IB 
Union Calendar No. 222 
111TH CONGRESS 
1ST SESSION H. R. 2190 
[Report No. 111–381] 
To amend the Toxic Substances Control Act to phase out the use of mercury 
in the manufacture of chlorine and caustic soda, and for other purposes. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
APRIL 30, 2009 
Ms. SCHAKOWSKY (for herself, Mr. BERMAN, Mr. CARNAHAN, Mr. ELLISON, 
Ms. DELAURO, Mr. GRIJALVA, Mr. FARR, Mr. HARE, Ms. HIRONO, Ms. 
LEE of California, Mr. MORAN of Virginia, Mrs. NAPOLITANO, Mr. 
PALLONE, Mr. SESTAK, Ms. WOOLSEY, Ms. WATSON, Ms. NORTON, Mr. 
BLUMENAUER, and Mr. PRICE of North Carolina) introduced the fol-
lowing bill; which was referred to the Committee on Energy and Com-
merce 
DECEMBER 16, 2009 
Additional sponsors: Mr. SMITH
of Washington, Ms. DEGETTE, Mr. 
KUCINICH, Mr. COHEN, Mr. ROTHMAN of New Jersey, Mr. JOHNSON of 
Georgia, Ms. TSONGAS, Mr. DOGGETT, Mr. HALL of New York, Ms. 
SPEIER, Mrs. CAPPS, Ms. BALDWIN, Mr. FILNER, Mr. PAYNE, Ms. 
ESHOO, Mr. MILLER of North Carolina, Mr. HOLT, Ms. SHEA-PORTER, 
Mr. DELAHUNT, Mr. HINCHEY, Mr. HONDA, Mr. CONNOLLY of Virginia, 
Ms. MCCOLLUM, Mr. COURTNEY, Mr. WEXLER, Mr. GEORGE MILLER of 
California, Mr. WALZ, Mr. HODES, Mr. LIPINSKI, Mr. MASSA, Ms. 
SLAUGHTER, Mr. INSLEE, Ms. BERKLEY, 
DECEMBER 16, 2009 
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 30, 2009] 
VerDate Nov 24 2008 
00:48 Dec 17, 2009
Jkt 089200
PO 00000
Frm 00001
Fmt 6652
Sfmt 6652
E:\BILLS\H2190.RH
H2190
jbell on DSKDVH8Z91PROD with BILLS
A BILL 
To amend the Toxic Substances Control Act to phase out 
the use of mercury in the manufacture of chlorine and 
caustic soda, and for other purposes. 
VerDate Nov 24 2008 
00:48 Dec 17, 2009
Jkt 089200
PO 00000
Frm 00002
Fmt 6652
Sfmt 6652
E:\BILLS\H2190.RH
H2190
jbell on DSKDVH8Z91PROD with BILLS
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 ‘‘Mercury Pollution Re-
duction Act’’. 
SEC. 2. FINDINGS. 
Congress finds that— 
(1) mercury and mercury compounds are highly 
toxic to humans, ecosystems, and wildlife; 
(2) as many as 10 percent of women in the 
United States of childbearing age have mercury in 
their bloodstreams at a level that could pose risks to 
their unborn babies, and hundreds of thousands of 
children born annually in the United States are at 
risk of neurological problems relating to mercury ex-
posure in utero; 
(3) the most significant source of mercury expo-
sure to people in the United States is ingestion of 
mercury-contaminated fish; 
(4) the long-term solution to mercury pollution 
is to minimize global mercury use and releases of 
mercury to eventually achieve reduced contamination 
levels in the environment, rather than reducing fish 
consumption, since uncontaminated fish represents a 
VerDate Nov 24 2008 
00:48 Dec 17, 2009
Jkt 089200
PO 00000
Frm 00003
Fmt 6652
Sfmt 6203
E:\BILLS\H2190.RH
H2190
jbell on DSKDVH8Z91PROD with BILLS
critical and healthy source of nutrition for people 
worldwide; 
(5) mercury pollution is a transboundary pollut-
ant that— 
(A) is deposited locally, regionally, and 
globally; and 
(B) affects bodies of water near industrial 
areas, such as the Great Lakes, as well as bodies 
of water in remote areas, such as the Arctic Cir-
cle; 
(6) of the approximately 30 plants in the United 
States that produce chlorine, only 7 use the obsolete 
‘‘mercury cell’’ chlor-alkali process, and 4 have not 
yet committed to phasing out mercury use; 
(7)(A) less than 5 percent of the total quantity 
of chlorine and caustic soda produced in the United 
States comes from the chlor-alkali plants described in 
paragraph (6) that use the mercury cell chlor-alkali 
process; 
(B) cost-effective alternatives are available and 
in use in the remaining 95 percent of chlorine and 
caustic soda production; and 
(C) other countries, including Japan, have al-
ready banned the mercury cell chlor-alkali process; 
(8) the chlor-alkali industry acknowledges that— 
VerDate Nov 24 2008 
00:48 Dec 17, 2009
Jkt 089200
PO 00000
Frm 00004
Fmt 6652
Sfmt 6203
E:\BILLS\H2190.RH
H2190
jbell on DSKDVH8Z91PROD with BILLS