HR 1030
112th CONGRESS
1st Session
H. R. 1030
To amend the Energy Employees Occupational Illness Compensation Program
Act of 2000 to establish the Advisory Board on Toxic Substances and Worker
Health for the contractor employee compensation program under subtitle E of
such Act.
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
March 10, 2011
Mr. WHITFIELD (for himself and Mr. POLIS) introduced the following bill;
which was referred to the Committee on the Judiciary, and in addition to the
Committee on Education and the Workforce, 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
A BILL
To amend the Energy Employees Occupational Illness Compensation Program
Act of 2000 to establish the Advisory Board on Toxic Substances and Worker
Health for the contractor employee compensation program under subtitle E of
such Act.
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 `EEOICPA Amendment Act of 2011'.
SEC. 2. ESTABLISHMENT OF THE ADVISORY BOARD ON TOXIC SUBSTANCES AND WORKER
HEALTH.
(a) Advisory Board on Toxic Substances and Worker Health- Subtitle E of the
Energy Employees Occupational Illness Compensation Program Act of 2000 (42
U.S.C. 7385 et seq.) is amended by adding at the end the following new section:
`SEC. 3687. ADVISORY BOARD ON TOXIC SUBSTANCES AND WORKER HEALTH.
`(1) IN GENERAL- Not later than 120 days after the date of the enactment
of this section, the President shall establish and appoint an Advisory Board
on Toxic Substances and Worker Health (in this section referred to as the
`Board').
`(2) CONSULTATION ON APPOINTMENTS- The President shall make appointments
to the Board in consultation with organizations with expertise on worker
health issues in order to ensure that the membership of the Board reflects
a balance of perspectives from the scientific, medical, legal, worker, and
worker advocate communities.
`(3) CHAIR- The President shall designate a Chair for the Board from among
its members.
`(b) Duties- The Board shall--
`(1) advise the Secretary, the Secretary of Energy, and the Secretary of
Health and Human Services concerning the review and approval of the site
exposure matrix used to determine eligibility for compensation under this
subtitle for illnesses resulting from exposure to toxic substances;
`(2) periodically review and approve guidance provided to claims examiners
on weighing medical evidence under this subtitle;
`(3) review reports by consulting physicians to ensure quality, objectivity,
and consistency; and
`(4) coordinate exchanges of data and findings with the Advisory Board on
Radiation and Worker Health to the extent necessary.
`(1) IN GENERAL- The Secretary shall appoint a staff to facilitate the work
of the Board. The staff shall be headed by a Director who shall be appointed
under subchapter VIII of chapter 33 of title 5, United States Code.
`(2) FEDERAL AGENCY PERSONNEL- The Secretary may accept as staff of the
Board personnel on detail from other Federal agencies as necessary to enable
the Board to carry out its duties under this section. The detail of personnel
under this paragraph may be on a nonreimbursable basis.
`(3) CONTRACTORS- The Secretary shall employ outside contractors and specialists
selected by the Board to support the work of the Board.
`(d) Expenses- Members of the Board, other than full-time employees of the
United States, while attending meetings of the Board or while otherwise serving
at the request of the President, while serving away from their homes or regular
places of business, shall be allowed travel and meal expenses, including per
diem in lieu of subsistence, in accordance with applicable provisions under
subchapter I of chapter 57 of title 5, United States Code.
`(e) Security Clearances-
`(1) APPLICATION- The Secretary of Energy shall ensure that the members
and staff of the Board, and the contractors performing work in support of
the Board, are afforded the opportunity to apply for a security clearance
for any matter for which such a clearance is appropriate.
`(2) DETERMINATION- The Secretary of Energy should, not later than 180 days
after receiving a completed application for a security clearance under this
subsection, make a determination whether or not the individual concerned
is eligible for the clearance.
`(3) REPORT- For fiscal year 2013 and each fiscal year thereafter, the Secretary
of Energy shall include in the budget justification materials submitted
to Congress in support of the Department of Energy budget for that fiscal
year (as submitted with the budget of the President under section 1105(a)
of title 31, United States Code) a report specifying the number of applications
for security clearances under this subsection, the number of such applications
granted, and the number of such applications denied.
`(f) Information- The Secretary of Energy shall, in accordance with law, provide
to the Board and the contractors of the Board access to any information that
the Board considers relevant to carry out its responsibilities under this
section, including information such as Restricted Data (as defined in section
11(y) of the Atomic Energy Act of 1954 (42 U.S.C. 2014(y))) and information
covered by the Privacy Act.'.
(b) Ombudsman Report- Section 3686 of such Act (42 U.S.C. 7385s-15) is amended--
(1) by redesignating subsection (h) as subsection (i); and
(2) by inserting after subsection (g) the following:
`(1) TIMING- Not later than 90 days after the publication of the annual
report under subsection (e), the Secretary shall submit to Congress a written
response to the report.
`(2) CONTENTS OF RESPONSE-
`(A) AGREEMENT- If the Secretary agrees with a finding of the Ombudsman
in the report, the Secretary shall include in the response proposed actions
to address any issues raised by the finding.
`(B) DISAGREEMENT- If the Secretary disagrees with a finding of the Ombudsman
in the report, the Secretary shall include in the response the reasons
of disagreement with the finding.
`(3) PUBLICATION- The Secretary shall post the response on the public Internet
site of the Department of Labor.'.
END
