1.1 	A bill for an act
1.2 	relating to health; establishing a healthy
1.3 	biomonitoring program; requiring reports;
1.4 	appropriating money; proposing coding for new law in
1.5 	Minnesota Statutes, chapter 144.
1.6 	BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MINNESOTA:

1.7 	Section 1. [144.995] HEALTHY MINNESOTANS BIOMONITORING
1.8 	PROGRAM.
1.9 		Subdivision 1.Citation. Sections 144.995 to 144.999 may
1.10 	be cited as the healthy Minnesotans biomonitoring program.
1.11 		Subd. 2.Definitions. (a) For purposes of sections
1.12 	144.995 to 144.999, the following definitions apply.
1.13 	(b) "Biomonitoring" means the process by which the presence
1.14 	and concentration of toxic chemicals and their metabolites are
1.15 	identified within a biospecimen as a means to assess the
1.16 	accumulation of pollutants in a human body.
1.17 	(c) "Biospecimen" means a sample of human blood, hair,
1.18 	urine, breast milk, body fat, or other body tissue or any other
1.19 	biophysical substance that is reasonably available as a medium
1.20 	to measure the presence and concentration of toxic chemicals.
1.21 	(d) "Commissioner" means the commissioner of health.
1.22 	(e) "Panel" means the Healthy Minnesotans Biomonitoring
1.23 	Program Advisory Panel established under section 144.996.
1.24 	(f) "Toxic chemical" means a chemical:
1.25 	(1) for which data provided by scientific, peer-reviewed
2.1 	animal, cell, or human studies have demonstrated the chemical is
2.2 	known or strongly suspected to negatively impact human health by
2.3 	contributing to an increase in serious illness or mortality; and 
2.4 	(2) that has been identified according to section 144.997.
2.5 		Subd. 3.Establishment; duties. (a) The commissioner
2.6 	shall establish the healthy Minnesotans biomonitoring program.
2.7 	The program shall provide community-based biomonitoring on a
2.8 	strictly voluntary and confidential basis by utilizing
2.9 	biospecimens, as appropriate, to identify toxic chemicals that
2.10 	may be present in the environment.
2.11 	(b) Initially, to the extent that funds are available, the
2.12 	program shall examine breast milk in three economically,
2.13 	racially, and geographically diverse communities and identify
2.14 	any toxic chemical that is present in the breast milk.  The
2.15 	commissioner shall expand the program, to the extent that funds
2.16 	are available, by examining other biospecimens in additional
2.17 	communities.
2.18 	(c) When a toxic chemical is detected in a program
2.19 	participant, the commissioner, in consultation with the
2.20 	commissioners of agriculture, natural resources, and the
2.21 	Pollution Control Agency, and other public or private entities,
2.22 	as appropriate, shall examine the possible presence of the toxic
2.23 	chemical in the surrounding environment and possible routes of
2.24 	exposure and shall develop recommendations to reduce or minimize
2.25 	possible contamination or exposure to the toxic chemical.
2.26 		Subd. 4.Participation. (a) Participation in the
2.27 	biomonitoring program is voluntary.  All participants shall be
2.28 	evaluated for the presence of toxic chemicals as a component of
2.29 	the biomonitoring process.  Participants shall receive
2.30 	consultation, health care referrals, and follow-up counseling
2.31 	and shall be offered educational materials, including, but not
2.32 	limited to, information regarding possible routes of exposure,
2.33 	ways to reduce exposure, and the availability of state and local
2.34 	resources.
2.35 	(b) The individual results of the program's participants
2.36 	are confidential and shall not be made public without the
3.1 	written and informed consent of the individual to whom it
3.2 	pertains.
3.3 		Subd. 5.Program guidelines. (a) The commissioner, in
3.4 	consultation with the panel, shall develop:
3.5 	(1) model protocols or program guidelines that address the
3.6 	science and practice of biomonitoring to be utilized and
3.7 	procedures for changing those protocols to incorporate new and
3.8 	more accurate or efficient technologies as they become available.
3.9 	The model protocols shall be developed utilizing a peer review
3.10 	process in a manner that is participatory and community-based in
3.11 	design, implementation, and evaluation;
3.12 	(2) guidelines for ensuring confidentiality; informed
3.13 	consent; follow-up counseling and support; and communicating
3.14 	findings to participants, communities, and the general public;
3.15 	(3) educational and outreach materials that are culturally
3.16 	appropriate for dissemination to program participants and
3.17 	communities.  Priority shall be given to the development of
3.18 	materials specifically designed to ensure that parents are
3.19 	informed about all of the benefits of breastfeeding so that the
3.20 	program does not result in an unjustified fear of toxins in
3.21 	breast milk, which might inadvertently lead parents to avoid
3.22 	breastfeeding.  The materials shall communicate relevant
3.23 	scientific findings; data on the accumulation of pollutants;
3.24 	possible routes of exposure; population-based health effects and
3.25 	toxicity; the benefits of linking the accumulation of pollutants
3.26 	to community health; and the required responses by local, state,
3.27 	and other governmental entities in regulating toxicant
3.28 	exposures;
3.29 	(4) a training program that is culturally sensitive
3.30 	specifically for health care providers, health educators, and
3.31 	other program administrators; and 
3.32 	(5) a designation process for state and private
3.33 	laboratories that are qualified to analyze biospecimens and
3.34 	report the findings.
3.35 	(b) The commissioner may enter into contractual agreements
3.36 	with health clinics, community-based organizations, or experts
4.1 	in a particular field to perform any of the activities described
4.2 	under this subdivision.

4.3 	Sec. 2. [144.996] HEALTHY MINNESOTANS BIOMONITORING
4.4 	PROGRAM ADVISORY PANEL.
4.5 		Subdivision 1.Creation. (a) The commissioner shall
4.6 	establish the Healthy Minnesotans Biomonitoring Program Advisory
4.7 	Panel.  The panel shall be composed of two committees, the
4.8 	scientific committee and the community representative committee,
4.9 	with a membership of eight voting members on each committee.
4.10 	The community representative committee shall also include
4.11 	nonvoting members appointed according to subdivision 2,
4.12 	paragraph (d).
4.13 	(b) The commissioner shall appoint, from the panel's
4.14 	membership, the chair of each of the committees, who shall also
4.15 	serve as cochairs of the panel.
4.16 	(c) The panel shall meet as often as it deems necessary but
4.17 	at a minimum on a quarterly basis.
4.18 	(d) Members of the panel and the committees shall serve
4.19 	without compensation but shall be reimbursed for travel and
4.20 	other necessary expenses incurred through performance of their
4.21 	duties under sections 144.995 to 144.997.
4.22 		Subd. 2.Membership. (a) Eight of the voting members
4.23 	shall be appointed by the commissioner, four of the voting
4.24 	members shall be appointed under the rules of the senate, and
4.25 	four of the voting members shall be appointed under the rules of
4.26 	the house of representatives.  Nonvoting members shall be
4.27 	appointed by the commissioner according to paragraph (d).  All
4.28 	members shall be appointed to the panel by July 1, 2006.  Each
4.29 	voting member shall be appointed for a three-year term.  All
4.30 	appointments made by the commissioner shall be approved by the
4.31 	governor.
4.32 	(b) The scientific committee shall be composed of eight
4.33 	members with background or training in interpreting
4.34 	biomonitoring studies or in related fields or science,
4.35 	including, but not limited to, the fields of health tracking,
4.36 	social science, laboratory science, occupational health,
5.1 	industrial hygiene, toxicology, epidemiology, environmental
5.2 	health, environmental hazards, and public health.
5.3 	(c) The community representative committee shall be
5.4 	composed of eight members from the following nongovernmental
5.5 	organizations:
5.6 	(1) one member from a breast cancer awareness organization;
5.7 	(2) one member from an organization with a focus on
5.8 	environmental health;
5.9 	(3) one member from an organization with a focus on
5.10 	environmental justice;
5.11 	(4) one member from an organization with a focus on child
5.12 	environmental health;
5.13 	(5) one member from an organization promoting
5.14 	breastfeeding;
5.15 	(6) one member from a labor organization;
5.16 	(7) one member from private industry with a verifiable and
5.17 	consistent commitment to sustainable core business practices
5.18 	that reduce environmental toxins; and 
5.19 	(8) one member from a public health organization.
5.20 	(d) The commissioner shall appoint the following additional
5.21 	nonvoting members to the community representative committee:
5.22 	(1) one representative from the Maternal and Child Health
5.23 	Division of the Department of Health; and 
5.24 	(2) one member from each participating community.
5.25 	Members appointed under this paragraph may be reappointed at any
5.26 	time and are not subject to the three-year term.
5.27 		Subd. 3.Committee duties. (a) The scientific committee
5.28 	shall make recommendations to the panel on:
5.29 	(1) chemicals that should be added to or deleted from the
5.30 	list of chemicals identified under section 144.997;
5.31 	(2) priorities for biomonitoring in Minnesota;
5.32 	(3) the adequacy and appropriate interpretation of
5.33 	biomonitoring investigations carried out under the program; and 
5.34 	(4) collecting and analyzing data.
5.35 	(b) The community representative committee shall make
5.36 	recommendations to the panel on:
6.1 	(1) study sites or communities for the program;
6.2 	(2) identifying possible community partners;
6.3 	(3) training programs and educational and outreach
6.4 	materials; and 
6.5 	(4) dissemination of findings to biomonitoring program
6.6 	participants and to the general public.
6.7 		Subd. 4.Immunity from liability. No member of the panel
6.8 	shall be held civilly or criminally liable for an act or
6.9 	omission by that person if the act or omission was in good faith
6.10 	and within the scope of the member's responsibilities under
6.11 	sections 144.995 to 144.999.

6.12 	Sec. 3. [144.997] TOXIC CHEMICALS.
6.13 		Subdivision 1.Identification. The commissioner shall
6.14 	identify and list toxic chemicals that shall be included within
6.15 	the scope of the healthy Minnesotans biomonitoring program.  To
6.16 	be included on the list, all of the following criteria must be
6.17 	met:
6.18 	(1) the chemical is recommended for inclusion by the
6.19 	scientific committee under section 144.996;
6.20 	(2) the scientific, peer-reviewed data from animal, cell,
6.21 	or human studies have demonstrated the chemical is known or
6.22 	strongly suspected to negatively impact human health by
6.23 	contributing to an increase in serious illness or mortality;
6.24 	(3) Minnesotans are exposed to the chemical; and 
6.25 	(4) the chemical is listed as a toxic chemical on either a
6.26 	state or federal list.
6.27 		Subd. 2.Implementation. (a) The commissioner shall
6.28 	prioritize the toxic chemicals under subdivision 1 according to
6.29 	the threat the chemicals pose to public health.
6.30 	(b) The commissioner shall initially implement the
6.31 	biomonitoring activities of the program with regard to the 20
6.32 	toxic chemicals that present the greatest public health risk.
6.33 	(c) The commissioner shall add additional chemicals in
6.34 	order of priority to the extent funds are available.

6.35 	Sec. 4. [144.998] BIOMONITORING FISCAL PROVISIONS.
6.36 		Subdivision 1.Creation of account. A healthy
7.1 	Minnesotans biomonitoring program account is established in the
7.2 	state government special revenue fund.  The account consists of
7.3 	money appropriated by the legislature and any other funds
7.4 	identified for use by the healthy Minnesotans biomonitoring
7.5 	program.  All interest earned on money deposited into the
7.6 	account shall be retained in the account.  Money in the account
7.7 	is appropriated to the commissioner for the purpose of
7.8 	implementing the healthy Minnesotan biomonitoring program.
7.9 		Subd. 2.Other funding. The commissioner shall seek
7.10 	funding from federal and private sources.

7.11 	Sec. 5. [144.999] BIOMONITORING REPORTS.
7.12 	(a) By January 15, 2007, the commissioner shall submit a
7.13 	report to the legislature summarizing the initial activities of
7.14 	the healthy Minnesotans biomonitoring program, including a
7.15 	program description, the methodology used, and the initial
7.16 	outcomes.
7.17 	(b) Thereafter, the commissioner shall prepare a biennial
7.18 	report describing the effectiveness of the program, including
7.19 	analysis of the health and environmental exposure data collected
7.20 	to adequately monitor the activities under section 144.995.  The
7.21 	report shall be made available to local public health
7.22 	departments and the general public in a summary format that
7.23 	protects the confidentiality of program participants.  The
7.24 	commissioner shall disseminate the report via the Department of
7.25 	Health's Web site.