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1 | AN ACT concerning public health.
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2 | Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
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3 | represented in the General Assembly:
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4 | Section 1. Short title. This Act may be cited as the | ||||||
5 | Biomonitoring Feasibility Study Act. | ||||||
6 | Section 5. Findings and purposes. | ||||||
7 | (a) The General Assembly finds all of the following: | ||||||
8 | (1) An estimated 100,000 chemicals are on the U.S. | ||||||
9 | Environmental Protection Agency's Toxic Substances Control | ||||||
10 | Act inventory and thousands are in commerce today in the | ||||||
11 | United States. | ||||||
12 | (2) These chemicals are regulated by the U.S. | ||||||
13 | Environmental Protection Agency, in accordance with the | ||||||
14 | Toxic Substances Control Act. | ||||||
15 | (3) With advancements in analytical chemistry, | ||||||
16 | scientists can now detect minute quantities of chemicals in | ||||||
17 | humans.
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18 | (4) Biomonitoring is one method for assessing human | ||||||
19 | exposure to chemicals by measuring the chemicals or their | ||||||
20 | breakdown products, known as metabolites, in human tissues | ||||||
21 | or specimens, such as blood and urine. In studies conducted | ||||||
22 | by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention | ||||||
23 | (CDC), biomonitoring data has helped to identify chemicals |
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1 | found in the environment and in human tissues, monitor | ||||||
2 | changes in human exposure to those chemicals, and | ||||||
3 | investigate the distribution of exposure among the general | ||||||
4 | population. The CDC has developed standardized and | ||||||
5 | validated analytical methods for measuring substances in | ||||||
6 | humans. The CDC's National Exposure Report provides | ||||||
7 | statistically valid distribution measurements of chemicals | ||||||
8 | in the U.S. population, including specific age, gender, and | ||||||
9 | ethnic groups. CDC continues to develop new validated | ||||||
10 | methods, and as they do so additional chemicals are being | ||||||
11 | reported. | ||||||
12 | (b) The purpose of this Act is for the University of | ||||||
13 | Illinois at Chicago (UIC), Great Lakes Center for Occupational | ||||||
14 | and Environmental Safety and Health to conduct an Environmental | ||||||
15 | Contaminant Biomonitoring Feasibility Study (Study) that | ||||||
16 | proposes the best way to establish an Illinois Environmental | ||||||
17 | Contaminant Biomonitoring Program (Program) that will do all of | ||||||
18 | the following: | ||||||
19 | (1) monitor the presence and concentration of | ||||||
20 | designated chemicals in a representative sample of the | ||||||
21 | population of this State; | ||||||
22 | (2) produce biomonitoring studies that provide data | ||||||
23 | for scientists, researchers, public health personnel, and | ||||||
24 | community members to explore potential linkages between | ||||||
25 | chemical exposure and health concerns; and
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26 | (3) support Illinois public health by establishing |
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1 | trends in chemical exposures, validating modeling and | ||||||
2 | survey methods, supporting epidemiological studies, | ||||||
3 | identifying highly exposed communities, addressing the | ||||||
4 | data gaps between chemical exposures and specific health | ||||||
5 | outcomes, informing health responses to unanticipated | ||||||
6 | emergency exposures, assessing the effectiveness of | ||||||
7 | current regulations, and setting priorities for research. | ||||||
8 | Section 10. Definitions. In this Act: | ||||||
9 | "Agency" means the Illinois Environmental Protection | ||||||
10 | Agency.
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11 | "Department" means the Illinois Department of Public | ||||||
12 | Health. | ||||||
13 | "Panel" means the Scientific Guidance Panel.
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14 | "Program" means the Illinois Environmental Contaminant | ||||||
15 | Biomonitoring Program. | ||||||
16 | "Study" means the Environmental Contaminant Biomonitoring | ||||||
17 | Feasibility Study. | ||||||
18 | Section 15. Scientific Guidance Panel. | ||||||
19 | (a) In implementing the Study, the Department and the | ||||||
20 | Agency shall establish a Scientific Guidance Panel. The | ||||||
21 | Directors of the Department and the Agency shall appoint the | ||||||
22 | members of the Panel. The Panel shall be composed of 11 | ||||||
23 | members, whose expertise shall encompass the disciplines of | ||||||
24 | public health, epidemiology, biostatistics, environmental |
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1 | medicine, risk analysis, exposure assessment, developmental | ||||||
2 | biology, laboratory sciences, bioethics, maternal and child | ||||||
3 | health with a specialty in breastfeeding, and toxicology. | ||||||
4 | Members shall be appointed for 2-year terms. Members may be | ||||||
5 | reappointed for additional terms without limitation. Members | ||||||
6 | shall serve until their successors are appointed and have | ||||||
7 | qualified for membership on the Panel. Vacancies shall be | ||||||
8 | filled in the same manner as the original appointments, and any | ||||||
9 | member so appointed shall serve during the remainder of the | ||||||
10 | term for which the vacancy occurred. The Panel shall meet, at a | ||||||
11 | minimum, 3 times per year. The Agency shall be responsible for | ||||||
12 | staffing and administration of the Panel. Members of the Panel | ||||||
13 | shall be reimbursed for travel and other necessary expenses | ||||||
14 | incurred in the performance of their duties under this Act, but | ||||||
15 | shall not receive a salary or compensation. | ||||||
16 | (b) The Panel shall provide guidance to UIC and make | ||||||
17 | recommendations regarding the design and implementation of the | ||||||
18 | Program. The Panel shall recommend: | ||||||
19 | (1) scientifically sound Program design, rationale, | ||||||
20 | and procedures for selecting and collecting biological | ||||||
21 | samples and for selecting the populations for | ||||||
22 | biomonitoring, taking into account both ethical issues and | ||||||
23 | issues pertaining to confidentiality of data; | ||||||
24 | (2) scientifically sound, peer-reviewed procedures for | ||||||
25 | incorporating biomonitoring data into risk assessment | ||||||
26 | guidance, policies and regulations; |
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1 | (3) procedures to accurately and effectively interpret | ||||||
2 | and communicate biomonitoring results within the context | ||||||
3 | of potential risks to human health; and
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4 | (4) a procedure for selecting priority chemicals for | ||||||
5 | inclusion in the Program using sound public health | ||||||
6 | criteria, including all of the following criteria:
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7 | (A) The degree of potential exposure to the public | ||||||
8 | or specific subgroups, including, but not limited to, | ||||||
9 | certain occupations. | ||||||
10 | (B) The likelihood of a chemical being a carcinogen | ||||||
11 | or toxicant based on peer-reviewed health data, its | ||||||
12 | chemical structure, or the toxicology of chemically | ||||||
13 | related compounds.
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14 | (C) The availability and the limits of validated | ||||||
15 | laboratory detection for the chemical, including the | ||||||
16 | ability to reliably detect and quantify the chemical at | ||||||
17 | levels low enough to be expected in the general | ||||||
18 | population.
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19 | (c) The Panel may recommend additional designated | ||||||
20 | chemicals not included in the National Report on Human Exposure | ||||||
21 | to Environmental Chemicals for inclusion in the Program using | ||||||
22 | all of the following criteria:
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23 | (1) Exposure or potential exposure to the public or | ||||||
24 | specific subgroups. | ||||||
25 | (2) The known or suspected health effects resulting | ||||||
26 | from some level of exposure based on scientifically valid |
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1 | studies. | ||||||
2 | (3) The need to assess the efficacy of public health | ||||||
3 | actions to reduce exposure to a chemical causally | ||||||
4 | associated with human health effects at environmentally | ||||||
5 | relevant exposure levels. | ||||||
6 | (4) The availability of a scientifically valid method | ||||||
7 | for accurately and reliably measuring the chemical in human | ||||||
8 | specimens.
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9 | Section 20. Study report. Two years after the effective | ||||||
10 | date of this Act, UIC shall release a draft report for public | ||||||
11 | review and comment and for review by the Panel. The draft | ||||||
12 | report shall contain the findings of the Study and shall | ||||||
13 | include in the report recommended activities and estimated | ||||||
14 | costs of establishing the Program. The period for public | ||||||
15 | comment and review by the Panel shall last for 60 days. Within | ||||||
16 | 90 days of the close of the public comment period, the draft | ||||||
17 | report shall be revised, taking into consideration the comments | ||||||
18 | received and the recommendations of the Panel. The final report | ||||||
19 | shall be submitted to the Governor and General Assembly.
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