[Congressional Record Volume 153, Number 55 (Thursday, March 29, 2007)]
[Senate]
[Pages S4207-S4208]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]

      By Mr. OBAMA (for himself, Mr. Kerry, and Mrs. Clinton):
  S. 1068. A bill to promote healthy communities; to the Committee on 
Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions.
  Mr. OBAMA. Mr. President, next week is National Public Health week--a 
week to raise awareness about the importance of public health all 
around this Nation. I applaud the efforts of the American Public Health 
Association in organizing events across the country to assist in this 
awareness building.
  We all know the alarming statistics demonstrating the worsening 
health status in both children and adults in this Nation. Without 
intervention, 1 in 3 children born in 2000 can expect to develop 
diabetes in their lifetime because of obesity resulting from poor 
nutrition and sedentary lifestyles. In my home State of Illinois, we 
have the highest number of lead-poisoned children in the Nation because 
of the large amount of older housing in places like Chicago. And asthma 
rates are on the rise in minority populations, reflecting worsening air 
quality in many areas.
  But what many don't know is how, and the degree to which, changes in 
the environment are contributing to this health decline. Yet, study 
after study has shown that environmental factors can be just as 
problematic as poor genes in causing disease.
  While working as a community organizer in the mid-1980s on Chicago's 
south side, I became intimately aware of the impact of the built 
environment on public health. One of the neighborhoods in which I 
worked was bordered by the highly polluted Calumet River on one side 
and railroad tracks on the other side. People didn't just grow up in 
this neighborhood--generation after generation stayed in a community 
with pollutants and extremely limited access to physical activity and 
healthy

[[Page S4208]]

living. This image stays with me and is a motivating force to improve 
community design that includes all members of society.
  The American Public Health Association and countless other expert 
organizations have shown us that if we make a real commitment to, and 
investment in, building healthy communities, we can substantially 
improve the health of children and adults.
  There are many simple ways we can do this. Whenever we build a new 
highway or a new condo complex, we could also build a park where kids 
can play. Whenever we plan new communities, we could put grocery 
stores, restaurants and post offices within easy walking distance. We 
could take steps to ensure that factories or power plants aren't 
located near schools. We could ensure that kids are not exposed to lead 
hazards. And we could encourage the development of ``green'' homes and 
buildings that decrease energy consumption.
  And that is why I come to the floor today to reintroduce the Healthy 
Places Act, and the Healthy Communities Act. The Healthy Places Act 
would help State and local governments assess the health impact of new 
policies or projects, whether it's a new highway or a shopping center. 
And once the health impact is determined, the bill gives grant funding 
and technical assistance to help address the potential health problems. 
And while we already know a great deal about the relationship between 
the built environment and the health status of residents, the bill 
supports additional research so we can look into new environmental 
health hazards.
  The Healthy Communities Act goes hand in hand with the Healthy Places 
Act, calling for the assessment of the impact of federal policies on 
environmental health and justice. To make sure our policy decisions are 
not hurting public health, this legislation requires an Environmental 
Health Report Card for each state and the Nation at large. Since areas 
with poor environmental health tend to be disproportionately fiscally 
poor as well, this legislation establishes health action zones that 
qualify for grant assistance to address these problems. And since much 
more remains to be understood in this arena, the bill calls for 
environmental health research and for environmental health workforce 
development.
  We as a society are moving in the direction of designing communities 
with healthy living and public health in mind. For example, in Chicago, 
city leaders recognized the lack of grocery stores in many lower income 
neighborhoods, forcing families to go without fresh foods. To address 
this issue, the city's Department of Planning and Development developed 
a program called Retail Chicago, which used redevelopment funds to 
attract local developers to build grocery stores in low-income 
neighborhoods.
  While we celebrate the success of such local efforts, we must call 
upon the Federal Government to provide adequate support. And we must 
ensure that all segments of society reap the rewards of building and 
maintaining healthy communities. I thank you for this time, and I urge 
my colleagues to support the Healthy Places Act and the Healthy 
Communities Act.
                                 ______