I
103D CONGRESS
1ST SESSION
H. R. 2553
To provide for a grant by the Secretary of Defense to be made for the
support of establishment of a research facility to study low-level chemical
sensitivity, particularly in Persian Gulf War veterans.
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
JUNE 29, 1993
Mr. MONTGOMERY (for himself, Mr. STUMP, Mr. ROWLAND, and Mr. SMITH
of New Jersey) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the
Committee on Armed Services
A BILL
To provide for a grant by the Secretary of Defense to be
made for the support of establishment of a research
facility to study low-level chemical sensitivity, particularly
in Persian Gulf War veterans.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. GRANT FOR SUPPORT OF ESTABLISHMENT OF
RESEARCH FACILITY TO STUDY LOW-LEVEL
CHEMICAL SENSITIVITY.
(a) GRANT.—Of the amount authorized to be appro-
priated to the Department of Defense for research, devel-
opment, test, and evaluation for fiscal year 1994, the sum
of $1,200,000 shall be available for a grant by the Sec-
retary of Defense to a qualifying facility to construct and
equip a specialized environmental medical research unit in
a hospital setting to conduct environmentally controlled
research into possible chemical sensitivities to low-level ex-
posures to organic chemicals and other substances, espe-
cially among persons who served on active duty in the
Southwest Asia theater of operations during the Persian
Gulf War.
(b) SELECTION CRITERIA.—The grant authorized by
subsection (a) may be awarded only to a health care facil-
ity that (as determined by the Secretary of Defense)—
(1) is operated by or affiliated with an accred-
ited medical school;
(2) has the capacity, or demonstrable potential,
to ensure the participation of scientists who are ca-
pable of winning extramural funding support for,
and carrying out, outstanding research into possible
chemical sensitivities to low-level exposures to or-
ganic chemicals and other substances; and
(3) is located in proximity to, and is affiliated
with a medical facility of the Department of De-
fense, which itself has an affiliation with a medical
facility of the Department of Veterans Affairs.
(c) REQUIRED AGREEMENT.—The Secretary may not
award the grant under subsection (a) to a health care fa-
cility unless the facility has entered into an agreement
with the Secretary that includes provisions ensuring
that—
(1) research personnel of the affiliated Depart-
ment of Veterans Affairs medical facility, and of the
Department of Defense medical facility with which it
is associated, and any other appropriate Federal per-
sonnel with relevant expertise, may carry out re-
search activities at the unit on an ongoing basis;
(2) to the extent not inconsistent with para-
graph (1), the facilities of the research unit con-
structed and equipped with the assistance of such
grant support shall be made available for research
activities on a competitive basis; and
(3) Federal funding for the research unit, and
any Federal research activities carried out at the
unit, are acknowledged in the activities and publica-
tions of the grantee.
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