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HR147 • 2026

Investigate East Palestine train derailment and EPA response

Investigate East Palestine train derailment and EPA response

Passed Legislature

This bill passed both chambers and reached final enrollment, even if later executive action is not shown here.

Sponsor
Monica Robb Blasdel
Last action
Official status
As Enrolled
Effective date
Not listed

Plain English Breakdown

Using official source text because the generated explanation was unavailable or could not be confirmed against the official bill text.

Investigate East Palestine train derailment and EPA response

To urge Congress to establish a special committee to investigate the East Palestine, Ohio train derailment and the federal Environmental Protection Agency's response to it.

What This Bill Does

  • To urge Congress to establish a special committee to investigate the East Palestine, Ohio train derailment and the federal Environmental Protection Agency's response to it.

Limits and Unknowns

  • This entry is temporarily using official source text because the generated explanation could not be confirmed against the official bill text during the last sync.

Bill History

  1. Ohio Legislature

    As Introduced

  2. Ohio Legislature

    As Reported by the House Natural Resources Committee

  3. Ohio Legislature

    As Adopted by the House

  4. Ohio Legislature

    As Enrolled

Official Summary Text

To urge Congress to establish a special committee to investigate the East Palestine, Ohio train derailment and the federal Environmental Protection Agency's response to it.

Current Bill Text

Read the full stored bill text 
(136th General Assembly)

(House
Resolution Number 147)

A resolution

To urge Congress to establish a special committee to investigate the
East Palestine, Ohio train derailment and the federal Environmental
Protection Agency's response to it.

Be it resolved
by the House of Representatives of the State of Ohio:

WHEREAS,
On February 3, 2023, a freight train derailed in East Palestine,
Ohio, while carrying hazardous materials, including vinyl chloride,
ethylene glycol monobutyl ether, ethyl-hexyl acrylate, butyl
acrylates, benzene residue, and isobutylene. In response, officials
evacuated a one-mile radius around the derailment location and then
extended it to two miles a few days later; and

WHEREAS,
The force of the crash caused several rail cars to catch fire and
others to spill their toxic loads onto the soil, causing hazardous
substances to travel into local waterways; and

WHEREAS,
Emergency crews were forced to conduct controlled burns of five vinyl
chloride tank rail cars to limit potential explosions. But as a
result of the controlled burning, plumes of black smoke containing
hazardous chemicals were released into the air; and

WHEREAS,

In September 2023, President Biden issued
Executive Order 14108, "ensuring the people of East Palestine
are protected now and in the future." This Executive Order also
states, in pertinent part, that "available data show that no
contaminants of concern have been detected at levels of concern in
the air in the affected communities at sustained levels since the
evacuation order was lifted"; and

WHEREAS,
The Executive Order also directed the Federal Emergency Management
Agency (FEMA) to "oversee long-term recovery efforts in the
affected communities and conduct a comprehensive assessment of unmet
needs of the affected communities in recovering from the derailment
beyond the cleanup work directed by EPA"; and

WHEREAS,
Newly-obtained documents acquired through a Freedom of Information
Act request show that officials from FEMA voiced concerns that the
chemical spill and the plume of smoke set off by the controlled burn
could cause "cancer clusters"; now therefore be it

RESOLVED,
That we, the members of the House of
Representatives
of the 136th General Assembly of the State of Ohio, in adopting this
resolution, urge Congress to establish a special committee to
investigate the East Palestine train derailment and the United States
Environmental Protection Agency's response to it; and be it further

RESOLVED,
That we, the members of the House of Representatives of the 136th
General Assembly of the State of Ohio, in adopting this resolution,
urge Congress to appoint members of the Ohio Congressional delegation
to the special committee; and be it further

RESOLVED,
That the Clerk of the House of Representatives transmit duly
authenticated copies of this resolution to the President of the
United States, the Speaker and Clerk of the United States House of
Representatives, the President Pro Tempore and Secretary of the
United States Senate, each member of Congress, and the news media of
Ohio.

Speaker _________________ of the House of Representatives.

Adopted
____________________, 20____