I
106TH CONGRESS
1ST SESSION
H. R. 1657
To disclose environmental risks to children’s health and expand the public’s
right to know about toxic chemical use and release, and for other purposes.
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
MAY 3, 1999
Mr. WAXMAN (for himself, Mr. SAXTON, Mr. PALLONE, Mr. BONIOR, Mr.
BLUMENAUER, Mr. DEFAZIO, Ms. PELOSI, Mr. GUTIERREZ, Mr.
GEJDENSON, Mr. ABERCROMBIE, Mr. SMITH
of New Jersey, Mr.
HASTINGS of Florida, Mr. MARKEY, Mr. NADLER, Mr. CLYBURN, Mr.
EVANS, Mr. BROWN of Ohio, Mrs. MEEK of Florida, Mr. DELAHUNT, Mr.
BERMAN, Mr. GOSS, Ms. DEGETTE, Ms. KILPATRICK, Mr. BORSKI, Mr.
UNDERWOOD, Mr. GREEN of Texas, Mr. MEEHAN, Mr. HINCHEY, Mrs.
MALONEY of New York, Ms. ESHOO, Mr. LEACH, Mr. COOK, Mrs. ROU-
KEMA, Ms. MCCARTHY of Missouri, Mr. RUSH, Mr. PASCRELL, Mr.
ROTHMAN, Mr. LEVIN, Mr. ALLEN, Mr. CLAY, Mr. METCALF, Mr.
MCDERMOTT, Mr. OLVER, Mr. LAFALCE, Mr. LANTOS, Mr. KUCINICH,
Mr. LEWIS of Georgia, Ms. BROWN of Florida, Mr. ANDREWS, Mr. KEN-
NEDY of Rhode Island, Mr. FORBES, Mr. BLAGOJEVICH, Ms. NORTON,
Mr. KILDEE, Mr. OBERSTAR, Mr. ACKERMAN, Mr. UDALL of Colorado,
Mr. GEORGE MILLER of California, Mr. FILNER, Ms. MILLENDER-
MCDONALD, Ms. STABENOW, Mr. TIERNEY, Mr. WEXLER, Mr. COYNE,
Mrs. LOWEY, Mr. MALONEY of Connecticut, Mr. HOLT, Mr. SMITH of
Washington, Mr. VENTO, Mr. MCNULTY, Mr. BARRETT of Wisconsin,
Mr. DIXON, Ms. DELAURO, Ms. ROYBAL-ALLARD, Mr. SHAYS, Mr.
SANDERS, Mr. WYNN, Mr. SERRANO, Mr. CAPUANO, Mr. MCGOVERN,
Mr. STARK, Ms. WATERS, Mr. CUMMINGS, Mr. DICKS, Mrs. JOHNSON of
Connecticut, Mr. UDALL of New Mexico, Mr. JACKSON of Illinois, Mr.
DAVIS of Illinois, Mr. SABO, Ms. WOOLSEY, Mr. FARR of California, Ms.
MCKINNEY, Mr. PAYNE, Mr. SHERMAN, Mr. CARDIN, Mr. MOAKLEY, Ms.
HOOLEY of Oregon, Mr. BROWN of California, Mr. NEAL of Massachu-
setts, Ms. JACKSON-LEE of Texas, Ms. SLAUGHTER, Mrs. MORELLA,
Mrs. CLAYTON, Mr. TOWNS, Mr. MENENDEZ, Ms. SCHAKOWSKY, Ms.
LEE, Mr. BALDACCI, Mr. PASTOR, Ms. LOFGREN, Mr. FRELINGHUYSEN,
Mr. FALEOMAVAEGA, Ms. SANCHEZ, Ms. EDDIE BERNICE JOHNSON of
Texas, Mrs. MINK of Hawaii, Mr. MATSUI, Mr. KIND, Mr. FRANK of
Massachusetts, Mr. MORAN of Virginia, Mr. ENGEL, Mr. MARTINEZ, and
Mrs. TAUSCHER) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the
Committee on Commerce
A BILL
To disclose environmental risks to children’s health and ex-
pand the public’s right to know about toxic chemical
use and release, and for other purposes.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE AND TABLE OF CONTENTS.
(a) SHORT TITLE.—This Act may be cited as the
‘‘Children’s Environmental Protection and Right to Know
Act of 1999’’.
(b) TABLE OF CONTENTS.—The table of contents for
this Act is as follows:
Sec. 1. Short title and table of contents.
Sec. 2. Findings.
TITLE I—CHILDREN’S ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION
Subtitle A—Disclosure of Industrial Releases That Present a Significant Risk
to Children
Sec. 101. Reporting requirements.
Subtitle B—Disclosure of High Health Risk Chemicals in Children’s
Consumer Products
Sec. 111. Listing of toxic substances.
Sec. 112. Reporting of toxic chemicals in consumer products.
Sec. 113. Exemptions.
Sec. 114. Private citizen enforcement.
Sec. 115. Preemption.
TITLE II—PUBLIC RIGHT TO KNOW ABOUT TOXIC CHEMICAL
USE
Sec. 201. Disclosure of toxic chemical use.
Sec. 202. Disclosure of toxic chemical use by comparable facilities.
Sec. 203. Streamlining environmental reporting and public access to informa-
tion.
Sec. 204. Trade secret protection.
Sec. 205. Civil actions.
SEC. 2. FINDINGS.
Congress finds that requirements to disclose informa-
tion about environmental risks have been shown to im-
prove health and safety by—
(1) prompting those causing such risks to re-
duce the risks; and
(2) enabling individuals to take actions to pro-
tect themselves from those risks.
TITLE I—CHILDREN’S
ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION
Subtitle A—Disclosure of Industrial
Releases That Present a Signifi-
cant Risk to Children
SEC. 101. REPORTING REQUIREMENTS.
(a) REVISED THRESHOLDS.—Section 313(f)(1) of
the Emergency Planning and Community Right-To-Know
Act of 1986 (42 U.S.C. 11023(f)(1)) is amended by insert-
ing the following after subparagraph (B):
‘‘(C) With respect to each of the toxic chemicals
described in clause (i) which are released from a fa-
cility, the amount established pursuant to clause (ii):
‘‘(i) Within 24 months of enactment of the
Children’s Environmental Protection and Right
to Know Act of 1999, the Administrator shall
establish a threshold for each toxic chemical
which 
the 
Administrator 
determines 
may
present a significant risk to children’s health or
the environment due to its persistence or poten-
tial to bioaccumulate or disrupt endocrine sys-
tems, or to other characteristics. Such toxic
chemicals shall include lead, mercury, dioxin,
cadmium, and chromium, and substances listed
as bioaccumulative chemicals of concern at 60
Federal Register 15393.
‘‘(ii) The Administrator shall establish a
threshold for each toxic chemical described in
clause (i) at a level which will ensure reporting
on at least 80 percent of the aggregate of all
releases of the chemical from facilities that (I)
have 10 or more full-time employees and (II)
are in Standard Industrial Classification Codes
20 through 39 or in the Standard Industrial
Classification Codes added under subsection
(b)(1)(B) of this section.’’.
(b) ADDITIONAL CHEMICALS.—Section 313(c) of the
Emergency Planning and Community Right-To-Know Act
of 1986 (42 U.S.C. 11023(c)) is amended by inserting the
following before the period: ‘‘and dioxin and substances
listed as bioaccumulative chemicals of concern at 60 Fed-
eral Register 15393’’.
‘‘(3) In carrying out paragraph (2), the Secretary
shall secure data sufficient to identify substances or mix-
tures of substances which are toxic within the meaning
of paragraph (2) and to which infants and young children
are exposed by requiring manufacturers or producers to
generate such data and by obtaining existing data from
any Federal, State, or local government agency.’’.
(2) By adding at the end the following:
‘‘(u) The term ‘eligible product’ means any toy, or
other article intended for use by children, except that after
the date 3 years after the date of the enactment of the
Children’s Environmental Protection and Right to Know
Act of 1999, the term ‘eligible product’ means any con-
sumer product as defined in section 3 of the Consumer
Product Safety Act (15 U.S.C. 2052).’’.
SEC. 112. REPORTING OF TOXIC CHEMICALS IN CONSUMER
PRODUCTS.
(a) REPORTING.—The Federal Hazardous Sub-
stances Act (15 U.S.C. 1261 and following) is amended
by adding at the end the following:
‘‘SEC. 25. REPORTING OF TOXIC CHEMICALS.
‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—A manufacturer or importer of
any eligible product which contains, or is composed of, a
substance or mixture of substances listed under section
2(g)(2) shall report each of the following to the Commis-
sion:
‘‘(1) The identity of the manufacturer or im-
porter and the model name and model number of the
eligible product.
‘‘(2) The identity of the substance or mixture
of substances listed under section 2(g)(2) and its
concentration in the eligible product.
‘‘(3) The information known to the manufac-
turer or importer that would support a determina-
tion that the eligible product is not a misbranded
hazardous substance or a banned hazardous sub-
stance.
‘‘(b) PUBLICATION.—The Commission shall annually
publish in the Federal Register and make available to the
public electronically the information received under sub-
section (a).
‘‘(c) REGULATIONS.—The Commission may promul-
gate such regulations as necessary to carry out this sec-
tion.
‘‘(d) EFFECTIVE DATE.—Subsection (a) of this sec-
tion shall take effect with respect to a substance or mix-
ture of substances one year after the date on which the
substance or mixture of substances is listed under section
2(g)(2).’’.
(b) PROHIBITED ACTS.—(1) Section 4 of the Federal
Hazardous Substances Act (15 U.S.C. 1263) is amended
by adding at the end the following:
‘‘(l) The failure to report as required under section
25 of this Act.’’.
(2) Section 5(c)(1) of such Act (15 U.S.C.
1264(c)(1)) is amended by striking ‘‘and (k)’’ and insert-
ing ‘‘(k), and (l)’’.
SEC. 113. EXEMPTIONS.
(a) IN GENERAL.—Section 3(c) of the Federal Haz-
ardous Substances Act (15 U.S.C. 1262(c)) is amended
by adding the following at the end thereof: ‘‘The Commis-
sion may also promulgate regulations exempting from the
reporting requirements of section 25 any substance or
mixture of substances. This subsection shall not apply to
any substance or mixture of substances unless, upon an
adequate showing, the Commission establishes that such
substance or mixture would not, by reason of containing
a substance or mixture of substances listed under section
2(g)(2), cause substantial personal injury or substantial
illness during or as a proximate result of any customary
or reasonably foreseeable handling or use, including rea-
sonably foreseeable ingestion by children.’’.
(b) OTHER PROVISIONS OF LAW.—Section 3(d) of
such Act (15 U.S.C. 1262(d)) is amended by striking
‘‘adequate requirements satisfying the purposes of’’ and
inserting ‘‘requirements at least as stringent as’’.
SEC. 114. PRIVATE CITIZEN ENFORCEMENT.
The Federal Hazardous Substances Act (15 U.S.C.
1261 and following) is amended by adding at the end the
following:
‘‘SEC. 26. PRIVATE CITIZEN ENFORCEMENT.
‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—Any person, other than the Com-
mission, may commence a civil action on his or her own
behalf—
‘‘(1) against any person for violation of section
4(a), (b), or (l) (15 U.S.C. 1263(a), (b), or (l)); or
‘‘(2) against the Commission for the failure to
perform any nondiscretionary act or duty under the
Children’s Environmental Protection and Right to
Know Act of 1999.
The district courts shall have jurisdiction, without regard
to the amount in controversy or the citizenship of the par-
ties, over any action brought under paragraph (1) or (2)
and in any such action the court may apply any appro-
priate civil penalties under section 5 or order the Commis-
sion to perform such act or duty, as the case may be.
‘‘(b) ACTIONS PROHIBITED.—No action may be com-
menced pursuant to this section unless—
‘‘(1) the plaintiff has given notice of its intent
to bring such action at least 60 days prior to the
commencement of the action to the Commission and,
for a violation of section 4, to the violator; and
‘‘(2) for a violation of section 4, the Commis-
sion has not commenced and is not diligently pur-
suing a civil action on behalf of the United States.
‘‘(c) INTERVENTION.—In any action brought on be-
half of the United States following receipt of a notice pur-
suant to subsection (b)(1), the person giving such notice
may intervene as of right as a plaintiff in such action.
‘‘(d) COSTS AND FEES.—In an action brought under
subsection (a), the court shall award to any substantially
prevailing plaintiff (and in an action brought under sub-
section (c), to the party intervening pursuant to subsection
(c) if that party contributed significantly to the success
of the plaintiff) the costs of litigation including reasonable
attorney fees, unless the court finds such award to be in-
appropriate under the circumstances.
‘‘(e) BURDEN
OF PROOF.—In an action brought
under paragraph (1) of subsection (a), if the person al-
leged to be in violation of section 4 asserts that a sub-
stance or mixture of substances is not a hazardous sub-
stance by reason of containing a substance or mixture of
substances listed under section 2(g)(2), the burden of
proof shall be on such person to establish that such sub-
stance or mixture of substances is not a hazardous sub-
stance.
‘‘(f) PENALTY FUND.—(1) Penalties received under
subsection (a) shall be deposited in a special fund in the
United States Treasury. Amounts in such fund are au-
thorized to be appropriated and shall remain available
until expended, for use by the Commission to finance com-
pliance and enforcement activities under this Act. The
Commission shall annually report to the Congress about
the sums deposited into the fund, the sources thereof, and
the actual and proposed uses thereof.
‘‘(2) Notwithstanding paragraph (1), the court in any
action under this section to apply civil penalties shall have
discretion to order that such civil penalties, in lieu of being
deposited in the fund referred to in paragraph (1), be used
in projects which are consistent with this Act and designed
to enhance public awareness of the health effects of toxic
substances or mixtures and of possible children’s exposure
to toxic substances or mixtures in eligible products. The
court shall obtain the view of the Commission in exercising
such discretion and selecting any such projects.’’.
SEC. 115. PREEMPTION.
Nothing in this subtitle shall affect the authority of
any State or political subdivision of a State to establish