I 
109TH CONGRESS 
1ST SESSION H. R. 1648 
To require Executive Order 12898 to remain in force until changed by 
law, to expand the definition of environmental justice, to direct each 
Federal agency to establish an Environmental Justice Office, and for 
other purposes. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
APRIL 14, 2005 
Mr. HASTINGS of Florida (for himself, Mr. OWENS, Mrs. CHRISTENSEN, Mr. 
SERRANO, Ms. JACKSON-LEE of Texas, Mr. MCDERMOTT, Mr. NADLER, 
Ms. LEE, Mr. GRIJALVA, Ms. CORRINE BROWN of Florida, Mr. SANDERS, 
Mr. HONDA, Mr. MENENDEZ, Mr. WEXLER, Mr. RANGEL, Mr. PAYNE, 
Mr. MARKEY, Ms. DEGETTE, Mr. DOGGETT, Mr. STARK, Mr. JACKSON 
of Illinois, Ms. NORTON, Mr. HINCHEY, Mr. PALLONE, Mr. KUCINICH, 
Mr. MCGOVERN, Mrs. JONES of Ohio, Mr. CONYERS, Ms. SOLIS, Ms. 
WASSERMAN SCHULTZ, and Mr. MEEK of Florida) introduced the fol-
lowing bill; which was referred to the Committee on Energy and Com-
merce, and in addition to the Committee on Resources, for a period to 
be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consider-
ation of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee 
concerned 
A BILL 
To require Executive Order 12898 to remain in force until 
changed by law, to expand the definition of environ-
mental justice, to direct each Federal agency to establish 
an Environmental Justice Office, 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. EXECUTIVE ORDER 12898. 
The provisions of Executive Order 12898, dated Feb-
ruary 11, 1994, pertaining to Federal actions to address 
environmental justice in minority populations and low-in-
come populations, shall remain in force until changed by 
law. In carrying out such executive order, the provisions 
of this Act shall apply. 
SEC. 2. ADDITIONAL PROVISIONS RELATING TO ENVIRON-
MENTAL JUSTICE. 
(a) DEFINITION OF ENVIRONMENTAL JUSTICE.—For 
purposes of Executive Order 12898, environmental justice 
is the fair treatment and meaningful involvement of all 
people regardless of race, color, national origin, edu-
cational level, or income with respect to the development, 
implementation, and enforcement of environmental laws, 
regulations, and policies. Environmental justice seeks to 
ensure that minority and low-income communities have 
adequate access to public information relating to human 
health and environmental planning, regulations, and en-
forcement. Environmental justice ensures that no popu-
lation, especially the elderly and children, are forced to 
shoulder a disproportionate burden of the negative human 
health and environmental impacts of pollution or other en-
vironmental hazard. 
(b) IDENTIFICATION AND PRIORITIZATION OF ENVI-
RONMENTAL JUSTICE COMMUNITIES.—For purposes of
Executive Order 12898, criteria for defining an environ-
mental justice community shall include demographic char-
acteristics, such as percentages of minority and low-in-
come residents within an area, as well as— 
(1) health vulnerabilities, such as cancer mor-
tality and incidence rate, infant mortality, low birth 
weight, asthma, and childhood lead poisoning; and 
(2) environmental conditions, such as facility 
density and proximity to Corrective Action/Super-
fund Sites, Enforcement Data (percent and number 
of uninspected facilities, percent and number of 
unaddressed violations, average and total penalty 
and air nonattainment status), emissions, attain-
ment status, indoor air issues, 305b stream data, 
fish advisories, beach closings, and truck traffic. 
(c) ESTABLISHMENT
OF OFFICES
OF ENVIRON-
MENTAL JUSTICE.—For purposes of Executive Order 
12898, each of the following shall establish an Office of 
Environmental Justice: 
(1) Department of Defense. 
(2) Department of Justice. 
(3) Department of the Interior. 
(4) Department of Agriculture. 
(5) Department of Commerce. 
(6) Department of Labor.
(7) Department of Health and Human Services. 
(8) Department of Housing and Urban Devel-
opment. 
(9) Department of Transportation. 
(10) Department of Energy. 
(11) Department of Homeland Security 
(12) Environmental Protection Agency. 
(13) Office of Management and Budget. 
(14) Office of Science and Technology Policy. 
(15) Office of the Deputy Assistant to the 
President for Environmental Policy. 
(16) Office of the Assistant to the President for 
Domestic Policy. 
(17) National Economic Council. 
(18) Council of Economic Advisers. 
(19) Such other Government officials as the 
President may designate. 
(d) INTEGRATION
OF
ENVIRONMENTAL
JUSTICE 
POLICIES IN AGENCY ACTIONS.—For purposes of the en-
vironmental justice strategies developed by agencies under 
Executive Order 12898, each agency shall integrate the 
strategy into the operation and mission of the agency and 
explicitly address compliance with this Act, including in 
the following activities: 
(1) Future rulemaking activities.
(2) The development of any future guidance, 
environmental reviews (including NEPA, CAA, Fed-
eral Land Policy Act), regulation, or procedures for 
Federal agency programs, policies, or activities that 
affect human health or the environment. 
(e) INTERAGENCY FEDERAL WORKING GROUP CO-
ORDINATION AND GUIDANCE.—The interagency Federal 
Working Group on Environmental Justice (in this section 
referred to as the ‘‘Working Group’’) shall— 
(1) coordinate an integrated environmental jus-
tice training plan for the Federal agencies and of-
fices listed in subsection (c); 
(2) formalize public participation efforts; 
(3) survey the Federal agencies and offices to 
determine what is effective and how to best facilitate 
outreach without duplicating efforts; 
(4) develop a strategy for allocating responsibil-
ities and ensuring participation, even when faced 
with competing agency priorities; and 
(5) coordinate plans to communicate research 
results so reporting and outreach activities produce 
more useful and timely information. 
(f) AGENCY PUBLIC PARTICIPATION EFFORTS.— 
(1) OUTREACH EFFORTS.—Each Federal agen-
cy listed in subsection (c) shall carry out and report
outreach activities to the Working Group, including 
the following: 
(A) Respond directly to inquiries from the 
public and other stakeholders. 
(B) Maintain websites and listservers. 
(C) Produce and distribute hardcopy docu-
ments and multimedia products. 
(D) Conduct or sponsor briefings, lectures, 
and press conferences. 
(E) Testify before Congress or other gov-
ernment bodies. 
(F) Finance scholarships, fellowships, and 
internships. 
(G) Support museum exhibits and other 
public displays. 
(H) Sponsor, participate, or otherwise con-
tribute to meetings attended by stakeholders. 
(I) Provide scientifically-sound content for 
K–12 education activities; and 
(J) fund outreach efforts managed outside 
the Federal Government. 
(2) STAKEHOLDERS.—To ensure their active 
public participation and to provide input early in en-
vironmental decision-making, Federal agencies along 
with the Working Group shall develop ways to en-
hance partnerships and coordination with stake-
holders, including affected communities, Federal, 
Tribal, State, and local governments, environmental 
organizations, nonprofit organizations, academic in-
stitutions (including Historically Black Colleges and 
Universities (HBCUs), Hispanic Serving Institutions 
(HSIs), and Tribal Colleges), and business and in-
dustry. 
(g) COMMUNITY TECHNOLOGY CENTERS.— 
(1) IN GENERAL.—Federal agencies shall fund 
community technology centers to assist with tech-
nical assistance issues in the environmental justice 
area. 
(2) DESCRIPTION.—In this subsection, the term 
‘‘community technology center’’ (CTC) refers to pro-
grams with the goal of providing at least 10 hours 
of open access a week for anyone in a community, 
especially youth and adults in low-income urban and 
rural communities, for purposes of providing tech-
nical assistance to communities experiencing issues 
of environmental hazards. 
(3) LOCATION.—A community technology cen-
ter may be located in places such as libraries, com-
munity centers, schools, churches, social service 
agencies, low-income residential housing complexes,
and Minority Academic Institutions (such as His-
torically Black Colleges and Universities, Hispanic 
Serving Institutions, and Tribal Colleges). 
(4) ACTIVITIES OF COMMUNITY TECHNOLOGY 
CENTER.—A community technology center funded 
under this section shall— 
(A) assist community members in becom-
ing active participants in cleanup and environ-
mental development activities; 
(B) provide independent and credible tech-
nical assistance to communities affected by haz-
ardous waste contamination; 
(C) review and interpret technical docu-
ments and other materials; 
(D) sponsor workshops, short courses, and 
other learning experiences to explain basic 
science and environmental policy; 
(E) inform community members about ex-
isting technical assistance materials, such as 
publications, videos, and web sites; 
(F) offer training to community leaders in 
facilitation and conflict resolution among stake-
holders; and
(G) create technical assistance materials 
tailored to the identified needs of a community. 
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