I 

116TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. R. 4145 

To establish a commission to prevent exertional heat stroke deaths among 

high school and collegiate athletes, and for other purposes. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

AUGUST 2, 2019 

Mr. SMITH of New Jersey (for himself and Mr. GOTTHEIMER) introduced the 

following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Education and 

Labor, and in addition to the Committee on Energy and Commerce, for 

a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for 

consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned 

A BILL 

To establish a commission to prevent exertional heat stroke 

deaths among high school and collegiate athletes, 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 ‘‘Braeden’s Commission: 

5 Protect our Athletes from Exertional Heat Stroke’’. 

6 SEC. 2. FINDINGS. 

7 Congress finds the following: 


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1 (1) Deaths from exertional heat stroke are pre2 ventable. 

3 (2) Exertional heat stroke is one of the leading 

4 noncontact causes of death of young athletes. 

5 (3) According to the 2018 National Center for 

6 Catastrophic Sport Injury Research’s annual survey 

7 of football injuries, since 1995, there have been 64 

8 exertional heat stroke deaths in the sport of football 

9 alone, and 60 of these occurred at the high school 

10 and collegiate levels. 

11 (4) Protective measures such as proper hydra12 tion, acclimatization prior to intense physical activ13 ity, and rapid recognition, rapid assessment, rapid 

14 treatment, and rapid advanced care can prevent 

15 exertional heat stroke deaths or hospitalizations pro16 vided that the protective measures are implemented 

17 immediately when warranted. 

18 SEC. 3. ESTABLISHMENT OF COMMISSION. 

19 (a) ESTABLISHMENT.—There is established the Com20 mission to Prevent Heat Stroke Deaths (in this Act re21 ferred to as ‘‘Braeden’s Commission’’). 

22 (b) FACA.—Braeden’s Commission shall be subject 

23 to the Federal Advisory Committee Act (5 U.S.C. App.), 

24 except as inconsistent with this Act. 


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1 SEC. 4. MEMBERSHIP. 

2 (a) NUMBER AND APPOINTMENT.—Braeden’s Com3 mission shall be composed of 12 members, consisting of— 

4 (1) 6 members appointed by the President; 

5 (2) 2 members appointed by the Speaker of the 

6 House of Representatives; 

7 (3) 1 member appointed by the minority leader 

8 of the House of Representatives; 

9 (4) 2 members appointed by the majority leader 

10 of the Senate; and 

11 (5) 1 member appointed by the minority leader 

12 of the Senate. 

13 (b) QUALIFICATIONS.—Each member appointed pur14 suant to subsection (a) shall have experience in one or 

15 more of the following areas: 

16 (1) Sports medicine. 

17 (2) Exertional heat stroke prevention. 

18 (3) Student athlete health research. 

19 (4) Legislation, including legislation involving 

20 sports medicine. 

21 (5) Emergency medicine. 

22 (6) Pediatrics. 

23 (7) Psychology and mental health. 

24 (8) Forensic pathology or medical investigation 

25 involving injury or fatality. 


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1 (9) Professional experience at an institution of 

2 higher education (as defined in section 101(a) of the 

3 Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1001(a)), 

4 with a focus on one or more of the other areas listed 

5 in this subsection. 

6 (c) DIVERSITY OF QUALIFICATIONS.—In making ap7 pointments to Braeden’s Commission under subsection 

8 (a), the President and the congressional leaders specified 

9 in subsection (a) shall strive to select individuals whose 

10 qualifications (as described under subsection (b)) are not 

11 already represented by other members of Braeden’s Com12 mission. 

13 (d) APPOINTMENTS.—The appointments of the mem14 bers of Braeden’s Commission shall be made not later 

15 than 90 days after the date of enactment of this Act. 

16 (e) PERIOD OF APPOINTMENTS; VACANCIES.—Each 

17 member shall be appointed for the life of Braeden’s Com18 mission. Any vacancy in Braeden’s Commission shall not 

19 affect its powers and shall be filled in the same manner 

20 as the original appointment. 

21 (f) CHAIRPERSON.—The President shall select a 

22 Chairperson for Braeden’s Commission from among its 

23 members. 


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1 SEC. 5. MEETINGS. 

2 (a) INITIAL MEETING.—Not later than 60 days after 

3 the date on which a majority of the members of Braeden’s 

4 Commission have been appointed, Braeden’s Commission 

5 shall hold its first meeting. 

6 (b) TIMING.—Braeden’s Commission shall meet at 

7 the call of the Chairperson. 

8 (c) QUORUM.—A majority of the members of 

9 Braeden’s Commission shall constitute a quorum. 

10 SEC. 6. STUDY. 

11 (a) IN GENERAL.—Braeden’s Commission shall con12 duct a study on exertional heat stroke among student ath13 letes at educational institutions across the United States. 

14 (b) MATTERS TO BE STUDIED.—In conducting the 

15 study under subsection (a), Braeden’s Commission shall 

16 study— 

17 (1) best practices for prevention, recognition, 

18 and treatment of exertional heat stroke, as regarded 

19 by leading experts in sports medicine and as detailed 

20 in the 2015 National Athletic Trainers’ Association 

21 Position Statement on Exertional Heat Illness; 

22 (2) educational institution standards for pre23 vention, recognition, and treatment of exertional 

24 heat stroke and related illnesses; 


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1 (3) whether athletic trainers and coaches have 

2 been properly trained to recognize and treat cases of 

3 exertional heat stroke; 

4 (4) cases involving student athlete deaths and 

5 hospitalizations due to exertional heat stroke, includ6 ing whether best practices were followed in such 

7 cases by the educational institution involved; 

8 (5) which organizations currently oversee the 

9 implementation of best practices on exertional heat 

10 stroke at educational institutions; 

11 (6) emergency action plans in place at edu12 cational institutions and whether such action plans 

13 are up-to-date or developed in consultation with local 

14 emergency medical staff; 

15 (7) the scope of all incidents of exertional heat 

16 stroke among student athletes, including deter17 mining which educational institutions are following 

18 best practices where such incidents occurred; 

19 (8) the effectiveness of Federal, State, and local 

20 policies and systems aimed at collecting accurate 

21 data on exertional heat stroke fatalities, including 

22 the identification of the most effective and least ef23 fective policies and systems; 


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1 (9) current barriers to preventing fatalities 

2 from exertional heat stroke and methods to over3 come such barriers among student athletes; 

4 (10) demographic trends or specific risk factors 

5 that are predictive of or correlated with student ath6 lete exertional heat stroke and related illnesses such 

7 as heat exhaustion; 

8 (11) methods for improving data collection re9 lated to exertional heat stroke, such as methods to 

10 increase interoperability between State and local 

11 data systems or other data systems used to collect 

12 information that may be related to exertional heat 

13 stroke; 

14 (12) current research and documentation, in15 cluding those currently being conducted by graduate 

16 and doctoral students; 

17 (13) recommendations from the National Ath18 letic Trainers’ Association’s position statements per19 taining to heat illnesses and emergency planning in 

20 athletics; and 

21 (14) recommendations with respect to best 

22 practices for preventing exertional heat stroke from 

23 the Inter-Association Task Force for Preventing 

24 Sudden Death in Collegiate Conditioning Sessions. 


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1 SEC. 7. RECOMMENDATIONS AND REPORT. 

2 (a) RECOMMENDATIONS.—Based on the study con3 ducted under section 6, Braeden’s Commission shall— 

4 (1) develop recommendations for the purpose of 

5 reducing fatalities from exertional heat stroke 

6 among student athletes, including— 

7 (A) a recommendation to implement a 

8 comprehensive national strategy for such pur9 pose; and 

10 (B) lessons, solutions, and necessary im11 provements related to such purpose; and 

12 (2) develop guidelines for tracking certain types 

13 of information to prevent fatalities from exertional 

14 heat stroke among student athletes. 

15 (b) REPORT.—Not later than 2 years after the date 

16 on which a majority of the members of Braeden’s Commis17 sion have been appointed, Braeden’s Commission shall 

18 submit to the President and Congress a report con19 taining— 

20 (1) the recommendations required under sub21 section (a); 

22 (2) a detailed statement of the findings of 

23 Braeden’s Commission related to the study con24 ducted under section 6; and 


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1 (3) recommendations for legislation and admin2 istrative actions related to exertional heat stroke 

3 among student athletes at educational institutions. 

4 (c) EXTENSION.—The President may extend the date 

5 on which the report required by subsection (b) must be 

6 submitted by not more than 1 year. 

7 (d) PUBLICATION.—In coordination with the Sec8 retary of Health and Human Services, Braeden’s Commis9 sion shall make the report under subsection (b) publicly 

10 available on the website of the Department of Health and 

11 Human Services. 

12 SEC. 8. POWERS OF BRAEDEN’S COMMISSION. 

13 (a) HEARINGS.— 

14 (1) IN GENERAL.—Braeden’s Commission may, 

15 for the purpose of carrying out this Act, hold hear16 ings, sit and act at times and places, take testimony, 

17 and receive evidence as Braeden’s Commission con18 siders appropriate. Braeden’s Commission may ad19 minister oaths or affirmations to witnesses appear20 ing before it. 

21 (2) LOCATION.—The location of hearings under 

22 paragraph (1) shall include— 

23 (A) areas with high fatality rates related to 

24 exertional heat stroke among student athletes; 

25 and 


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1 (B) areas that have shown a decrease in 

2 fatalities from exertional heat stroke among 

3 student athletes. 

4 (3) SUBJECT.—Braeden’s Commission shall 

5 hold hearings under paragraph (1)— 

6 (A) to examine the Federal, State, and 

7 local policies and available resources that affect 

8 fatalities from exertional heat stroke among 

9 student athletes; and 

10 (B) to conduct other work related to the 

11 study required under section 6. 

12 (b) OBTAINING OFFICIAL DATA.—Braeden’s Com13 mission may secure directly from any Federal agency or 

14 department information necessary to enable it to carry out 

15 this Act. Upon request of the Chairperson of Braeden’s 

16 Commission, the head of that Federal agency or depart17 ment shall furnish that information to Braeden’s Commis18 sion. 

19 (c) MAILS.—Braeden’s Commission may use the 

20 United States mails in the same manner and under the 

21 same conditions as other Federal agencies and depart22 ments. 

23 (d) GIFTS, BEQUESTS, AND DEVISES.—To the extent 

24 or in the amounts made available in advance in appropria25 tions Acts, Braeden’s Commission may accept, use, and 


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1 dispose of gifts, bequests, or devises of services or prop2 erty, both real and personal, for the purpose of aiding or 

3 facilitating the work of Braeden’s Commission. 

4 SEC. 9. COMMISSION PERSONNEL MATTERS. 

5 (a) DIRECTOR AND STAFF OF COMMISSION.— 

6 (1) EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR.—Braeden’s Com7 mission shall have an Executive Director who shall 

8 be appointed by the Chairperson. 

9 (2) STAFF.—With the approval of Braeden’s 

10 Commission, the Chairperson may appoint additional 

11 personnel as the Chairperson considers appropriate. 

12 (3) TERMINATION.—The Chairperson of 

13 Braeden’s Commission may, without regard to the 

14 civil service laws and regulations, terminate the Ex15 ecutive Director and such other personnel as may be 

16 necessary to enable Braeden’s Commission to per17 form its duties. 

18 (4) COMPENSATION.— 

19 (A) RATE OF PAY FOR THE EXECUTIVE DI20 RECTOR.—The Chairperson of Braeden’s Com21 mission may fix the pay of the Executive Direc22 tor of Braeden’s Commission without regard to 

23 chapter 51 and subchapter III of chapter 53 of 

24 title 5, United States Code, relating to classi25 fication of positions and General Schedule pay 


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1 rates, except that the rate of pay for the Execu2 tive Director may not exceed the rate payable 

3 for level V of the Executive Schedule under sec4 tion 5316 of such title. 

5 (B) RATE OF PAY FOR STAFF.—The 

6 Chairperson of Braeden’s Commission may fix 

7 the pay of additional personnel at rates not to 

8 exceed the daily equivalent of the maximum an9 nual rate of basic pay for GS–15 of the General 

10 Schedule. 

11 (b) TRAVEL EXPENSES.—The members of Braeden’s 

12 Commission shall receive travel expenses, including per 

13 diem in lieu of subsistence, in accordance with applicable 

14 provisions under subchapter I of chapter 57 of title 5, 

15 United States Code. 

16 (c) STAFF OF FEDERAL AGENCIES.—Upon request 

17 of Braeden’s Commission, the head of any Federal agency 

18 or department may detail, without reimbursement, any of 

19 the personnel of that agency or department to Braeden’s 

20 Commission to assist in carrying out this Act. Such detail 

21 shall be without interruption or loss of civil service status 

22 or privilege. 

23 (d) EXPERTS AND CONSULTANTS.—With the ap24 proval of Braeden’s Commission, the Chairperson may 

25 procure temporary and intermittent services under section 


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1 3109(b) of title 5, United States Code, but at rates not 

2 to exceed the daily equivalent of the maximum annual rate 

3 of basic pay for GS–15 of the General Schedule. 

4 SEC. 10. TERMINATION OF BRAEDEN’S COMMISSION. 

5 Braeden’s Commission shall terminate on the earlier 

6 of— 

7 (1) 30 days after the date on which Braeden’s 

8 Commission submits its report pursuant to section 

9 7(b); or 

10 (2) the date that is 3 years after the initial 

11 meeting under section 5(a). 

12 SEC. 11. FEDERAL AGENCY RESPONSE. 

13 Not later than 6 months after the submission to the 

14 President of the report required under section 7(b), any 

15 Federal agency or department that is subject to a rec16 ommendation described in the report shall submit to Con17 gress a report containing the plans of such agency or de18 partment to address the recommendation. 

19 SEC. 12. DEFINITION. 

20 As used in this Act, the term ‘‘educational institu21 tion’’ means— 

22 (1) a public or private school that serves any of 

23 grades 9 through 12; and 


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1 (2) an institution of higher education (as de2 fined in section 101(a) of the Higher Education Act 

3 of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1001(a)). 

Æ 


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