Energy & Commerce Committee to Markup 18 Bills on Tuesday

Press Release

Energy and Commerce Committee Chairman Frank Pallone, Jr. (D-NJ) announced today that the Energy and Commerce Committee will hold a full Committee markup on Tuesday, November 19, at 10 am in the John D. Dingell Room, 2123 Rayburn House Office Building.

"Next week, the Energy and Commerce Committee takes another significant step to protect consumers and the public health, strengthen our economy and secure our infrastructure," Pallone said. "We will markup legislation to address the youth tobacco epidemic, improve maternity care, and protect Americans from toxic chemicals and scams. We're also going to make our pipelines safer and more climate resilient, secure our communications networks, fix broadband maps, reauthorize our media laws and support American businesses. Our five legislative subcommittees have been hard at work on these bills, and we look forward to marking them up at the full Committee on Tuesday."

The Committee will consider the following bills:

H.R. ____, the "Safe, Accountable, Fair, and Environmentally Responsible Pipelines Act of 2019," or the "SAFER Pipelines Act of 2019," which will reflect the text of H.R. 5120, which was introduced earlier today. This comprehensive pipeline safety legislation takes numerous steps to improve pipeline safety and address climate change by reducing emissions, preventing pipeline leaks, and holding pipeline operators accountable for reckless actions. The bill also reinstates a 2016 Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) final rule that set limitations on methane emissions across the natural gas and hazardous liquid pipeline sector.

H.R.2339, the "Reversing the Youth Tobacco Epidemic Act," was introduced by Pallone and Rep. Donna Shalala (D-FL). The legislation prohibits flavored tobacco products, including e-cigarettes, increases the minimum age for purchasing tobacco products to 21, bans all non-face-to-face sales for tobacco products, and protects kids from the marketing of tobacco products.

H.R. 4995, the "Maternal Health Quality Improvement Act of 2019," was introduced by Reps. Eliot Engel (D-NY), Larry Bucshon (R-IN), Xochitl Torres Small (D-NM), Bob Latta (R-OH), Alma Adams (D-NC), and Steve Stivers (R-OH). The legislation creates new programs in the Public Health Service Act to improve on maternal health, including programs to strengthen maternal health quality and access to care in rural areas, programs to address racial and ethnic disparities in maternal health outcomes, and grants to implement best practices in maternal health care and strengthen training programs.

H.R.4996, the "Helping Medicaid Offer Maternity Services Act of 2019," or the "Helping MOMS Act," was introduced by Reps. Robin Kelly (D-IL), Michael Burgess (R-TX), Lauren Underwood (D-IL), Cathy McMorris Rodgers (R-WA), Ayanna Pressley (D-MA), and Buddy Carter (R-GA). The legislation would create a new state plan option to extend continuous Medicaid or Children's Health Insurance Plan (CHIP) eligibility for one year postpartum. It would also require the Medicaid and CHIP Payment and Access Commission (MACPAC) to issue a report on access to doula care in Medicaid.

H.R. 1603, the "Alan Reinstein Ban Asbestos Now Act of 2019," was introduced by Reps. Suzanne Bonamici (D-OR), Elissa Slotkin (D-MI), Pallone and 24 additional cosponsors. It would ban the production, use and importation of asbestos. The legislation implements a complete ban on the toxic substance one year after the bill's passage.

H.R. 535, the "PFAS Action Act of 2019," was introduced by Reps. Debbie Dingell (D-MI) and Fred Upton (R-MI). The bill requires that within one year of enactment that the EPA Administrator shall designate all per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances as hazardous substances under section 102(a) of the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation and Liability Act (CERCLA).

An amendment in the nature of a substitute (AINS) to H.R. 535 is expected to be offered. The AINS will incorporate text from 11 additional bills addressing PFAS, all of which were considered at an Environment and Climate Change Subcommittee markup on September 26. Those bills, listed below, were favorably forwarded to the full Committee by a voice vote.

H.R. 2377, the "Protect Drinking Water from PFAS Act of 2019";
H.R. 2533, the "Providing Financial Assistance for Safe Drinking Water Act";
H.R. 2566, a bill to require the Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency to revise the Safer Choice Standard to provide for a Safer Choice label for pots, pans, and cooking utensils that do not contain PFAS, and for other purposes;
H.R. 2577; the "PFAS Right-To-Know Act";
H.R. 2591, the "PFAS Waste Incineration Ban Act of 2019";
H.R. 2596, the "Protecting Communities from New PFAS Act";
H.R. 2600, the "Toxic PFAS Control Act";
H.R. 2605, the "Prevent Release of Toxics Emissions, Contamination, and Transfer Act of 2019" or the "PROTECT Act of 2019";
H.R. 2608, the "PFAS Testing Act of 2019";
H.R. 2626, the "PFAS Accountability Act of 2019"; and
H.R. 2638, a bill to direct the Administrator of the Environment Protection Agency to issue guidance on minimizing the use of firefighting foam containing PFAS, and for other purposes.
H.R. 2699, the "Nuclear Waste Policy Amendments Act of 2019," was introduced by Reps. Jerry McNerney (D-CA) and John Shimkus (R-IL). The bill amends the Nuclear Waste Policy Act to update the Department of Energy's (DOE) ability to manage nuclear waste. In the near term, the bill gives the DOE authority to site, construct and operate one or more interim storage sites that would consolidate spent nuclear fuel (SNF) from decommissioned reactors. The program would also prioritize the transfer of SNF from seismically active areas, and permit DOE to undertake "infrastructure activities" intended to enable construction and operation of a repository at Yucca Mountain in the State of Nevada, including safety upgrades, site preparation, construction of a rail line, and grid connection. Additionally, the bill establishes ratepayer protections by reforming the finance mechanism of the Nuclear Waste Fund and assures that DOE has adequate funding to construct and operate a repository.

H.R. 3851, the "Brand USA Extension Act of 2019" was introduced by Reps. Peter Welch (D-VT) and Gus Bilirakis (R-FL). This legislation extends funding for the Corporation for Travel Promotion (aka Brand USA), a national, coordinated marketing organization to promote international travel to the United States, through Fiscal Year (FY) 2027 and raises the fee for using the electronic system for travel authorization.

H.R. 4779, a bill to extend the Undertaking Spam, Spyware, And Fraud Enforcement With Enforcers beyond Borders Act of 2006, and for other purposes, was introduced by Consumer Protection and Commerce Subcommittee Ranking Member Cathy McMorris Rodgers (R-WA). This legislation reauthorizes the U.S. SAFE WEB Act, which amended the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) Act to improve the FTC's ability to combat unfair or deceptive acts or practices that are international in scope, through FY 2027 and requires the FTC to issue a report to Congress describing the Commission's use of and experience with the authority granted by the Act.

H.R. 4229, the "Broadband Deployment Accuracy and Technological Availability Act" or the "Broadband DATA Act," was introduced by Rep. Dave Loebsack (D-IA) and Communications and Technology Subcommittee Ranking Member Bob Latta (R-OH). This legislation requires the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) to issue new rules to require the collection and dissemination of granular broadband availability data and to establish a process to verify the accuracy of such data, and more.

H.R. 4227, the "Mapping Accuracy Promotion Services Act" or the "MAPS Act," was introduced by Reps. A. Donald McEachin (D-VA) and Billy Long (R-MO). This legislation specifies that it is unlawful for a person to willfully, knowingly, or recklessly submit inaccurate broadband service data.

H.R. 5000, the "Studying How to Harness Airwave Resources Efficiently Act of 2019" or the "SHARE Act," was introduced by Communications and Technology Subcommittee Chairman Mike Doyle (D-PA) and Subcommittee Ranking Member Bob Latta (R-OH). This legislation requires the National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA), in consultation with FCC, to establish a spectrum sharing prototyping program and test bed to explore new ways for Federal entities to share spectrum with other Federal entities, and more.

H.R. 4998, the "Secure and Trusted Communications Networks Act of 2019," was introduced by Pallone, Ranking Member Greg Walden (R-OR), and Reps. Doris Matsui (D-CA) and Brett Guthrie (R-KY). This legislation instructs FCC to develop and maintain a list of communications equipment and services that pose an unacceptable risk to national security and prohibits the use of funds made available by FCC programs to purchase, rent, lease, or otherwise obtain such equipment and services. The bill also establishes the Secure and Trusted Communications Reimbursement Program to assist communications providers with the costs of removing prohibited equipment and services from their networks and replacing prohibited equipment with more secure communications equipment and services.

H.R. 4461, the "Network Security Information Sharing Act of 2019," was introduced by Rep. Adam Kinzinger (R-IL) and Communications and Technology Subcommittee Chairman Mike Doyle (D-PA). This legislation directs the Secretary of Homeland Security, in cooperation with the Director of National Intelligence (DNI), the Director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, NTIA, and FCC, to establish a program to share supply chain security risks with advanced communications service providers and trusted suppliers of telecommunications equipment and services.

H.R. 2881, the "Secure 5G and Beyond Act of 2019," was introduced by Reps. Abigail Spanberger (D-VA), Elise Stefanik (R-NY), Elissa Slotkin (D-MI), Francis Rooney (R-FL), Tom O'Halleran (D-AZ), and Susan Brooks (R-IN). This legislation directs the President to develop the "Secure Next Generation Mobile Communications Strategy" in consultation with the heads of FCC, NTIA, and Department of Homeland Security, as well as the DNI and Secretary of Defense.

H.R. 4500, the "Promoting United States Wireless Leadership Act of 2019," was introduced by Reps. Tim Walberg (R-MI) and Debbie Dingell (D-MI). This legislation directs NTIA to encourage participation by trusted American companies and other stakeholders in standards-setting bodies, and to offer technical assistance to stakeholders that do elect to participate, in the course of developing standards for 5G networks and future generations of communications networks.

H. Res. 575, expressing the sense of the House of Representatives that all stakeholders in the deployment of 5G communications infrastructure should carefully consider and adhere to the recommendation of "the Prague Proposals," was introduced by Reps. Bill Flores (R-TX) and Darren Soto (D-FL). The resolution also encourages the President and Federal agencies to promote trade and security policies on the international stage that are consistent with "The Prague Proposals."

H.R. 5035, the "Television Viewer Protection Act," was introduced by Communications and Technology Subcommittee Chairman Mike Doyle (D-PA). This legislation extends for five years the "good faith" negotiation provisions and allows for the importation of distant signals to unserved households as authorized under the statutory license in Section 119 of the Copyright Act. The Television Viewer Protection Act allows smaller Multichannel Video Programming Distributors (MVPDs) to collectively negotiate for retransmission consent with large broadcasters. Additionally, it requires MVPDs, internet service providers, and telephone providers (both fixed and mobile) to include all charges in the prices they advertise and bill for services. Lastly, the bill requires greater transparency in electronic bills and provides remedies to consumers for certain increases in charges.

Information for this markup, including the Committee Memorandum, electronic copies of the legislation and any amendments, and a link to the live webcast will be posted HERE as they become available.

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