[Congressional Record Volume 145, Number 9 (Wednesday, January 20, 1999)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E80]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




 INTRODUCTION OF LEGISLATION TO AMEND THE COMPREHENSIVE ENVIRONMENTAL 
           RESPONSE, COMPENSATION, AND LIABILITY ACT OF 1980

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                      HON. RODNEY P. FRELINGHUYSEN

                             of new jersey

                    in the house of representatives

                       Tuesday, January 19, 1999

  Mr. FRELINGHUYSEN. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to introduce legislation 
to amend the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and 
Liability Act of 1980 (CERCLA). My bill would restrict the liability of 
local educational agencies in the clean-up of Superfund sites.
  Mr. Speaker, this change makes sense given the fact that hundreds of 
school boards are affected. In New Jersey alone, 57 school districts 
have been affected by Superfund's liability reach and have been 
assessed for liability under Superfund. According to the National 
School Boards Association, over 200 school districts nationwide have 
been named as defendants in lawsuits related to Superfund cases.
  Most often, school boards dispose of ordinary garbage--papers, 
pencils, or school lunches. These materials are hardly toxic or 
hazardous, and in all cases, the waste is disposed of legally. In one 
case in New Jersey, involving the Gloucester Environmental Management 
Services Landfill (GEMS), 53 school boards were assessed $15,000 each, 
not including additional money associated with legal costs. As a result 
of the tangled Superfund liability web, these precious dollars in a 
school's budget were diverted away from educating children and into the 
Superfund coffers.
  Mr. Speaker, that is why I am introducing this legislation today, to 
exempt school boards from Superfund liability. I believe that my bill 
will help schools use their money the most effective way possible: in 
the classrooms.

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