Full Text of HJR0034 97th General Assembly
HJ0034 97TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY |
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| 1 | | HOUSE JOINT RESOLUTION
| 2 | | WHEREAS, Many Illinoisans suffer from respiratory disease; | 3 | | in 2007, it was estimated that over 1.2 million people in | 4 | | Illinois (12.8% of adults) are burdened with asthma; and
| 5 | | WHEREAS, Air pollution causes major health problems for | 6 | | these and other Illinoisans; for the past 20 years, the State | 7 | | of Illinois has had one of the highest asthma mortality rates | 8 | | in the nation and has seen increasing prevalence, morbidity, | 9 | | and mortality rates; and
| 10 | | WHEREAS, The United States Environmental Protection Agency | 11 | | (U.S. EPA) is charged by the United States Congress to protect | 12 | | and improve the nation's air quality as required by the Clean | 13 | | Air Act; and
| 14 | | WHEREAS, Clean air protections are good for Illinois' | 15 | | economy and help save money, as the average length of an asthma | 16 | | hospital stay is 3.3 days with a total direct cost of $15,155 | 17 | | per person; and
| 18 | | WHEREAS, On March 11, 2011, the U.S. EPA released the | 19 | | Second Prospective Study estimating the benefits and costs of | 20 | | the Clean Air Act Amendments of 1990; the study found that the | 21 | | direct benefits significantly exceed their direct costs, |
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| 1 | | improving the economic welfare and quality of life for | 2 | | Americans; and | 3 | | WHEREAS, That same report estimates that the economic | 4 | | benefits of reducing fine particle and ground level ozone | 5 | | pollution under the Clean Air Act Amendments of 1990 will reach | 6 | | approximately $2 trillion in 2020; these savings are a result | 7 | | of disease prevention, prevention of lost-work days, and from | 8 | | the prevention of approximately 230,000 premature human deaths | 9 | | in 2020 alone; and
| 10 | | WHEREAS, The U.S. EPA has a proven track record of | 11 | | cost-effectively cleaning up a variety of air pollutants as | 12 | | required under the Clean Air Act; and
| 13 | | WHEREAS, The U.S. EPA is poised to set a number of | 14 | | standards under the Clean Air Act in the next three years that | 15 | | will cut dangerous pollution to protect our health and | 16 | | environment; and
| 17 | | WHEREAS, These standards will address the reduction of | 18 | | toxic mercury pollution and ozone levels, and the curbing of | 19 | | carbon pollution from power plants; therefore, be it
| 20 | | RESOLVED, BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE | 21 | | NINETY-SEVENTH GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, THE |
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| 1 | | SENATE CONCURRING HEREIN, that we support the United States | 2 | | Environmental Protection Agency in its efforts to protect the | 3 | | health of Illinoisans and fulfill the charge of the Clean Air | 4 | | Act to clean up dangerous air pollution, including mercury, | 5 | | lead, soot, smog, and carbon pollution; and be it further
| 6 | | RESOLVED, That we oppose any efforts in Congress to weaken | 7 | | the U.S. EPA's ability to set standards to protect our health | 8 | | and cut dangerous air pollution from power plants and other | 9 | | large pollution sources; and be it further | 10 | | RESOLVED, That we urge the Governor to represent the State | 11 | | of Illinois as a supporter of the U.S. EPA's efforts to | 12 | | implement the Clean Air Act as appropriate; and be it further | 13 | | RESOLVED, That suitable copies of this resolution be | 14 | | delivered to President Barack Obama, Governor Pat Quinn, | 15 | | Administrator of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Lisa | 16 | | P. Jackson, and the members of Illinois' congressional | 17 | | delegation.
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