[Congressional Bills 103th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 1841 Introduced in Senate (IS)]
103d CONGRESS
2d Session
S. 1841
To amend the Public Health Service Act to prohibit discrimination, on
the basis of race, color, or national origin, in programs and
activities relating to occupational and other exposure to hazardous
substances.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES
February 9 (legislative day, January 25), 1994
Mr. Wellstone introduced the following bill; which was read twice and
referred to the Committee on Labor and Human Resources
_______________________________________________________________________
A BILL
To amend the Public Health Service Act to prohibit discrimination, on
the basis of race, color, or national origin, in programs and
activities relating to occupational and other exposure to hazardous
substances.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the
United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the ``Public Health Equity Act''.
SEC. 2. FINDINGS.
Congress finds that--
(1) all communities and individuals are entitled to
protection from occupational and other exposure to substances
that are hazardous to the public health;
(2) hazardous substances have had a disproportionate impact
on the public health of poor and ethnic minority communities
and individuals, resulting in exclusion from participation in,
denial of benefits under, and discrimination under, programs
and activities receiving Federal financial assistance; and
(3) each Federal agency has an obligation to ensure that
all federally assisted programs and activities that affect
human health do not directly or through contractual
arrangements use criteria, methods, or practices that cause
discrimination on the ground of race, color, or national
origin.
SEC. 3. PUBLIC HEALTH EQUITY.
The Public Health Service Act (42 U.S.C. 201 et seq.) is amended by
adding at the end thereof the following new title:
``TITLE XXVII--PUBLIC HEALTH EQUITY
``SEC. 2701. DEFINITIONS.
``As used in this title:
``(1) Activity; program.--The term `program or activity'
means any operation of--
``(A)(i) a department, agency, special purpose
district, or other instrumentality of a State or of a
local government; or
``(ii) the entity of such State or local government
that distributes such assistance and each such
department or agency (and each other State or local
government entity) to which the assistance is extended,
in the case of assistance to a State or local
government;
``(B)(i) a college, university, or other
postsecondary institution, or a public system of higher
education; or
``(ii) a local educational agency (as defined in
section 198(a)(10) of the Elementary and Secondary
Education Act of 1965), system of vocational education,
or other school system;
``(C)(i) an entire corporation, partnership, or
other private organization, or an entire sole
proprietorship--
``(I) if assistance is extended to such
corporation, partnership, private organization,
or sole proprietorship as a whole; or
``(II) which is principally engaged in the
business of providing education, health care,
housing, social services, or parks and
recreation; or
``(ii) the entire plant or other comparable,
geographically separate facility to which Federal
financial assistance is extended, in the case of any
other corporation, partnership, private organization,
or sole proprietorship; or
``(D) any other entity which is established by two
or more of the entities described in subparagraph (A),
(B), or (C);
any part of which is extended Federal financial assistance
relating to a covered substance.
``(2) Administrator.--The term `Administrator' has the
meaning given the term in section 511(7) of the Education for
Economic Security Act (20 U.S.C. 4020(7)).
``(3) Covered substance.--The term `covered substance'
means--
``(A) any material subject to the requirements
concerning material safety data sheets for chemicals
under the Occupational and Safety and Health Act of
1970 (29 U.S.C. 651 et seq.);
``(B) any contaminant identified in title XIV;
``(C) any substance described in section 201(q) of
the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act (21 U.S.C.
321(q)), and any material registered pursuant to the
Act referred to in such section;
``(D) any chemical listed by the National
Toxicology Program of the Department of Health and
Human Services as a known or probable human carcinogen;
and
``(E) any substance defined in section 101(14) of
the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation,
and Liability Act of 1980 (42 U.S.C. 9601(14)) and any
chemical subject to section 313 of the Emergency
Planning and Community Right-To-Know Act of 1986 (42
U.S.C. 11023).
``SEC. 2702. NONDISCRIMINATION.
``(a) Prohibition of Discrimination.--The President shall ensure
that no person shall be excluded from participation in, be denied the
benefits of, or be subject to discrimination under, any program or
activity, on the ground of race, color, or national origin.
``(b) Promulgation of Regulations.--
``(1) Subject.--Subject to paragraph (2), the Secretary of
Labor, the Secretary of Health and Human Services, the
Administrator, and any other head of a Federal agency with
responsibility for providing Federal financial assistance to a
program or activity shall issue regulations implementing the
nondiscrimination requirements described in subsection (a) in
accordance with any applicable law. The regulations shall bar
acts with discriminatory effects as well as intentionally
discriminatory acts. The regulations shall address actions of
programs or activities that result in disproportionate exposure
to a covered substance on the basis of race, color, or national
origin.
``(2) Timetable.--In issuing regulations under paragraph
(1)--
``(A) not later than 180 days after the date of
enactment of this Act, each individual described in
paragraph (1) shall publish a notice of proposed
rulemaking in the Federal Register;
``(B) each individual described in paragraph (1)
shall provide a public comment period, subject to
section 553 of title 5, United States Code, of 60 days
after the publication of the notice of proposed
rulemaking required under subparagraph (A); and
``(C) not later than 45 days after the close of the
public comment period required under subparagraph (B),
each individual described in paragraph (1) shall
publish final regulations.''.
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