    [Weekly Compilation of Presidential Documents Volume 30, Number 3 (Monday, January 24, 1994)]
    [Pages 118-120]
    [Online from the Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]

    <R04>
    Executive Order 12891--Advisory Committee on Human Radiation Experiments

    January 15, 1994

        By the authority vested in me as President by the Constitution and
    the laws of the United States of America, it is hereby ordered as
    follows:
        Section 1. Establishment. (a) There shall be established an Advisory
    Committee on Human Radiation Experiments (the ``Advisory Committee'' or
    ``Committee''). The Advisory Committee shall be composed of not more
    than 15 members to be appointed or designated by the President. The
    Advisory Committee shall comply with the Federal Advisory Committee Act,
    as amended, 5 U.S.C. App. 2.
        (b) The President shall designate a Chairperson from among the
    members of the Advisory Committee.
        Sec. 2. Functions. (a) There has been established a Human Radiation
    Interagency Working Group, the members of which include the Secretary of
    Energy, the Secretary of Defense, the Secretary of Health and Human
    Services, the Secretary of Veterans Affairs, the Attorney General, the
    Administrator of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration, the
    Director of Central Intelligence, and the Director of the Office of
    Management and Budget. As set forth in paragraph (b) of this section,
    the Advisory Committee shall provide to the Human Radiation Interagency
    Working Group advice and recommendations on the ethical and scientific
    standards applicable to human radiation experiments carried out or
    sponsored by the United States Government. As used herein, ``human
    radiation experiments'' means:
        (1) experiments on individuals involving intentional exposure to
          ionizing radiation. This category does not include common and
          routine clinical practices, such as established diagnosis and
          treatment methods, involving incidental exposures to ionizing
          radiation;
        (2) experiments involving intentional environmental releases of
          radiation that (A) were designed to test human health effects of
          ionizing radiation; or (B) were designed to test the extent of
          human exposure to ionizing radiation.
        Consistent with the provisions set forth in paragraph (b) of this
    section, the Advisory Committee shall also provide advice, information,
    and recommendations on the following experiments:
        (1) the experiment into the atmospheric diffusion of radioactive
          gases and test of detectability, commonly referred to as ``the
          Green Run test,'' by the former Atomic Energy Commission (AEC) and
          the Air Force in December 1949 at the

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          Hanford Reservation in Richland, Washington;
        (2) two radiation warfare field experiments conducted at the AEC's
          Oak Ridge office in 1948 involving gamma radiation released from
          non-bomb point sources at or near ground level;
        (3) six tests conducted during 1949-1952 of radiation warfare
          ballistic dispersal devices containing radioactive agents at the
          U.S. Army's Dugway, Utah, site;
        (4) four atmospheric radiation-tracking tests in 1950 at Los Alamos,
          New Mexico; and
        (5) any other similar experiment that may later be identified by the
          Human Radiation Interagency Working Group.
        The Advisory Committee shall review experiments conducted from 1944
    to May 30, 1974. Human radiation experiments undertaken after May 30,
    1974, the date of issuance of the Department of Health, Education, and
    Welfare (``DHEW'') Regulations for the Protection of Human Subjects (45
    C.F.R. 46), may be sampled to determine whether further inquiry into
    experiments is warranted. Further inquiry into experiments conducted
    after May 30, 1974, may be pursued if the Advisory Committee determines,
    with the concurrence of the Human Radiation Interagency Working Group,
    that such inquiry is warranted.
        (b)(1) The Advisory Committee shall determine the ethical and
    scientific standards and criteria by which it shall evaluate human
    radiation experiments, as set forth in paragraph (a) of this section.
    The Advisory Committee shall consider whether (A) there was a clear
    medical or scientific purpose for the experiments; (B) appropriate
    medical follow-up was conducted; and (C) the experiments' design and
    administration adequately met the ethical and scientific standards,
    including standards of informed consent, that prevailed at the time of
    the experiments and that exist today.
        (2) The Advisory Committee shall evaluate the extent to which human
    radiation experiments were consistent with applicable ethical and
    scientific standards as determined by the Committee pursuant to
    paragraph (b)(1) of this section. If deemed necessary for such an
    assessment, the Committee may carry out a detailed review of experiments
    and associated records to the extent permitted by law.
        (3) If required to protect the health of individuals who were
    subjects of a human radiation experiment, or their descendants, the
    Advisory Committee may recommend to the Human Radiation Interagency
    Working Group that an agency notify particular subjects of an
    experiment, or their descendants, of any potential health risk or the
    need for medical follow-up.
        (4) The Advisory Committee may recommend further policies, as
    needed, to ensure compliance with recommended ethical and scientific
    standards for human radiation experiments.
        (5) The Advisory Committee may carry out such additional functions
    as the Human Radiation Interagency Working Group may from time to time
    request.
        Sec. 3. Administration. (a) The heads of executive departments and
    agencies shall, to the extent permitted by law, provide the Advisory
    Committee with such information as it may require for purposes of
    carrying out its functions.
        (b) Members of the Advisory Committee shall be compensated in
    accordance with Federal law. Committee members may be allowed travel
    expenses, including per diem in lieu of subsistence, to the extent
    permitted by law for persons serving intermittently in the government
    service (5 U.S.C. 5701-5707).
        (c) To the extent permitted by law, and subject to the availability
    of appropriations, the Department of Energy shall provide the Advisory
    Committee with such funds as may be necessary for the performance of its
    functions.
        Sec. 4. General Provisions. (a) Notwithstanding the provisions of
    any other Executive order, the functions of the President under the
    Federal Advisory Committee Act that are applicable to the Advisory
    Committee, except that of reporting annually to the Congress, shall be
    performed by the Human Radiation Interagency Working Group, in
    accordance with the guidelines and procedures established by the
    Administrator of General Services.
        (b) The Advisory Committee shall terminate 30 days after submitting
    its final report

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    to the Human Radiation Interagency Working Group.
        (c) This order is intended only to improve the internal management
    of the executive branch and it is not intended to create any right,
    benefit, trust, or responsibility, substantive or procedural,
    enforceable at law or equity by a party against the United States, its
    agencies, its officers, or any person.
                                                William J. Clinton
    The White House,
    January 15, 1994.

    [Filed with the Office of the Federal Register, 4:37 p.m., January 18,
    1994]

    Note: This Executive order was released by the office of the press
    secretary on January 18, and it was published in the Federal Register on
    January 20.