[Weekly Compilation of Presidential Documents Volume 31, Number 21 (Monday, May 29, 1995)]
[Pages 911-913]
[Online from the Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]

<R04>
Executive Order 12961--Presidential Advisory Committee on Gulf War 
Veterans' Illnesses

May 26, 1995

    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 is hereby established the 
Presidential Advisory Committee on Gulf War Veterans' Illnesses (the 
``Committee''). The Committee shall be composed of not more than 12 
members to be appointed by the President. The members of the Committee 
shall have expertise relevant to the functions of the Committee and 
shall not be full-time officials or employees of the executive branch of 
the Federal Government. The Committee shall be subject to 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 Committee.
    Sec. 2. Functions. (a) The Committee shall report to the President 
through the Secretary of Defense, the Secretary of Veterans Affairs, and 
the Secretary of Health and Human Services.
    (b) The Committee shall provide advice and recommendations based on 
its review of the following matters:
    (1) Research: epidemiological, clinical, and other research 
concerning Gulf War veterans' illnesses.
    (2) Coordinating Efforts: the activities of the Persian Gulf 
Veterans Coordinating Board, including the Research Coordinating

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Council, the Clinical Working Group, and the Disability and Compensation 
Working Group.
    (3) Medical Treatment: medical examinations and treatment in 
connection with Gulf War veterans' illnesses, including the 
Comprehensive Clinical Evaluation Program and the Persian Gulf Registry 
Medical Examination Program.
    (4) Outreach: government-sponsored outreach efforts such as hotlines 
and newsletters related to Gulf War veterans' illnesses.
    (5) External Reviews: the steps taken to implement recommendations 
in external reviews by the Institute of Medicine's Committee to Review 
the Health Consequences of Service During the Persian Gulf War, the 
Defense Science Board Task Force on Persian Gulf War Health Effects, the 
National Institutes of Health Technology Assessment Workshop on the 
Persian Gulf Experience and Health, the Persian Gulf Expert Scientific 
Committee, and other bodies.
    (6) Risk Factors: the possible risks associated with service in the 
Persian Gulf Conflict in general and, specifically, with prophylactic 
drugs and vaccines, infectious diseases, environmental chemicals, 
radiation and toxic substances, smoke from oil well fires, depleted 
uranium, physical and psychological stress, and other factors applicable 
to the Persian Gulf Conflict.
    (7) Chemical and Biological Weapons: information related to reports 
of the possible detection of chemical or biological weapons during the 
Persian Gulf Conflict.
    (c) It shall not be a function of the Committee to conduct 
scientific research. The Committee shall review information and provide 
advice and recommendations on the activities undertaken related to the 
matters described in (b) above.
    (d) It shall not be a function of the Committee to provide advice or 
recommendations on any legal liability of the Federal Government for any 
claims or potential claims against the Federal Government.
    (e) As used herein, ``Gulf War Veterans' Illnesses'' means the 
symptoms and illnesses reported by United States uniformed services 
personnel who served in the Persian Gulf Conflict.
    (f) The Committee shall submit an interim report within 6 months of 
the first meeting of the Committee and a final report by December 31, 
1996, unless otherwise provided by the President.
    Sec. 3. Administration. (a) The heads of executive departments and 
agencies shall, to the extent permitted by law, provide the Committee 
with such information as it may require for purposes of carrying out its 
functions.
    (b) Members of the 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 Defense shall provide the 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 Committee, 
except that of reporting annually to the Congress, shall be performed by 
the Secretary of Defense, in accordance with the guidelines and 
procedures established by the Administrator of General Services.
    (b) The Committee shall terminate 30 days after submitting its final 
report.
    (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 or trust 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,
May 26, 1995.

[Filed with the Office of the Federal Register, 10:36 a.m., May 30, 
1995]

 Note:  This Executive order will be published in the Federal Register  
on May 31.

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