I
103D CONGRESS
1ST SESSION
H. R. 908
To disqualify any individual or business concern who violates a Federal
environmental law, or who holds a beneficial business interest in a
person who has violated such a law, from being eligible to receive certain
benefits from the Environmental Protection Agency for a period of 10
years.
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
FEBRUARY 16, 1993
Mr. PAXON introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee
on Energy and Commerce
A BILL
To disqualify any individual or business concern who violates
a Federal environmental law, or who holds a beneficial
business interest in a person who has violated such a
law, from being eligible to receive certain benefits from
the Environmental Protection Agency for a period of
10 years.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. DENIAL OF EPA BENEFITS FOR CERTAIN PER-
SONS.
(a) INELIGIBILITY.—Any person who applies for an
Environmental Protection Agency benefit is ineligible from
receiving the benefit if the person has been—
(1) convicted of violating any Federal environ-
mental law; or
(2) found by the Administrator to hold, or pre-
viously to have held, a beneficial business interest in
any business concern which is required to be listed
on the person’s disclosure statement under section 2
and which has been convicted of violating a Federal
environmental law.
(b) DETERMINATION OF INELIGIBILITY.—The Ad-
ministrator shall determine whether a person applying for
an Environmental Protection Agency benefit is ineligible
for the benefit by reason of subsection (a). Such deter-
mination shall be made not later than 6 months after the
person submits a disclosure statement under section 2.
(c) REHABILITATION.—The Administrator may not
determine that a person is ineligible for a benefit by rea-
son of subsection (a)(1) if the person demonstrates by
clear and convincing evidence that the person has been
rehabilitated. Factors that the Administrator may con-
sider in reviewing the evidence include the following:
(1) The nature and responsibilities of the posi-
tion held by the person.
(2) The nature and seriousness of the offense.
(3) The circumstances under which the offense
occurred.
(4) The date of the offense.
(5) The age of the person when the offense was
committed.
(6) Whether the offense was an isolated or re-
peated incident.
(d) PERIOD OF INELIGIBILITY.—The ineligibility for
benefits under this section shall apply for a period, as de-
termined by the Administrator of the Environmental Pro-
tection Agency, of not less than 10 years after the date
of the conviction or finding by the Administrator under
subsection (a).
SEC. 2. DISCLOSURE STATEMENT.
(a) REQUIREMENT FOR SUBMISSION OF DISCLOSURE
STATEMENT.—For purposes of enforcing section 1, the
Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency
shall require any person who—
(1) applies for any permit under a Federal envi-
ronmental law;
(2) applies for any type of grant or loan from
the Environmental Protection Agency;
(3) in the case of a procurement for goods or
services being conducted by the Environmental Pro-
tection Agency, submits a sealed bid or competitive
proposal to the agency in response to a solicitation
for bids or request for proposals for the goods or
services; or
(4) applies for any other Environmental Protec-
tion Agency benefit;
to submit a disclosure statement as described in sub-
section (b). Such disclosure statement shall be submitted
to the Environmental Protection Agency at the same time
as the application, bid, or proposal is submitted.
(b) CONTENTS OF DISCLOSURE STATEMENT.—The
following information shall be included in the disclosure
statement submitted under subsection (a):
(1) In the case of an individual, the full name
and business address of the individual. In the case
of a business concern, the full name and business
address of any officers, directors, partners, or key
employees of the business concern and all individuals
or business concerns holding any equity in or debt
liability of the business concern, or, if the business
concern is a publicly traded corporation, all individ-
uals or business concerns holding more than 5 per-
cent of the equity in or debt liability of the business
concern.
(2) The full name and business address of all
officers, directors, or partners of any business con-
cern disclosed in the statement and the names and
addresses of all individuals or business concerns
holding any equity in or debt liability of any busi-
ness concern so disclosed, or, if the business concern
is a publicly traded corporation, all individuals or
business concerns holding more than 5 percent of
the equity in or debt liability of that business con-
cern.
(3) The full name and business address of any
business concern which collects, transports, treats,
stores, or disposes of solid waste or hazardous waste
in which the individual or business concern submit-
ting the disclosure statement holds an equity inter-
est.
(4) A description of the experience and creden-
tials in, including any past or present licenses for,
the collection, transportation, treatment, storage, or
disposal of solid waste or hazardous waste possessed
by the individual or business concern, or by any key
employee, officer, director, or partner of the business
concern.
(5) A listing and explanation of any notices of
violation or prosecution, administrative orders, or li-
cense or permit revocations issued by any State or
Federal authority, in the 10 years immediately pre-
ceding the submission of the disclosure statement,
which are pending or have resulted in a finding or
a settlement of a violation of any law, rule, or regu-
lation relating to the collection, transportation,
treatment, storage, or disposal of solid waste or haz-
ardous waste by the individual or business concern,
or by any key employee, officer, director, or partner
of the business concern.
(6) A listing and explanation of any judgment
of liability or conviction which was rendered, pursu-
ant to any State or Federal statute or local ordi-
nance, against the individual or business concern, or
against any key employee, officer, director, or part-
ner of the business concern.
(7) A listing of any State or local agencies
which had regulatory responsibility over the individ-
ual or business concern in connection with the indi-
vidual’s or business concern’s collection, transpor-
tation, treatment, storage, or disposal of solid waste
or hazardous waste.
(8) Any other information the Administrator
may require that relates to the competency, reliabil-
ity, or good character of the individual or business
concern.
(c) REVISIONS.—Each person that submits a disclo-
sure statement under this section shall, if any information
required to be included in the disclosure statement
changes, or if any additional information should be added
after the submission of the statement, provide that infor-
mation to the Administrator in writing not later than 30
days after the change or addition.
SEC. 3. ENFORCEMENT AND ADMINISTRATIVE PROVISIONS.
(a) IN GENERAL.—The Administrator shall enforce
section 1 by examination of the disclosure statement re-
quired under section 2 and by such other means, including
record and field investigations, as the Administrator con-
siders necessary.
(b) ACCESS ENTRY.—For purposes of enforcing this
Act—
(1) any officer, employee, or representative of
the Environmental Protection Agency may enter at
reasonable times any establishment or other place
where a person who applies for an Environmental
Protection Agency benefit carries out business; and
(2) any person who applies for an Environ-
mental Protection Agency benefit shall, upon request
of any such officer, employee, or representative, fur-
nish information relating to the benefit application
and disclosure statement and permit any such offi-
cer, employee, or representative at all reasonable
times to have access to, and to copy all records re-
lating to, such application and statement.
(c) HEARING.—Any person who is determined by the
Administrator to be ineligible for an Environmental Pro-
tection Agency benefit under this Act shall, upon written
request to the Administrator not later than 30 days after
the determination is made, be afforded the opportunity for
a hearing on the record in accordance with section 554
of title 5, United States Code.
(d) CONFIDENTIALITY.—(1) Except as provided in
paragraph (2), disclosure statements, records, and other
information obtained from individuals or business con-
cerns under this Act shall be available to the public.
(2) Upon a showing satisfactory to the Administrator
by an individual or business concern that the public disclo-
sure of a disclosure statement, record, or other informa-
tion obtained under this Act would divulge information en-
titled to protection under section 1905 of title 18, United
States Code, such information shall be considered con-
fidential in accordance with the purposes of that section.
(e) REGULATIONS.—Not later than six months after
the date of the enactment of this Act, the Administrator
shall prescribe regulations to administer and enforce this
Act.
SEC. 4. DEFINITIONS.
For purposes of this Act:
(1) ADMINISTRATOR.—The term ‘‘Adminis-
trator’’ means the Administrator of the Environ-
mental Protection Agency.
(2) BENEFICIAL
BUSINESS
INTEREST.—The
term ‘‘beneficial business interest’’ means any form
of monetary interest in a business concern, including
an equity interest, debt liability, or other interest, by
means of which the holder of the interest may influ-
ence, decide, or manage the activities of the business
concern.
(3) BUSINESS CONCERN.—The term ‘‘business
concern’’ means any corporation, firm, joint stock
company, association, partnership, trust, or other
form of commercial organization.
(4) ENVIRONMENTAL
PROTECTION
AGENCY
BENEFIT.—The term ‘‘Environmental Protection
Agency benefit’’ means any of the following:
(A) A permit under a Federal environ-
mental law.
(B) Any type of grant or loan awarded by
the Administrator pursuant to a Federal envi-
ronmental law.
(C) Any other benefit awarded by the Ad-
ministrator pursuant to a Federal environ-
mental law that is determined by the Adminis-
trator of the Environmental Protection Agency
to be appropriate for inclusion under this Act.
(5) FEDERAL
ENVIRONMENTAL
LAW.—The
term ‘‘Federal environmental law’’ includes the fol-
lowing:
(A) The Clean Air Act (42 U.S.C. 7401 et
seq.).
(B) The Comprehensive Environmental
Response, Compensation, and Liability Act of
1980 (42 U.S.C. 9601 et seq.).
(C) The Safe Drinking Water Act (42
U.S.C. 300f et seq.).
(D) The Solid Waste Disposal Act (42
U.S.C. 6901 et seq.).
(E) The Toxic Substances Control Act (15
U.S.C. 2601 et seq.).
(6) KEY
EMPLOYEE.—The term ‘‘key em-
ployee’’ means a person employed by an individual
or business concern to carry out supervisory, mana-
gerial, or decisionmaking duties.
(7) PERSON.—The term ‘‘person’’ means an in-
dividual or a business concern.
(8) SOLID
AND
HAZARDOUS
WASTE.—The
terms ‘‘solid waste’’ and ‘‘hazardous waste’’ have the
meaning given such terms by section 1004 of the
Solid Waste Disposal Act.
SEC. 5. EFFECTIVE DATE.
This Act shall apply to any person who applies for
an Environmental Protection Agency benefit after the ex-
piration of the six-month period beginning on the date of
the enactment of this Act.
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