Climate Justice Act of 2021

I 117TH CONGRESS 1ST SESSION H. R. 2394 To provide for the establishment of a Climate Justice Working Group to help guide the Nation’s just and equitable transition towards a clean, climate-resilient, zero-emission economy, and for other purposes. IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES APRIL 8, 2021 Ms. CLARKE of New York (for herself, Ms. VELA´ZQUEZ, Ms. BARRAGA´N, Ms. NORTON, Ms. MOORE of Wisconsin, Mr. BLUMENAUER, Mr. GRIJALVA, Mr. NADLER, Mr. BOWMAN, Ms. CHU, Mr. ESPAILLAT, Ms. BLUNT ROCHESTER, Ms. LEE of California, Ms. MATSUI, and Ms. MENG) intro- duced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Energy and Commerce, and in addition to the Committee on Natural Resources, 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 provide for the establishment of a Climate Justice Work- ing Group to help guide the Nation’s just and equitable transition towards a clean, climate-resilient, zero-emis- sion economy, and for other purposes. Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa- 1 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 2 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 3 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Climate Justice Act 4 of 2021’’. 5 VerDate Sep 11 2014 05:34 May 27, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00001 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H2394.IH H2394 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 2 •HR 2394 IH SEC. 2. CLIMATE JUSTICE WORKING GROUP. 1 (a) ESTABLISHMENT.—Not later than 60 days after 2 the date of enactment of this Act, the President shall es- 3 tablish an advisory committee, to be known as the Climate 4 Justice Working Group, to advise on the Nation’s just and 5 equitable transition towards a clean, climate-resilient, 6 zero-emission economy. 7 (b) MEMBERSHIP.— 8 (1) TOTAL NUMBER.—The Working Group 9 shall be comprised of no fewer than 22 members. 10 (2) QUALIFICATIONS.—The members of the 11 Work Group shall have significant expertise or expe- 12 rience in matters relating to— 13 (A) climate change and environmental pol- 14 lution; and 15 (B) the impacts of climate change and en- 16 vironmental pollution on frontline and disadvan- 17 taged communities. 18 (3) APPOINTMENT.—The members of the 19 Working Group shall be appointed by the President 20 and shall include at a minimum the following rep- 21 resentatives: 22 (A) Eight representatives from frontline 23 community-based organizations with experience 24 with, and a history of, advocacy regarding envi- 25 ronmental justice or climate justice and equity 26 VerDate Sep 11 2014 05:34 May 27, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H2394.IH H2394 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 3 •HR 2394 IH issues. The representatives appointed pursuant 1 to this subparagraph shall include at least one 2 from each of a coastal community, a rural com- 3 munity, an urban community, and a Tribal 4 community. 5 (B) One representative from the Environ- 6 mental Protection Agency. 7 (C) One representative from the Depart- 8 ment of Transportation. 9 (D) One representative from the Depart- 10 ment of the Interior. 11 (E) One representative from the Depart- 12 ment of Energy. 13 (F) One representative from the Depart- 14 ment of Housing and Urban Development. 15 (G) One representative from the Federal 16 Emergency Management Agency. 17 (H) One public health representative from 18 the Department of Health and Human Services. 19 (I) One representative from the Council on 20 Environmental Quality. 21 (J) Two representatives from local govern- 22 ment. 23 (K) Two representatives from State gov- 24 ernment. 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 05:34 May 27, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H2394.IH H2394 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 4 •HR 2394 IH (L) Two representatives from Tribal gov- 1 ernment. 2 (c) DUTIES.— 3 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Working Group shall 4 advise and provide recommendations to the Presi- 5 dent and Federal agencies on or relating to the just 6 and equitable creation and implementation of goals 7 and initiatives to transition towards a clean, climate- 8 resilient, zero-emission economy, including through 9 reduction of greenhouse gas emissions and copollut- 10 ants. 11 (2) CORE FUNCTIONS.— 12 (A) CRITERIA AND METRICS.—The Work- 13 ing Group, in consultation with relevant Fed- 14 eral agencies, interagency councils, White 15 House offices, and advisory councils, shall es- 16 tablish a robust set of criteria and metrics to 17 identify climate-burdened communities for the 18 purposes of informing relevant Federal initia- 19 tives to geographically map the location of dis- 20 advantaged or vulnerable communities and of 21 achieving a just and equitable transition to- 22 wards a clean, climate-resilient, zero-emission 23 economy. Such criteria and metrics shall be es- 24 tablished based on geographic, public health, 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 05:34 May 27, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00004 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H2394.IH H2394 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 5 •HR 2394 IH environmental hazard, and socioeconomic con- 1 siderations, including such considerations as— 2 (i) a disproportionate prevalence of 3 negative health conditions; 4 (ii) cumulative environmental pollu- 5 tion and other hazards that can lead to 6 negative public health effects; 7 (iii) proximity to existing environ- 8 mental pollution and degradation, polluting 9 facilities, waste sites, or natural resource 10 extraction sites; 11 (iv) vulnerability to the impacts of cli- 12 mate change such as flooding, drought, 13 storm surges, and urban heat island ef- 14 fects; 15 (v) vulnerability to displacement due 16 to the impacts of climate change or other 17 socioeconomic forces; 18 (vi) access to green space; 19 (vii) historical and present-day dis- 20 crimination on the basis of race, ethnicity, 21 gender, national origin, immigration sta- 22 tus, or other demographic factors; 23 (viii) historical or present-day experi- 24 ence of economic transition, 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 05:34 May 27, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00005 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H2394.IH H2394 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 6 •HR 2394 IH deindustrialization, or chronic underinvest- 1 ment; 2 (ix) income and wealth; 3 (x) rent burden; 4 (xi) home ownership; 5 (xii) educational attainment; 6 (xiii) linguistic isolation; and 7 (xiv) such other considerations as the 8 Working Group considers appropriate. 9 (B) GUIDING PRINCIPLES.—The Working 10 Group, in consultation with relevant Federal 11 agencies, interagency councils, White House of- 12 fices, and advisory councils, shall establish guid- 13 ing principles and recommendations for ensur- 14 ing that, with respect to climate-burdened com- 15 munities, all Federal goals and initiatives in- 16 volving greenhouse gas emissions, copollutant 17 reductions, and the allocation of Federal invest- 18 ments related to achieving a clean, climate-resil- 19 ient, zero-emission economy— 20 (i) prioritize and directly benefit such 21 communities; 22 (ii) do not produce new or exacerbate 23 existing disproportionate health, environ- 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 05:34 May 27, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00006 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H2394.IH H2394 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 7 •HR 2394 IH mental, or socioeconomic burdens in such 1 communities; and 2 (iii) include meaningful public con- 3 sultation and engagement with members of 4 such communities. 5 (C) COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT.—In car- 6 rying out subparagraphs (A) and (B), the 7 Working Group shall initiate and carry out pub- 8 lic engagement, particularly with residents and 9 stakeholders from disadvantaged and front-line 10 communities, to ensure that the public has 11 input into the criteria and metrics under sub- 12 paragraph (A) and the guiding principles and 13 recommendations under subparagraph (B). 14 (D) DRAFT REPORT.—Before finalizing the 15 criteria and metrics under subparagraph (A) 16 and the guiding principles and recommenda- 17 tions under subparagraph (B), the Working 18 Group shall— 19 (i) publish a draft report containing a 20 list of the proposed criteria and metrics 21 and guiding principles and recommenda- 22 tions; 23 (ii) make such draft report available 24 on an easily accessible public website; and 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 05:34 May 27, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00007 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H2394.IH H2394 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 8 •HR 2394 IH (iii) deliver such draft report to the 1 Committee on Energy and Commerce of 2 the House of Representatives and the 3 Committee on Environment and Public 4 Works of the Senate. 5 (E) PUBLIC INPUT.— 6 (i) COMMENT PERIOD.—After pub- 7 lishing the draft report under subpara- 8 graph (D), the Working Group shall pro- 9 vide a period of at least 120 days for the 10 submission of public comment on the draft 11 report. 12 (ii) PUBLIC HEARINGS.—During such 13 120-day period, the Working Group shall 14 hold at least four public hearings on the 15 draft report in different geographic regions 16 of the United States. 17 (iii) MEANINGFUL OPPORTUNITIES.— 18 The Working Group shall ensure there are 19 meaningful opportunities for public com- 20 ment on the draft report from all segments 21 of the population that might be impacted 22 by the criteria and metrics under subpara- 23 graph (A) and the guiding principles and 24 recommendations under subparagraph (B), 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 05:34 May 27, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00008 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H2394.IH H2394 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 9 •HR 2394 IH including persons living in areas that may 1 be identified as climate-burdened commu- 2 nities under such criteria and metrics. 3 (F) OUTREACH.—During the 120-day pe- 4 riod for public comment under subparagraph 5 (E)(i), and as soon as practicable, the Working 6 Group, in coordination with relevant Federal 7 entities, shall perform targeted outreach to all 8 segments of the population that might be im- 9 pacted by the criteria and metrics under sub- 10 paragraph (A) and the guiding principles and 11 recommendations under subparagraph (B) in 12 order to inform such persons about the draft 13 report and ways to provide meaningful input on 14 the finalization of the report. 15 (G) FINAL REPORT.—Once public input 16 has been sufficiently taken into account, and 17 not later than 1 year after publication of the 18 draft report under subparagraph (D), the 19 Working Group shall— 20 (i) publish a final report containing 21 the criteria and metrics under subpara- 22 graph (A) and the guiding principles and 23 recommendations under subparagraph (B), 24 including in a downloadable report made 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 05:34 May 27, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00009 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H2394.IH H2394 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 10 •HR 2394 IH available on an easily accessible public 1 website; and 2 (ii) deliver such final report to the 3 Committee on Energy and Commerce of 4 the House of Representatives, the Com- 5 mittee on Environment and Public Works 6 of the Senate, and the President. 7 (d) FEDERAL EXPERTS.—In carrying out this Act, 8 the Working Group may call upon experts at Federal 9 agencies and White House offices to provide testimony and 10 advice. 11 (e) MEETINGS.—The Working Group shall meet not 12 less than annually to review and provide guidance on Fed- 13 eral goals and initiatives for the Nation’s just and equi- 14 table transition towards a clean, climate-resilient, zero- 15 emission economy, including to review and modify as nec- 16 essary any of the criteria and metrics established pursuant 17 to subsection (c)(2)(A), or the guiding principles and rec- 18 ommendations established pursuant to subsection 19 (c)(2)(B). 20 (f) COMPENSATION AND EXPENSES.—Any nonfeder- 21 ally employed member of the Working Group, when at- 22 tending meetings of the Working Group or when otherwise 23 engaged in the business of the Working Group, shall re- 24 ceive— 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 05:34 May 27, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00010 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H2394.IH H2394 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 11 •HR 2394 IH (1) compensation at a rate fixed by the Sec- 1 retary, not exceeding the daily equivalent of the cur- 2 rent rate of basic pay in effect for GS–15 of the 3 General Schedule under section 5332 of title 5, 4 United States Code, including travel time; and 5 (2) travel or transportation expenses under sec- 6 tion 5703 of title 5, United States Code. 7 (g) APPLICABILITY OF FEDERAL ADVISORY COM- 8 MITTEE ACT.— 9 (1) IN GENERAL.—Subject to paragraph (2), 10 the Federal Advisory Committee Act (5 U.S.C. 11 App.) shall apply to the Working Group. 12 (2) TERMINATION.—The termination require- 13 ments under section 14 of the Federal Advisory 14 Committee Act (5 U.S.C. App.) shall not apply to 15 the Working Group. 16 (h) DEFINITIONS.—In this section: 17 (1) The term ‘‘frontline community-based orga- 18 nization’’ means a local nonprofit advocacy organiza- 19 tion that represents frontline communities that are 20 most vulnerable to the impacts of climate change or 21 burdened by environmental pollution. 22 (2) The term ‘‘Working Group’’ means the Cli- 23 mate Justice Working Group established pursuant to 24 subsection (a). 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 05:34 May 27, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00011 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H2394.IH H2394 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 12 •HR 2394 IH SEC. 3. IMPLEMENTATION BY FEDERAL AGENCIES OF CRI- 1 TERIA, METRICS, GUIDING PRINCIPLES, AND 2 RECOMMENDATIONS. 3 No later than 90 days after the completion of the 4 final report under section 2(c)(2)(G), the President 5 shall— 6 (1) direct all relevant Federal agencies, White 7 House offices, Federal interagency councils, and 8 other relevant Federal entities— 9 (A) to incorporate the criteria and metrics 10 under subsection (c)(2)(A) to identify climate- 11 burdened communities, including for the pur- 12 pose of informing any relevant initiatives to 13 geographically map the location of disadvan- 14 taged or vulnerable communities, including the 15 Environmental Protection Agency’s EJScreen 16 tool; and 17 (B) to incorporate the guiding principles 18 and recommendations under section 2(c)(2)(B) 19 into plans, strategies, and programs to the 20 maximum extent possible, including for the pur- 21 pose of prioritizing investment and directing 22 programmatic resources towards climate-bur- 23 dened communities, including through the 24 Justice40 Initiative; and 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 05:34 May 27, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00012 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H2394.IH H2394 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 13 •HR 2394 IH (2 [Text truncated for display. 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