I 
109TH CONGRESS 
1ST SESSION H. R. 2240 
To provide assistance for the development of indoor disease prevention and 
health promotion centers in urban and rural areas throughout the United 
States. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
MAY 10, 2005 
Mr. SANDERS (for himself, Mr. KUCINICH, Ms. CORRINE BROWN of Florida, 
Mr. OWENS, Mrs. CHRISTENSEN, Mr. PAYNE, Mr. MCGOVERN, and Mr. 
ABERCROMBIE) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the 
Committee on Energy and Commerce, and in addition to the Committee 
on Education and the Workforce, for a period to be subsequently deter-
mined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions 
as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned 
A BILL 
To provide assistance for the development of indoor disease 
prevention and health promotion centers in urban and 
rural areas throughout the United States. 
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 ‘‘Urban and Rural Dis-
ease Prevention and Health Promotion Act of 2005’’. 
SEC. 2. CONGRESSIONAL FINDINGS. 
The Congress finds that—
(1) in 1999, 61 percent of adults in the United 
States were overweight or obese; 
(2) all age, racial, and ethnic groups, and both 
genders, have experienced increases in the percent-
age of persons who are overweight or obese; 
(3) each year in the United States, approxi-
mately 112,000 deaths are associated with obesity; 
(4) overweight and obesity are associated with 
heart disease, certain types of cancer, type 2 diabe-
tes, stroke, arthritis, breathing problems, and psy-
chological disorders, such as depression; 
(5) in 2000, the economic cost of obesity in the 
United States was approximately $117,000,000,000; 
(6) it is recommended that American adults ac-
cumulate at least 30 minutes, and American chil-
dren accumulate at least 60 minutes, of moderate 
physical activity most days of the week, though more 
may be needed to prevent weight gain, to lose 
weight, or to maintain weight loss; 
(7) less than one-third of American adults en-
gage in these recommended amounts of physical ac-
tivity; 
(8) 40 percent of adults in the United States do 
not participate in any leisure-time physical activity;
(9) physical activity is important in preventing 
and treating overweight and obesity and is extremely 
helpful in maintaining weight loss, especially when 
combined with healthy eating; 
(10) there is a direct positive relationship be-
tween the level of individual and community use of 
public recreational facilities and services, access to 
and condition of such facilities, and the diversity and 
quality of services relative to current and potential 
uses; and 
(11) medical and other research document a di-
rect positive relationship between active recreation 
and disease prevention and general wellness. 
SEC. 3. GRANT AND LOAN PROGRAM FOR INDOOR DISEASE 
PREVENTION AND HEALTH PROMOTION CEN-
TERS. 
(a) AUTHORITY.—The Secretary of Housing and 
Urban Development may make grants and loans in accord-
ance with this Act to eligible entities under section 4 for 
the development of indoor centers for disease prevention 
and health promotion. 
(b) CENTERS.—For purposes of this Act, the term 
‘‘indoor disease prevention and health promotion center’’ 
means a structure or facility, or a portion thereof, that—
(1) is used principally as an indoor recreational 
facility providing services, programs, and activities 
that result in disease prevention and health pro-
motion, including direct recreation services for indi-
viduals and groups, information on public and per-
sonal health and wellness, health screening, and 
other necessary services in collaboration with public 
and private health professionals and other entities; 
(2) is owned or controlled by the eligible entity 
that receives the grant or loan under this Act; 
(3) is available for use by, and provides services 
to, residents of the jurisdiction of such eligible entity 
free of charge or at a charge not exceeding that nec-
essary to provide for operation and maintenance of 
the facility and for appropriate public recreation 
services; and 
(4) is subject to such legally binding and en-
forceable commitments, as the Secretary shall re-
quire, to ensure that the structure or facility, or por-
tion thereof, is used as provided in paragraph (1) for 
the 25-year period beginning upon the receipt of a 
grant or loan made under this Act; except that the 
Secretary may, upon the request of an entity that 
received a grant or loan under this Act, waive the
applicability of such commitments if the Secretary 
finds that— 
(A) environmental or other conditions have 
substantially reduced the public value of the fa-
cility or public access to the facility; or 
(B) the site or facility has substantially de-
teriorated, through no fault of the entity that 
received the grant or loan, and such entity en-
ters into an agreement with the Secretary to 
obtain or provide a replacement facility that 
generally provides access to services for persons 
that were served at the original facility. 
SEC. 4. ELIGIBLE ENTITIES. 
Grants and loans under this Act may be made only 
to the following entities: 
(1) A unit of general local government. 
(2) An official State, metropolitan, regional, or 
other area agency, district, public-purpose corpora-
tion, or other limited-purpose political subdivision of 
a State, that is empowered under State or local laws 
or under an interstate compact or agreement to 
manage, administer, or provide public parks and rec-
reational facilities. 
(3) Public authorities or agencies associated 
with economic or community development or restora-