[House Report 119-67]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
119th Congress } { Report
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
1st Session } { 119-67
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YOUTH POISONING PROTECTION ACT
_______
April 24, 2025.--Committed to the Committee of the Whole House on the
State of the Union and ordered to be printed
_______
Mr. Guthrie, from the Committee on Energy and Commerce, submitted the
following
R E P O R T
[To accompany H.R. 1442]
The Committee on Energy and Commerce, to whom was referred
the bill (H.R. 1442) a bill to ban the sale of products with a
high concentration of sodium nitrate to individuals, and for
other purposes, having considered the same, reports favorably
thereon without amendment and recommends that the bill do pass.
CONTENTS
Page
Purpose and Summary.............................................. 1
Background and Need for Legislation.............................. 2
Committee Action................................................. 3
Committee Votes.................................................. 3
Oversight Findings and Recommendations........................... 5
New Budget Authority, Entitlement Authority, and Tax Expenditures 5
Congressional Budget Office Estimate............................. 5
Federal Mandates Statement....................................... 5
Statement of General Performance Goals and Objectives............ 5
Duplication of Federal Programs.................................. 5
Related Committee and Subcommittee Hearings...................... 5
Committee Cost Estimate.......................................... 6
Earmark, Limited Tax Benefits, and Limited Tariff Benefits....... 6
Advisory Committee Statement..................................... 6
Applicability to Legislative Branch.............................. 6
Section-by-Section Analysis of the Legislation................... 6
Changes in Existing Law Made by the Bill, as Reported............ 6
PURPOSE AND SUMMARY
H.R. 1442, the Youth Poisoning Protection Act, was
introduced by Representative Trahan on February 18, 2025, and
referred to the Committee on Energy and Commerce. H.R. 1442
bans the sale of high-concentration sodium nitrite to
individuals by adding such products to the list of banned
hazardous products in the Consumer Product Safety Act (15
U.S.C. 2057). H.R. 1442 does not ban the sale of sodium nitrite
for business-to-business sales or sales to universities and
schools for the purpose of education and research.
BACKGROUND AND NEED FOR LEGISLATION
Sodium nitrite is a substance that is generally used to
cure meat and can be used medically to reverse cyanide
poisoning. Swallowing a spoonful of sodium nitrite dissolved in
a cup of water is likely to lead to a rapid death, and it is
approximately 100 times more lethal than other poisoning
methods used with suicidal intent.\1\ Sodium nitrite causes
hypotension, or low blood pressure, and methemoglobinemia,
which inhibits the ability of blood to carry oxygen.
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\1\Sean D. McCann, et al., Rising Incidence and High Mortality in
International Sodium Nitrite Exposures Reported to U.S. Poison Centers,
Clinical Toxicology (Mar. 31, 2021).
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Amazon stated that it stopped selling the chemical to home
consumers and offers it only on its Amazon business
marketplace.\2\ Still, online suicide assistance forums provide
detailed instructions and real-time guidance on how to die by
suicide using sodium nitrite. These sites are responsible for a
sharp increase of deaths by sodium nitrite ingestion in the
past few years, a trend expected to continue.\3\ Data from the
National Poison Data System shows a rise in self-poisonings
using sodium nitrite in the United States since 2017.\4\
Experts emphasize that high-concentration sodium nitrite is
only appropriate for commercial purposes--not individual or
household use.\5\
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\2\Kaustuv Basu, Chemical Used in Suicides Faces Sales Ban Under
Proposed Law, Bloomberg Law (June 22, 2023).
\3\Yub Raj Sedhai, et al., The use of sodium nitrite for deliberate
self-harm, and the online suicide market: Should we care?, The Medico-
Legal Journal (June 2022).
\4\See Note 1.
\5\Commonwealth of Australia, Delegate's final decision and reasons
for decision--sodium nitrite (Joint ACMS-ACCS #28, June 2021).
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Sodium nitrite has a wide variety of valuable and important
commercial and industrial uses. Large amounts of sodium nitrite
are used by the chemical and pharmaceutical industries. Sodium
nitrite has uses in the industrial production of organonitrogen
compounds. Sodium nitrite enables manufacturing of certain dyes
and rubber products, and it is also used in metallurgy
applications, such as phosphatizing and detinning. Sodium
nitrite is also used as a corrosion inhibitor, an industrial
grease additive, and in cooling and heat transfer systems. It
is also used as an emergency medication in certain poisoning
cases. This legislation does not affect access to or use of
sodium nitrite in any of these commercial and industrial uses,
including small business uses.
The Act seeks to address this consumer harm with a narrowly
tailored prohibition on sale of consumer products that contain
sodium nitrite at concentrations greater than 10 percent, which
precludes consumer access to Consumer Product Safety Act-
regulated products. The 10 percent threshold allows consumer
products with small or de minimis residuals of sodium nitrite,
which do not otherwise present a safety concern, to be sold.
The prohibition applies only to a ``consumer product,''
which is defined in the Consumer Product Safety Act (15 U.S.C.
2052(a)(5)), and thus expressly does not apply to products
exempted from the definition, including but not limited to
Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act-regulated foods and food
additives, and drugs, devices, or cosmetics.
H.R. 1442 is needed to ensure that sodium nitrite is no
longer accessible to consumers at a percentage greater than 10
percent. There are no known consumer products that need to
contain sodium nitrite at this level. At the same time, H.R.
1442 will preserve access to sodium nitrite for businesses and
educational institutions.
COMMITTEE ACTION
On September 27, 2023, the Subcommittee on Innovation,
Data, and Commerce held a hearing on H.R. 4310.\6\ The hearing
was entitled, ``Proposals to Enhance Product Safety and
Transparency for Americans.'' The Subcommittee received
testimony from:
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\6\This legislation was introduced in the 118th Congress as H.R.
4310.
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Kathleen Callahan, Owner, Xpertech Auto
Repair;
Scott Benavidez, Chairman, Automotive
Service Association;
Steven Michael Gentine, Counsel, Arnold &
Porter, LLP;
John Breyault, Vice President of Public
Policy, Telecommunications and Fraud, National
Consumers League; and
David Touhey, Certified Venue Expert,
Principal, Connett Consulting (IAVM, Fix the Tix
Coalition member, former president of venues,
Monumental Sports); and Adjunct Professor of sports
management, Georgetown University and George Washington
University.
On April 8, 2025, the full Committee on Energy and Commerce
met in open markup session and ordered H.R. 1442, without
amendment, favorably reported to the House by a record vote 50
yeas and 1 nay.
COMMITTEE VOTES
Clause 3(b) of rule XIII requires the Committee to list the
record votes on the motion to report legislation and amendments
thereto.
OVERSIGHT FINDINGS AND RECOMMENDATIONS
Pursuant to clause 2(b)(1) of rule X and clause 3(c)(1) of
rule XIII, the Committee held a hearing and made findings that
are reflected in this report.
NEW BUDGET AUTHORITY, ENTITLEMENT AUTHORITY,
AND TAX EXPENDITURES
Pursuant to clause 3(c)(2) of rule XIII, the Committee
finds that H.R. 1442 would result in no new or increased budget
authority, entitlement authority, or tax expenditures or
revenues.
CONGRESSIONAL BUDGET OFFICE ESTIMATE
Pursuant to clause 3(c)(3) of rule XIII, at the time this
report was filed, the cost estimate prepared by the Director of
the Congressional Budget Office pursuant to section 402 of the
Congressional Budget Act of 1974 was not available.
FEDERAL MANDATES STATEMENT
The Committee adopts as its own the estimate of Federal
mandates prepared by the Director of the Congressional Budget
Office pursuant to section 423 of the Unfunded Mandates Reform
Act.
STATEMENT OF GENERAL PERFORMANCE GOALS AND OBJECTIVES
Pursuant to clause 3(c)(4) of rule XIII, the general
performance goal or objective of this legislation is to ban
high-concentration sodium nitrite to individuals by adding such
products to the list of banned hazardous products in the
Consumer Product Safety Act (15 U.S.C. 2057).
DUPLICATION OF FEDERAL PROGRAMS
Pursuant to clause 3(c)(5) of rule XIII, no provision of
H.R. 1442 is known to be duplicative of another Federal
program, including any program that was included in a report to
Congress pursuant to section 21 of Public Law 111-139 or the
most recent Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance.
RELATED COMMITTEE AND SUBCOMMITTEE HEARINGS
Pursuant to clause 3(c)(6) of rule XIII, the following
hearing was used to develop or consider H.R. 1442:
On September 27, 2023, the Subcommittee on
Innovation, Data, and Commerce held a hearing on H.R.
4310. The hearing was entitled, ``Proposals to Enhance
Product Safety and Transparency for Americans.'' The
Subcommittee received testimony from:
Kathleen Callahan, Owner,
Xpertech Auto Repair;
Scott Benavidez, Chairman,
Automotive Service Association;
Steven Michael Gentine, Counsel,
Arnold & Porter, LLP;
John Breyault, Vice President of
Public Policy, Telecommunications and Fraud,
National Consumers League; and
David Touhey, Certified Venue
Expert, Principal, Connett Consulting (IAVM,
Fix the Tix Coalition member, former president
of venues, Monumental Sports); and Adjunct
Professor of sports management, Georgetown
University and George Washington University.
COMMITTEE COST ESTIMATE
Pursuant to clause 3(d)(1) of rule XIII, the Committee
adopts as its own the cost estimate prepared by the Director of
the Congressional Budget Office pursuant to section 402 of the
Congressional Budget Act of 1974. At the time this report was
filed, the estimate was not available.
EARMARK, LIMITED TAX BENEFITS, AND LIMITED TARIFF BENEFITS
Pursuant to clause 9(e), 9(f), and 9(g) of rule XXI, the
Committee finds that H.R. 1442 contains no earmarks, limited
tax benefits, or limited tariff benefits.
ADVISORY COMMITTEE STATEMENT
No advisory committees within the meaning of section 5(b)
of the Federal Advisory Committee Act were created by this
legislation.
APPLICABILITY TO LEGISLATIVE BRANCH
The Committee finds that the legislation does not relate to
the terms and conditions of employment or access to public
services or accommodations within the meaning of section
102(b)(3) of the Congressional Accountability Act.
SECTION-BY-SECTION ANALYSIS OF THE LEGISLATION
Section 1. Short title
Section 1 allows the Act to be cited as the ``Youth
Poisoning Protection Act.''
Section 2. Banning of products containing a high concentration of
sodium nitrite
Section 2 requires any consumer product containing a
concentration of ten or more percent by weight of sodium
nitrite be considered a banned hazardous product under section
8 of the Consumer Product Safety Act. This section also defines
key terms and sets and effective date of 90 days after
enactment.
CHANGES IN EXISTING LAW MADE BY THE BILL, AS REPORTED
This legislation does not amend any existing Federal
statute.