I 

115TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. R. 55 

To establish a grant program for nebulizers in elementary and secondary 

schools. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

JANUARY 3, 2017 

Ms. JACKSON LEE introduced the following bill; which was referred to the 

Committee on Education and the Workforce, 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 grant program for nebulizers in elementary 

and secondary schools. 

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 ‘‘Breath of Fresh Air 

5 Act’’. 

6 SEC. 2. FINDINGS. 

7 The Congress finds as follows: 

8 (1) 25,000,000 people, including 7,000,000 

9 children, have asthma. 


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1 (2) Almost 13,000,000 people report having an 

2 asthma attack in the past year and asthma accounts 

3 for nearly 2,000,000 emergency department visits 

4 each year. 

5 (3) Every day in the United States— 

6 (A) 30,000 people have an asthma attack; 

7 and 

8 (B) 11 people die from asthma. 

9 (4) Nearly 5,000,000 asthma sufferers are 

10 under 18 years of age, and 1 out of every 10 school11 aged children has asthma. 

12 (5) Minorities are adversely affected by asthma, 

13 as— 

14 (A) African-Americans are 3 times more 

15 likely to die from asthma; and 

16 (B) Hispanics may have an elevated risk 

17 for exposure to air pollution since a dispropor18 tionate number live in areas failing to meet one 

19 or more national standards for air pollutants. 

20 (It is estimated that 80 percent of Hispanics 

21 live in areas that failed to meet one United 

22 States Environmental Protection Agency air 

23 quality standard, compared to 65 percent of Af24 rican-Americans and 57 percent of Whites.) 


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1 SEC. 3. GRANT PROGRAM FOR NEBULIZERS. 

2 (a) PROGRAM REQUIRED.—The Secretary of Edu3 cation shall carry out a program under which the Sec4 retary makes grants to local educational agencies, to be 

5 used by the local educational agencies for one or both of 

6 the following: 

7 (1) To purchase nebulizers for use in elemen8 tary and secondary schools served by the local edu9 cational agency. 

10 (2) To provide training to enable elementary 

11 and secondary schools served by the local edu12 cational agency to meet the requirements of sub13 section (d)(1), but only if nebulizers are already in 

14 use at such schools or are acquired through this pro15 gram. 

16 (b) ELIGIBILITY.— 

17 (1) LOCAL EDUCATIONAL AGENCIES.—To be el18 igible to receive a grant under this section, a local 

19 educational agency shall submit an application to 

20 the Secretary at such time, in such form, and con21 taining such information as the Secretary may re22 quire. 

23 (2) ELEMENTARY AND SECONDARY SCHOOLS.— 

24 To be eligible to receive a nebulizer through a grant 

25 under this section, a school may be any public or 

26 private school served by the local educational agency, 


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1 except that an Internet- or computer-based commu2 nity school is not eligible. 

3 (c) MATCHING FUNDS REQUIRED.— 

4 (1) IN GENERAL.—To be eligible to receive a 

5 grant under this section, the local educational agen6 cy must provide matching funds from non-Federal 

7 sources equal to not less than 25 percent of the 

8 amount of the grant. 

9 (2) WAIVER.—The Secretary shall waive the re10 quirement of paragraph (1) for a local educational 

11 agency if the number of children counted under sec12 tion 1124(c)(1)(A) of the Elementary and Secondary 

13 Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 6333(c)(1)(A)) is 

14 20 percent or more of the total number of children 

15 aged 5 to 17, inclusive, served by the local edu16 cational agency. 

17 (d) TRAINING AND COORDINATION REQUIRED.—A 

18 local educational agency that receives a grant under this 

19 section shall demonstrate that, for each elementary and 

20 secondary school at which the nebulizers are to be used— 

21 (1) there is a full-time certified school nurse on 

22 staff; 

23 (2) the school has the trained personnel and 

24 other resources necessary to use the nebulizers; 


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1 (3) local paramedics and other emergency serv2 ices personnel are notified where on school grounds 

3 the nebulizers are to be located; 

4 (4) the nebulizer will be integrated into the 

5 school’s emergency response plan or procedures; and 

6 (5) the school has procedures in place to ensure 

7 that parents are notified of the availability of the 

8 nebulizers, how to provide their child’s prescription 

9 asthma medication to the school, and how to author10 ize use of a nebulizer to assist their child when 

11 medically appropriate. 

12 (e) PRIORITY.—In making grants under this section, 

13 the Secretary shall give priority to local educational agen14 cies— 

15 (1) having jurisdiction over a geographic area 

16 with respect to which the Director of the Centers for 

17 Disease Control and Prevention has determined that 

18 the prevalence of asthma is at least 10 percent high19 er than the national average; 

20 (2) that do not already have at least one 

21 nebulizer in each school served by the local edu22 cational agency; 

23 (3) serve schools at which a significant number 

24 of students, staff, and visitors are present on school 

25 grounds during a typical day; and 


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1 (4) that have not received funds under the 

2 Rural Access to Emergency Devices Act (42 U.S.C. 

3 254c note). 

4 (f) ESEA DEFINITIONS.—The terms used in this sec5 tion shall have the meanings given to such terms in section 

6 9101 of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 

7 1965 (20 U.S.C. 7801). 

8 (g) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There 

9 are authorized to be appropriated to carry out this section 

10 such sums as may be necessary for each of fiscal years 

11 2016 through 2021. 

12 SEC. 4. CONSTRUCTION. 

13 Nothing in this Act shall be construed— 

14 (1) to create liability for use of a nebulizer or 

15 affect liability for such use that exists under other 

16 law; or 

17 (2) to supersede a State law regulating nursing. 

Æ 


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