Sponsors
The bill centralizes toxic-exposure registries and consolidates functions into HHS/CDC to improve coordination and reduce duplication, but it risks losing independent ATSDR oversight and expertise, disrupting registries and imposing transitional burdens and potential costs on states, localities, and exposed communities.
States, local health departments, hospitals, and the public: creation of a central national registry of serious diseases and people exposed to toxic substances under HHS/CDC to improve tracking and coordinate public-health responses.
Federal public-health system, state and local health agencies, and hospitals: consolidation of CERCLA/ATSDR registry authority into CDC/HHS to reduce administrative overlap and streamline expertise.
State and local governments and agencies transitioning programs: a one-year wind-up period to transfer records, obligations, and responsibilities, giving time to complete transitions and reduce immediate disruption.
Communities near hazardous sites, hospitals, and public-health researchers: removing public-health monitoring functions from an independent ATSDR reduces dedicated oversight of toxic exposures and risks creating gaps in long-term tracking and specialized attention.
State and local governments, hospitals, and people with disabilities: transfers may disrupt ongoing disease and exposure registries, delaying public-health responses and breaking data continuity during the transition.
Rural and environmental-justice communities and people with disabilities: abolishing a specialized agency may weaken oversight and advocacy for populations disproportionately exposed to toxins.
Based on analysis of 3 sections of legislative text.
Eliminates ATSDR, transfers CERCLA registry authority into HHS, and removes ATSDR references across federal law; effective one year after enactment.
Introduced January 3, 2025 by Andrew S. Biggs · Last progress January 3, 2025
Eliminates the federal Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry (ATSDR) one year after the law is enacted and requires the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) to transfer ATSDR’s CERCLA registry authority and related assets into an appropriate HHS component beforehand. Sets a wind‑up period for HHS to close out ATSDR matters, and makes statutory changes across federal law to remove references to ATSDR and to assign responsibility for national disease and exposure registries to HHS (in cooperation with states). No new funding, penalties, or procedural deadlines are created.