[Congressional Record Volume 168, Number 55 (Tuesday, March 29, 2022)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E310]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                          CABIN AIR SAFETY ACT

                                 ______
                                 

                          HON. JOHN GARAMENDI

                             of california

                    in the house of representatives

                        Tuesday, March 29, 2022

  Mr. GARAMENDI. Madam Speaker, today I reintroduce the ``Cabin Air 
Safety Act,'' with U.S. Senator Richard Blumenthal (D-CT). I thank the 
original cosponsors for their support of this critical legislation: 
U.S. Senators Edward J. Markey (D-MA) and Dianne Feinstein (D-CA) and 
Congressmen Brian K. Fitzpatrick (R-PA), Kaiali`i Kahele, (D-HI), and 
Don Bacon (R-NE).
  All Americans have the right to expect safe, clean air when 
travelling or reporting to work. I am deeply concerned by the 
documented cases where pilots, flight attendants, and airline 
passengers have been incapacitated or even hospitalized following 
exposure to toxic cabin air.
  The ``Cabin Air Safety Act'' takes commonsense steps to protect 
airline crewmembers and the traveling public from toxic fume events, 
which occur when air contaminated by engine exhaust, fuel fumes, 
deicing fluids, and ozone enters the aircraft cabin through the jet-
engine intake or the auxiliary air intake at the stern of the aircraft 
when on the ground. Exposure to even low levels of these contaminants 
can incapacitate passengers and crew. Long-term exposure could lead to 
serious, debilitating health issues.
  Our bicameral, bipartisan legislation would better protect airline 
passengers and crew by mandating training on how to respond to toxic 
fumes, requiring the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) to record 
and monitor reports of toxic fume events, ensuring that investigations 
occur following reported toxic fume events, and installing air quality 
monitoring equipment such as carbon monoxide sensors on commercial 
aircraft as standard equipment.
  At the start of the global COVID-19 pandemic, the FAA under the Trump 
Administration claimed it could not set standards to ensure cabin air 
quality and protect public health. Our reintroduced ``Cabin Air Safety 
Act'' for this Congress makes clear that the FAA can indeed set 
standards for cabin air quality to safeguard the health of airline 
crewmembers and the traveling public.
  Madam Speaker, I urge all Members of the House to join me in 
cosponsoring this bicameral, bipartisan legislation. As a senior member 
of the House Transportation and Infrastructure Subcommittee on 
Aviation, I plan to make the ``Cabin Air Safety Act'' a major priority 
in the next FAA reauthorization.

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