Radiation Exposure Compensation Act Amendments of 2010

Bill: 111-hr-5119
Sponsor: Rep. Lujan, Ben Ray [D-NM-3]
Introduced: 2010-04-22 in the House
Policy area: Labor and Employment
Subjects: Administrative law and regulatory procedures
Arizona
Cancer
Civil actions and liability
Colorado
Department of Justice
Digestive and metabolic diseases
Education programs funding
Environmental health
Government information and archives
Government liability
Government trust funds
Guam
Hazardous wastes and toxic substances
Health care costs and insurance
Higher education
Idaho
Legal fees and court costs
Medical research
Military history
Mining
Montana
Nevada
New Mexico
Nuclear weapons
Personnel records
Radiation
Research administration and funding
Utah
Worker safety and health

Summary:
action_date: 2010-04-22
text: 
Radiation Exposure Compensation Act Amendments of 2010 - Amends the Radiation Exposure Compensation Act to extend the Radiation Exposure Compensation Trust Fund until 19 years after enactment of this Act.
 
Prescribes additional periods of required presence in an affected area during atmospheric nuclear testing for individuals filing leukemia or specified disease claims. Increases the amount of compensation an individual filing a claim may receive to $150,000.
 
Expands &quot;affected area&quot; to include Colorado, Idaho, Montana, and New Mexico, as well as any county in Arizona, Nevada, or Utah.
 
Extends to December 31, 1990, the period during which an individual employed at any time in a uranium mine or uranium mill is made eligible to receive compensation for a disease claim due to radiation exposure. Makes a core driller eligible to receive compensation upon filing of a disease claim.
 
Makes miners, core drillers, and ore transporters who suffer renal cancer or any other chronic renal disease, including nephritis and kidney tubal tissue injury, eligible for compensation due to exposure to radiation while on the job.
 
Requires the Attorney General to accept written affidavits meeting specified requirements regarding employment history, physical presence in an affected area, or participation at a nuclear testing site in determining the eligibility of claimants.
 
Extends until 19 years after enactment of this Act the statute of limitations for the filing of such claims.
 
Increases from 2% to 10% of the payment received by a claimant the maximum amount of attorneys fees that can be charged for the filing of an initial claim.
 
Directs the Secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS), through the National Institute of Environmental Health Services, to establish a program of grants to institutions of higher education to study the epidemiological impacts of uranium mining and milling among non-occupationally exposed individuals, including family members of uranium miners and millers.


Legislative actions:
action_date: 2010-06-15
text: Referred to the Subcommittee on Immigration, Citizenship, Refugees, Border Security, and International Law.
action_date: 2010-04-26
text: Sponsor introductory remarks on measure. (CR E661)
action_date: 2010-04-22
text: Referred to House Energy and Commerce
action_date: 2010-04-22
text: Referred to the Committee on the Judiciary, 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 within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned.
action_date: 2010-04-22
text: Referred to House Judiciary
action_date: 2010-04-22
text: Introduced in House
action_date: 2010-04-22
text: Introduced in House