Summary:

The E.O. came in response to a growing body of scientific research which reveals that children, because their bodies are still developing, suffer disproportionately from environmental health and safety risks. Further, the E.O. notes, children's size and weight may diminish their protection from standard safety features and their behavior patterns may make them more susceptible to accidents.

To address these problems, the E.O. directs each agency to "ensure that its policies, programs, activities, and standards address disproportionate risks to children . . ." Also, for each regulatory action subject to the new E.O., agencies must now conduct "an evaluation of the environmental health or safety effects of the planned regulation on children" and include "an explanation of why the planned regulation is preferable to other potentially effective and resonably feasible alternatives considered by the agency." These findings are to be submitted to OMB's Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs (OIRA) for review.

In addition, the E.O. creates a task force -- to be co-chaired by the secretary of Health and Human Services and the EPA administrator -- to make recommendations to the President on federal strategies for children's environmental health and safety. These recommendations are to be included in a biennial report on "research, data, or other information that would enhance our ability to understand, analyze, and respond to environmental health risks and safety risks to children."

Further, the E.O. directs OMB to convene an "Interagency Forum on Child and Family Statistics" to produce an annual report of "the most important indicators of the well-being of the Nation's children." The first of these reports is due on the President's desk by July 31, 1997.

Lastly, the E.O. revokes Executive Order 12606, which was instituted by President Reagan in 1987 and mandated that agencies answer a series of vague, unquantifiable questions on how a rule would impact the family.

Text of Executive Order 13045:

  The White House                                   April 21, 1997
  
  
                          Executive Order
  
                           - - - - - - -
  
             Protection Of Children From Environmental
                   Health Risks And Safety Risks
  
  
       By the authority vested in me as President by the 
  Constitution and the laws of the United States of America, 
  it is hereby ordered as follows:
  
       Section 1.  Policy. 
  
       1-101.  A growing body of scientific knowledge demonstrates 
  that children may suffer disproportionately from environmental 
  health risks and safety risks.  These risks arise because: 
  children's neurological, immunological, digestive, and other 
  bodily systems are still developing; children eat more food, 
  drink more fluids, and breathe more air in proportion to their 
  body weight than adults; children's size and weight may diminish 
  their protection from standard safety features; and children's 
  behavior patterns may make them more susceptible to accidents 
  because they are less able to protect themselves.  Therefore, to 
  the extent permitted by law and appropriate, and consistent with 
  the agency's mission, each Federal agency:
  
       (a)  shall make it a high priority to identify and assess  
            environmental health risks and safety risks that may 
            disproportionately affect children; and
  
       (b)  shall ensure that its policies, programs, activities, 
            and standards address disproportionate risks to 
            children that result from environmental health risks 
            or safety risks.
  
       1-102.  Each independent regulatory agency is encouraged to 
  participate in the implementation of this order and comply with 
  its provisions.
  
       Sec. 2.  Definitions.  The following definitions shall 
  apply to this order.
  
       2-201.  "Federal agency" means any authority of the 
  United States that is an agency under 44 U.S.C. 3502(1) other 
  than those considered to be independent regulatory agencies 
  under 44 U.S.C. 3502(5).  For purposes of this order, "military 
  departments," as defined in 5 U.S.C. 102, are covered under the 
  auspices of the Department of Defense.
  
       2-202.  "Covered regulatory action" means any substantive 
  action in a rulemaking, initiated after the date of this order 
  or for which a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking is published 1 year 
  after the date of this order, that is likely to result in a rule 
  that may:
  
       (a)  be "economically significant" under Executive 
            Order 12866 (a rulemaking that has an annual effect 
            on the economy of $100 million or more or would 
            adversely affect in a material way the economy, 
            sector of the economy, productivity, competition, 
            jobs, the environment, public health or safety, or 
            State, local, or tribal governments or communities); 
            and
  
       (b)  concern an environmental health risk or safety 
            risk that an agency has reason to believe may 
            disproportionately affect children. 
  
       2-203.  "Environmental health risks and safety risks" mean 
  risks to health or to safety that are attributable to products 
  or substances that the child is likely to come in contact with 
  or ingest (such as the air we breath, the food we eat, the water 
  we drink or use for recreation, the soil we live on, and the 
  products we use or are exposed to).
  
       Sec. 3.  Task Force on Environmental Health Risks and 
  Safety Risks to Children.
  
       3-301.  There is hereby established the Task Force on 
  Environmental Health Risks and Safety Risks to Children 
  ("Task Force").
  
       3-302.  The Task Force will report to the President in 
  consultation with the Domestic Policy Council, the National 
  Science and Technology Council, the Council on Environmental 
  Quality, and the Office of Management and Budget (Omb).
  
       3-303.  Membership.  The Task Force shall be composed 
  of the:
  
       (a)  Secretary of Health and Human Services, who shall 
            serve as a Co-Chair of the Council;
  
       (b)  Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency, 
            who shall serve as a Co-Chair of the Council;
  
       (c)  Secretary of Education;
  
       (d)  Secretary of Labor;
  
       (e)  Attorney General;
  
       (f)  Secretary of Energy;
  
       (g)  Secretary of Housing and Urban Development;
  
       (h)  Secretary of Agriculture;
  
       (i)  Secretary of Transportation;
  
       (j)  Director of the Office of Management and Budget;
  
       (k)  Chair of the Council on Environmental Quality;
  
       (l)  Chair of the Consumer Product Safety Commission;
  
       (m)  Assistant to the President for Economic Policy;
  
       (n)  Assistant to the President for Domestic Policy; 
  
       (o)  Assistant to the President and Director of the 
            Office of Science and Technology Policy;
  
       (p)  Chair of the Council of Economic Advisers; and
  
       (q)  Such other officials of executive departments and 
            agencies as the President may, from time to time, 
            designate.

       Members of the Task Force may delegate their 
  responsibilities under this order to subordinates.
  
       3-304.  Functions.  The Task Force shall recommend to the 
  President Federal strategies for children's environmental health 
  and safety, within the limits of the Administration's budget, to 
  include the following elements:
  
       (a)  statements of principles, general policy, and targeted 
            annual priorities to guide the Federal approach to 
            achieving the goals of this order;
  
       (b)  a coordinated research agenda for the Federal 
            Government, including steps to implement the review 
            of research databases described in section 4 of this 
            order;
  
       (c)  recommendations for appropriate partnerships among 
            Federal, State, local, and tribal governments and the 
            private, academic, and nonprofit sectors;
  
       (d)  proposals to enhance public outreach and communication 
            to assist families in evaluating risks to children and 
            in making informed consumer choices;
  
       (e)  an identification of high-priority initiatives that 
            the Federal Government has undertaken or will 
            undertake in advancing protection of children's 
            environmental health and safety; and
  
       (f)  a statement regarding the desirability of new 
            legislation to fulfill or promote the purposes of 
            this order.
  
       3-305.  The Task Force shall prepare a biennial report 
  on research, data, or other information that would enhance our 
  ability to understand, analyze, and respond to environmental 
  health risks and safety risks to children.  For purposes of this 
  report, cabinet agencies and other agencies identified by the 
  Task Force shall identify and specifically describe for the 
  Task Force key data needs related to environmental health risks 
  and safety risks to children that have arisen in the course of 
  the agency?s programs and activities.  The Task Force shall 
  incorporate agency submissions into its report and ensure that 
  this report is publicly available and widely disseminated.  The 
  Office of Science and Technology Policy and the National Science 
  and Technology Council shall ensure that this report is fully 
  considered in establishing research priorities.
  
       3-306.  The Task Force shall exist for a period of 
  4 years from the first meeting.  At least 6 months prior to 
  the expiration of that period, the member agencies shall assess 
  the need for continuation of the Task Force or its functions, 
  and make appropriate recommendations to the President.
  
       Sec. 4.  Research Coordination and Integration.
  
       4-401.  Within 6 months of the date of this order, the 
  Task Force shall develop or direct to be developed a review 
  of existing and planned data resources and a proposed plan for 
  ensuring that researchers and Federal research agencies have 
  access to information on all research conducted or funded by 
  the Federal Government that is related to adverse health risks 
  in children resulting from exposure to environmental health 
  risks or safety risks.  The National Science and Technology 
  Council shall review the plan.
  
       4-402.  The plan shall promote the sharing of information 
  on academic and private research.  It shall include 
  recom-mendations to encourage that such data, to the extent 
  permitted by law, is available to the public, the scientific 
  and academic communities, and all Federal agencies.
  
       Sec. 5. Agency Environmental Health Risk or Safety Risk 
  Regulations.
  
       5-501.  For each covered regulatory action submitted to 
  Omb's Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs (Oira) for 
  review pursuant to Executive Order 12866, the issuing agency 
  shall provide to Oira the following information developed as 
  part of the agency?s decisionmaking process, unless prohibited 
  by law:
  
       (a)  an evaluation of the environmental health or safety 
            effects of the planned regulation on children; and
  
       (b)  an explanation of why the planned regulation is 
            preferable to other potentially effective and 
            reasonably feasible alternatives considered by the 
            agency.
  
       5-502.  In emergency situations, or when an agency is 
  obligated by law to act more quickly than normal review 
  procedures allow, the agency shall comply with the provisions 
  of this section to the extent practicable.  For those covered 
  regulatory actions that are governed by a court-imposed or 
  statutory deadline, the agency shall, to the extent practicable, 
  schedule any rulemaking proceedings so as to permit sufficient 
  time for completing the analysis required by this section.
  
       5-503. The analysis required by this section may be 
  included as part of any other required analysis, and shall 
  be made part of the administrative record for the covered 
  regulatory action or otherwise made available to the public, 
  to the extent permitted by law.
  
       Sec. 6.  Interagency Forum on Child and Family Statistics.
  
       6-601.  The Director of the Omb ("Director") shall convene 
  an Interagency Forum on Child and Family Statistics ("Forum"), 
  which will include representatives from the appropriate Federal 
  statistics and research agencies.  The Forum shall produce an 
  annual compendium ("Report") of the most important indicators 
  of the well-being of the Nation's children.
  
       6-602.  The Forum shall determine the indicators to be 
  included in each Report and identify the sources of data to be 
  used for each indicator.  The Forum shall provide an ongoing 
  review of Federal collection and dissemination of data on 
  children and families, and shall make recommendations to improve  
  the coverage and coordination of data collection and to reduce 
  duplication and overlap.
  
       6-603.  The Report shall be published by the Forum in 
  collaboration with the National Institute of Child Health and 
  Human Development.  The Forum shall present the first annual 
  Report to the President, through the Director, by July 31, 1997.  
  The Report shall be submitted annually thereafter, using the 
  most recently available data.
  
       Sec. 7.  General Provisions.
  
       7-701.  This order is intended only for internal management 
  of the executive branch.  This order is not intended, and should 
  not be construed to create, any right, benefit, or trust 
  responsibility, substantive or procedural, enforceable at law or 
  equity by a party against the United States, its agencies, its 
  officers, or its employees.  This order shall not be construed 
  to create any right to judicial review involving the compliance 
  or noncompliance with this order by the United States, its 
  agencies, its officers, or any other person.
  
       7-702.  Executive Order 12606 of September 2, 1987 is 
  revoked.
  
  
  
  
                                     William J. Clinton
  
  
  
  
  The White House,
      April 21, 1997.
  
  
  
  
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