Sponsors (22)
The bill directs the EPA to produce evidence-based, equity-focused guidance to protect children from wildfire smoke—potentially improving health and reducing school disruptions—but actual benefits depend on later implementation and may require significant additional funding and modest federal resources.
Students and children in K–12 schools and childcare will receive evidence-based guidance on reducing indoor smoke exposure during wildfire events, which should reduce short-term respiratory illness and school disruptions.
Under-resourced schools and childcare programs will be identified for targeted strategies to address disparities in protection, improving equity in indoor air quality measures.
Congress and federal agencies will receive an expert, independent EPA assessment to inform future policy and funding decisions on indoor air quality and mitigation measures in schools and childcare settings.
The review does not require immediate action, so children and students will not gain guaranteed protections until Congress or agencies implement the recommendations, delaying benefits.
Recommendations that focus on under-resourced settings may reveal substantial funding needs for schools and childcare providers, creating pressure for significant new expenditures to achieve the suggested protections.
Conducting the study and report will use EPA resources and could impose modest costs on taxpayers, especially if follow-up implementation is funded federally.
Based on analysis of 2 sections of legislative text.
Requires EPA to contract with the National Academies to review school and childcare policies on wildfire smoke and provide recommendations to Congress.
Introduced August 15, 2025 by Maxine Dexter · Last progress August 15, 2025
Requires the EPA Administrator to contract with the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine to review existing K–12 school and childcare policies on wildfire smoke exposure and to provide recommendations to Congress. Also includes a provision establishing a short title for the Act. The review must assess current standards, guidance, and mitigation strategies (including out-of-school or out-of-childcare activities run by those programs), identify research and policy gaps, and pay special attention to under-resourced schools and childcare settings. The measure does not itself change standards or provide funding; it directs an expert review and reporting process to inform future action.