I 

118TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION H. R. 9982 

To require the Office of Children’s Health Protection to be maintained within 

the Environmental Protection Agency, and for other purposes. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

OCTOBER 11, 2024 

Mr. NADLER (for himself, Mr. GARAMENDI, Mr. GRIJALVA, Mr. EVANS, Mrs. 

WATSON COLEMAN, Ms. NORTON, Ms. SALINAS, Ms. KAMLAGER-DOVE, 

Ms. TLAIB, Mr. MOULTON, Ms. BUSH, and Mr. GOLDMAN of New York) 

introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Energy and Commerce 

A BILL 

To require the Office of Children’s Health Protection to 

be maintained within the Environmental Protection 

Agency, and for other purposes. 

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

4 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Children’s Health Pro5 tection Act of 2024’’. 


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1 SEC. 2. OFFICE OF CHILDREN’S HEALTH PROTECTION. 

2 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Administrator of the Envi3 ronmental Protection Agency shall maintain, within the 

4 Agency, the Office of Children’s Health Protection. 

5 (b) DIRECTOR.— 

6 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Office shall be headed 

7 by a director. 

8 (2) APPOINTMENT.—The Director of the Office 

9 shall be appointed by, and report to, the Adminis10 trator of the Environmental Protection Agency. In 

11 making such appointment, the Administrator shall 

12 take into consideration the recommendations of the 

13 Children’s Health Protection Advisory Committee. 

14 (3) CO-CHAIR OF PRESIDENT’S TASK FORCE.— 

15 The Administrator of the Environmental Protection 

16 Agency shall delegate to the Director of the Office 

17 responsibility to serve as Co-Chair, on behalf of the 

18 Administrator, of the President’s Task Force on En19 vironmental Health Risks and Safety Risks to Chil20 dren established by Executive Order 13045 (62 Fed. 

21 Reg. 19885 et seq.). 

22 (c) DUTIES.—The Director of the Office shall— 

23 (1) identify and assess environmental health 

24 risks and safety risks that may disproportionately 

25 affect infants, children, and adolescents; 


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1 (2) work to ensure that Federal policies, pro2 grams, activities, and standards address dispropor3 tionate risks to infants, children, and adolescents 

4 that result from environmental health risks or safety 

5 risks, including consideration of the unique environ6 mental justice concerns affecting infants, children, 

7 and adolescents; 

8 (3) coordinate Federal research and programs, 

9 including grant programs, to advance the activities 

10 described in paragraphs (1) and (2); and 

11 (4) carry out national activities to— 

12 (A) reduce negative environmental impacts 

13 on infants, children, and adolescents through 

14 involvement in rulemaking, policy, enforcement 

15 actions, research, and applications of science 

16 that focuses on prenatal and childhood 

17 vulnerabilities; 

18 (B) help protect infants, children, and ado19 lescents through promoting and issuing guid20 ance for safe chemicals management; 

21 (C) coordinate community-based programs 

22 to eliminate threats to infants’, children’s, and 

23 adolescents’ health; 

24 (D) increase the environmental health lit25 eracy of health care providers through support 


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1 of pediatric environmental health specialty 

2 units; 

3 (E) evaluate and communicate trends in 

4 environmental contaminants that may con5 tribute to childhood disease; 

6 (F) develop and publish resources for local 

7 educational agencies to establish, maintain, or 

8 enhance a school environmental health program; 

9 and 

10 (G) otherwise protect infants, children, and 

11 adolescents from environmental health risks or 

12 safety risks. 

13 (d) TRANSITION.—The Administrator of the Environ14 mental Protection Agency shall make such changes to the 

15 Office of Children’s Health Protection of the Environ16 mental Protection Agency, as in existence on the day be17 fore the date of enactment of this Act, as may be nec18 essary for such Office to become the Office required by 

19 subsection (a). 

20 (e) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—To carry 

21 out this section, there is authorized to be appropriated 

22 $7,842,000 for fiscal year 2025 and each subsequent fiscal 

23 year. 


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1 SEC. 3. CHILDREN’S HEALTH PROTECTION ADVISORY COM2 MITTEE. 

3 (a) ESTABLISHMENT.—The Administrator of the En4 vironmental Protection Agency shall maintain an advisory 

5 committee, to be known as the Children’s Health Protec6 tion Advisory Committee, to— 

7 (1) provide advice and recommendations to the 

8 Administrator and other officials of the Environ9 mental Protection Agency regarding the programs 

10 and activities of the Office; 

11 (2) advise the Administrator and other officials 

12 of the Environmental Protection Agency on regula13 tions, research, and communications related to in14 fant’s, children’s and adolescent’s health; and 

15 (3) support the Environmental Protection 

16 Agency, including the Office, in implementing under 

17 Executive Order 13045 and other issues related to 

18 infants’, children’s, and adolescents’ health protec19 tion as deemed appropriate by the Administrator. 

20 (b) APPLICABILITY OF FACA.—The Children’s 

21 Health Protection Advisory Committee shall be subject to 

22 the Federal Advisory Committee Act (5 U.S.C. App.), ex23 cept that the Children’s Health Protection Advisory Com24 mittee shall be a permanent advisory committee and shall 

25 not terminate under section 14 of such Act. 


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1 (c) TRANSITION.—The President, acting through the 

2 Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency, 

3 shall make such changes to the Children’s Health Protec4 tion Advisory Committee established pursuant to Execu5 tive Order 13045 (62 Fed. Reg. 19885; April 23, 1997) 

6 as may be necessary for such Advisory Committee to be7 come the advisory committee required by this section. 

8 SEC. 4. DEFINITIONS. 

9 In this Act: 

10 (1) The term ‘‘Children’s Health Protection Ad11 visory Committee’’ means the advisory committee 

12 maintained pursuant to section 3. 

13 (2) The term ‘‘local educational agency’’ has 

14 the meaning given to such term in section 8101 of 

15 the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 

16 1965 (20 U.S.C. 7801). 

17 (3) The term ‘‘Office’’ means the Office of Chil18 dren’s Health Protection maintained pursuant to 

19 section 2. 

20 SEC. 5. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS. 

21 To carry out this Act, there is authorized to be appro22 priated $13,200,000 for each of fiscal years 2025 through 

23 2029. 

Æ 


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