MAY 6, 2022 
Reported with an amendment, committed to the Committee of the Whole 
House on the State of the Union, and ordered to be printed 
[Strike out all after the enacting clause and insert the part printed in italic] 
[For text of introduced bill, see copy of bill as introduced on April 14, 2021] 
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A BILL 
To amend chapter 81 of title 5, United States Code, to 
create a presumption that a disability or death of a 
Federal employee in fire protection activities caused by 
any of certain diseases is the result of the performance 
of such employees duty, and for other purposes. 
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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 ‘‘Federal Firefighters 
Fairness Act of 2022’’. 
SEC. 2. CERTAIN DISEASES PRESUMED TO BE WORK-RE-
LATED CAUSE OF DISABILITY OR DEATH FOR 
FEDERAL EMPLOYEES IN FIRE PROTECTION 
ACTIVITIES. 
(a) PRESUMPTION RELATING TO EMPLOYEES IN FIRE 
PROTECTION ACTIVITIES.—Subchapter I of chapter 81 of 
title 5, United States Code, is amended by inserting after 
section 8143a the following (and by conforming the table 
of contents of such chapter accordingly): 
‘‘§ 8143b. Employees in fire protection activities. 
‘‘(a) CERTAIN DISEASES DEEMED
TO BE PROXI-
MATELY CAUSED BY EMPLOYMENT IN FIRE PROTECTION 
ACTIVITIES.— 
‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—For a claim under this sub-
chapter of disability or death of an employee who has 
been employed for a minimum of 5 years in aggregate 
as an employee in fire protection activities, a disease 
specified on the list established under paragraph (2) 
shall be deemed to be proximately caused by the em-
ployment of such employee. 
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‘‘(2) ESTABLISHMENT OF INITIAL LIST.—There 
is established under this section the following list of 
diseases: 
‘‘(A) Bladder cancer. 
‘‘(B) Brain cancer. 
‘‘(C) Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease. 
‘‘(D) Colorectal cancer. 
‘‘(E) Esophageal cancer. 
‘‘(F) Kidney cancer. 
‘‘(G) Leukemias. 
‘‘(H) Lung cancer. 
‘‘(I) Mesothelioma. 
‘‘(J) Multiple myeloma. 
‘‘(K) Non-Hodgkin lymphoma. 
‘‘(L) Prostate cancer. 
‘‘(M) Skin cancer (melanoma). 
‘‘(N) A sudden cardiac event or stroke 
while, or not later than 24 hours after, engaging 
in 
the 
activities 
described 
in 
subsection 
(b)(1)(C). 
‘‘(O) Testicular cancer. 
‘‘(P) Thyroid cancer. 
‘‘(3) ADDITIONS TO THE LIST.— 
‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall pe-
riodically review the list established under this 
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section in consultation with the Director of the 
National Institute on Occupational Safety and 
Health and shall add a disease to the list by 
rule, upon a showing by a petitioner or on the 
Secretary’s own determination, in accordance 
with this paragraph. 
‘‘(B) BASIS
FOR
DETERMINATION.—The 
Secretary shall add a disease to the list upon a 
showing by a petitioner or the Secretary’s own 
determination, based on the weight of the best 
available scientific evidence, that there is a sig-
nificant risk to employees in fire protection ac-
tivities of developing such disease. 
‘‘(C) AVAILABLE
EXPERTISE.—In deter-
mining significant risk for purposes of subpara-
graph (B), the Secretary may accept as authori-
tative and may rely upon recommendations, risk 
assessments, and scientific studies (including 
analyses of National Firefighter Registry data 
pertaining to Federal firefighters) by the Na-
tional Institute for Occupational Safety and 
Health, the National Toxicology Program, the 
National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, 
and Medicine, and the International Agency for 
Research on Cancer. 
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‘‘(4) PETITIONS TO ADD TO THE LIST.— 
‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Any person may peti-
tion the Secretary to add a disease to the list 
under this section. 
‘‘(B) CONTENT
OF
PETITION.—Such peti-
tion shall provide information to show that there 
is sufficient evidence of a significant risk to em-
ployees in fire protection activities of developing 
such illness or disease from their employment. 
‘‘(C) TIMELY
AND
SUBSTANTIVE
DECI-
SIONS.—Not later than 18 months after receipt 
of a petition, the Secretary shall either grant or 
deny the petition by publishing in the Federal 
Register a written explanation of the reasons for 
the Secretary’s decision. The Secretary may not 
deny a petition solely on the basis of competing 
priorities, inadequate resources, or insufficient 
time for review. 
‘‘(b) DEFINITIONS.—In this section: 
‘‘(1) EMPLOYEE
IN
FIRE
PROTECTION
ACTIVI-
TIES.—The term ‘employee in fire protection activi-
ties’ means an employee employed as a firefighter, 
paramedic, emergency medical technician, rescue 
worker, ambulance personnel, or hazardous material 
worker, who— 
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‘‘(A) is trained in fire suppression; 
‘‘(B) has the legal authority and responsi-
bility to engage in fire suppression; 
‘‘(C) is engaged in the prevention, control, 
and extinguishment of fires or response to emer-
gency situations where life, property, or the envi-
ronment is at risk, including the prevention, 
control, suppression, or management of wildland 
fires; and 
‘‘(D) performs such activities as a primary 
responsibility of his or her job. 
‘‘(2) SECRETARY.—The term ‘Secretary’ means 
Secretary of Labor.’’. 
(b) RESEARCH COOPERATION.—Not later than 120 
days after the date of enactment of this Act, the Secretary 
of Labor shall establish a process by which a Federal em-
ployee in fire protection activities filing a claim related to 
a disease on the list established by section 8143b of title 
5, United States Code, will be informed about and offered 
the opportunity to contribute to science by voluntarily en-
rolling in the National Firefighter Registry or a similar 
research or public health initiative conducted by the Centers 
for Disease Control and Prevention. 
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(c) REVIEW OF SCIENCE ON BREAST CANCER.—Not 
later than 3 years after the date of enactment of this Act, 
the Secretary shall— 
(1) evaluate the best available scientific evidence 
of the risk to an employee in fire protection activities 
of developing breast cancer; 
(2) add breast cancer to the list established under 
section 8143b of title 5, United States Code, by rule 
in accordance with subsection (a)(3) of such section, 
if the Secretary determines that such evidence sup-
ports such addition; and 
(3) submit a report of the Secretary’s findings 
under paragraph (1) and the Secretary’s determina-
tion under paragraph (2) to the Committee on Edu-
cation and Labor of the House and the Committee on 
Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions of the Sen-
ate. 
(d) APPLICATION.—The amendments made by this sec-
tion shall apply to claims for compensation filed on or after 
the date of enactment of this Act. 
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Union Calendar No. 226 
117TH CONGRESS 
2D SESSION 
H. R. 2499 
[Report No. 117–306] 
A BILL 
To amend chapter 81 of title 5, United States 
Code, to create a presumption that a disability or 
death of a Federal employee in fire protection ac-
tivities caused by any of certain diseases is the 
result of the performance of such employees 
duty, and for other purposes. 
MAY 6, 2022 
Reported with an amendment, committed to the Com-
mittee of the Whole House on the State of the Union, 
and ordered to be printed 
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