A bill to require the Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency to continue to carry out certain programs relating to environmental justice, and for other purposes.

Bill: 116-s-3680
Sponsor: full_name: Sen. Duckworth, Tammy [D-IL]
Introduced: 2020-05-11
Policy area: Environmental Protection
Subjects: Cardiovascular and respiratory health

Community life and organization

Emergency medical services and trauma care

Environmental assessment, monitoring, research

Environmental health

Environmental regulatory procedures

Government studies and investigations

Hazardous wastes and toxic substances

Infectious and parasitic diseases

Minority health

Racial and ethnic relations
Latest action: action_date: 2020-05-11
text: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Environment and Public Works.

Summaries:
action_date: 2020-05-11
action_desc: Introduced in Senate
text: <p>This bill reauthorizes through FY2020 (1) the Environmental Justice Small Grants Program; (2) the Environmental Justice Collaborative Problem-Solving Cooperative Agreement Program, which provides financial assistance to address local environmental or public health issues; and (3) the Community Action for a Renewed Environment grant program, which assists communities address multiple sources of toxic pollutants.</p>

tv_txt: II 116th CONGRESS 2d Session S. 3680 IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES May 11, 2020 Ms. Duckworth (for herself, Mr. Booker , and Mr. Carper ) introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Environment and Public Works A BILL To require the Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency to continue to carry out certain programs relating to environmental justice, and for other purposes.

1. Findings Congress finds that— (1) communities of color, low-income communities, Tribal and indigenous communities, fossil fuel-dependent communities, and other vulnerable populations, such as persons with disabilities, children, and the elderly, are disproportionately burdened by environmental hazards that include exposure to polluted air, waterways, and landscapes; (2) environmental justice disparities are also exhibited through a lack of equitable access to information and data on potential exposure to environmental hazards; (3) communities experiencing environmental injustice have been subjected to systemic racial, social, and economic injustices and face a disproportionate burden of adverse human health or environmental effects, a higher risk of intentional, unconscious, or structural discrimination, and disproportionate energy burdens; (4) those disproportionate burdens are being exasperated by the COVID–19 pandemic; (5) the Environmental Protection Agency has announced a nonenforcement policy under all environmental laws during the COVID–19 pandemic for monitoring and recordkeeping requirements; (6) that policy is likely to increase the pollution burden in environmental justice communities and decrease access to monitoring data and information; and (7) citizen science will be essential for environmental justice communities to protect themselves during the COVID–19 pandemic. 2. Environmental justice grant programs (a) Environmental justice grants The Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency shall continue to carry out— (1) the Environmental Justice Small Grants Program and the Environmental Justice Collaborative Problem-Solving Cooperative Agreement Program, as those programs are in existence on the date of enactment of this Act; and (2) the Community Action for a Renewed Environment grant programs I and II, as those programs were in existence on January 1, 2012. (b) Authorization for grants in response to COVID–19 emergency (1) Distribution Not later than 30 days after amounts are made available pursuant to subsection (c), the Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency shall award grants under each of the programs described in subsection (a). (2) Priority for funds In awarding grants under the programs described in subsection (a) pursuant to this section, the Administrator shall prioritize projects that will— (A) monitor pollution in or near environmental justice communities; or (B) investigate or address the disproportionate impacts of the COVID–19 pandemic in environmental justice communities. (c) Authorization of appropriations There is authorized to be appropriated to carry out the programs described in subsection (a) $50,000,000 for fiscal year 2020.