[Congressional Bills 110th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 642 Reported in Senate (RS)]
Calendar No. 1056
110th CONGRESS
2d Session
S. 642
[Report No. 110-485]
To codify Executive Order 12898, relating to environmental justice, to
require the Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency to
fully implement the recommendations of the Inspector General of the
Agency and the Comptroller General of the United States, and for other
purposes.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES
February 15, 2007
Mr. Durbin (for himself, Mr. Kerry, Mr. Menendez, Mrs. Clinton, and
Mrs. Boxer) introduced the following bill; which was read twice and
referred to the Committee on Environment and Public Works
September 24 (legislative day, September 17), 2008
Reported by Mrs. Boxer, without amendment
_______________________________________________________________________
A BILL
To codify Executive Order 12898, relating to environmental justice, to
require the Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency to
fully implement the recommendations of the Inspector General of the
Agency and the Comptroller General of the United States, and for other
purposes.
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 ``Environmental Justice Act of 2008''.
SEC. 2. CODIFICATION OF EXECUTIVE ORDER 12898.
(a) In General.--The President of the United States is authorized
and directed to execute, administer and enforce as a matter of Federal
law the provisions of Executive Order 12898, dated February 11, 1994,
(``Federal Actions To Address Environmental Justice In Minority
Populations and Low-Income Populations'') with such modifications as
are provided in this section.
(b) Definition of Environmental Justice.--For purposes of carrying
out the provisions of Executive Order 12898, the following definitions
shall apply:
(1) The term ``environmental justice'' means the fair
treatment and meaningful involvement of all people regardless
of race, color, national origin, educational level, or income
with respect to the development, implementation, and
enforcement of environmental laws and regulations in order to
ensure that--
(A) minority and low-income communities have access
to public information relating to human health and
environmental planning, regulations and enforcement;
and
(B) no minority or low-income population is forced
to shoulder a disproportionate burden of the negative
human health and environmental impacts of pollution or
other environmental hazard.
(2) The term ``fair treatment'' means policies and
practices that ensure that no group of people, including
racial, ethnic, or socioeconomic groups bear disproportionately
high and adverse human health or environmental effects
resulting from Federal agency programs, policies, and
activities.
(c) Judicial Review and Rights of Action.--The provisions of
section 6-609 of Executive Order 12898 shall not apply for purposes of
this Act.
SEC. 3. IMPLEMENTATION OF RECOMMENDATIONS BY ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION
AGENCY.
(a) Inspector General Recommendations.--The Administrator of the
Environmental Protection Agency shall, as promptly as practicable,
carry out each of the following recommendations of the Inspector
General of the agency as set forth in report # 2006-P-00034 entitled
``EPA needs to conduct environmental justice reviews of its programs,
policies and activities'':
(1) The recommendation that the agency's program and
regional offices identify which programs, policies, and
activities need environmental justice reviews and require these
offices to establish a plan to complete the necessary reviews.
(2) The recommendation that the Administrator of the agency
ensure that these reviews determine whether the programs,
policies, and activities may have a disproportionately high and
adverse health or environmental impact on minority and low-
income populations.
(3) The recommendation that each program and regional
office develop specific environmental justice review guidance
for conducting environmental justice reviews.
(4) The recommendation that the Administrator designate a
responsible office to compile results of environmental justice
reviews and recommend appropriate actions.
(b) GAO Recommendations.--In developing rules under laws
administered by the Environmental Protection Agency, the Administrator
of the Agency shall, as promptly as practicable, carry out each of the
following recommendations of the Comptroller General of the United
States as set forth in GAO Report numbered GAO-05-289 entitled ``EPA
Should Devote More Attention to Environmental Justice when Developing
Clean Air Rules'':
(1) The recommendation that the Administrator ensure that
workgroups involved in developing a rule devote attention to
environmental justice while drafting and finalizing the rule.
(2) The recommendation that the Administrator enhance the
ability of such workgroups to identify potential environmental
justice issues through such steps as providing workgroup
members with guidance and training to helping them identify
potential environmental justice problems and involving
environmental justice coordinators in the workgroups when
appropriate.
(3) The recommendation that the Administrator improve
assessments of potential environmental justice impacts in
economic reviews by identifying the data and developing the
modeling techniques needed to assess such impacts.
(4) The recommendation that the Administrator direct
appropriate agency officers and employees to respond fully when
feasible to public comments on environmental justice, including
improving the agency's explanation of the basis for its
conclusions, together with supporting data.
(c) 2004 Inspector General Report.--The Administrator of the
Environmental Protection Agency shall, as promptly as practicable,
carry out each of the following recommendations of the Inspector
General of the agency as set forth in the report entitled ``EPA Needs
to Consistently Implement the Intent of the Executive Order on
Environmental Justice'' (Report No. 2004-P-00007):
(1) The recommendation that the agency clearly define the
mission of the Office of Environmental Justice (OEJ) and
provide agency staff with an understanding of the roles and
responsibilities of the office.
(2) The recommendation that the agency establish (through
issuing guidance or a policy statement from the Administrator)
specific time frames for the development of definitions, goals,
and measurements regarding environmental justice and provide
the regions and program offices a standard and consistent
definition for a minority and low-income community, with
instructions on how the agency will implement and
operationalize environmental justice into the agency's daily
activities.
(3) The recommendation that the agency ensure the
comprehensive training program currently under development
includes standard and consistent definitions of the key
environmental justice concepts (such as ``low-income'',
``minority'', and ``disproportionately impacted'') and
instructions for implementation of those concepts.
(d) Report.--The Administrator shall submit an initial report to
Congress within 6 months after the enactment of this Act regarding the
Administrator's strategy for implementing the recommendations referred
to in subsections (a), (b), and (c). Thereafter, the Administrator
shall provide semi-annual reports to Congress regarding his progress in
implementing such recommendations as well as his progress on modifying
the Administrator's emergency management procedures to incorporate
environmental justice in the agency's Incident Command Structure (in
accordance with the December 18, 2006, letter from the Deputy
Administrator to the Acting Inspector General of the agency).
Calendar No. 1056
110th CONGRESS
2d Session
S. 642
[Report No. 110-485]
_______________________________________________________________________
A BILL
To codify Executive Order 12898, relating to environmental justice, to
require the Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency to
fully implement the recommendations of the Inspector General of the
Agency and the Comptroller General of the United States, and for other
purposes.
_______________________________________________________________________
September 24 (legislative day, September 17), 2008
Reported without amendment