II 

109TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION S. 2047 

To promote healthy communities. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

NOVEMBER 17, 2005 

Mr. OBAMA (for himself and Mrs. CLINTON) introduced the following bill; 

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

A BILL 

To promote healthy communities. 

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 ‘‘Healthy Communities 

5 Act of 2005’’. 

6 SEC. 2. FINDINGS. 

7 Congress finds as follows: 

8 (1) Environmental quality is a leading health 

9 indicator. An estimated 25 percent of preventable ill10 nesses worldwide can be attributed to poor environ11 mental quality. 
2 

•S 2047 IS

1 (2) Many diseases are caused or exacerbated by 

2 environmental hazards, including cancer, heart dis3 ease, asthma, birth defects, behavioral disorders, in4 fertility, and obesity. 

5 (3) Of the chemicals produced in the United 

6 States annually in quantities greater than 10,000 

7 pounds, only 43 percent have been tested for their 

8 potential human toxicity and only 7 percent have 

9 been studied to assess effects on development. 

10 (4) Approximately 126,000,000 people in the 

11 United States live in areas of non-attainment for 

12 pollutants that have health-based standards. In 

13 1997, approximately 43 percent of the population of 

14 the United States lived in areas designated as non15 attainment areas for established health-based stand16 ards for ozone. 

17 (5) In the United States, air pollution alone is 

18 estimated to be associated with 50,000 premature 

19 deaths and an estimated $50,000,000,000 in health20 related costs annually. 

21 (6) In children, environmental toxins are esti22 mated to cause up to 35 percent of asthma cases, 

23 up to 10 percent of cancer cases, and up to 20 per24 cent of neurobehavioral disorders. 
3 

•S 2047 IS

1 (7) Almost 400,000 children have elevated 

2 blood lead levels. In 2002, researchers reported that 

3 100 percent of childhood lead poisoning resulted 

4 from environmental lead exposure. If not detected 

5 early, lead poisoning in children is associated with 

6 behavioral and learning problems, slowed growth, 

7 impaired hearing, and damage to the kidneys, brain, 

8 and bone marrow. 

9 (8) Studies have found that the reduction of 

10 blood lead levels in children from 1976 to 1999 led 

11 to an economic benefit of approximately 

12 $319,000,000,000. 

13 (9) Elevated lead levels can also harm adults by 

14 causing difficulties during pregnancy, high blood 

15 pressure, digestive problems, nerve disorders, mem16 ory and concentration problems, and muscle and 

17 joint pain. 

18 (10) Minority Americans are at greater risk of 

19 exposure to environmental toxins. Research has 

20 shown that 3 of every 5 individuals of African-Amer21 ican or Latino background live in communities with 

22 1 or more toxic waste sites. More than 15,000,000 

23 African-Americans, more than 8,000,000 Hispanics, 

24 and about 50 percent of Asian and Pacific Islanders 

25 and Native Americans are living in communities 
4 

•S 2047 IS

1 with 1 or more abandoned or uncontrolled toxic 

2 waste sites. 

3 (11) Communities with existing incinerators are 

4 significantly more likely to have a large percentage 

5 of minorities. Communities where incinerators are 

6 proposed to be located have minority populations 

7 that are 60 percent higher and property values 35 

8 percent lower than other communities. 

9 SEC. 3. ADVISORY COMMITTEE ON ENVIRONMENTAL 

10 HEALTH. 

11 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary of Health and 

12 Human Services (referred to in this section as the ‘‘Sec13 retary’’), in collaboration with the Administrator of the 

14 Environmental Protection Agency (referred to in this sec15 tion as the ‘‘Administrator’’), shall establish an inde16 pendent, 5-year Advisory Committee on Environmental 

17 Health (referred to in this section as the ‘‘Committee’’). 

18 (b) MEMBERSHIP.— 

19 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Committee shall be 

20 composed of members with academic training and 

21 practical experience in— 

22 (A) the areas of— 

23 (i) environmental health and public 

24 health; 

25 (ii) environmental justice; 
5 

•S 2047 IS

1 (iii) community-based participatory 

2 research; 

3 (iv) adult and child health and devel4 opment; 

5 (v) data collection, analysis, and re6 porting; 

7 (vi) health and health care disparities; 

8 (vii) community engagement and mo9 bilization, including grassroots organizing 

10 and community-level activism in commu11 nities with health disparity populations; 

12 and 

13 (viii) urban, suburban, rural, and re14 gional planning; and 

15 (B) other areas determined appropriate by 

16 the Secretary. 

17 (2) TERM.—Members of the Committee shall 

18 serve on the Committee for the life of the Com19 mittee. 

20 (3) SELECTION.—The Secretary shall appoint 

21 members of the Committee from health disparity 

22 populations. No candidate for appointment on the 

23 Committee shall be asked to provide non-relevant in24 formation, such as voting record, political party af25 filiation, or position on particular policies. 
6 

•S 2047 IS

1 (4) PROHIBITION AGAINST FEDERAL EMPLOY2 EES.—No member of the Committee may be a Fed3 eral employee. 

4 (c) CHAIRPERSON.—Members of the Committee shall 

5 select a chairperson from among the members of the Com6 mittee, who shall serve a 1-year term. 

7 (d) MEETINGS.—The Committee shall meet not less 

8 frequently than 3 times per year. 

9 (e) DUTIES OF THE COMMITTEE.—The Committee 

10 shall review environmental health data and studies, as well 

11 as Federal environmental health research and pro12 grammatic initiatives, in order to— 

13 (1) assess the impact of Federal laws, policies, 

14 programs, and practices on environmental health 

15 and environmental justice; 

16 (2) identify and recommend ways to— 

17 (A) draft new or modify existing Federal 

18 laws needed to improve environmental health; 

19 (B) ensure compliance with Federal laws 

20 related to environmental health; 

21 (C) address gaps in environmental health 

22 research or programs at the Federal level, par23 ticularly research or programs that address the 

24 needs of health-disparity populations; 
7 

•S 2047 IS

1 (D) prevent or mitigate harm from Federal 

2 policies and federally operated or supported 

3 programs and practices, that may adversely af4 fect environmental health and environmental 

5 justice; 

6 (E) increase coordination and integration 

7 of interagency environmental health and envi8 ronmental justice initiatives; and 

9 (F) promote efforts to meet Healthy Peo10 ple 2010 goals and objectives relating to envi11 ronmental health; 

12 (3) assist in the development of the Environ13 mental Health Report Card; 

14 (4) assist in the development of the Health Ac15 tion Zone Program, including identification of eligi16 ble communities; and 

17 (5) conduct other activities at the request of the 

18 Secretary. 

19 (f) VULNERABLE POPULATIONS.—The Committee 

20 shall include specific focus on health disparity populations 

21 in completion of all duties of the Committee. 

22 (g) COLLABORATION.—To the extent possible, the 

23 Committee shall seek input from new or existing Federal 

24 committees on environmental health and environmental 

25 justice issues, including the Federal Interagency Working 
8 

•S 2047 IS

1 Group on Environmental Justice and the National Envi2 ronmental Justice Advisory Council. 

3 (h) PUBLIC INPUT.— 

4 (1) PUBLIC NOTICE.—The Chairperson of the 

5 Committee shall provide public notice of the avail6 ability of draft recommendations not less than 90 

7 days prior to the date of finalization of such rec8 ommendations. 

9 (2) CONSIDERATION.—The Committee shall so10 licit and take into consideration public review and 

11 comment on draft recommendations pursuant to this 

12 section. 

13 (i) PERSONNEL.— 

14 (1) DETAIL OF GOVERNMENT EMPLOYEES.— 

15 Any Federal Government employee may be detailed 

16 to the Committee without reimbursement, and such 

17 detail shall be without interruption or loss of civil 

18 service status or privilege. 

19 (2) STAFF, INFORMATION, OR OTHER ASSIST20 ANCE.—The Secretary and the Administrator of the 

21 Environmental Protection Agency shall provide to 

22 the Committee such staff, information, and other as23 sistance as may be necessary to carry out the duties 

24 of the Committee. 
9 

•S 2047 IS

1 (j) REPORTS.—On an annual basis, the Committee 

2 shall compile and submit the Committee’s findings and 

3 recommendations to the public and Congress. 

4 (k) FEDERAL RESPONSE.—Not later than 1 year 

5 after the date the Committee submits a report under sub6 section (j), the Secretary and the Administrator shall pro7 pose a plan to implement relevant recommendations of the 

8 Committee included in such report. 

9 (l) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There is 

10 authorized to be appropriated to the Committee such sums 

11 as may be necessary to carry out the objectives of this 

12 section. 

13 SEC. 4. ENVIRONMENTAL HEALTH REPORT CARD. 

14 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Director of the Centers for 

15 Disease Control and Prevention (referred to in this section 

16 as the ‘‘Director’’), in collaboration with the Adminis17 trator of the Environmental Protection Agency (referred 

18 to in this section as the ‘‘Administrator’’), shall assess and 

19 report the environmental health of the Nation and, to the 

20 extent possible, for each State. 

21 (b) ENVIRONMENTAL HEALTH REPORT CARD.—The 

22 Director and the Administrator shall prepare an Environ23 mental Health Report Card (referred to in this section as 

24 a ‘‘Report Card’’) for the Nation and, to the extent pos-
10 

•S 2047 IS

1 sible, for each State on a biennial basis, that includes 

2 the— 

3 (1) potential risk of high or cumulative expo4 sure to environmental toxicants and pollutants— 

5 (A) taking into consideration the preva6 lence and health effect; 

7 (B) including those measured in the Na8 tional Report on Human Exposure to Environ9 mental Chemicals; 

10 (C) including those that are man-made, 

11 natural, and biogenic; and 

12 (D) that are present in the air, water, or 

13 soil; 

14 (2) burden of acute and chronic disease empiri15 cally shown to be associated with or exacerbated by 

16 exposure to environmental toxicants or pollutants; 

17 (3) demographic characteristics of populations 

18 that are most affected by overexposure to environ19 mental toxicants or pollutants; and 

20 (4) environmental health resources and initia21 tives, including national and State health tracking 

22 and biomonitoring activities. 

23 (c) REPORT.—The Director, in collaboration with the 

24 Administrator, shall— 

25 (1) submit each Report Card to Congress; and 
11 

•S 2047 IS

1 (2) make each Report Card readily available in 

2 print and electronically to each State and to the 

3 public. 

4 (d) ADAPTABLE.—Each Report Card shall be able to 

5 be adapted by local agencies in order to rate or report 

6 local environmental quality. 

7 (e) CONSULTATION.—In developing a Report Card, 

8 the Director, in collaboration with the Administrator, shall 

9 consult with the Advisory Committee on Environmental 

10 Health established under section 3 and incorporate the 

11 recommendations set forth by the Committee. 

12 (f) UPDATED REPORT.—Each Report Card that is 

13 prepared after the initial Report Card shall include trend 

14 analysis for the Nation, and, to the extent possible, for 

15 each State, in order to track progress in meeting estab16 lished national goals and objectives for improving environ17 mental health (including Healthy People 2010), and to in18 form policy and program development. 

19 SEC. 5. HEALTH ACTION ZONES. 

20 (a) PURPOSE.—The Secretary of Health and Human 

21 Services (referred to in this section as the ‘‘Secretary’’), 

22 in collaboration with the Administrator of the Environ23 mental Protection Agency, shall establish the Health Ac24 tion Zone Program for comprehensive environmental 

25 health improvement activities. 
12 

•S 2047 IS

1 (b) HEALTH ACTION ZONE PROGRAM.— 

2 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall award 

3 not less than 10 Health Action Zone Program 

4 grants to eligible communities each year. The dura5 tion of each grant shall be 5 years. 

6 (2) ELIGIBLE COMMUNITIES.— 

7 (A) IDENTIFICATION.—The Advisory Com8 mittee on Environmental Health, established 

9 under section 3, shall identify eligible commu10 nities under this section, pursuant to subpara11 graph (B), and report such identifications to 

12 the Secretary and the public. 

13 (B) TYPES OF COMMUNITIES.—Eligible 

14 communities under this section shall be commu15 nities that are most at risk, or at greatest dis16 proportionate risk, for adverse health outcomes 

17 from environmental toxicants and pollutants, as 

18 measured by— 

19 (i) proximity to sites with high levels 

20 of environmental toxicants or pollutants, or 

21 high levels of exposure to environmental 

22 toxicants or pollutants, including those 

23 that are— 
13 

•S 2047 IS

1 (I) measured in the National Re2 port on Human Exposure to Environ3 mental Chemicals; 

4 (II) man-made, natural, or bio5 genic; or 

6 (III) in air, water, or soil; 

7 (ii) burden of disease and health con8 ditions that may be caused or exacerbated 

9 by environmental toxicants or pollutants; 

10 (iii) level of community health and 

11 economic resources available; and 

12 (iv) other factors determined appro13 priate by the Advisory Committee on Envi14 ronmental Health. 

15 (3) NOTIFICATION.—The Secretary shall solicit 

16 applications for Health Action Zone Program grants 

17 from communities identified by the Advisory Com18 mittee on Environmental Health pursuant to para19 graph (2). 

20 (4) APPLICATIONS.— 

21 (A) IN GENERAL.—An eligible community 

22 that desires to receive a Health Action Zone 

23 Program grant shall submit an application to 

24 the Secretary at such time, in such manner, 

25 and accompanied by such information as the 
14 

•S 2047 IS

1 Secretary may require, including a strategic 

2 plan described in subparagraph (B) and a de3 scription of the community advisory board 

4 under subparagraph (C). 

5 (B) STRATEGIC PLAN.— 

6 (i) IN GENERAL.—An eligible commu7 nity shall include in an application under 

8 subparagraph (A) a strategic plan that 

9 shall— 

10 (I) describe the proposed activi11 ties pursuant to subsection (c); 

12 (II) report the extent to which 

13 local institutions and organizations 

14 and community residents have partici15 pated in the strategic plan develop16 ment; 

17 (III) identify State, local, and 

18 private resources that will be avail19 able; 

20 (IV) describe the private and 

21 public partnerships to be used, which 

22 may include partnerships with com23 munity-based organizations and advo24 cacy groups, institutions of higher 

25 education, federally qualified health 
15 

•S 2047 IS

1 centers, academic medical centers, 

2 hospitals, health plans, public health 

3 departments, elected officials, and 

4 other public and private entities; 

5 (V) identify Federal funding 

6 needed to support the proposed activi7 ties; and 

8 (VI) report the baselines, meth9 ods, and benchmarks for measuring 

10 the success of activities proposed in 

11 the strategic plan, including health 

12 and environmental health outcomes 

13 and community engagement and par14 ticipation. 

15 (ii) TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE.—The 

16 Secretary shall provide technical assist17 ance, as needed, for the development and 

18 implementation of strategic plans in— 

19 (I) the areas of— 

20 (aa) public health; 

21 (bb) environmental health; 

22 (cc) environmental justice; 

23 (dd) community-based 

24 participatory research; 
16 

•S 2047 IS

1 (ee) health tracking, bio2 monitoring, and other relevant 

3 exposure technologies; 

4 (ff) health and health care 

5 disparities; and 

6 (gg) human disease genetics; 

7 and 

8 (II) other areas determined ap9 propriate by the Secretary. 

10 (C) COMMUNITY ADVISORY BOARD.— 

11 (i) IN GENERAL.—In order to receive 

12 a Health Action Zone Program grant 

13 under this section, a community shall have 

14 a community advisory board. 

15 (ii) MEMBERS.— 

16 (I) FROM COMMUNITY.—The ma17 jority of the members of a community 

18 advisory board under clause (i) shall 

19 be individuals that will benefit from 

20 the activities or services provided by 

21 the grants under this section. 

22 (II) REPRESENTATIVES.—A com23 munity advisory board shall include 

24 representatives from the respective 

25 State health department and county 
17 

•S 2047 IS

1 or local health department, commu2 nity-based organizations, environ3 mental and public health experts, 

4 health care professionals and pro5 viders, nonprofit leaders, community 

6 organizers, and elected officials. 

7 (iii) DUTIES.—A community advisory 

8 board shall— 

9 (I) oversee the functions and op10 erations of Health Action Zone Pro11 gram grant activities; 

12 (II) assist in the evaluation of 

13 such activities; and 

14 (III) prepare an annual report 

15 that— 

16 (aa) describes the progress 

17 towards achieving stated goals; 

18 and 

19 (bb) recommends future 

20 courses of action. 

21 (c) USE OF FUNDS.—An eligible community that re22 ceives a grant under this section may use the grant fund23 ing to— 

24 (1) promote disease prevention and health pro25 motion, particularly for health disparity populations; 
18 

•S 2047 IS

1 (2) facilitate partnerships between health care 

2 providers, public and environmental health agencies, 

3 academic institutions, community based or advocacy 

4 organizations, elected officials, professional societies, 

5 and other stakeholder groups; 

6 (3) enhance the local capacity for environmental 

7 health data collection and reporting, which may in8 clude using information from health tracking and 

9 biomonitoring; 

10 (4) coordinate and integrate economic develop11 ment, healthcare and social services, transportation, 

12 education, community, and physical development 

13 plans, as well as policymaking and other related ac14 tivities at the local level to comprehensively address 

15 environmental health concerns; 

16 (5) mobilize financial and other resources from 

17 the public and private sector to increase local capac18 ity to address environmental health issues; 

19 (6) build upon existing environmental and eco20 nomic efforts to address contaminated sites through 

21 the Department of Health and Human Services, the 

22 Environmental Protection Agency, and other Federal 

23 and State programs that address public health and 

24 the environment; 
19 

•S 2047 IS

1 (7) identify and assess factors relating to the 

2 historical contamination of the community, in order 

3 to mitigate ongoing or prevent future occurrences, 

4 including examining— 

5 (A) the historical use of planning mecha6 nisms such as zoning practices; 

7 (B) noncompliance with environmental 

8 laws and public health codes; and 

9 (C) abuse of extraterritorial jurisdiction or 

10 redlining; 

11 (8) support the training of staff in communica12 tion and outreach to the general public, particularly 

13 those at disproportionate risk from environmental 

14 health hazards; 

15 (9) assist eligible communities in meeting 

16 Healthy People 2010 objectives relating to environ17 mental health; and 

18 (10) aid eligible communities in developing envi19 ronmental management systems to improve the proc20 esses and actions that an organization undertakes to 

21 meet its business and environmental goals. 

22 (d) PLANNING GRANT.— 

23 (1) IN GENERAL.—At the discretion of the Sec24 retary, an eligible community may receive a 1-time 

25 planning grant to— 
20 

•S 2047 IS

1 (A) establish or strengthen State or local 

2 partnerships; 

3 (B) identify Federal, State, or local re4 sources; 

5 (C) research promising health practices 

6 and models; 

7 (D) develop a strategic plan for community 

8 intervention; 

9 (E) create necessary data collection sys10 tems or linkages to facilitate baseline and fol11 low-up data assessment and evaluation; 

12 (F) engage target communities in all plan13 ning activities, including formation of a commu14 nity advisory board; and 

15 (G) prepare a Health Action Zone Pro16 gram grant application. 

17 (2) DURATION.—The duration of each planning 

18 grant shall be 1 year. 

19 (3) ELIGIBLE COMMUNITIES NOT RECEIVING

20 PLANNING GRANTS.—An eligible community that 

21 does not receive a planning grant under this sub22 section shall still be eligible to receive a Health Ac23 tion Zone Program grant under this section. 

24 (e) EVALUATION.— 
21 

•S 2047 IS

1 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary, directly or 

2 through contract, shall conduct an evaluation of the 

3 Health Action Zone Program in order to determine 

4 success in achieving the purpose of such program. 

5 (2) REPORTS.—Findings from the evaluation 

6 under paragraph (1) shall be reported to Congress 

7 and the public annually. 

8 (f) SUPPLEMENT, NOT SUPPLANT.—Grant funds re9 ceived under this section shall be used to supplement, and 

10 not supplant, funding that would otherwise be used for 

11 activities described under this section. 

12 (g) PRIORITY.—In awarding grants under this sec13 tion, the Secretary— 

14 (1) shall give priority to communities that do 

15 not have sites already listed on the National Prior16 ities List for which remediation activities are actively 

17 ongoing, as determined by the Environmental Pro18 tection Agency; and 

19 (2) may give priority to empowerment zones 

20 and enterprise communities designated pursuant to 

21 section 1391 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986. 

22 (h) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There 

23 are authorized to be appropriated to carry out this section 

24 $50,000,000 for fiscal year 2006 and $50,000,000 for 

25 each of the fiscal years 2007 through 2010. 
22 

•S 2047 IS

1 SEC. 6. ENVIRONMENTAL HEALTH RESEARCH. 

2 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary of Health and 

3 Human Services (referred to in this section as the ‘‘Sec4 retary’’), in collaboration with the Administrator of the 

5 Environmental Protection Agency, the Director of the 

6 Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and the Di7 rector of the National Institutes of Health, shall expand 

8 and intensify environmental health research. 

9 (b) AREAS OF FOCUS.—The Secretary shall expand 

10 research on the following: 

11 (1) The health effects of environmental toxins, 

12 which shall include expansion and intensification of 

13 biomonitoring, in order to— 

14 (A) monitor the presence and concentra15 tion of designated chemicals; 

16 (B) measure toxic chemical exposure levels 

17 by testing blood, tissue, saliva, exhaled breath, 

18 and urine samples from nationwide volunteers; 

19 (C) identify the role of genetic and non20 genetic susceptibility factors such as underlying 

21 disease rates, social demographics, psychosocial 

22 factors, community access to nutritional food 

23 and opportunities for recreational exercise, and 

24 other factors in modifying health outcomes 

25 from environmental pollutants; and 
23 

•S 2047 IS

1 (D) determine the availability of and com2 pliance with ethical guidelines when collecting 

3 samples and conducting research. 

4 (2) The contribution of differential exposure to 

5 environmental toxicants and pollutants to racial, eth6 nic, age, gender, and socioeconomic position dispari7 ties in health. 

8 (3) The methods to assess the cumulative risk 

9 of exposure or cumulative exposure to multiple pol10 lutants from a variety of sources over time. 

11 (4) The methods and tools to assess overall en12 vironmental community health, including— 

13 (A) the presence, level, and type of envi14 ronmental contaminants; 

15 (B) the burden of disease and other health 

16 conditions; 

17 (C) predisposing factors such as race, eth18 nicity, socioeconomic position, access to 

19 healthcare, geography, and cultural practices; 

20 (D) available local health care resources; 

21 and 

22 (E) other factors determined appropriate 

23 by the Secretary. 

24 (c) STATE BIOMONITORING CAPACITY.— 
24 

•S 2047 IS

1 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary, acting 

2 through the Director of the Centers for Disease 

3 Control and Prevention (referred to in this sub4 section as the ‘‘Director’’), shall provide grants to 

5 States to enable the States to develop or expand the 

6 capacity of such States to conduct biomonitoring in 

7 order to, with respect to environmental toxicants and 

8 pollutants— 

9 (A) detect and monitor exposure; 

10 (B) assess or predict population and indi11 vidual health risk as a result of exposure; 

12 (C) develop and implement interventions to 

13 reduce exposure; 

14 (D) evaluate the effectiveness of interven15 tions to reduce exposure; 

16 (E) monitor trends in exposure over time; 

17 and 

18 (F) conduct other biomonitoring-related 

19 activities, as determined appropriate by the Di20 rector. 

21 (2) REPORT.—Each State that receives a grant 

22 under this subsection shall report to the Director 

23 and to the public, information on the biomonitoring 

24 findings and activities pursuant to paragraph (1). 
25 

•S 2047 IS

1 (3) COORDINATION.—The Director shall ensure, 

2 to the extent possible, that each State that receives 

3 a grant under this subsection demonstrates the— 

4 (A) coordination and integration of bio5 monitoring activities throughout the State; and 

6 (B) interoperability of data collection and 

7 reporting systems with neighboring States for 

8 the formation of regional networks. 

9 (4) TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE.—The Secretary, 

10 acting through the Director, shall directly or 

11 through grants or contracts, or both, provide tech12 nical assistance to States in the establishment and 

13 operation of the State biomonitoring system, includ14 ing providing— 

15 (A) training for environmental health per16 sonnel and for other appropriate personnel to 

17 develop environmental health leadership capac18 ity at the State and local level, including inves19 tigative, diagnostic, analytical, risk communica20 tion, and response and prevention capabilities; 

21 (B) assistance in improving relevant re22 gional and State laboratory capacity and other 

23 activities to complement State and local inves24 tigative capabilities; 
26 

•S 2047 IS

1 (C) assistance in establishing a computer2 ized data collection, reporting, and processing 

3 system; and 

4 (D) any other technical assistance the Sec5 retary or Director determines to be necessary. 

6 (5) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.— 

7 There is authorized to be appropriated to carry out 

8 this subsection $50,000,000 for fiscal year 2006 and 

9 such sums as may be necessary for the 4 succeeding 

10 fiscal years. 

11 (d) TRANSLATION.—The Secretary shall promote 

12 translation and dissemination of findings to— 

13 (1) inform the public; and 

14 (2) facilitate use by States and communities to 

15 address environmental health concerns. 

16 (e) INTEGRATION OF EFFORTS.—The Secretary shall 

17 incorporate the data collected pursuant to this section with 

18 existing data collection efforts, including the following sur19 veys and registries as appropriate: 

20 (1) The National Electronic Disease Surveil21 lance System. 

22 (2) State birth defects surveillance systems. 

23 (3) Surveillance Epidemiology and End Results 

24 and State cancer registries. 

25 (4) State asthma surveillance systems. 
27 

•S 2047 IS

1 (5) The National Health and Nutrition Exam2 ination Survey. 

3 (6) The Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance 

4 System. 

5 (7) The Substance Release/Health Effects 

6 Database. 

7 (8) State blood lead surveillance systems. 

8 (9) The Hazardous Substances Emergency 

9 Events Surveillance System. 

10 (10) The Health Alert Network. 

11 (11) The National Hospital Discharge Survey. 

12 (12) The National Ambulatory Medical Care 

13 Survey. 

14 (13) The National Health Interview Survey. 

15 (14) The Environmental Public Health Track16 ing Network. 

17 (15) The National Report on Human Exposure 

18 to Environmental Chemicals. 

19 (16) Other data and surveillance systems, reg20 istries, and surveys as considered appropriate by the 

21 Secretary and the Administrator of the Environ22 mental Protection Agency. 
28 

•S 2047 IS

1 SEC. 7. ENVIRONMENTAL HEALTH WORKFORCE DEVELOP2 MENT. 

3 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Director of the Centers for 

4 Disease Control and Prevention, in collaboration with the 

5 Director of the National Institutes of Health and national 

6 and professional organizations, shall expand training and 

7 educational activities relating to environmental health and 

8 environmental justice for health professionals and public 

9 health practitioners, including those from health disparity 

10 populations. 

11 (b) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There is 

12 authorized to be appropriated to carry out this section 

13 such sums as may be necessary. 

14 SEC. 8. DEFINITIONS. 

15 In this Act: 

16 (1) ENVIRONMENTAL HEALTH.—The term ‘‘en17 vironmental health’’, as defined by the World Health 

18 Organization, includes both the direct pathological 

19 effects of chemicals, radiation, and some biological 

20 agents, and the effects (often indirect) on health and 

21 well-being of the broad physical, psychological, so22 cial, and aesthetic environment. 

23 (2) ENVIRONMENTAL JUSTICE.—The term ‘‘en24 vironmental justice’’, as defined by the Environ25 mental Protection Agency, includes the fair treat26 ment and meaningful involvement of all people re-
29 

•S 2047 IS

1 gardless of race, color, national origin, or income 

2 with respect to the development, implementation, 

3 and enforcement of environmental laws, regulations, 

4 and policies. 

5 (3) HEALTH DISPARITY POPULATION.—The 

6 term ‘‘health disparity population’’ means a health 

7 disparity population as described in section 485E(d) 

8 of the Public Health Service Act (42 U.S.C. 287c– 

9 31(d)). 

10 (4) STATE.—The term ‘‘State’’ means each of 

11 the 50 States, the District of Columbia, the Com12 monwealth of Puerto Rico, the United States Virgin 

13 Islands, Guam, American Samoa, the Common14 wealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, the Repub15 lic of the Marshall Islands, the Federated States of 

16 Micronesia, the Republic of Palau, and any Indian 

17 country (as defined in section 1151 of title 18, 

18 United States Code). 

Æ