text: SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
  
      This Act may be cited as the ``Protecting Pregnant Women and 
  Children From Perchlorate Act of 2011''.
  
  SEC. 2. FINDINGS AND PURPOSES.
  
      (a) Findings.--Congress finds that--
              (1) perchlorate--
                      (A) is a chemical used as the primary ingredient of 
                  solid rocket propellant; and
                      (B) is also used in fireworks, road flares, and 
                  other applications;
              (2) waste from the manufacture and improper disposal of 
          chemicals containing perchlorate is increasingly being 
          discovered in soil and water;
              (3) according to the Government Accountability Office, 
          perchlorate contamination has been detected in water and soil 
          at almost 400 sites in the United States, with concentration 
          levels ranging from 4 parts per billion to millions of parts 
          per billion;
              (4) the Government Accountability Office has determined 
          that the Environmental Protection Agency does not centrally 
          track or monitor perchlorate detections or the status of 
          perchlorate cleanup, so a greater number of contaminated sites 
          may already exist;
              (5) according to the Government Accountability Office, 
          limited Environmental Protection Agency data show that 
          perchlorate has been found in 35 States and the District of 
          Columbia and is known to have contaminated 153 public water 
          systems in 26 States;
              (6) those data are likely underestimates of total drinking 
          water exposure, as illustrated by the finding of the California 
          Department of Health Services that perchlorate contamination 
          sites have affected approximately 273 drinking water sources 
          and 86 drinking water systems in the State of California alone;
              (7) Food and Drug Administration scientists and other 
          scientific researchers have detected perchlorate in the United 
          States food supply, including in lettuce, milk, cucumbers, 
          tomatoes, carrots, cantaloupe, wheat, and spinach, and in human 
          breast milk;
              (8)(A) perchlorate can harm human health, especially in 
          pregnant women and children, by interfering with uptake of 
          iodide by the thyroid gland, which is necessary to produce 
          important hormones that help control human health and 
          development;
              (B) in adults, the thyroid helps to regulate metabolism;
              (C) in children, the thyroid helps to ensure proper mental 
          and physical development; and
              (D) impairment of thyroid function in expectant mothers or 
          infants may result in effects including delayed development and 
          decreased learning capability;
              (9)(A) in October 2006, researchers from the Centers for 
          Disease Control and Prevention published the largest, most 
          comprehensive study to date on the effects of low levels of 
          perchlorate exposure in women, finding that--
                      (i) significant changes existed in thyroid hormones 
                  in women with low iodine levels who were exposed to 
                  perchlorate; and
                      (ii) even low-level perchlorate exposure may affect 
                  the production of hormones by the thyroid in iodine-
                  deficient women; and
              (B) in the United States, about 36 percent of women have 
          iodine levels equivalent to or below the levels of the women in 
          the study described in subparagraph (A); and
              (10) the Environmental Protection Agency has not 
          established a health advisory or national primary drinking 
          water regulation for perchlorate, but instead established a 
          ``Drinking Water Equivalent Level'' of 24.5 parts per billion 
          for perchlorate, which--
                      (A) does not take into consideration all routes of 
                  exposure to perchlorate;
                      (B) has been criticized by experts as failing to 
                  sufficiently consider the body weight, unique exposure, 
                  and vulnerabilities of certain pregnant women and 
                  fetuses, infants, and children; and
                      (C) is based primarily on a small study and does 
                  not take into account new, larger studies of the 
                  Centers for Disease Control and Prevention or other 
                  data indicating potential effects at lower perchlorate 
                  levels than previously found.
      (b) Purposes.--The purposes of this Act are--
              (1) to require the Administrator of the Environmental 
          Protection Agency to establish, by not later than 90 days after 
          the date of enactment of this Act, a health advisory for 
          perchlorate in drinking water that--
                      (A) is fully protective of, and considers, the body 
                  weight and exposure patterns of pregnant women, 
                  infants, and children;
                      (B) provides an adequate margin of safety; and
                      (C) takes into account all routes of exposure to 
                  perchlorate;
              (2) to require the Administrator of the Environmental 
          Protection Agency to establish not later than 1 year after the 
          date of enactment of this Act a national primary drinking water 
          regulation for perchlorate that fully protects pregnant women, 
          infants, and children, taking into consideration body weight, 
          exposure patterns, and all routes of exposure to perchlorate.
  
  SEC. 3. HEALTH ADVISORY AND NATIONAL PRIMARY DRINKING WATER REGULATION 
                FOR PERCHLORATE.
  
      Section 1412(b)(12) of the Safe Drinking Water Act (42 U.S.C. 300g-
  1(b)(12)) is amended by adding at the end the following:
                      ``(C) Perchlorate.--
                              ``(i) Health advisory.--Notwithstanding any 
                          other provision of this section, not later than 
                          90 days after the date of enactment of this 
                          subparagraph, the Administrator shall publish a 
                          health advisory for perchlorate that is fully 
                          protective, with an adequate margin of safety, 
                          of the health of vulnerable persons (including 
                          pregnant women, infants, and children), taking 
                          into consideration body weight, exposure 
                          patterns, and all routes of exposure.
                              ``(ii) Proposed regulations.--
                          Notwithstanding any other provision of this 
                          section, the Administrator shall propose (not 
                          later than 180 days after the date of enactment 
                          of this subparagraph) and shall finalize (not 
                          later than 1 year after the date of enactment 
                          of this subparagraph) a national primary 
                          drinking water regulation for perchlorate--
                                      ``(I) that based on the factors in 
                                  clause (i) and other relevant data, is 
                                  protective, with an adequate margin of 
                                  safety, of vulnerable persons 
                                  (including pregnant women, infants, and 
                                  children); and
                                      ``(II) the maximum contaminant 
                                  level of which is as close to the 
                                  maximum contaminant level goal for 
                                  perchlorate, and as protective of 
                                  vulnerable persons, as is feasible.''.
target: Protecting Pregnant Women and Children From Perchlorate Act of 2011 - Amends the Safe Drinking Water Act to require the Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to: (1) publish a health advisory for perchlorate that is fully protective of the health of vulnerable persons (including pregnant women, infants, and children), taking into consideration body weight, exposure patterns, and all routes of exposure; and (2) establish a national primary drinking water regulation for perchlorate that is protective of vulnerable persons and the maximum contaminant level of which is as close to the maximum contaminant level goal for perchlorate, and as protective of vulnerable persons, as is feasible.
feat_title: A bill to amend the Safe Drinking Water Act to protect the health of pregnant women, fetuses, infants, and children by requiring a health advisory and drinking water standard for perchlorate.