I 
117TH CONGRESS 
2D SESSION 
H. R. 7175 
To require disclosure of asbestos hazards in the sale and lease of residential 
dwellings, and for other purposes. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
MARCH 18, 2022 
Mrs. TORRES of California introduced the following bill; which was referred 
to the Committee on Financial Services, 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 with-
in the jurisdiction of the committee concerned 
A BILL 
To require disclosure of asbestos hazards in the sale and 
lease of residential dwellings, 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. 
This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Asbestos Exposure in 
Housing Reduction Act of 2022’’. 
SEC. 2. DISCLOSURE IN SALE OR LEASE OF HOUSING. 
(a) REQUIRED
DISCLOSURE.—The Secretary of 
Housing and Urban Development and the Administrator 
of the Environmental Protection Agency shall, not later 
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than the expiration of the 2-year period beginning on the 
date of the enactment of this Act, jointly issue regulations 
under this section requiring the disclosure of asbestos haz-
ards in dwellings that are offered for sale or lease. Such 
regulations shall require that, before the purchaser or les-
see is obligated under any contract to purchase or lease 
the dwelling, the seller or lessor shall— 
(1) disclose to the purchaser or lessee the pres-
ence of any known asbestos, and any known asbes-
tos-based hazards, in such dwelling and provide to 
the purchaser or lessee any asbestos hazard evalua-
tion report available to the seller or lessor; and 
(2) permit the purchaser a 10-day period (un-
less the parties mutually agree upon a different pe-
riod of time) to conduct a risk assessment or inspec-
tion for the presence of asbestos hazards. 
(b) ASBESTOS WARNING STATEMENT.—The regula-
tions issued under this section shall provide that every 
contract for the purchase and sale of any interest in a 
dwelling, and every contract for lease of a dwelling, shall 
contain an Asbestos Warning Statement and a statement 
signed by the purchaser or lessee that the purchaser has— 
(1) read the Asbestos Warning Statement and 
understands its contents; and 
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(2) had a 10-day opportunity (unless the par-
ties mutually agreed upon a different period of time) 
before becoming obligated under the contract to pur-
chase the dwelling to conduct a risk assessment or 
inspection for the presence of asbestos-based haz-
ards. 
(c) CONTENTS
OF ASBESTOS WARNING STATE-
MENT.—The Asbestos Warning Statement shall contain 
the following text printed in large type on a separate sheet 
of paper attached to the contract: ‘‘Every purchaser of any 
interest in residential real property on which a dwelling 
is located, and every lessee of a dwelling, is notified that 
such property may present exposure to asbestos that may 
place occupants at risk of lung disease and mesothe-
lioma—a form of cancer. The seller of any interest in resi-
dential real property, and the lessor of a dwelling, is re-
quired to provide the buyer or lessee, respectively, with 
any information on asbestos-based hazards from risk as-
sessments or inspections in the seller’s or lessor’s posses-
sion and notify the buyer or lessee of any known asbestos- 
based hazards. A risk assessment or inspection for pos-
sible asbestos-based hazards is recommended prior to pur-
chase or lease.’’. 
(d) COMPLIANCE ASSURANCE.—Whenever a seller or 
lessor has entered into a contract with an agent for the 
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purpose of selling or leasing a dwelling, the regulations 
issued under this section shall require the agent, on behalf 
of the seller or lessor, to ensure compliance with the re-
quirements of this section. 
(e) PENALTIES FOR VIOLATIONS.— 
(1) MONETARY
PENALTY.—Any person who 
knowingly violates any provision of this section shall 
be subject to civil money penalties in accordance 
with the provisions of section 102 of the Department 
of Housing and Urban Development Reform Act of 
1989 (42 U.S.C. 3545). 
(2) INJUNCTION AUTHORITY.—The Secretary is 
authorized to take such lawful action as may be nec-
essary to enjoin any violation of this section. 
(3) CIVIL LIABILITY.— 
(A) IN GENERAL.—Any person who know-
ingly violates the provisions of this section shall 
be jointly and severally liable to the purchaser 
or lessee in an amount equal to 3 times the 
amount of damages incurred by such individual. 
(B) COSTS.—In any civil action brought 
for damages pursuant to this paragraph, the 
appropriate court may award court costs to the 
party commencing such action, together with 
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reasonable attorney fees and any expert witness 
fees, if that party prevails. 
(4) PROHIBITED ACT.—It shall be a prohibited 
act under sections 15 and 409 of the Toxic Sub-
stances Control Act (15 U.S.C. 2614, 2689) for any 
person to fail or refuse to comply with a provision 
of this section or with any rule or order issued under 
this section. For purposes of enforcing this section 
under the Toxic Substances Control Act (15 U.S.C. 
2601 et seq.), the penalty for each violation applica-
ble under section 16 of such Act (15 U.S.C. 2615) 
shall not be more than $10,000. 
(f) VALIDITY OF CONTRACTS AND LIENS.—Nothing 
in this section shall affect the validity or enforceability of 
any sale or contract for the purchase and sale or lease 
of any interest in residential real property or any loan, 
loan agreement, mortgage, or lien made or arising in con-
nection with a mortgage loan, nor shall anything in this 
section create a defect in title. 
(g) DEFINITIONS.—For purposes of this section, the 
following definitions shall apply: 
(1) ASBESTOS.—The term ‘‘asbestos’’ has the 
meaning given such term in section 202 of the Toxic 
Substances Control Act (15 U.S.C. 2642). 
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(2) ASBESTOS-BASED HAZARD.—The term ‘‘as-
bestos-based hazard’’ means any condition that 
causes exposure to asbestos that would result in ad-
verse human health effects as established by the ap-
propriate Federal agency. 
(3) DWELLING.—The term ‘‘dwelling’’ means 
any dwelling, as such term is defined in section 802 
of the Fair Housing Act (42 U.S.C. 3602) that was 
constructed prior to 2019. The exemptions under 
section 803(b) of such Act (42 U.S.C. 3603) shall 
not apply for purposes of this Act. 
(4) 
INSPECTION.—The 
term 
‘‘inspection’’ 
means an on-site investigation to determine the pres-
ence of asbestos and the provision of a report ex-
plaining the results of the investigation. 
(5) RISK ASSESSMENT.—The term ‘‘risk assess-
ment’’ means an on-site investigation to determine 
and report the existence, nature, severity and loca-
tion of asbestos-based hazards in dwellings, includ-
ing— 
(A) information gathering regarding the 
age and history of the housing; 
(B) visual inspection; 
(C) sampling or other environmental sam-
pling techniques; 
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(D) other activity as may be appropriate; 
and 
(E) provision of a report explaining the re-
sults of the investigation. 
(h) EFFECTIVE
DATE.—The regulations issued 
under this section shall take effect upon the expiration of 
the 2-year period beginning on the date of the enactment 
of this Act. 
(i) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There is 
authorized to be appropriated for each fiscal year such 
sums as may be necessary to carry out this section. 
Æ 
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