H.R. 4592

[Congressional Bills 119th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 4592 Introduced in House (IH)]

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119th CONGRESS
1st Session
H. R. 4592

To direct the Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency to 
revise section 61.206 of title 40, Code of Federal Regulations, to 
approve certain distribution or use of phosphogypsum, and for other 
purposes.

_______________________________________________________________________

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

July 22, 2025

Mr. Frost (for himself and Mrs. Cherfilus-McCormick) introduced the 
following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Energy and 
Commerce

_______________________________________________________________________

A BILL

To direct the Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency to 
revise section 61.206 of title 40, Code of Federal Regulations, to 
approve certain distribution or use of phosphogypsum, and for other 
purposes.

Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

This Act may be cited as the ``No Radioactive Roads Act of 2025''.

SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

Congress finds the following:
(1) Since 1992, the Environmental Protection Agency 
(hereinafter referred to as the ``EPA'') has prohibited the use 
of phosphogypsum in road construction, citing numerous 
scenarios that would expose the public, and especially road 
construction workers, to an unacceptable risk of cancer.
(2) EPA prohibited use of phosphogypsum in roads because it 
contains uranium and radium that produce radionuclides linked 
to higher risks of cancer and genetic damage. The Clean Air Act 
was amended in 1977 after finding that exposure to radioactive 
materials can cause serious harm to health, and that exposures 
to radioactivity are cumulative, which means each new or 
additional exposure increases the risk of serious illness.
(3) EPA found that phosphogypsum used in roads could 
contaminate nearby surface and groundwater quality through 
leaching, and that radioactive material could be resuspended 
into the air by wind and vehicle traffic.
(4) EPA found that stacking of phosphogypsum presented a 
lifetime cancer risk of 9.1 in 100,000, meaning that any 
alternative distribution of phosphogypsum must meet this same 
protective threshold.
(5) The Director of EPA's Office of Radiation and Indoor 
Air has testified that use of phosphogysum as ``road building 
material could not meet the EPA's risk criteria''.
(6) EPA has further acknowledged it cannot authorize 
categorical approvals and requires case-by-case consideration 
of other uses.

SEC. 3. CLARIFICATION OF OTHER PURPOSE.

(a) In General.--Not later than 2 years after the date of the 
enactment of this Act, the Administrator of the Environmental 
Protection Agency shall promulgate a final rule revising section 61.206 
of title 40, Code of Federal Regulations, to ensure the following:
(1) Any request that Administrator approve distribution or 
use of phosphogypsum for any purpose not expressly specified in 
section 61.204 or 61.205 of title 40, Code of Federal 
Regulations, shall include--
(A) the maximum individual risk imposed on a person 
due to exposure to a pollutant;
(B) a description of measures to minimize, to the 
greatest extent possible, exposure to any individual 
who may be directly or indirectly exposed to 
phosphogypsum, in furtherance of the other purpose, 
including a--
(i) construction worker;
(ii) utility worker;
(iii) user of any final product that 
includes phosphogypsum; or
(iv) nearby resident of an area of exposure 
to phosphogypsum; and
(C) a description of both surfacewater and 
groundwater exposure pathways and a monitoring program 
to eliminate potential exposure to contaminants within 
the water pathways that includes--
(i) an estimate of the amount and 
composition of leachate from phosphogypsum 
expected from the phosphogypsum application 
throughout the product's lifecycle;
(ii) an estimate of ecotoxicity impacts 
from potential leachate contamination of nearby 
or downstream environments (soil, vegetation, 
waterways, and aquatic life); and
(iii) a written plan approved by the 
Administrator for quarterly leachate and 
ecotoxicity monitoring of the nearby and 
immediately downstream environments, including 
soil, vegetation, waterways, and aquatic life.
(2) Any approval for distribution or use of phosphogypsum 
for any purpose not expressly specified in sections section 
61.204 or 61.205 of title 40, Code of Federal Regulations--
(A) shall be determined on a case-by-case basis; 
and
(B) may not exceed a maximum individual risk of 9.1 
in 100,000.
(3) Any request that the Administrator approves 
distribution or use of phosphogypsum for any purpose not 
expressly specified in section 61.204 or 61.205 of title 40, 
Code of Federal Regulations, including the results of any 
required testing specified in paragraph (1)(C) shall be made 
publicly available on the public website of the Environmental 
Protection Agency.
(b) Maximum Individual Risk.--In this Act, the term ``maximum 
individual risk'' means the highest increase in lifetime cancer risk an 
individual faces in a population that is exposed to the highest 
concentration of phosphogypsum over a 70-year period.
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