II 

109TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION S. 1925 

To provide for workers and businesses during the response to Hurricane 

Katrina and Hurricane Rita, and for other purposes. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

OCTOBER 26, 2005 

Mr. KENNEDY (for himself, Mr. REID, Mr. HARKIN, Mr. DODD, Ms. MIKULSKI, Mr. REED, Mrs. BOXER, Mr. KERRY, Mr. DORGAN, Mr. SCHUMER, 

Mr. DAYTON, and Mr. LAUTENBERG) introduced the following bill; which 

was read twice and referred to the Committee on Health, Education, 

Labor, and Pensions 

A BILL 

To provide for workers and businesses during the response 

to Hurricane Katrina and Hurricane Rita, 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 ‘‘Rebuild With Respect 

5 Act’’. 
2 

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1 SEC. 2. REINSTATEMENT OF DAVIS-BACON WAGE REQUIRE2 MENTS. 

3 Notwithstanding the proclamation by the President 

4 dated September 8, 2005, or any other provision of law, 

5 the provisions of subchapter IV of chapter 31 of title 40, 

6 United States Code (and the provisions of all other related 

7 Acts to the extent they depend upon a determination by 

8 the Secretary of Labor under section 3142 of such title, 

9 whether or not the President has the authority to suspend 

10 the operation of such provisions), shall apply to all con11 tracts, to which the provisions described in this section 

12 would otherwise apply and that are entered into on or 

13 after the date of enactment of this Act, to be performed 

14 in the counties affected by Hurricane Katrina or Hurri15 cane Rita and described in such proclamation. 

16 SEC. 3. REINSTATEMENT OF AFFIRMATIVE ACTION RE17 QUIREMENTS. 

18 (a) DEFINITION.—In this section: 

19 (1) AFFIRMATIVE ACTION PROVISIONS.—The 

20 term ‘‘affirmative action provisions’’ means the pro21 visions of Executive Order 11246 (relating to equal 

22 employment opportunity), section 503 of the Reha23 bilitation Act of 1973 (29 U.S.C. 793), and section 

24 4212 of title 38, United States Code (as added by 

25 the Vietnam Era Veterans’ Readjustment Assistance 

26 Act of 1972). 
3 

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1 (2) EXECUTIVE AGENCY.—The term ‘‘executive 

2 agency’’ has the meaning given the term in section 

3 4 of the Office of Federal Procurement Policy Act 

4 (41 U.S.C. 403). 

5 (b) AFFIRMATIVE ACTION.—Notwithstanding the 

6 memorandum entitled ‘‘Contracts for Hurricane Katrina 

7 Relief Efforts’’ issued by the Deputy Assistant Secretary 

8 for the Employment Standards Administration of the De9 partment of Labor, dated September 9, 2005, and any 

10 other provision of law, the affirmative action provisions 

11 shall apply to all contracts (including any subcontracts of 

12 such contracts) between executive agencies and contrac13 tors, to which the affirmative action provisions would oth14 erwise apply and that are entered into on or after the date 

15 of enactment of this Act, to provide Hurricane Katrina 

16 or Hurricane Rita relief. The contractors (including any 

17 subcontractors) for such contracts shall develop the writ18 ten affirmative action programs, prepare the reports, and 

19 provide the notices usually required under the regulations 

20 to implement the affirmative action provisions. 

21 SEC. 4. JOBS FOR WORKERS AFFECTED BY HURRICANE 

22 KATRINA AND HURRICANE RITA. 

23 (a) EMPLOYMENT REQUIREMENT.— 

24 (1) CONTRACTS.—Except as provided in sub25 section (b), the head of an executive agency may not 
4 

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1 enter into a contract to procure disaster relief prop2 erty or services in connection with Hurricane 

3 Katrina or Hurricane Rita reconstruction efforts un4 less workers affected by Hurricane Katrina or Hur5 ricane Rita— 

6 (A) comprise not less than 50 percent of 

7 the workforce employed by the contractor to 

8 provide such property or perform such services; 

9 and 

10 (B) comprise not less than 50 percent of 

11 the workforce employed by each subcontractor 

12 at each tier in connection with such contract. 

13 (2) GRANTS.— 

14 (A) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in 

15 subsection (b), the head of an executive agency 

16 may not award a grant of Federal funds to any 

17 recipient, including any State or local govern18 ment entity, for the purpose of providing dis19 aster relief property or services in connection 

20 with Hurricane Katrina or Hurricane Rita re21 construction efforts unless workers affected by 

22 Hurricane Katrina or Hurricane Rita— 

23 (i) comprise not less than 50 percent 

24 of the workforce employed by that recipient 
5 

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1 to provide such property or perform such 

2 services; and 

3 (ii) comprise not less than 50 percent 

4 of the workforce employed by any indirect 

5 recipient of such grant funds to provide 

6 such property or perform such services. 

7 (B) EMPLOYMENT REQUIREMENT AS CON8 DITION TO RECEIPT OF FUNDS.—The head of 

9 an executive agency shall require each grantee, 

10 as a condition to receiving Federal funds under 

11 a grant described in subparagraph (A)— 

12 (i) to comply with the workforce re13 quirement under subparagraph (A)(i); and 

14 (ii) to require that any indirect recipi15 ent of such funds shall, as a condition to 

16 receiving the funds, comply with the work17 force requirement under subparagraph 

18 (A)(ii). 

19 (3) EXCEPTION FOR PROFESSIONAL SERV20 ICES.—The requirements under paragraphs (1) and 

21 (2) do not apply to the procurement of professional 

22 services. 

23 (b) EXEMPTIONS FOR EXCEPTIONAL CIR24 CUMSTANCES.— 
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1 (1) AUTHORITY.—The head of an executive 

2 agency may enter into a contract or award a grant 

3 that would otherwise be prohibited under subsection 

4 (a) due to the employment by an employer of a 

5 workforce that does not meet the workforce composi6 tion requirement under such subsection if the em7 ployer qualifies for and receives an exemption under 

8 paragraph (2). 

9 (2) PROCEDURE FOR GRANTING EXEMP10 TIONS.— 

11 (A) IN GENERAL.—Each executive agency 

12 entering into a contract or awarding a grant for 

13 the purpose of procuring disaster relief property 

14 or services in connection with Hurricane 

15 Katrina or Hurricane Rita reconstruction ef16 forts shall establish procedures for providing ex17 emptions for employers who are unable to com18 ply with the workforce composition requirement 

19 under subsection (a) due to an emergency, lack 

20 of available workers who have been affected by 

21 Hurricane Katrina or Hurricane Rita, or other 

22 exceptional circumstances. 

23 (B) MINIMUM WORKFORCE COMPOSITION

24 REQUIREMENT.—An exemption provided pursu25 ant to this paragraph shall provide that workers 
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1 affected by Hurricane Katrina or Hurricane 

2 Rita comprise not less than 20 percent of the 

3 workforce employed to provide disaster relief 

4 property or services. 

5 (C) ROLE OF STATE AND LOCAL GOVERN6 MENT ENTITIES.—The procedures established 

7 under subparagraph (A) shall provide that, if a 

8 State or local government is involved with a 

9 contract, or is awarded a grant, for the purpose 

10 of procuring disaster relief property or services 

11 in connection with Hurricane Katrina or Hurri12 cane Rita reconstruction efforts, the State or 

13 local government entity shall determine whether 

14 an employer receives an exemption for the pur15 pose of providing such property or services. 

16 (3) REFERRAL SERVICES.—An employer receiv17 ing an exemption with respect to its workforce pur18 suant to paragraph (2) may be required by the exec19 utive agency or State or local government entity 

20 granting such exemption to increase the number of 

21 workers who have been affected by Hurricane 

22 Katrina or Hurricane Rita that are employed as 

23 part of such workforce by using a program des24 ignated by the executive agency or State or local 
8 

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1 government entity to facilitate the hiring of such 

2 workers. 

3 (c) REPORTS ON EMPLOYMENT OF WORKERS.— 

4 (1) REPORTS REQUIRED.—Each executive agen5 cy that enters into a contract or awards a grant to 

6 procure disaster relief property or services in connec7 tion with Hurricane Katrina or Hurricane Rita re8 construction efforts shall, not later than 30 days 

9 after the end of each fiscal quarter, make publicly 

10 available a report on the hiring of workers affected 

11 by Hurricane Katrina or Hurricane Rita in connec12 tion with such contract or grant. 

13 (2) CONTENT.—Each report submitted under 

14 paragraph (1) shall include, with respect to the pre15 ceding fiscal quarter, information on— 

16 (A) the total number of workers affected 

17 by Hurricane Katrina or Hurricane Rita hired 

18 by each contractor, subcontractor, or employer 

19 that provided disaster relief property or services 

20 in connection with Hurricane Katrina or Hurri21 cane Rita reconstruction efforts; 

22 (B) the total number of individuals hired 

23 by each contractor, subcontractor, or employer 

24 that provided disaster relief property or services 
9 

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1 in connection with Hurricane Katrina or Hurri2 cane Rita reconstruction efforts; and 

3 (C) whether the executive agency provided 

4 any exemptions pursuant to subsection (b)(2). 

5 (3) SOURCE OF INFORMATION.—For purposes 

6 of preparing a report required under paragraph (1), 

7 an executive agency shall require employers pro8 viding disaster relief property or services in connec9 tion with Hurricane Katrina or Hurricane Rita re10 construction efforts to provide to the agency, under 

11 penalty of perjury, all information relevant to such 

12 reports. 

13 (d) REGULATIONS.—The Administrator for Federal 

14 Procurement Policy shall, not later than 30 days after the 

15 date of the enactment of this Act, issue a final rule for 

16 compliance by executive agencies with the requirements 

17 under this section. 

18 (e) PREEMPTION.—This section and any require19 ments imposed by executive agencies under this section 

20 preempt and supersede all State and local laws, regula21 tions, policies, and procedures to the extent that they are 

22 inconsistent with this section and such requirements. 

23 (f) DEFINITIONS.—In this section: 
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1 (1) DISASTER RELIEF PROPERTY AND SERV2 ICES.—The term ‘‘disaster relief property and serv3 ices’’ means— 

4 (A) food, clothing, shelter, health care, 

5 education, job training, building maintenance, 

6 security services, humanitarian assistance, and 

7 other goods and services provided to disaster 

8 victims; and 

9 (B) demolition, cleaning, repair, renova10 tion, construction, and reconstruction services. 

11 (2) EXECUTIVE AGENCY.—The term ‘‘executive 

12 agency’’ has the meaning given such term in section 

13 4 of the Office of Federal Procurement Policy Act 

14 (41 U.S.C. 403). 

15 (3) WORKERS AFFECTED BY HURRICANE

16 KATRINA OR HURRICANE RITA.—The term ‘‘workers 

17 affected by Hurricane Katrina or Hurricane Rita’’ 

18 means— 

19 (A) workers who were residing in the area 

20 affected by Hurricane Katrina as of August 28, 

21 2005, and were displaced or otherwise nega22 tively affected as a result of the hurricane; and 

23 (B) workers who were residing in the area 

24 affected by Hurricane Rita as of September 23, 
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1 2005, and were displaced or otherwise nega2 tively affected as a result of the hurricane. 

3 SEC. 5. CONTRACTS FOR BUSINESSES AFFECTED BY HUR4 RICANE KATRINA OR HURRICANE RITA. 

5 Notwithstanding section 307 of the Robert T. Staf6 ford Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act (42 

7 U.S.C. 5150), for any contract (including a subcontract) 

8 described in section 4(a) that is offered on the lowest re9 sponsible bidder basis, an organization, firm, or individual 

10 residing or doing business primarily in an area affected 

11 by Hurricane Katrina or Hurricane Rita shall be awarded 

12 the contract if the bid of the organization, firm, or indi13 vidual is less than or equal to 5 percent of the amount 

14 of the lowest non-local bid. 

15 SEC. 6. PROTECTION FOR SMALL AND DISADVANTAGED 

16 BUSINESSES. 

17 (a) DEFINITION.—In this section: 

18 (1) DISASTER RELIEF PROPERTY OR SERVICES; 

19 EXECUTIVE AGENCY.—The terms ‘‘disaster relief 

20 property or services’’ and ‘‘executive agency’’ have 

21 the meanings given such terms in section 4(f). 

22 (2) SMALL BUSINESS.—The term ‘‘small busi23 ness’’ means a small business concern, as defined in 

24 section 3 of the Small Business Act (15 U.S.C. 

25 632). 
12 

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1 (b) OPPORTUNITY TO PARTICIPATE.—Each executive 

2 agency entering into a contract to procure disaster relief 

3 property or services in connection with Hurricane Katrina 

4 or Hurricane Rita reconstruction efforts shall afford the 

5 maximum practicable opportunity for small businesses to 

6 provide such property or services under such a contract. 

7 (c) APPLICATION OF LAWS.—Each executive agency 

8 entering into such a contract shall comply with the appli9 cable provisions of the Federal Acquisition Regulation and 

10 the Small Business Act (15 U.S.C. 631 et seq.). 

11 SEC. 7. DISASTER UNEMPLOYMENT ASSISTANCE. 

12 (a) IN GENERAL.—Notwithstanding section 410 of 

13 the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency As14 sistance Act (42 U.S.C. 5177), in providing assistance 

15 under that section to individuals unemployed as a result 

16 of Hurricane Katrina or Hurricane Rita— 

17 (1) the President shall provide assistance for as 

18 long as the unemployment of the individual con19 tinues, but for not longer than 52 weeks after the 

20 date on which the unemployed individual first re21 ceives assistance; 

22 (2) the President shall accept applications for 

23 assistance for— 
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1 (A) the 90-day period beginning on the 

2 date on which the applicable major disaster was 

3 declared; or 

4 (B) such longer period as may be estab5 lished by the President; and 

6 (3) the amount of assistance provided to an un7 employed individual for each week of unemployment 

8 shall be— 

9 (A) at a minimum, an amount equal to the 

10 average amount of weekly State unemployment 

11 compensation (as modified under this Act) pro12 vided to an individual as of the date of the 

13 major disaster for which unemployment assist14 ance is provided; and 

15 (B) at a maximum, an amount equal to 

16 the maximum amount of weekly State unem17 ployment compensation (as modified under this 

18 Act) provided to an individual as of the date of 

19 the major disaster for which unemployment as20 sistance is provided. 

21 (b) UNEMPLOYMENT AS A RESULT OF MAJOR DIS22 ASTER.— 

23 (1) IN GENERAL.—For the purposes of this sec24 tion, an individual who is unemployed because a loss 

25 of business resulting from a major disaster contrib-
14 

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1 uted importantly to the employer’s decision to re2 duce or terminate employment shall be considered to 

3 be an individual unemployed as a result of a major 

4 disaster. 

5 (2) DETERMINATION BY SECRETARY.—The 

6 Secretary of Homeland Security, acting through the 

7 Director of the Federal Emergency Management 

8 Agency, in shall include among individuals described 

9 in paragraph (1) an individual who was employed 

10 with a firm or subdivision of a firm with respect to 

11 which, as determined by the Secretary— 

12 (A) a significant number or proportion of 

13 the employees have become totally or partially 

14 unemployed, or are threatened to become totally 

15 or partially unemployed, as a result of a major 

16 disaster; or 

17 (B) sales or production, or both, have de18 creased absolutely as a result of a major dis19 aster. 

20 (c) OFFSET REQUIREMENTS.—Notwithstanding any 

21 other provision of law, an individual affected by Hurricane 

22 Katrina or Hurricane Rita who receives or is eligible to 

23 receive disaster unemployment assistance under section 

24 410 of the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emer25 gency Assistance Act (42 U.S.C. 5177) shall not be sub-
15 

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1 ject to any requirement to offset that disaster unemploy2 ment assistance with any other source of income other 

3 than such offset requirements as are in effect under the 

4 unemployment compensation program of the State in 

5 which the individual resided as of August 22, 2005. 

6 SEC. 8. EMERGENCY UNEMPLOYMENT COMPENSATION. 

7 (a) FEDERAL-STATE AGREEMENTS.— 

8 (1) IN GENERAL.—Any State that is a qualified 

9 State and that desires to do so may enter into and 

10 participate in an agreement under this section with 

11 the Secretary. Any State that is a party to an agree12 ment under this section may, upon providing 30 

13 days’ written notice to the Secretary, terminate such 

14 agreement. 

15 (2) PROVISIONS OF AGREEMENT.—Any agree16 ment under paragraph (1) shall provide that the 

17 State agency of the State— 

18 (A) will make payments of regular com19 pensation in conformance with the requirements 

20 of subsection (b); and 

21 (B) will make payments of emergency ex22 tended unemployment compensation in con23 formance with the requirements of subsection 

24 (c). 
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1 (3) QUALIFIED STATE.—For purposes of this 

2 section, the term ‘‘qualified State’’ means Alabama, 

3 Florida, Louisiana, and Mississippi. 

4 (b) REQUIREMENTS RELATING TO REGULAR COM5 PENSATION.— 

6 (1) IN GENERAL.—Any agreement under this 

7 section shall provide that the State agency of the 

8 State will make payments of regular compensation 

9 to individuals in amounts and to the extent that they 

10 would be determined if the State law of such State 

11 were applied with the modification described in para12 graph (2). 

13 (2) MODIFICATION DESCRIBED.— 

14 (A) ADDITIONAL AMOUNT.—In the case of 

15 an eligible individual, the amount of regular 

16 compensation (including dependents’ allow17 ances) payable for any week of unemployment 

18 to which such agreement applies shall be equal 

19 to the amount determined under the State law 

20 (before the application of this subparagraph), 

21 plus an additional— 

22 (i) 25 percent, or 

23 (ii) $100, 

24 whichever is greater. 
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1 (B) ELIGIBLE INDIVIDUAL.—For purposes 

2 of this subsection, the term ‘‘eligible individual’’ 

3 means an individual who— 

4 (i) is receiving regular compensation 

5 under the State law of the State that is a 

6 party to the agreement; and 

7 (ii) at any time during the week be8 fore the week that includes August 28, 

9 2005, either held employment in or resided 

10 in an area— 

11 (I) that is within a qualified 

12 State; and 

13 (II) for which the President has 

14 declared a major disaster under the 

15 Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief 

16 and Emergency Assistance Act (42 

17 U.S.C. 5121 et seq.) as a result of 

18 Hurricane Katrina or Hurricane Rita. 

19 (3) NONREDUCTION RULE.—Under the agree20 ment, paragraph (2) shall not apply (or shall cease 

21 to apply) with respect to a State upon a determina22 tion by the Secretary that the method governing the 

23 computation of regular compensation under the 

24 State law of such State has been modified in a way 

25 such that— 
18 

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1 (A) the average weekly amount of regular 

2 compensation which will be payable during the 

3 period of the agreement (determined dis4 regarding the modification described in para5 graph (2)) will be less than 

6 (B) the average weekly amount of regular 

7 compensation which would otherwise have been 

8 payable during such period under such State 

9 law, as in effect on August 28, 2005. 

10 (4) COORDINATION RULE.—The modification 

11 described in paragraph (2) shall also apply in deter12 mining the amount of benefits payable under any 

13 Federal law, to any eligible individual, to the extent 

14 that those benefits are determined by reference to 

15 regular compensation payable under the State law of 

16 the State involved. 

17 (c) REQUIREMENTS RELATING TO EMERGENCY EX18 TENDED UNEMPLOYMENT COMPENSATION.— 

19 (1) IN GENERAL.—Any agreement under this 

20 section shall provide that the State agency of the 

21 State will, for any weeks of unemployment to which 

22 such agreement applies, make payments of emer23 gency extended unemployment compensation under 

24 this section to individuals who— 
19 

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1 (A) have exhausted all rights to regular 

2 compensation under the State law or under 

3 Federal law, but only if exhaustion occurs upon 

4 or after the close of the week that includes Au5 gust 28, 2005; 

6 (B) have no rights to regular compensation 

7 or extended compensation with respect to a 

8 week under such law or any other State unem9 ployment compensation law or to compensation 

10 under any other Federal law; 

11 (C) are not receiving compensation with 

12 respect to such week under the unemployment 

13 compensation law of any other country; and 

14 (D) at any time during the week before the 

15 week that includes August 28, 2005, either held 

16 employment in or resided in an area— 

17 (i) that is within a qualified State; 

18 and 

19 (ii) for which the President has de20 clared a major disaster under the Robert 

21 T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency 

22 Assistance Act (42 U.S.C. 5121 et seq.) as 

23 a result of Hurricane Katrina or Hurri24 cane Rita. 
20 

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1 (2) EXHAUSTION OF BENEFITS.—For purposes 

2 of paragraph (1)(A), an individual shall be deemed 

3 to have exhausted such individual’s rights to regular 

4 compensation under a State law when— 

5 (A) no payments of regular compensation 

6 can be made under such law because such indi7 vidual has received all regular compensation 

8 available to such individual based on employ9 ment or wages during such individual’s base pe10 riod; or 

11 (B) such individual’s rights to such com12 pensation have been terminated by reason of 

13 the expiration of the benefit year with respect 

14 to which such rights existed. 

15 (3) WEEKLY BENEFIT AMOUNT, ETC.—For 

16 purposes of any agreement under this section— 

17 (A) the amount of emergency extended un18 employment compensation which shall be pay19 able to any individual for any week of total un20 employment shall be equal to the amount of the 

21 regular compensation (including dependents’ al22 lowances) payable to such individual during 

23 such individual’s benefit year under the State 

24 law for a week of total unemployment; 
21 

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1 (B) the terms and conditions of the State 

2 law which apply to claims for regular compensa3 tion and to the payment thereof shall apply to 

4 claims for emergency extended unemployment 

5 compensation and to the payment thereof, ex6 cept where otherwise inconsistent with the pro7 visions of this section or with the regulations or 

8 operating instructions of the Secretary promul9 gated to carry out this section; and 

10 (C) the maximum amount of emergency 

11 extended unemployment compensation payable 

12 to any individual for whom an emergency ex13 tended unemployment compensation account is 

14 established under paragraph (4) shall not ex15 ceed the amount established in such account for 

16 such individual. 

17 (4) EMERGENCY EXTENDED UNEMPLOYMENT

18 COMPENSATION ACCOUNTS.— 

19 (A) IN GENERAL.—Any agreement under 

20 this section shall provide that the State will es21 tablish, for each eligible individual who files an 

22 application for emergency extended unemploy23 ment compensation an emergency extended un24 employment compensation account with respect 

25 to such individual’s benefit year. 
22 

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1 (B) AMOUNT IN ACCOUNT.— 

2 (i) IN GENERAL.—The amount estab3 lished in an account under subparagraph 

4 (A) shall be the amount equal to 26 times 

5 the individual’s average weekly benefit 

6 amount for the benefit year. 

7 (ii) WEEKLY BENEFIT AMOUNT.—For 

8 purposes of this subparagraph, an individ9 ual’s average weekly benefit amount for 

10 any week is the amount of regular com11 pensation (including dependents’ allow12 ances) under the State law payable to such 

13 individual for such week for total unem14 ployment. 

15 (d) PAYMENTS TO STATES.— 

16 (1) IN GENERAL.—There shall be paid to each 

17 State which has entered into an agreement under 

18 this section the following: 

19 (A) An amount equal to 100 percent of 

20 any additional regular compensation made pay21 able to individuals by such State by virtue of 

22 the modification described in subsection (b)(2) 

23 and deemed to be in effect with respect to such 

24 State pursuant to subsection (b)(1). 
23 

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1 (B) An amount equal to 100 percent of 

2 any emergency extended unemployment com3 pensation paid to individuals by such State pur4 suant to such agreement. 

5 (C) An amount equal to 100 percent of 

6 any regular compensation, not otherwise reim7 bursable under this section, paid by such State 

8 under the State law of such State— 

9 (i) to individuals whose unemployment 

10 was a result of Hurricane Katrina or Hur11 ricane Rita (as determined under criteria 

12 established by the Secretary); and 

13 (ii) for any weeks of unemployment to 

14 which such agreement applies. 

15 (2) DETERMINATION OF AMOUNT.—Sums pay16 able under this subsection to any State by reason of 

17 such State having an agreement under this section 

18 shall be payable, either in advance or by way of re19 imbursement (as may be determined by the Sec20 retary), in such amounts as the Secretary estimates 

21 the State will be entitled to receive under this sub22 section for each calendar month, reduced or in23 creased (as the case may be) by any amount by 

24 which the Secretary finds that the Secretary’s esti25 mates for any prior calendar month were greater or 
24 

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1 less than the amounts which should have been paid 

2 to the State. Such estimates may be made on the 

3 basis of such statistical, sampling, or other method 

4 as may be agreed upon by the Secretary and the 

5 State agency of the State involved. 

6 (e) FINANCING PROVISIONS.— 

7 (1) IN GENERAL.—Funds in the extended un8 employment compensation account and the Federal 

9 unemployment account of the Unemployment Trust 

10 Fund shall be used, in accordance with succeeding 

11 provisions of this subsection, for the making of pay12 ments to States having agreements entered into 

13 under this section. 

14 (2) CERTIFICATION.—The Secretary shall from 

15 time to time certify to the Secretary of the Treasury 

16 for payment to each State the sums payable to such 

17 State under this section. The Secretary of the Treas18 ury, prior to audit or settlement by the Government 

19 Accountability Office, shall make payments to the 

20 State in accordance with such certification— 

21 (A) by transfers from the extended unem22 ployment compensation account of the Unem23 ployment Trust Fund, to the extent that they 

24 relate to amounts described in subparagraph 

25 (A) or (B) of subsection (d)(1); and 
25 

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1 (B) by transfers from the Federal unem2 ployment account of the Unemployment Trust 

3 Fund, to the extent that they relate to amounts 

4 described in subparagraph (C) of subsection 

5 (d)(1). 

6 (f) DEFINITIONS.— 

7 (1) IN GENERAL.—For purposes of this sec8 tion— 

9 (A) the terms ‘‘Secretary’’, ‘‘State’’, ‘‘State 

10 agency’’, ‘‘State law’’, ‘‘regular compensation’’, 

11 ‘‘week’’, ‘‘benefit year’’, and ‘‘base period’’ have 

12 the respective meanings given such terms under 

13 section 205 of the Federal-State Extended Un14 employment Compensation Act of 1970; 

15 (B) the terms ‘‘wages’’ and ‘‘employment’’ 

16 have the respective meanings given such terms 

17 under section 3306 of the Internal Revenue 

18 Code of 1986; 

19 (C) the term ‘‘extended unemployment 

20 compensation account’’ means the account es21 tablished by section 905(a) of the Social Secu22 rity Act; 

23 (D) the term ‘‘Federal unemployment ac24 count’’ means the account established by sec25 tion 904(g) of the Social Security Act; and 
26 

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1 (E) the term ‘‘Unemployment Trust 

2 Fund’’ means the fund established by section 

3 904(a) of the Social Security Act. 

4 (2) SPECIAL RULE.—Notwithstanding any pro5 vision of paragraph (1), in the case of a State enter6 ing into an agreement under this section— 

7 (A) the term ‘‘State law’’ shall be consid8 ered to refer to the State law of such State, ap9 plied in conformance with the modification de10 scribed in subsection (b)(2), subject to sub11 section (b)(3); and 

12 (B) the term ‘‘regular compensation’’ shall 

13 be considered to refer to such compensation, de14 termined under its State law (applied in the 

15 manner described in subparagraph (A)), 

16 except as otherwise provided or where the context 

17 clearly indicates otherwise. 

18 (g) APPLICABILITY.—An agreement entered into 

19 under this section shall apply to weeks of unemployment— 

20 (1) beginning on or after the first day of the 

21 week that includes August 28, 2005; and 

22 (2) ending before December 1, 2006. 
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1 SEC. 9. SAFETY AND HEALTH PROTECTIONS FOR INDIVID2 UALS IN AREAS AFFECTED BY HURRICANE 

3 KATRINA OR HURRICANE RITA. 

4 (a) MEDICAL MONITORING.— 

5 (1) DEFINITIONS.—In this subsection: 

6 (A) INDIVIDUAL.—The term ‘‘individual’’ 

7 includes— 

8 (i) a worker or volunteer who re9 sponds to Hurricane Katrina or Hurricane 

10 Rita, including— 

11 (I) a police officer; 

12 (II) a firefighter; 

13 (III) an emergency medical tech14 nician; 

15 (IV) another health care profes16 sional; 

17 (V) any participating member of 

18 an urban search and rescue team; and 

19 (VI) any other emergency re20 sponder, recovery, relief, or rescue 

21 worker, first responder, or volunteer 

22 that the Secretaries determine to be 

23 appropriate; 

24 (ii) a worker who responds to Hurri25 cane Katrina or Hurricane Rita by assist26 ing in the reconstruction, cleanup, or res-
28 

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1 toration of critical infrastructure in and 

2 around a Hurricane Katrina disaster area 

3 or Hurricane Rita disaster area; 

4 (iii) a person whose place of residence 

5 is located in a Hurricane Katrina disaster 

6 area or Hurricane Rita disaster area; 

7 (iv) a person who is employed in or 

8 attends school, child care, or adult day 

9 care in a building located in a Hurricane 

10 Katrina disaster area or Hurricane Rita 

11 disaster area; and 

12 (v) any other person that the Secre13 taries determine to be appropriate. 

14 (B) HURRICANE KATRINA DISASTER

15 AREA.—The term ‘‘Hurricane Katrina disaster 

16 area’’ means the disaster area declared by the 

17 President in accordance with section 401 of the 

18 Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emer19 gency Assistance Act (42 U.S.C. 5170), related 

20 to Hurricane Katrina. 

21 (C) HURRICANE RITA DISASTER AREA.— 

22 The term ‘‘Hurricane Rita disaster area’’ 

23 means the disaster area declared by the Presi24 dent in accordance with section 401 of the Rob25 ert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency 
29 

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1 Assistance Act (42 U.S.C. 5170), related to 

2 Hurricane Rita. 

3 (D) LOCAL PROGRAM.—The term ‘‘local 

4 program’’ means a program described in para5 graph (2) that is carried out with respect to 

6 Hurricane Katrina or Hurricane Rita. 

7 (E) SECRETARIES.—The term ‘‘Secre8 taries’’ means the Secretary of Health and 

9 Human Services, acting through the Director of 

10 the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 

11 and in conjunction with the Secretary of Labor 

12 and the Administrator of the Environmental 

13 Protection Agency. 

14 (F) SUBSTANCE OF CONCERN.—The term 

15 ‘‘substance of concern’’ means a chemical or 

16 other substance that is associated with potential 

17 acute or chronic human health effects, the risk 

18 of exposure to which could potentially be in19 creased as the result of a disaster, as deter20 mined by the Secretaries. 

21 (2) PROGRAM.— 

22 (A) IN GENERAL.—The Secretaries shall 

23 establish and carry out programs with respect 

24 to Hurricane Katrina and Hurricane Rita for 

25 the ongoing protection, assessment, monitoring, 
30 

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1 and study of the safety and health of individ2 uals to ensure that— 

3 (i) the individuals are adequately in4 formed about and protected against poten5 tial health impacts of any substance of 

6 concern and potential mental health im7 pacts of any substance of concern in a 

8 timely manner; 

9 (ii) the individuals are monitored and 

10 studied over time, including through base11 line and followup clinical health examina12 tions, for any health impacts of any sub13 stance of concern and any mental health 

14 impacts of any substance of concern; 

15 (iii) the individuals receive health care 

16 referrals as needed and appropriate; and 

17 (iv) information from any such moni18 toring and studies is used to prevent or 

19 protect against similar health impacts and 

20 mental health impacts from future disas21 ters. 

22 (B) ACTIVITIES.—A local program shall in23 clude activities consisting of— 
31 

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1 (i) collecting and analyzing environ2 mental exposure data and associated dis3 eases, illnesses, and injuries; 

4 (ii) developing and disseminating in5 formation and educational materials, in6 cluding conducting outreach to individuals; 

7 (iii) performing baseline and followup 

8 clinical health and mental health examina9 tions and taking biological samples, includ10 ing clinical and environmental samples; 

11 (iv) establishing and maintaining an 

12 exposure tracking clearinghouse, including 

13 data on degree of exposure; 

14 (v) studying the human health im15 pacts of any exposures through epidemio16 logical and other health studies; and 

17 (vi) providing assistance to individuals 

18 in determining eligibility for health cov19 erage and identifying appropriate health 

20 services. 

21 (C) TIMING.—To the maximum extent 

22 practicable, activities conducted under any local 

23 program (including baseline health examina24 tions) shall be commenced in a timely manner 
32 

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1 that will ensure the highest level of public 

2 health protection and effective monitoring. 

3 (D) PARTICIPATION IN A LOCAL PRO4 GRAM.— 

5 (i) IN GENERAL.—Participation in a 

6 local program shall be voluntary. 

7 (ii) PROTECTION OF PRIVACY.—The 

8 Secretaries shall take appropriate meas9 ures to protect the privacy and ensure in10 formed consent of any participant for 

11 whom data is maintained in the tracking 

12 clearinghouse described in subparagraph 

13 (B)(iv). 

14 (E) COOPERATIVE AGREEMENTS.— 

15 (i) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary of 

16 Health and Human Services carry out a 

17 local program through a cooperative agree18 ment with a medical institution, including 

19 a local health department, or a consortium 

20 of medical institutions. 

21 (ii) SELECTION CRITERIA.—To the 

22 maximum extent practicable, the Secretary 

23 shall select to carry out a program under 

24 clause (i) a medical institution or a consor25 tium of medical institutions that— 
33 

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1 (I) is located near— 

2 (aa) the disaster area with 

3 respect to which the program is 

4 carried out; and 

5 (bb) any other area in which 

6 there reside groups of individuals 

7 that worked or volunteered in re8 sponse to the disaster; and 

9 (II) has appropriate experience in 

10 the areas of environmental or occupa11 tional health, toxicology, and safety, 

12 including experience in— 

13 (aa) developing clinical pro14 tocols and conducting clinical 

15 health examinations, including 

16 mental health assessments; 

17 (bb) conducting long-term 

18 health monitoring and epidemio19 logical studies; 

20 (cc) conducting long-term 

21 mental health studies; and 

22 (dd) establishing and main23 taining medical surveillance pro24 grams and environmental expo25 sure or disease registries. 
34 

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1 (F) ADDITIONAL EXPERTISE.—In carrying 

2 out a local program, the Secretary of Health 

3 and Human Services may enter into a grant, 

4 cooperative agreement, or contract with a med5 ical institution (including a local health depart6 ment, a medical institution that is in a Hurri7 cane Katrina disaster area or Hurricane Rita 

8 disaster area and in which groups of individuals 

9 reside, or a consortium of medical institutions). 

10 In selecting such institutions, the Secretary of 

11 Health and Human Services shall ensure that 

12 such institutions have appropriate expertise in 

13 the areas of environmental or occupational 

14 health, toxicology, and safety, including experi15 ence in— 

16 (i) developing clinical protocols and 

17 conducting clinical health examinations, in18 cluding mental health assessments; 

19 (ii) conducting long-term health moni20 toring and epidemiological studies; 

21 (iii) conducting long-term mental 

22 health studies; and 

23 (iv) establishing and maintaining 

24 medical surveillance programs, environ-
35 

•S 1925 IS

1 mental exposure clearinghouses, or disease 

2 tracking networks. 

3 (G) INVOLVEMENT.—In establishing and 

4 carrying out a local program, the Secretaries 

5 shall involve interested and affected parties, as 

6 appropriate, including representatives of— 

7 (i) Federal, State, and local govern8 ment agencies; 

9 (ii) groups of individuals that worked 

10 or volunteered in response to Hurricane 

11 Katrina or Hurricane Rita in the disaster 

12 area; 

13 (iii) organizations representing em14 ployees engaged in emergency response or 

15 recovery work in the disaster area; 

16 (iv) local residents, businesses, and 

17 schools (including parents and teachers); 

18 (v) health care providers; and 

19 (vi) other organizations and persons. 

20 (H) PRIVACY.—The Secretaries shall carry 

21 out each program described in subparagraph 

22 (A) in accordance with regulations relating to 

23 privacy and informed consent, including regula24 tions under section 264(c) of the Health Insur-
36 

•S 1925 IS

1 ance Portability and Accountability Act of 

2 1996. 

3 (3) REPORT.—Not later than 90 days after the 

4 date of enactment of this Act and annually there5 after, the Secretaries shall prepare and submit to 

6 the appropriate committees of Congress a report on 

7 the progress of the programs described in paragraph 

8 (2)(A). Any medical institution that receives a grant 

9 or enters into a cooperative agreement or contract 

10 under paragraph (2)(E) shall provide such assist11 ance as the Secretary may require in preparing the 

12 report. 

13 (b) OCCUPATIONAL SAFETY AND HEALTH IN AREAS

14 AFFECTED BY HURRICANE KATRINA OR HURRICANE

15 RITA.— 

16 (1) FINDINGS.—Congress finds the following: 

17 (A) The Department of Homeland Security 

18 has recently (as of the date of enactment of this 

19 Act) adopted a National Response Plan that in20 cludes a Worker Health and Safety Annex to 

21 protect first responders and the response, recov22 ery, and reconstruction workers who work in 

23 areas affected by disasters, and such Annex has 

24 been activated as part of the Federal Govern25 ment response to Hurricane Katrina. 
37 

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1 (B) After Hurricane Katrina, the Environ2 mental Protection Agency has found heightened 

3 levels of e. coli, lead, and other dangerous sub4 stances in the water in New Orleans and the 

5 surrounding areas. 

6 (C) First responders and other workers en7 gaged in the response, recovery, and reconstruc8 tion following Hurricane Katrina and Hurri9 cane Rita will be exposed to chemical, biologi10 cal, and physical hazards in their work. 

11 (D) Surveillance programs conducted by 

12 the National Institute for Occupational Safety 

13 and Health and the Centers for Disease Control 

14 and Prevention found that a large number of 

15 response, recovery, and reconstruction workers 

16 who worked at the World Trade Center fol17 lowing the September 11, 2001, attacks suf18 fered serious health effects, particularly res19 piratory problems, as a result of hazardous ex20 posures at the World Trade Center, and a re21 cent Government Accountability Office report 

22 found that there has been essentially no moni23 toring of Federal employees who were exposed 

24 to toxins in the clean-up activities at the World 

25 Trade Center. 
38 

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1 (2) OCCUPATIONAL HEALTH AND SAFETY IN

2 AFFECTED REGIONS.—The Secretary of Labor, in 

3 coordination with the Director of the National Insti4 tute for Occupational Safety and Health, the Direc5 tor of the National Institute of Environmental 

6 Health Sciences, and other heads of appropriate 

7 Federal, State, and local agencies, shall carry out, in 

8 each region located in an area in which a major dis9 aster has been declared in accordance with section 

10 401 of the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and 

11 Emergency Assistance Act (42 U.S.C. 5170) related 

12 to Hurricane Katrina or related to Hurricane Rita, 

13 the following activities: 

14 (A) Develop a site-specific occupational 

15 safety and health plan for the region. 

16 (B) Identify and assess health and safety 

17 hazards in the region, including conducting con18 tinued monitoring of incident safety on a 24- 

19 hours-a-day, 7-days-a-week basis until the Sec20 retary determines that the conditions no longer 

21 pose a threat to the safety or health of workers 

22 in the region. 

23 (C) Provide personal exposure monitoring 

24 for the response, recovery, and reconstruction 

25 workers working in the region on a 24-hours-a- 
39 

•S 1925 IS

1 day, 7-days-a-week basis, including monitoring 

2 the workers for task-specific exposure to chem3 ical and biological contaminants and physical 

4 stressors. 

5 (D) Develop, implement, and monitor a 

6 personal protective equipment program for the 

7 response, recovery, and reconstruction workers 

8 working in the region that shall include— 

9 (i) guidance to response, recovery, and 

10 reconstruction workers working in the re11 gion on the selection, use, and decon12 tamination of such equipment; 

13 (ii) implementation of a respiratory 

14 protection fit-test program for such work15 ers; and 

16 (iii) distribution of personal protective 

17 equipment to such workers. 

18 (E) Collect and manage the sharing of 

19 data regarding the safety and health hazards in 

20 the region with response organizations in the 

21 region. 

22 (F) Identify the sites and operations within 

23 the region to which section 1910.120 of title 

24 29, Code of Federal Regulations (relating to 

25 hazardous waste operations and emergency re-
40 

•S 1925 IS

1 sponse) shall presumptively apply, and actively 

2 monitor and enforce compliance with such sec3 tion at such sites and operations. 

4 (G) Communicate with labor organizations, 

5 contractors, and other organizations in the re6 gion regarding safety and health issues for the 

7 response, recovery, and reconstruction workers 

8 working in the region. 

9 (H) Provide guidance on the training that 

10 should be provided to the response, recovery, 

11 and reconstruction workers working in the re12 gion. At a minimum, such training shall include 

13 the elements taught in the OSHA Training In14 stitute Disaster Site Worker Course. 

15 (I) Provide psychological first aid to the 

16 response, recovery, and reconstruction workers 

17 working in the region. 

18 (J) Identify and work with the Secretary 

19 of Health and Human Services on appropriate 

20 immunization and other prophylaxis for the re21 sponse, recovery, and reconstruction workers 

22 working in the region. 

23 (K) Fully apply and enforce in the region 

24 all Federal laws relating to the safety and 

25 health of workers, including applicable stand-
41 

•S 1925 IS

1 ards and regulations promulgated by the Sec2 retary of Labor or by the Secretary of Labor, 

3 acting through the Assistant Secretary of Labor 

4 for Occupational Safety and Health. 

5 (L) Provide the resources available to re6 sponse, recovery, and reconstruction workers 

7 under this paragraph to State and local govern8 ment response, recovery, and reconstruction 

9 workers working in the region for whom such 

10 resources are not otherwise available. 

11 (3) TRAINING OF HAZARDOUS SUBSTANCE RE12 SPONDERS.— 

13 (A) IN GENERAL.—The Director of the 

14 National Institute of Environmental Health 

15 Sciences shall provide the safety and health 

16 training activities described in subparagraph 

17 (B) to hazardous substance responders working 

18 in highly contaminated locations, and uncon19 trolled waste sites, that are located in areas in 

20 which a major disaster has been declared in ac21 cordance with section 401 of the Robert T. 

22 Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency Assist23 ance Act (42 U.S.C. 5170) related to Hurricane 

24 Katrina or related to Hurricane Rita. 
42 

•S 1925 IS

1 (B) TRAINING PRIORITIES.—Safety and 

2 health training activities provided under this 

3 paragraph shall focus on preparing response, 

4 recovery, and reconstruction workers for work 

5 in contaminated locations in the major disaster 

6 area, such as— 

7 (i) submerged sites on the National 

8 Priorities List developed by the President 

9 in accordance with section 105(a)(8)(B) of 

10 the Comprehensive Environmental Re11 sponse, Compensation, and Liability Act of 

12 1980 (42 U.S.C. 9605(a)(8)(B)); 

13 (ii) locations with land-based oil spills; 

14 and 

15 (iii) locations with leaking tanks, re16 fineries, or chemical plants. 

17 (C) COORDINATION ASSISTANCE.—The 

18 Secretary of Labor and the Assistant Secretary 

19 of Labor for Occupational Safety and Health 

20 shall assist the Director of the National Insti21 tute of Environmental Health Sciences in the 

22 coordination of training under this paragraph. 

23 (4) APPLICATION OF OCCUPATIONAL SAFETY

24 AND HEALTH ACT OF 1970 STANDARDS TO EMPLOY-
43 

•S 1925 IS

1 ERS AND EMPLOYEES ENGAGED IN RELIEF AND RE2 COVERY ACTIVITIES ON THE GULF COAST.— 

3 (A) GENERAL APPLICABILITY.—Notwith4 standing any other provision of law, the health 

5 and safety standards and regulations promul6 gated by the Secretary of Labor pursuant to 

7 the Occupational Safety and Health Act of 

8 1970 (29 U.S.C. 651 et seq.), shall be applica9 ble to States and political subdivisions and pub10 lic agencies thereof, in States that are receiving 

11 Federal financial assistance for the purpose of 

12 engaging in disaster relief and recovery activi13 ties in response to Hurricane Katrina or Hurri14 cane Rita. Such health and safety standards 

15 and regulations shall apply to employment and 

16 places of employment where employees of States 

17 and political subdivisions and public agencies 

18 thereof are engaged in disaster relief and recov19 ery activities in response to Hurricane Katrina 

20 or Hurricane Rita. 

21 (B) TECHNICAL AND FINANCIAL ASSIST22 ANCE.—The Secretary of Labor shall provide 

23 technical and financial assistance to States and 

24 political subdivisions and public agencies of 
44 

•S 1925 IS

1 States to facilitate and aid compliance with the 

2 requirements of this paragraph. 

3 (C) ENFORCEMENT.—The enforcement 

4 provisions of the Occupational Safety and 

5 Health Act of 1970 (29 U.S.C. 651 et seq.), 

6 shall apply to the places of employment and ac7 tivities described in subparagraph (A), and the 

8 Secretary of Labor is authorized to bring en9 forcement actions under the applicable provi10 sions of the Occupational Safety and Health 

11 Act of 1970. 

12 (5) REPORT.—Not later than 60 days after the 

13 date of enactment of this Act, the Secretary of 

14 Labor shall prepare and submit a report to Congress 

15 on the progress in carrying out the activities de16 scribed in paragraphs (2) and (3), including infor17 mation on the resources expended for such activities 

18 and any additional resources needed to fully imple19 ment such activities. 

Æ