Page:United States Statutes at Large Volume 98 Part 2.djvu/128

 98 STAT. 1288

M PUBLIC LAW 98-377—AUG. 11, 1984 dislodged into the air, and (B) asbestos concentration far exceeding normal ambient air levels have been found in school buildings containing such damaged materials; (6) the presence in school buildings of friable or easily damaged asbestos creates an unwarranted hazard to the health of the school children and school employees who are exposed to such materials; (7) the Department of Health and Human Services and the Environmental Protection Agency, as well as several States, have attempted to publicize the potential hazards to school children and employees from exposure to asbestos fibers, but there is no systematic program for remedying hazardous conditions in schools; (8) because there is no Federal health standard regulating the concentration of asbestos fibers in noncommercial workplace environments such as schools, school employees and students may be exposed to hazardous concentrations of asbestos fibers in the school buildings which they use each day; (9) without a program of information distribution, technical and scientific assistance, and financial support, many local educational agencies and States will not be able to mitigate the potential asbestos hazards in their schools; and (10) the effective regulation of interstate commerce for the protection of the public health requires the establishment of programs under this title to mitigate hazards from exposure to asbestos fibers and materials emitting such fibers. (b) It is the purpose of this title to— (1) direct the Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency to establish a program to assist States and local educational agencies to ascertain the extent of the danger to the health of school children and employees from asbestos materials in schools; (2) provide continuing scientific and technical assistance to State and local agencies to enable them to identify and abate asbestos hazards in schools; (3) provide financial assistance for the abatement of asbestos threats to the health and safety of school children or employees; and (4) assure that no employee of any local educational agency suffers any disciplinary action as a result of calling attention to potential asbestos hazards which may exist in schools. ASBESTOS HAZARD ABATEMENT PROGRAM

Establishment. 20 USC 4012.

SEC. 503. (a)(1) There is hereby established a program within the Environmental Protection Agency to be known as the Asbestos Hazards Abatement Program (hereinafter in this title referred to as "Program"). (b) The duties of the Administrator in implementing and effectuating the Program shall include— (1) the compilation of medical, scientific, and technical information including, but not limited to— (A) the health and safety hazards associated with asbestos materials; (B) the means of identifying, sampling, and testing materials suspected of emitting asbestos fibers; and

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