II

105TH CONGRESS

1ST SESSION S. 1317

To amend the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and

Liability Act of 1980 to expand the opportunity for health protection

for citizens affected by hazardous waste sites.

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

OCTOBER 24, 1997

Mr. LAUTENBERG (for himself and Mr. BAUCUS) introduced the following bill;

which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Environment and

Public Works

A BILL

To amend the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act of 1980 to expand the

opportunity for health protection for citizens affected

by hazardous waste sites.

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 ‘‘Environmental Health

5 Protection Act of 1997’’.

6 SEC. 2. DEFINITIONS.

7 (a) GENERAL DEFINITIONS.—Section 101 of the

8 Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation,
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1 and Liability Act of 1980 (42 U.S.C. 9601) is amended

2 by adding at the end the following:

3 ‘‘(39) ATSDR.—The term ‘ATSDR’ means the

4 Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Reg5 istry.’’.

6 (b) DEFINITIONS IN THE PUBLIC PARTICIPATION

7 SECTION.—

8 (1) IN GENERAL.—Section 117 of the Com9 prehensive Environmental Response, Compensation,

10 and Liability Act of 1980 (42 U.S.C. 9617) is

11 amended—

12 (A) by redesignating subsections (a)

13 through (e) as subsections (b) through (f), re14 spectively; and

15 (B) by inserting after the section heading

16 the following:

17 ‘‘(a) DEFINITIONS.—In this section:

18 ‘‘(1) AFFECTED COMMUNITY.—The term ‘af19 fected community’ means a group of 2 or more indi20 viduals who may be affected by the release or threat21 ened release of a hazardous substance, pollutant, or

22 contaminant from a covered facility.

23 ‘‘(2) COVERED FACILITY.—The term ‘covered

24 facility’ means a facility—
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1 ‘‘(A) that has been listed or proposed for

2 listing on the National Priorities List;

3 ‘‘(B) at which the Administrator is under4 taking a removal action that it is anticipated

5 will exceed—

6 ‘‘(i) in duration, 1 year; or

7 ‘‘(ii) in cost, the funding limit under

8 section 104; or

9 ‘‘(C) with respect to which the Adminis10 trator of ATSDR has approved a petition re11 questing a health assessment or other related

12 health activity under section 104(i)(6)(B).

13 ‘‘(3) WASTE SITE INFORMATION OFFICE.—The

14 term ‘waste site information office’ means a waste

15 site information office established under subsection

16 (j).’’.

17 (2) CONFORMING AMENDMENTS.—

18 (A) Title I of the Comprehensive Environ19 mental Response, Compensation, and Liability

20 Act of 1980 is amended—

21 (i) in section 111(a)(5) (42 U.S.C.

22 9611), by striking ‘‘117(e)’’ and inserting

23 ‘‘117(f)’’;

24 (ii) in section 113(k)(2)(B) (42

25 U.S.C. 9613)—
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1 (I) in clause (iii), by striking

2 ‘‘117(a)(2)’’ and inserting

3 ‘‘117(b)(2)’’; and

4 (II) in the third sentence, by

5 striking ‘‘117(d)’’ and inserting

6 ‘‘117(e)’’.

7 (B) Section 2705(e) of title 10, United

8 States Code, is amended—

9 (i) by striking ‘‘117(e)’’ and inserting

10 ‘‘117(f)’’; and

11 (ii) by striking ‘‘(42 U.S.C. 9617(e))’’

12 and inserting ‘‘(42 U.S.C. 9617(f))’’.

13 SEC. 3. AGENCY FOR TOXIC SUBSTANCES AND DISEASE

14 REGISTRY.

15 (a) NOTICE TO HEALTH AUTHORITIES.—Section

16 104(b) of Comprehensive Environmental Response, Com17 pensation, and Liability Act of 1980 (42 U.S.C. 9604(b))

18 is amended by adding at the end the following:

19 ‘‘(3) NOTICE TO HEALTH AUTHORITIES.—The

20 President shall notify State, local, and tribal public

21 health authorities whenever a release or a hazardous

22 substance, pollutant, or contaminant has occurred, is

23 occurring, or is about to occur, or there is a threat

24 of such a release, and the release or threatened re-
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1 lease is under investigation pursuant to this sec2 tion.’’.

3 (b) AMENDMENTS RELATING TO ATSDR.—Section

4 104(i) of the Comprehensive Environmental Response,

5 Compensation, and Liability Act of 1980 (42 U.S.C.

6 9604(i)) is amended—

7 (1) in paragraph (1)—

8 (A) in the second sentence, by striking

9 ‘‘and appropriate State and local health offi10 cials’’ and inserting ‘‘the Indian Health Service,

11 and appropriate State, tribal, and local health

12 officials’’;

13 (B) in subparagraphs (A) and (C), by in14 serting ‘‘and Indian tribes’’ after ‘‘States’’; and

15 (C) by striking the last sentence and in16 serting the following flush sentence: ‘‘In a pub17 lic health emergency, exposed persons shall be

18 eligible for referral to licensed or accredited

19 health care providers.’’;

20 (2) in paragraph (3)—

21 (A) in the matter following subparagraph

22 (C)—

23 (i) by striking the sentence beginning

24 ‘‘The profiles required’’;
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1 (ii) in the sentence beginning ‘‘The

2 profiles prepared’’, by inserting before the

3 period at the end the following: ‘‘and of

4 substances not on the list, but that have

5 been detected at covered facilities (within

6 the meaning of section 117) and are deter7 mined by the Administrator of ATSDR to

8 pose a significant potential threat to

9 human health due to their known or sus10 pected toxicity to humans and the potential

11 for human exposure to such substances at

12 such facilities.’’;

13 (iii) in the sentence beginning ‘‘Pro14 files required under’’, by striking ‘‘, but no

15 less often’’ and all that follows through the

16 period at the end and inserting ‘‘if the Ad17 ministrator of ATSDR determines that

18 there is significant new information.’’; and

19 (iv) in the last sentence, by inserting

20 ‘‘and Indian tribes’’ after ‘‘States’’; and

21 (B) by inserting after subparagraph (C)

22 the following:

23 ‘‘(D) Evaluations of the cumulative effects

24 (including synergistic effects) of other chemi25 cals.’’;
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1 (3) in paragraph (4)—

2 (A) in the first sentence, by striking

3 ‘‘State officials’’ and inserting ‘‘State, tribal,’’;

4 and

5 (B) in the second sentence, by inserting

6 ‘‘or Indian tribes’’ after ‘‘States’’;

7 (4) in paragraph (5)(A)—

8 (A) in the first sentence, by inserting ‘‘and

9 the Indian Health Service’’ after ‘‘Public

10 Health Service’’;

11 (B) in the second sentence, by inserting

12 after ‘‘program of research’’ the following:

13 ‘‘conducted directly or by such means as coop14 erative agreements and grants with appropriate

15 public and nonprofit institutions. The program

16 shall be’’; and

17 (C) in the last sentence—

18 (i) in clause (iii), by striking ‘‘and’’ at

19 the end;

20 (ii) by redesignating clause (iv) as

21 clause (vi); and

22 (iii) by inserting after clause (iii) the

23 following:

24 ‘‘(iv) laboratory and other studies that can lead

25 to the development of innovative techniques for pre-
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1 dicting organ-specific, tissue-specific, and system2 specific acute and chronic toxicity associated with a

3 covered facility; and

4 ‘‘(v) laboratory and other studies to determine

5 the health effects of substances commonly found in

6 combination with other substances, and the short,

7 intermediate, and long-term cumulative health ef8 fects (including from synergistic impacts).’’;

9 (5) in paragraph (6)—

10 (A) by striking ‘‘(6)(A) The Adminis11 trator’’ and all that follows through the end of

12 subparagraph (A) and inserting the following:

13 ‘‘(6) HEALTH ASSESSMENTS AND RELATED

14 HEALTH ACTIVITIES.—

15 ‘‘(A) REQUIREMENTS.—The Administrator

16 of ATSDR shall perform a health assessment or

17 related health activity (including, as appro18 priate, biomedical testing, clinical evaluations,

19 medical monitoring, and referral to accredited

20 health care providers or any other health activ21 ity authorized in this subsection) for each cov22 ered facility (as defined in section 117(a)).’’;

23 (B) in subparagraph (B)—
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1 (i) in the first sentence, by inserting

2 ‘‘or other health related activity’’ after

3 ‘‘health assessments’’;

4 (ii) in the second sentence, by insert5 ing ‘‘or other health related activity’’ after

6 ‘‘health assessment’’; and

7 (iii) in the third sentence—

8 (I) by inserting ‘‘or other health

9 related activity’’ after ‘‘health assess10 ment’’ the first place it appears; and

11 (II) by striking ‘‘a health assess12 ment’’ the second place it appears and

13 inserting ‘‘the requested activity’’;

14 (C) in subparagraph (C)—

15 (i) in the first sentence—

16 (I) by inserting ‘‘or other health

17 related activity’’ after ‘‘health assess18 ments’’; and

19 (II) by striking ‘‘existing health

20 assessment data’’ and inserting ‘‘data

21 from existing health assessments or

22 related activity’’; and

23 (ii) in the second sentence, by insert24 ing ‘‘or other health related activity’’ after

25 ‘‘health assessments’’;
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1 (D) in subparagraph (D), by adding at the

2 end the following: ‘‘The President and the Ad3 ministrator of ATSDR shall obtain and ex4 change facility characterization data and other

5 information necessary to make a public health

6 determination sufficiently before the completion

7 of a remedial investigation and feasibility study

8 to allow full consideration of the public health

9 implications of a release, but in no cir10 cumstance shall the President delay the

11 progress of a remedial action pending comple12 tion of a health assessment or other health re13 lated activity. When appropriate, the Adminis14 trator of ATSDR shall, in cooperation with

15 State and local health officials, provide to the

16 President recommendations for sampling envi17 ronmental media. To the extent practicable, the

18 President shall incorporate the recommenda19 tions into facility characterization activities.’’;

20 (E) in the first sentence of subparagraph

21 (E), by striking ‘‘or political subdivision carry22 ing out a health assessment’’ and inserting ‘‘In23 dian tribe, or political subdivision of a State

24 carrying out a health assessment or related

25 health activity’’;
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1 (F) in subparagraph (F)—

2 (i) by striking ‘‘(F) For the purpose

3 of health assessments’’ and inserting the

4 following:

5 ‘‘(F) DEFINITION OF HEALTH ASSESS6 MENTS.—

7 ‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—For the purpose

8 of health assessments or related activity’’;

9 (ii) in the first sentence—

10 (I) by inserting ‘‘(including chil11 dren and other highly susceptible or

12 highly exposed populations)’’ after

13 ‘‘human health’’;

14 (II) by striking ‘‘existence of po15 tential’’ and inserting ‘‘past, present,

16 or future potential’’;

17 (III) by striking ‘‘and the com18 parison’’ and inserting ‘‘the compari19 son’’; and

20 (IV) by striking the period at the

21 end and inserting ‘‘and the cumulative

22 effects (including synergistic effects)

23 of chemicals.’’; and

24 (iii) by striking the second sentence

25 and inserting the following:
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1 ‘‘(ii) PROVISION OF DATA.—The Ad2 ministrator shall consider information pro3 vided by State, Indian tribe, and local

4 health officials and the affected community

5 (including a community advisory group, if

6 1 has been established under subsection

7 (g)) as is necessary to perform a health as8 sessment or other related health activity.’’;

9 (G) in the last sentence of subparagraph

10 (G)—

11 (i) by striking ‘‘In using’’ and all that

12 follows through ‘‘to be taken’’ and insert13 ing ‘‘In performing health assessments’’;

14 and

15 (ii) by inserting before the period at

16 the end the following: ‘‘and shall give spe17 cial consideration, where appropriate, to

18 any practices of the affected community

19 that may result in increased exposure to

20 hazardous substances, pollutants, or con21 taminants, such as subsistence hunting,

22 fishing, and gathering’’; and

23 (H) in subparagraph (H)—

24 (i) in the first sentence—
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1 (I) by inserting ‘‘or other health

2 related activity’’ after ‘‘health assess3 ment’’; and

4 (II) by striking ‘‘each affected

5 State’’ and inserting ‘‘appropriate

6 State, Indian tribe, and local health

7 officials and community advisory

8 groups and waste site information of9 fices; and

10 (ii) in the second sentence, by insert11 ing ‘‘or other health related activity’’ after

12 ‘‘health assessment’’;

13 (7) in paragraph (7)—

14 (A) by striking ‘‘pilot’’ each place it ap15 pears;

16 (B) by inserting ‘‘or other related health

17 activity’’ after ‘‘health assessment’’ each place

18 it appears; and

19 (C) in subparagraph (A), by inserting

20 ‘‘covered facilities’’ after the ‘‘individuals’’;

21 (8) in paragraph (10)—

22 (A) by striking ‘‘two years’’ and all that

23 follows through ‘‘thereafter’’ and inserting

24 ‘‘Every 2 years’’;
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1 (B) by striking ‘‘and’’ at the end of sub2 paragraph (D);

3 (C) in subparagraph (E), by striking the

4 period at the end and inserting ‘‘; and’’; and

5 (D) by adding at the end the following:

6 ‘‘(F) the health impacts on Indian tribes of

7 hazardous substances, pollutants, and contami8 nants from covered facilities.’’;

9 (9) in paragraph (14)—

10 (A) by striking ‘‘distribute to the States,

11 and upon request to medical colleges, physi12 cians, and’’ and inserting the following: ‘‘dis13 tribute—

14 ‘‘(A) to the States and local health officials,

15 and upon request to medical colleges, medical cen16 ters, physicians, nursing institutions, nurses, and’’;

17 (B) by striking ‘‘methods of diagnosis and

18 treatment’’ and inserting ‘‘methods of preven19 tion, diagnosis, and treatment’’;

20 (C) by striking the period at the end and

21 inserting ‘‘; and’’; and

22 (D) by adding at the end the following:

23 ‘‘(B) to the community potentially affected by a

24 facility appropriate educational materials, facility25 specific information, and other information on
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1 human health effects of hazardous substances using

2 available community information networks, includ3 ing, if appropriate, a community advisory group or

4 a waste site information office established under sec5 tion 117.’’;

6 (10) in the last sentence of paragraph (15), by

7 striking ‘‘through cooperative’’ and all that follows

8 through ‘‘which the Administrator’’ and inserting

9 the following: ‘‘through grants to, or cooperative

10 agreements or contracts with, States (or political

11 subdivisions of States) or other appropriate public

12 authorities or private nonprofit entities, public or

13 private institutions, colleges or universities (includ14 ing historically black colleges and universities), or

15 professional associations that the Administrator’’;

16 and

17 (11) by adding at the end the following:

18 ‘‘(19) COMMUNITY HEALTH PROGRAMS.—When

19 appropriate, using existing health clinics and health

20 care delivery systems, the Administrator of ATSDR

21 shall facilitate the provision of environmental health

22 services (including testing, diagnosis, counseling,

23 and community health education) in communities

24 that—
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1 ‘‘(A) may have been, or may be, subject to

2 exposure to a hazardous substance, pollutant,

3 or contaminant from a covered facility; and

4 ‘‘(B) have a medically underserved popu5 lation (as defined in section 330(b) of the Pub6 lic Health Service Act (42 U.S.C. 254b(b)) or

7 lack sufficient expertise in environmental

8 health.

9 ‘‘(20) PUBLIC HEALTH EDUCATION.—

10 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—If the Administrator

11 of ATSDR considers it appropriate, the Admin12 istrator of ATSDR, in cooperation with State,

13 Indian tribe, and other interested Federal and

14 local officials, shall conduct health education ac15 tivities to make a community near a covered fa16 cility aware of the steps the community may

17 take to mitigate or prevent exposure to hazard18 ous substances and the health effects of hazard19 ous substances.

20 ‘‘(B) ENVIRONMENTAL MEDICAL EX21 PERTS.—The health education activities may

22 include providing access and referrals to envi23 ronmental health experts.

24 ‘‘(C) DISSEMINATION.—In disseminating

25 public health information under this paragraph
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1 relating to a covered facility, the Administrator

2 of ATSDR shall use community health centers,

3 area health education centers, or other commu4 nity information networks, including a commu5 nity advisory group, a technical assistance

6 grant recipient, or a waste site information of7 fice established under section 117.’’.

8 (b) PUBLIC HEALTH RECOMMENDATIONS IN REME9 DIAL ACTIONS.—Section 121(c) of the Comprehensive En10 vironmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act of

11 1980 (42 U.S.C. 9621(c)) is amended in the first sentence

12 by inserting after ‘‘such remedial action’’ the second place

13 it appears the following: ‘‘, including public health rec14 ommendations and decisions resulting from activities

15 under section 104(i),’’.

16 (c) STUDY OF MULTIPLE SOURCES OF RISK.—

17 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Administrator of the

18 Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry

19 (referred to in this subsection as ‘‘ATSDR’’), in con20 sultation with the Administrator of the Environ21 mental Protection Agency, shall conduct a study re22 lating to the identification, assessment, and manage23 ment of, and response to, multiple sources of expo24 sure affecting or potentially affecting a community.
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1 (2) COMPONENTS.—In conducting the study,

2 the Administrator of ATSDR may—

3 (A) examine various approaches to protect

4 communities affected or potentially affected by

5 multiple sources of exposure to hazardous sub6 stances; and

7 (B) include recommendations that the

8 President may consider in developing an imple9 mentation plan to address the effects or poten10 tial effects of exposure at covered facilities (as

11 defined in Section 117(a) of the Comprehensive

12 Environmental Response, Compensation, and

13 Liability Act of 1980 (42 U.S.C. 9617(a)).

Æ