Washington, D.C. – Today, U.S. Senator Joe Donnelly helped the Senate pass a bipartisan appropriations bill that would fund multiple federal agencies, including the Department of Labor and the Department of Health and Human Services. The bill includes Donnelly’s bipartisan amendment that he introduced with Senator Mike Crapo (R-ID), which would provide $1 million in funding for implementation of Trevor’s Law. Donnelly has been pressing the Administration to fully implement Trevor’s Law as it could be valuable in investigating potential cancer clusters in communities such as Franklin in Johnson County.
Also, the bill would double the current level of funding for CDC’s efforts to reduce childhood lead poisoning, which could benefit communities like East Chicago that have been impacted by lead contamination. The funding would help in efforts to lower children’s blood lead levels, preventing future harm. It would help educate health care providers and the public about lead poisoning, monitor childhood blood lead levels, and provide funding to states for childhood lead poisoning prevention initiatives.
Donnelly said, “It’s critical that Hoosier children have the best possible chance at a healthy life and a bright future, and that requires us to be vigilant in reducing exposures to harmful environmental factors beyond their control. That’s why I’m pleased the Senate passed this bipartisan bill, including my amendment that would help ensure Trevor’s Law is implemented in order to improve the way federal, state, and local governments and the public work to investigate and address potential cancer clusters. This legislation also is important because it would increase funding for CDC’s efforts to reduce childhood lead poisoning.”
Yesterday, Donnelly spoke on the Senate floor about the importance of supporting efforts to make sure Hoosiers have confidence their communities are safe.
Trevor’s Law was passed as part of the bipartisan Frank Lautenberg Chemical Safety for the 21st Century Act, which was enacted in 2016. Trevor’s Law was designed to provide federal agencies with the authority to help conduct investigations and to take the necessary actions to help address the factors that may contribute to the creation of cancer clusters. The law, which has yet to be implemented, is intended to better enable federal agencies to coordinate with state and local agencies and the public.
