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Public Act 095-0597
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| SB0597 Enrolled |
LRB095 04478 DRJ 24525 b |
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AN ACT concerning veterans.
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Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
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represented in the General Assembly:
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Section 1. Short title. This Act may be cited as the |
National Guard Veterans Exposure to Hazardous Materials Act.
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Section 5. Definitions. In this Act: |
"Depleted uranium" means uranium containing less |
uranium-235 than the naturally occurring distribution of |
uranium isotopes. |
"Eligible member" means a member of the Illinois National |
Guard who served in the Persian Gulf War, as defined in 38 |
U.S.C. 101, or in an area designated as a combat zone by the |
President of the United States during Operation Enduring |
Freedom or Operation Iraqi Freedom. |
"Military physician" includes a physician who is under |
contract with the United States Department of Defense to |
provide physician services to members of the armed forces. |
"Veteran" means any person honorably discharged from, or |
released under honorable conditions from active service in, the |
armed forces who served as an eligible member.
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Section 10. Assistance in obtaining information on |
treatment. On and after October 1, 2007, the Department of |
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Veterans' Affairs shall assist any eligible member or veteran |
who (i) has been assigned a risk level I, II, or III for |
depleted uranium exposure by his or her branch of service, (ii) |
is referred by a military physician, or (iii) has reason to |
believe that he or she was exposed to depleted uranium during |
such service, in obtaining information on available federal |
treatment services, including a best practice health screening |
test for exposure to depleted uranium using a bioassay |
procedure involving sensitive methods capable of detecting |
depleted uranium at low levels and the use of equipment with |
the capacity to discriminate between different radioisotopes |
in naturally occurring levels of uranium and the characteristic |
ratio and marker for depleted uranium. No State funds shall be |
used to pay for such tests or other federal treatment services.
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Section 15. Certification concerning National Guard |
information. On or before October 1, 2007, the Adjutant General |
shall certify to the General Assembly that members of the |
Illinois National Guard are informed of possible health risks |
associated with exposure to depleted uranium. The |
certification shall apply to both predeployment and |
post-mobilization information activities and post-deployment |
health screening.
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Section 20. Task force. |
(a) There is established a task force within the Department |
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of Veterans' Affairs to study the possible health effects of |
the exposure to hazardous materials, including, but not limited |
to, depleted uranium, as they relate to military service. The |
task force shall do the following: |
(1) Consider initiation of a health registry for |
veterans returning from Afghanistan, Iraq, or other |
countries in which depleted uranium or other hazardous |
materials may be found. |
(2) Develop a plan for an outreach plan to ensure that |
veterans and military personnel are informed of available |
resources. |
(3) Prepare a report for service members concerning |
potential exposure to depleted uranium and other toxic
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chemical substances and the precautions recommended under |
combat
and noncombat conditions while in a combat zone. |
(4) Make any
other recommendations the task force |
considers appropriate.
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(b) The task force shall consist of the following members:
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(1) The Adjutant General or his or her designee. |
(2) The Director of Veterans' Affairs or his or her |
designee. |
(3) The Director of Public Health or his or her |
designee. |
(4) Eight members who are members of the General |
Assembly,
appointed 2 each by the President of the Senate |
and the
Speaker of the House of Representatives and 2 each |
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by the Minority Leader of the Senate and the Minority |
Leader of the House of Representatives. |
(5) Two members who are veterans with knowledge of or
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experience with exposure to hazardous materials, appointed |
one each
by the President of the Senate and the Speaker of |
the
House of Representatives. |
(6) Four members who are physicians or scientists with |
knowledge
of or experience in the detection or health |
effects of exposure to
depleted uranium or other hazardous |
materials, appointed one each
by the President of the |
Senate, the Minority Leader of the Senate, the
Speaker of |
the House of Representatives, and the Minority Leader of |
the House of Representatives.
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(c) All appointments to the task force shall be made no |
later than
30 days after the effective date of this Act. Any |
vacancy shall be
filled by the appointing authority.
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(d) The members of the task force shall select as |
chairpersons of the
task force one Senator and one |
Representative from among the
members appointed under |
paragraph (4) of subsection (b) of this
Section. The |
chairpersons shall schedule the first meeting of the task
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force, which shall be held no later than 60 days after the |
effective
date of this Act.
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(e) Not later than January 31, 2008, the task force shall |
submit a report on its findings and recommendations to the |
General Assembly. The task force shall terminate on the date |