I 

108TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. R. 475

To reestablish the Office of Noise Abatement and Control in the 

Environmental Protection Agency, and for other purposes. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

JANUARY 29, 2003

Mrs. LOWEY (for herself, Mr. ABERCROMBIE, Mr. CROWLEY, Mr. FERGUSON, 

Mr. FRELINGHUYSEN, Mr. FROST, Mr. HINCHEY, Mr. HOLT, Ms. KAPTUR, Mr. LANTOS, Mr. NADLER, Mr. PALLONE, Ms. SCHAKOWSKY, Mr. 

SERRANO, Mr. SHAYS, Mr. SHERMAN, Mr. SMITH of Washington, Mr. 

ROTHMAN, Mr. STARK, and Mr. WEINER) introduced the following bill; 

which was referred to the Committee on Energy and Commerce, and in 

addition to the Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure, 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 reestablish the Office of Noise Abatement and Control 

in the Environmental Protection Agency, 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 ‘‘Quiet Communities 

5 Act of 2003’’. 
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1 SEC. 2. FINDINGS. 

2 Congress finds that: 

3 (1) Approximately 28,000,000 Americans are 

4 afflicted with some hearing loss and it has been esti5 mated that 10,000,000 of these impairments are at 

6 least partially attributable to damage from exposure 

7 to noise. 

8 (2) For millions of Americans, noise from air9 craft, vehicular traffic, and a variety of other 

10 sources is a constant source of torment. Millions of 

11 Americans are exposed to noise levels that can lead 

12 to sleep loss, psychological and physiological damage, 

13 and work disruption. 

14 (3) Chronic exposure to noise has been linked 

15 to increased risk of cardiovascular disorders, learn16 ing deficits in children, stress, and diminished qual17 ity of life. 

18 (4) Excessive noise leading to sleep deprivation 

19 and task interruptions can result in untold costs on 

20 society in diminished worker productivity. 

21 (5) Pursuant to authorities granted under the 

22 Clean Air Act of 1970, the Noise Control Act of 

23 1972, and the Quiet Communities Act of 1978, the 

24 Environmental Protection Agency established an Of25 fice of Noise Abatement and Control. Its responsibil26 ities included promulgating noise emission stand-
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1 ards, requiring product labeling, facilitating the de2 velopment of low emission products, coordinating 

3 Federal noise reduction programs, assisting State 

4 and local abatement efforts, and promoting noise 

5 education and research. However, funding for the 

6 Office of Noise Abatement and Control was termi7 nated in 1982 and no funds have been provided 

8 since. 

9 (6) Because the Environmental Protection 

10 Agency remains legally responsible for enforcing reg11 ulations issued under the Noise Control Act of 1972 

12 even though funding for these activities were termi13 nated, and because the Noise Control Act of 1972 

14 prohibits State and local governments from regu15 lating noise sources in many situations, noise abate16 ment programs across the country lie dormant. 

17 (7) As population growth and air and vehicular 

18 traffic continue to increase, noise pollution is likely 

19 to become an even greater problem in the future. 

20 The health and welfare of our citizens demands that 

21 the Environmental Protection Agency, the lead Fed22 eral agency for the protection of public health and 

23 welfare, once again assume a role in combating noise 

24 pollution. 
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1 SEC. 3. REESTABLISHMENT OF OFFICE OF NOISE ABATE2 MENT AND CONTROL. 

3 (a) REESTABLISHMENT.—The Administrator of the 

4 Environmental Protection Agency shall reestablish within 

5 the Environmental Protection Agency an Office of Noise 

6 Abatement and Control. 

7 (b) DUTIES.—The responsibilities of the Office in8 clude the following: 

9 (1) To promote the development of effective 

10 State and local noise control programs by providing 

11 States with technical assistance and grants to de12 velop the programs, including the purchase of equip13 ment for local communities. 

14 (2) To carry out a national noise control re15 search program to assess the impacts of noise from 

16 varied noise sources on mental and physical health. 

17 (3) To carry out a national noise environmental 

18 assessment program to identify trends in noise expo19 sure and response, ambient levels, and compliance 

20 data and to determine the effectiveness of noise 

21 abatement actions, including actions for areas 

22 around major transportation facilities (such as high23 ways, railroad facilities, and airports). 

24 (4) To develop and disseminate information and 

25 educational materials to the public on the mental 

26 and physical effects of noise and the most effective
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1 means for noise control through the use of materials 

2 for school curricula, volunteer organizations, radio

3 and television programs, publications, and other 

4 means. 

5 (5) To develop educational and training mate6 rials and programs, including national and regional 

7 workshops, to support State and local noise abate8 ment and control programs. 

9 (6) To establish regional technical assistance 

10 centers which use the capabilities of university and 

11 private organizations to assist State and local noise 

12 control programs. 

13 (7) To undertake an assessment of the effec14 tiveness of the Noise Control Act of 1972. 

15 (c) PREFERRED APPROACHES.—In carrying out its 

16 duties under this section, the Office shall emphasize noise 

17 abatement approaches that rely on local and State activi18 ties, market incentives, and coordination with other public 

19 and private agencies. 

20 (d) STUDY.—

21 (1) IN GENERAL.—Using funds made available 

22 to the Office, the Administrator shall carry out a 

23 study of airport noise. The Administrator shall carry 

24 out the study by entering into contracts or other 

25 agreements with independent scientists with exper-
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1 tise in noise measurements, noise effects, and noise 

2 abatement techniques to conduct the study. 

3 (2) CONTENTS.—The study shall examine the 

4 selection of noise measurement methodologies by the 

5 Federal Aviation Administration, the threshold of 

6 noise at which health impacts are felt, and the effec7 tiveness of noise abatement programs at airports 

8 around the Nation. 

9 (3) REPORT.—Not later than 24 months after 

10 the date of enactment of this Act, the Administrator 

11 shall transmit to Congress a report on the results of 

12 the study, together with specific recommendations 

13 on new measures that can be implemented to miti14 gate the impact of aircraft noise on surrounding 

15 communities. 

16 SEC. 4. GRANTS UNDER QUIET COMMUNITIES PROGRAM. 

17 Section 14(c)(1) of the Noise Control Act of 1972 

18 (42 U.S.C. 4913(c)(1)) is amended—

19 (1) by striking ‘‘and,’’ at the end of subpara20 graph (C); and 

21 (2) by adding at the end the following: 

22 ‘‘(E) establishing and implementing train23 ing programs on use of noise abatement equip24 ment; and 
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1 ‘‘(F) implementing noise abatement 

2 plans;’’. 

3 SEC. 5. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS. 

4 There is authorized to be appropriated for each of 

5 fiscal years 2004 through 2008 $21,000,000 for activities 

6 of the Office of Noise Abatement and Control reestab7 lished under section 3.

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