Indiana, in the Purdue Research Park there. I 
was raised in Texas. I graduated from Texas Tech. I worked and 
traveled, really, over the world over a number of years. All of 
my experience the last 42 years is in the oil and gas industry, 
and I came to Swift Fuels in 2012 as CEO, so I have been there 
just over 10 years.
    At Swift Fuels, our firm specializes in developing and 
commercializing fuels and fuel process technologies to resolve 
critical challenges that typically arise in the oil, gas, and 
chemical industry. Regarding 100 low leaded aviation gasoline 
used in piston aircrafts, Swift is the chief architect and the 
sole provider of UL 94 unleaded avgas, today used across the 
United States, which is FAA approved with ASTM International 
certification of the Fuel D7547, and OEM endorsement from a 
number of the major air frame and engine providers, allowing it 
to serve more than 68 percent of the U.S. fleet, soon to be 75 
percent of the U.S. fleet.
    My firm is also working to provide the full fleet-wide 
replacement to remove toxic lead from avgas in the months 
ahead. We have been working on that diligently for over two 
years in earnest, and that product will be 100 motor octane 
fuel with a 10 percent renewable component. It will be clean 
burning and cost-effective for the U.S. fleet.
    So, you know, what can be done to streamline and accelerate 
the progress? Swift Fuels is actively working full throttle 
with the Proprietary Certification Program for 100 octane 
replacement of low lead. We collaborate daily with the FAA. 
There are no obstacles, there are no obstructions from our 
ability to deliver on projects on specific work. We have a 
large number of active people and experts that are not just FAA 
experts, they are oil and gas industry experts, they are OEM, 
you know, engine and airframe experts that are all working 
together on what I would consider state-of-the-art processing 
technologies that are going to make the fuel resilient in the 
marketplace across America and the rest of the world where 
leaded fuel is used. So our methods are unique, and 
proprietary, and, you know, robust to say the least. That is 
our intent as we deliver our fuel.
    In the last, I guess, five months, the industry announced 
the organization called EAGLE, which was directed by Steve 
Dixon, at the time, the head of the FAA, in collaboration with 
Pete Bunce from Gamma and Mark Baker from AOPA, with the intent 
to lay out a plan, timetable, or, I would call it, a worst-case 
time line to 2030 where unleaded fuel would be addressed. What 
drove that timeline was the congressional mandate on public 
communication with, you know, with communities about how the 
lead endangerment would work. So in my mind, that is a worst-
case scenario timeline.
    Swift Fuels is working toward a three-year timeline for 
full fleet-wide approval of our highest octane fuel. In the 
meantime, UL 94 was implemented in 2015, and I want to thank 
Cindy Chavez and her kind comments a few minutes ago regarding 
the fact that we worked diligently to get unleaded avgas to 
fully replace low-lead at Reid-Hillview when they made that 
decision. And we did that in an environment where there was 
wildfires, supply chain disruptions, still impacts from COVID 
with a lot of shortages of labor. And we were still able to 
fully replace low lead, you know, virtually overnight. You 
know, there were airports that held out until the end of the 
calendar year, but since that time--not airports--FBOs that had 
held out to the end of the calendar year. But anyway, we have 
fully replaced all the leaded fuel of that airport, and it has 
been very successful. There are four flight schools at those 
four FBOs. They are all actively using our fuel, and it is 
serving its purpose.
    So pilots, the reason they value our fuel is because it is 
a premium quality product, and, you know, communities love it 
because it doesn't have toxic lead. And I appreciate the 
comments also that Ms. Lechuga also mentioned. We have strong 
ties to the Latin community. You know, we are passionate, 
working with people all over the world from a missional 
standpoint to try to serve the needs of, let's call it, the 
impoverished and people that are maybe not as advantage as 
others. So that is a core in my heart. But our fuel is out 
there. It is actively being used. As a matter of fact, 
yesterday the University of North Dakota announced in a public 
press release that they have made the decision to convert all 
their flight training fleet, more than 150 airplanes, to 
unleaded 94.
    So thank you for giving me the opportunity to speak, and I 
am happy to answer any question.
    Mr. Khanna. Thank you very much. I now recognize myself for 
five minutes of questions.
    The Reid-Hillview Airport near my district in California is 
the 25th-highest lead-polluting airport in the country. It is 
an overwhelmingly Latino community. Ninety-seven percent of 
people living near the airport identified as non-white, and 79 
percent primarily speak a language other than English at home. 
Supervisor Chavez, would you say that lead in aviation fuel is 
an environmental justice issue?
    Ms. Chavez. I think, as evidenced by, frankly, by the 80 
years of inaction, really yes. And, you know, one thing, and I 
just wanted to acknowledge what Ms. Lechuga said, is that we 
are already in an area that has a high level of Alzheimer's 
disease, a high level of heart disease, high level of cancer. 
And so when you add lead onto a community that is already 
struggling and suffering, what you get is a community that 
really, under the weight of all of these externalities, is 
really being crushed. And this is an opportunity really to be 
part of dismantling what has taken generations just to push 
this community down.
    Mr. Khanna. Thank you, Supervisor Chavez. Ms. Lechuga, do 
you feel your community has historically received the concern 
and action it has deserved on aviation fuel?
    Ms. Lechuga. No, I think we have not. This is a clear 
injustice against our community. You know, when my grandfather 
was bracero, he was sprayed with DDT pesticides and suffered 
Alzheimer's in his later years as a result. Similarly, our 
community is continuing to be sprayed with toxic chemicals, and 
unless we make noise about it nobody's going to care.
    Mr. Khanna. Currently, the most widely used fuel for piston 
engine aircraft contains tetraethyllead, a compound containing 
lead that increases a fuel's octane level and prevents engine 
damage and failure. The FAA and Environmental Protection Agency 
have delayed phasing out lead avgas for decades. Viable 
alternatives have existed globally since the 1980's, but most 
of them aren't acceptable to roughly 30 percent of piston 
engine planes that need high-octane fuel. Our witness, Mr. 
George Braly, says he has developed just that. Mr. Braly, how 
many engineering reviews has FAA completed for your fuel?
    [No response.]
    Mr. Khanna. Mr. Braly, you have to just unmute.
    Mr. Braly. Yes. Prior to two years ago, we had gone through 
approximately seven complete high-level reviews of the status 
of the project and where we were that involved almost every 
single senior FAA engineer manager and director of various ones 
of the Aircraft Engine Power Directorate and the Aircraft 
Directorate. And then just in the last four months, five 
months, well, since December, we have gone through five more. 
And, you know, it is a review, of a review, of a review, of a 
review, on and on and on. Clearly, there is some reason why 
they won't simply allow the Wichita manager to pick up the 
ballpoint pen and sign their certificates that are printed and 
sitting on his desk waiting for a signature. He could literally 
sign them today and drop them in the mail or PDF them and email 
them to them.
    And tomorrow we have large, capable refinery producers that 
have been in touch with us diligently over the last year. For 
instance, one of them happens to be Exxon, and they are 
prepared to start shipping us components, literally, two weeks 
from today to make finished fuel with. This is not a giant 
mystery. Not hard. It is easy. We can do it. All we need is a 
pair of signatures.
    Mr. Khanna. Thank you, Mr. Braly. Supervisor Chavez, the 
FAA is currently working with the county on a permanent ban on 
leaded fuel at Reid-Hillview Airport. You led the supervisors 
to pass a unanimous resolution on this. What recommendations do 
you have for the FAA for how they should work with communities 
choked by toxic lead emissions, and what they should be doing 
with Reid-Hillview?
    Ms. Chavez. Thank you for that question. I will say that 
the FAA came out to meet with the county a few months ago to 
look at how Reid-Hillview could be a pilot project. And I think 
one of the things that we really need is that we need the FAA 
to affirm the ability for local agencies to promote access to 
unleaded fuels, really by prohibiting them. That would be 
significant. And then we would like the FAA to provide 
resources for agencies seeking to expand their infrastructure 
and availability of unleaded fuels, and that way we can 
mitigate the harms of leaded avgas. They should prioritize the 
development and certification potential unleaded fuel that 
could replace leaded avgas on the market.
    And, you know, there are solutions, as you heard from Mr. 
Braly and from Mr. D'Acosta, that exist today that really just 
need a little more support to be available for aviation, you 
know, regional airports across the country. And so given what 
we know, the real question in my mind is how do we move quickly 
because we know what the harms are, and we actually have 
available solutions right now. How fast can we move?
    Mr. Khanna. Thank you. Thank you, Supervisor Chavez. I now 
recognize Ranking Member Herrell.
    Ms. Herrell. Thank you, Mr. Chair. I would like to ask for 
unanimous consent to enter into the written testimony today 
from the Aircraft Owners and Pilots Association.
    Mr. Khanna. Sure.
    Ms. Herrell. Thank you.
    Ms. Herrell. And thank you to the witnesses. I mean, just 
hearing different stories, different approaches on this. And I 
know, Mr. Braly, you must be so frustrated to not be able to 
see those signatures come fast enough.
    I want to go to Mr. D'Acosta, and you kind of touched on 
this, but what is the most difficult hurdle in finding an 
unleaded alternative to the 100 low lead fuel?
    Mr. D'Acosta. Well, it requires much more than just FAA 
certification. It requires industry collaboration, ASTM 
International consensus, which is a body of probably about 150 
people that represent all the major oil companies, engine and 
airframe OEMs, and other major constituents of fuel around the 
world, not just U.S. That group is very, very critical as well 
as the OEMs themselves who care about their engine warranties 
and things of that nature. It requires the consensus of all 
those groups. It is not just an FAA certificate requirement.
    Ms. Herrell. So, you know, it is obviously a very robust 
process, so to bring all the players----
    Mr. D'Acosta. Just if I may clarify that, UL 94 has all 
those.
    Ms. Herrell. OK. And just to kind of give everybody kind of 
a mental mindset of this, I mean, if you got all the players to 
the table and you got all the stakeholders there, what is the 
timeline on that certification process? I mean, are you going 
to be stonewalled, do you think, or do you think there is an 
appetite to move quickly on this?
    Mr. D'Acosta. Ma'am, are you asking me?
    Ms. Herrell. Yes. I'm sorry. Yes, sir.
    Mr. D'Acosta. Yes. I would tell you I use the words ``we 
are working full throttle.'' We are working toward having our 
100 octane fuel being ready to deploy by middle of next year, 
2023, and then going through a transition period that will 
probably take 1 to 2 years before all the fleet-wide airplanes 
are in a position to use it at every single airport. There are 
19,000 or so, you know, landing points around the country. It 
is a rather involved thing, but we are working with all the 
major distributors that are willing to step up and do their 
part. So we believe that we can manage an orderly transition to 
a lot of places, yes, ma'am.
    Ms. Herrell. And then I just want to kind of stay on this 
vein for a moment, Mr. D'Acosta. It is resource intensive. I 
get that. What conversations are you having, or have there been 
any in terms of what would it be like to try to retrofit every 
general aviation airport with the needed tanks and equipment 
for drop-in fuel replacement? Have those conversations taking 
place?
    Mr. D'Acosta. Well, we are not trying to retrofit any 
tanks. You know, the infrastructure of the airports stands 
currently with the low lead fuel. There may be some airports 
that have, I don't know for certain. They might have inferior 
tanks. You know, there has been work on something called 
leaking underground storage tanks which has been regulated by 
the EPA for a long time, and everybody has got to shore up 
their tanks. And there is a preference to get rid of 
underground storage tanks, preferring above-ground storage 
tanks.
    So, you know, things can be done like that are really not 
in the purview of any of the people that I talk to other than 
the airports that have their own duty and responsibility to 
make those kind of improvements happen. Those could be 
accelerated. Those could be heightened in terms of, you know, 
care and concern. You know, somebody mentioned earlier there 
are 50 communities that have struggles with lead emissions, you 
know. We could choose a list of 5 or 10 or 50 and say, hey, we 
want to focus on those. We could do that, but what we don't 
want to do is throw into jeopardy full momentum toward getting 
a fleet-wide solution for every single airport, not just a 
subset, you know?
    Ms. Herrell. Right.
    Mr. D'Acosta. So if we can do things simultaneously, that 
is fine if we have the resources and personnel to do it. It has 
challenging, you know. Some of the Federal Government agencies, 
they have been understaffed, partly because of COVID and 
retirements. Our investors have augmented that with specialty 
contractors and involving people at different jurisdictions 
around the country to help expedite things. So, you know, 
private investors are making up for the shortfall to make sure 
that we can get all this done.
    Ms. Herrell. That is great, Mr. D'Acosta. I think everybody 
is at the same place in terms of understanding the importance 
of this and wanting to find swift resolution in terms of any 
kind of retrofit and everything. It is a case-by-case, airport-
by-airport kind of a situation. And then just one final 
question for you. Are you confident that there will be a single 
option to fully eliminate leaded fuel by FAA's Stated goal of 
2030?
    Mr. D'Acosta. Yes. Yes, ma'am.
    Ms. Herrell. Great. Thank you. Thank you, Mr. Chair. And I 
just want to say hi to the students that are here listening 
today. Thank you for joining us.
    Mr. Khanna. Thank you. Representative Tlaib?
    Ms. Tlaib. Thank you so much, Chairman Khanna, for holding 
this incredible hearing. I am actually learning for the first 
time how our country is in the middle of a lead crisis. I 
always think of water. I think of Flint. I think of my 
communities in Detroit as well as some Western Wayne 
communities that are impacted by lead-contaminated pipelines. 
But, you know, bringing attention to this is incredibly 
important, you know. We started a bipartisan Get the Lead Out 
Caucus with Congressman Myer, of course my good colleague from 
Michigan, Dingell, and, of course, Lisa Blunt Rochester, 
because I think we need to move with more urgency in regards to 
this.
    While lead pipes and paint are well-known contributors to 
this mass poisoning of the American people, especially our 
children, leaded aviation fuel is not. So I want folks, 
especially in Southeastern Michigan, to know this. This is a 
wake-up call. I actually looked this up because of this 
committee hearing, Chairman, so thank you. I found out that the 
Detroit City Airport, Willow Run, Ann Arbor's Municipal and 
Oakland Troy Airports are just some of the local airports using 
leaded fuel. When planes from these airports fly over our 
communities, they are crop dusting our neighborhoods with lead 
poisoned air. I know folks don't want to think of it that way, 
but it is. It is happening. But one of the interesting things 
about this is the impact on especially children. There was a 
study published, and the University of Chicago found that blood 
lead levels are higher among children closer to airports and 
flight paths of aircraft. I know one of our folks testified to 
this.
    You know, Dr. Lanphear, I used to actually say to people no 
amount of lead is safe. They would say a little bit amount of 
lead, but I know now and more folks know now more than ever 
that no amount of lead is safe. Can you talk to us what it 
really means because FAA plans to phaseout lead aviation gas by 
2030, but that simply isn't fast enough. So our children are 
already being poisoned now. I have read that it can stay in 
their DNA. It cannot only impact how they learn, but really how 
they thrive in other kinds of cases. And I even heard how it 
impacts pregnant women, Chairman. And so Dr. Lanphear, can you 
talk about out how urgently we should be moving, and what are 
some of the direct impacts? I mean, you talked about it a 
little bit in the slide, but I think people need to know some 
of the things that you found out looking at this more 
carefully.
    Dr. Lanphear. Yes. Thank you for the question. We have seen 
from NASCAR studies, we have seen from other studies that if 
you take lead out of gasoline, within a year, you see a decline 
in preterm births. You see a decline in cardiac events. So we 
know that these have dramatic impact. If you think about the 
impact on children, it is lifelong, so each gallon of gas has 
been estimated to lead to $10 downstream costs on children's 
lifetime earnings--$10 per gallon. So these have huge ripple 
effects, starting with preterm births, going on to learning 
problems in school, down to behavior problems. It is so wide 
reaching that it is an absolutely urgent problem.
    Ms. Tlaib. You know, Supervisor Chavez, I do not envy you. 
I read that the Reid-Hillview Airport was the 34th highest 
emitter of lead in 2022. I am sure you heard from the 
residents. You know, folks don't get to study this but, you 
know, I hear about nasal cancer in my district now and all 
these respiratory issues, and folks have never heard of these 
things, never been in their family. And I am wondering if you 
could take some time, you know. I know as soon as the county 
discovered the lead exposure among children living in that 
area, that the airport was comparable to Flint, Michigan, and 
the county immediately banned the use of lead aviation gas at 
its airport. Can you talk about what your residents told you?
    Ms. Chavez. Yes. Thank you so much, Congressmember, for the 
question. You know, our community has been crying out for years 
for us to do something swift to protect them. And what happened 
is that we brought a vote to our board to stop accepting 
airport improvement grants so that, in fact, we could close 
Reid-Hillview Airport by 2031. And what happened out of that 
was that a number of the pilots said to us, look, we don't 
really think that lead is as significant an issue as you think 
it is, and the EPA studies weren't specific enough. So that is 
why we invested in our own local study to be able to determine 
whether or not lead was actually impacting the health of our 
community.
    So what we learned was the answer to that was, yes, that if 
you live close or you are downwind, you are going to get a 
higher level of lead. And as Dr. Lanphear so elegantly 
explained to us, what are all the impacts that happened to our 
communities. After that study came out, I really cannot tell 
you the number of people who live in that area who came to me 
and asked whether or not miscarriages or developmental 
disabilities in their children could be attributed to that.
    What that told me is that generations of people have been 
seeing poor health outcomes, and they wanted to know how much 
it was connected to lead. So the study was critical because 
what it helped us understand is what we can do at a local level 
to protect our communities, and that we did by banning leaded 
gas sales at our airports.
    Ms. Tlaib. Thank you, Chairman. I yield.
    Mr. Khanna. Thank you. I want to formally thank Mr. Braly 
and excuse him. I know he had a prior commitment, so thank you, 
Mr. Braly. And I now want to recognize Representative Fallon.
    Mr. Fallon. Thank you, Mr. Chairman. Witnesses and 
colleagues, thanks again for being here today and discussing 
the lack of transparency our current administration is 
displaying and the need for the private sector take the lead on 
and innovating our aviation industry. I would like to second 
the chairman's remarks in stating that this is unconscionable 
for this administration to ignore an entire branch of 
government by refusing to allow Cabinet-level witnesses--EPA, 
FAA, that kind of thing--to testify today. Despite Mr. Biden's 
promises of transparency and despite the committee's request, 
we have yet to even have one cabinet-level witness attend any 
oversight committee hearings this year. The American public 
deserves access not only to this institution, the People's 
House, but also their chief executive branch, and we need to 
hold Mr. Biden up to his promises during the campaign of 
transparency and show some respect to a co-equal branch of 
government, and, more importantly, show some respect to the 
American people. Even though we do lack critical insight from 
the heads of the FAA and the EPA, I believe we have had a 
really constructive hearing today, so I do thank all for being 
here.
    Mr. D'Acosta, I am aware that the FAA convened an aviation 
rulemaking committee in 2012 that brought about no results in 
terms of identifying a viable alternative to low-lead 100. In 
2013, they launched the Piston Aviation Fuels Initiative, 
which, again, resulted in little actionable items and no fleet-
wide unleaded avgas alternatives. Then earlier this year, the 
FAA, EPA, and a litany of private stakeholders convened the 
Eliminate Aviation Gasoline Lead Emissions, or EAGLE 
initiative--that is, as far as I know--and ongoing cooperation 
with the private sector in search for alternatives to leaded 
fuel.
    Mr. D'Acosta, can you tell us more about the Swift Fuel's 
role in these FAA initiatives?
    Mr. D'Acosta. So the PATHE structure that you described 
which ran from 2014 to 2018, a five-year program, there were 17 
applicants, or 17 fuel formulas, brought forward. They down 
selected four. Two of those were from Swift, then they down 
selected two. One was from Swift. And the program was entirely 
FAA driven, which ensued some of the challenges because you are 
dealing with people that is not their core thing. And, you 
know, they did their best. They really architected some 
tremendous, insightful ideas and concepts, but it didn't 
fulfill what it should have fulfilled, which is why it ended, 
and now it has morphed into something else.
    So what happened from that from a Swift Fuel standpoint is 
we took our learnings from that experience, and we have 
basically stepped away from PATHE, and we put it into an 
industrial program of our own, still with entire FAA 
involvement and oversight. They have to approve everything that 
you do, the FAA does, but that it is business driven. It is not 
FAA driven. So we have designated FAA participants. We have 
designated OEMs, like, you know, engine OEMs, like Licome, and 
Textron, and other people that are forming in various factions 
here to make sure their perspectives are brought into the deal. 
So we call it an enhanced PATHE, OEM-endorsed, robust test plan 
that is signed by the FAA as we go down this path, so that when 
we get to the end, everybody in industry that I mentioned a few 
minutes ago endorses that outcome. And that is unique. There is 
no one else that is doing that. Swift Fuels.
    Mr. Fallon. And, sir, just two quick questions during the 
time we have remaining. Do you believe the Federal Government 
needs to be involved in researching and developing a fleet-wide 
replacement for leaded avgas? And the second is, what 
alternatives to leaded avgas are currently in production and 
available to consumers?
    Mr. D'Acosta. Did you ask the FAA? The Federal Government 
is interested in all sorts of research concepts, which is, I 
guess, their privy, but really the research comes from 
industry. So if the engine makers come up with a new way to do 
engine processing that is more efficient and maybe requires 
less octane, then we all benefit from that. If the FAA or if 
the regulators want to play some role there, that is fine, but 
most of the creative engineering comes not from the regulatory 
body. It comes from the entrepreneurs that are in industry.
    And the FAA wants to participate in that, and that is fine, 
and EAGLE has an R&D phase or component platform that they 
envision, but that is because they are tied to the industry 
gamut. General aviation manufacturers is where all those 
industrial players are. They are part of the trade association. 
They have all sorts of ideas that have been discussed for the 
time, you know, as possible additional features above and 
beyond just the fuel.
    Mr. Fallon. Thank you, Mr. Chair. I yield back.
    Mr. Khanna. Thank you. I would know like to recognize 
Representative Zoe Lofgren.
    Ms. Lofgren. Thank you Mr. Chairman, and, once again, 
thanks to the subcommittee for allowing me to sit in and 
participate. It is very important to our community, as you have 
heard from our witnesses. And I would just like to thank 
Maricela Lechuga for her wonderful testimony, her commitment to 
her children, to her neighbors, and to her community, for 
standing up for them. It is very important. And certainly, 
Supervisor Cindy Chavez, who is just a champion for children, 
not only in the case of trying to keep lead out of their blood 
and keeping them from being poisoned, but in so many other ways 
in her public service. There is no one that I can think of in 
local government who has done more for the children of our 
community than Cindy Chavez. So thank you also for your 
testimony.
    I would like to ask one question of Professor Lanphear. 
Supervisor Chavez has entered into the record the blood level 
study that has been discussed, and it was a shocking thing. I 
read the whole thing, and you can see the impact of the aerosol 
lead on these children. I mean, the closer you are, and if 
there was COVID, and there were less flights, I mean, it was 
compelling, and it was terrifying, frankly. There was another 
study done about whether there was lead in the soil, and that 
came up with a negative finding. And I had a scientist tell me, 
well, the two are not inconsistent because the aerosols are 
floating in the air and being inhaled by the children. That 
doesn't necessarily mean you would have a buildup in the soil. 
Do you concur with that?
    Dr. Lanphear. Well, you can have both. What we can say 
going back to the studies that were done when leaded gasoline 
for cars was being used is that probably about 30 to 40 percent 
of the exposure the community experienced was from inhalation. 
Much of what drives the higher exposure to toddlers are the 
mouthing behaviors, where they contaminate leaded dust that 
settles in their home.
    Ms. Lofgren. Right.
    Dr. Lanphear. So it is really a combination of inhalation 
and exposure, ingestion from contaminated dust. You are also 
going to see contaminated lead in the soil, but it may not be 
so striking, for example, that you would see it like in a 
smelter community.
    Ms. Lofgren. Correct. Well, I just want to say that this is 
an important hearing, and the idea that we would continue to 
poison the children in East San Jose for another 5 or 6 years 
is completely unacceptable.
    I would like to ask unanimous consent to put into the 
record a couple of pieces of information that I think are key. 
First, a letter sent in December 2021 from the FAA to the 
county after the county acted to ban the sale of leaded fuel. I 
mean, they own the airport. They own, you know, the tanks with 
the fuel, basically threatening them, telling them they had to 
continue to sell and poison these children--outrageous--along 
with the letter that the county sent in return.
    I would like to also put in the record a letter sent 
February of this year by all four members who represent Santa 
Clara County--Mr. Khanna, myself, Mr. Panetta, and Anna Eshoo--
to the Secretary of Transportation. He never answered the 
letter. I would like to note also that we tried to call the 
Secretary of Transportation, the four of us, and he refused to 
take our phone call.
    Ms. Lofgren. I would just like to say the idea that this 
administration would try and force the county to poison 
children is outrageous. It is outrageous, and it really needs 
to stop. We also need to do a nationwide transferal of for non-
leaded gas, because right now the county is selling unleaded 
gas, but you can fuel up in another our airport and land in. 
So, yes, we need to do nationwide, but we need to protect the 
children of East San Jose right away.
    And I thank you so much, the chair and the ranking member, 
for holding this hearing, and hopefully we will get some action 
from this administration that has been sorely lacking and 
reinforced when they even refuse to send people to testify here 
today. Such a disappointment. Not what I expect from this 
administration.
    Mr. Khanna. Thank you, Representative Lofgren, and thank 
you again, which is evident, for your passion on this issue and 
for the children in your district for decades, and your fight 
on this. I appreciate very much your leadership.
    I now want to recognize Representative Flood for 
questioning.
    Mr. Flood. Thank you, Mr. Chairman, members. Mr. D'Acosta, 
thank you for joining us today.
    I think it is important to remember that single-engine 
piston planes are used for more than just passenger flight. 
Crop dusters, commonly used on farms across the country, like 
the AT 802, are also single-engine piston planes, and there are 
a lot of agricultural applications that are performed by these 
planes across the state of Nebraska. If we are serious about 
addressing the issue, we do need the innovation and we need the 
industry to lead the way toward finding solutions away from 
leaded fuel for single-engine piston planes. But I do fear that 
a top-down regulatory decision from the EPA to ban these leaded 
aviation fuel options would have some serious ramifications.
    Imagine the effects of grounding crop dusters and much of 
rural general aviation. It would be devastating for both ag 
communities in Nebraska and for the prices of corn and other 
crops across the country. The last thing we need right now at a 
moment of uncertainty and already historic high gas prices is 
bad rulemaking that drives Americans' grocery bills even 
higher.
    To the witness, I would ask Mr. D'Acosta, Swift Fuels is 
working to develop an unleaded alternative fuel for small 
planes. I know that you have described kind of where you are 
working. Can you reiterate for me the timeline with which you 
think you could be successful or that the industry could be 
successful so that we could allow the market to work here?
    Mr. D'Acosta. So just to clarify, the EAGLE Program put a 
2030 deadline on the timeline to have unleaded fuel, but Swift 
Fuels is working on a three-year deadline. So we believe will 
have fleet-wide approval of our entire 100-octane solution 
within three years. And, in fact, we believe that sometime next 
year, 2023, we will have introduced the 100-octane fuel into 
specific locations across the country to further kind of a 
transitional stepping-stone process to get the fuel into the 
hands of people where they can experience it as a part of the 
rollout process.
    So Swift Fuel says 100-octane fuel in 2023 with a full 
fleet-wide envelopment of the United States by 2025. And we 
think it would be a global two years after that.
    Mr. Flood. So when you list those deadlines, does that also 
mean the certification of those fuels and the regulatory burden 
that you----
    Mr. D'Acosta. That is the certification. Yes, sir, that is 
the certification along with the industry endorsement of the 
ASTM specifications and the OEM endorsements of the fuel from 
all the major OEMs that I have given examples of. All of those 
have to happen for the fuel to get into the market. If they 
don't, what will happen is the industry will step up and stop 
it because they can tell their pilot, the people who own their 
engines and their air frames, don't do that. And no pilot wants 
to fly if the industry says don't do that.
    Mr. Flood. Thank you very much for your testimony. The 
National Academy of Sciences released a report in 2021. I think 
it is important to note it found there was no single option 
that could guarantee lead's full elimination from aviation 
fuel. So I do believe we need to rely on innovation, 
technology, and our robust system of private enterprise to help 
solve the problem. We also need to ensure that we do what we 
can do to reduce the regulatory burdens on firms trying to 
develop the next generation of these fuels will have it impact 
on how far we can go. So this is not the time for top-down, 
sweeping Federal bans. This has ag applicators in my state 
concerned. I certainly understand that lead exposure poses 
serious health risks to human beings, but we have to find 
solutions, and I appreciate your time, Mr. D'Acosta, and your 
testimony.
    I yield back.
    Mr. Khanna. Thank you.
    Mr. D'Acosta. Thank you. Can I just make one clarifying 
comment? May I?
    Mr. Khanna. Sure. Go ahead.
    Mr. D'Acosta. So several people have mentioned today the 
term ``single-engine type aircraft.'' The aircraft we are 
talking about fleet wide spans many different types of engines 
that have an 80-year legacy. So there are big radial war birds. 
There are twin engine aircraft. There are helicopters. There is 
single-engine aircraft. There is a whole mixture of things, and 
that does add to the complexity. But nevertheless, all of that 
is within the scope of what we call, fleet wide, a fuel that 
will address the entire piston aviation fleet. Thank you.
    Mr. Khanna. Thank you. Well, thank you to all of the 
panelists for their remarks. Thank you, in particular, for your 
leadership on this issue and for the personal testimony that 
many of you shared about the impact of lead in the community. I 
want to commend my colleagues and thank them for participating. 
Congratulations to Ranking Member, Ms. Herrell. I look forward 
to working with you for the rest of this Congress and beyond.
    With that and without objection, all members will have five 
legislative days within which to submit additional written 
questions for the witnesses to the chair which will be 
forwarded to the witnesses for their response. I ask our 
witnesses to please respond as promptly as you are able.
    Mr. Khanna. This hearing is adjourned.
    [Whereupon, at 3:51 p.m., the subcommittee was adjourned.]