H.R. 6815: Environmental Justice Screening Tool Act of 2025

This bill, known as the Environmental Justice Screening Tool Act of 2025, proposes to create a new tool to help identify communities that face significant environmental burdens. Here are the main features of the bill:

Creation of the Environmental Justice Screening Tool

The bill mandates the Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to develop a geospatial mapping tool, referred to as the Environmental Justice Screening Tool, within one year of the bill's enactment. This tool will be publicly accessible on the EPA’s website and will help identify communities that are disproportionately affected by environmental issues.

Factors for Identifying Disproportionate Burdens

To determine which communities are considered disproportionately burdened, the EPA will establish specific thresholds across various categories, including:

• Environmental factors: This includes air quality, access to safe drinking water, and proximity to environmental hazards such as Superfund sites, brownfields, oil and gas facilities, and landfills.
• Climate change factors: These factors encompass the frequency of natural disasters like hurricanes and floods, as well as the occurrence of extreme droughts.
• Human health factors: The focus will be on health issues such as rates of asthma, diabetes, obesity, and maternal mortality.
• Economic factors: This includes the poverty rate, unemployment rate, housing affordability, and access to healthcare facilities.
• Social factors: Social demographics including racial or ethnic distribution, educational attainment, population density, and age and gender distributions will also be considered.
• Other factors: The EPA can include any other relevant categories as deemed appropriate.

Community Engagement

The bill emphasizes the importance of gathering feedback and data from various stakeholders, such as educational institutions, nonprofit organizations, community organizations, and local governments, regarding the factors and thresholds used in the tool's development.

Annual Review and Reporting

After the tool is published, the EPA is required to review the data it is based on at least once a year and make necessary updates. Additionally, it must report to Congress on any changes to the tool and any communities that were newly identified or removed from the disproportionately burdened list.

Federal Adoption of the Tool

Within one year of the tool's public release, all Federal departments and agencies are required to adopt the screening tool to help identify disproportionately burdened communities. This adoption will guide how these agencies allocate resources and funding to address the needs of these communities.

Definitions

The bill also provides definitions for various terms used throughout, such as the definition of “brownfield site” and what constitutes an “institution of higher education.” It clarifies that 'State' includes all U.S. territories.

Relevant Companies

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