Presidential Advisory Committee on Gulf War Veterans' Illnesses
Signed May 26, 1995·William J. Clinton·60 FR 28507
Source
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Plain-language summary
Establishes the Presidential Advisory Committee on Gulf War Veterans' Illnesses, made up of up to 12 members appointed by the President who are not full-time federal employees, with a chairperson designated by the President. The committee reports to the President through the Secretaries of Defense, Veterans Affairs, and Health and Human Services, and is to review and advise on research, coordinating efforts, medical treatment programs, outreach, external reviews, possible risk factors from service in the Persian Gulf Conflict, and reports of chemical or biological weapons detection. It cannot conduct its own research or address federal legal liability. It must submit an interim report within six months of its first meeting and a final report by December 31, 1996, unless the President extends that deadline, and it terminates 30 days after submitting the final report. Executive departments must provide requested information, and the Department of Defense is to fund the committee's operations.
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Claimed authority
By the authority vested in me as President by the Constitution and the laws of the United States of America, it is hereby ordered
Quoted from the order as written. Many orders cite nothing more specific than “the Constitution and the laws”; this reproduces what the order claims, not an assessment of whether it holds.
The order, in full
Executive Order 12961 of May 26, 1995
Presidential Advisory Committee on Gulf War
Veterans'
Illnesses
By the authority vested in me as President by the
Constitution and the laws of the United States of
America, it is hereby ordered as follows:
Section 1. Establishment. (a) There is hereby
established the Presidential Advisory Committee on Gulf
War Veterans' Illnesses (the “Committee”). The
Committee shall be composed of not more than 12 members
to be appointed by the President. The members of the
Committee shall have expertise relevant to the
functions of the Committee and shall not be full-time
officials or employees of the executive branch of the
Federal Government. The Committee shall be subject to
the Federal Advisory Committee Act, as amended, 5
U.S.C. App. 2.
(b) The President shall designate a Chairperson
from among the members of the Committee.
Sec. 2. Functions. (a) The Committee shall report to
the President through the Secretary of Defense, the
Secretary of Veterans Affairs, and the Secretary of
Health and Human Services.
(b) The Committee shall provide advice and
recommendations based on its review of the following
matters:
(1) Research: epidemiological, clinical, and other
research concerning Gulf War veterans' illnesses.
(2) Coordinating Efforts: the activities of the
Persian Gulf Veterans Coordinating Board, including the
Research Coordinating Council, the Clinical Working
Group, and the Disability and Compensation Working
Group.
(3) Medical Treatment: medical examinations and
treatment in connection with Gulf War veterans'
illnesses, including the Comprehensive Clinical
Evaluation Program and the Persian Gulf Registry
Medical Examination Program.
(4) Outreach: government-sponsored outreach efforts
such as hotlines and newsletters related to Gulf War
veterans' illnesses.
(5) External Reviews: the steps taken to implement
recommendations in external reviews by the Institute of
Medicine's Committee to Review the Health Consequences
of Service During the Persian Gulf War, the Defense
Science Board Task Force on Persian Gulf War Health
Effects, the National Institutes of Health Technology
Assessment Workshop on the Persian Gulf Experience and
Health, the Persian Gulf Expert Scientific Committee,
and other bodies.
(6) Risk Factors: the possible risks associated
with service in the Persian Gulf Conflict in general
and, specifically, with prophylactic drugs and
vaccines, infectious diseases, environmental chemicals,
radiation and toxic substances, smoke from oil well
fires, depleted uranium, physical and psychological
stress, and other factors applicable to the Persian
Gulf Conflict.
(7) Chemical and Biological Weapons: information
related to reports of the possible detection of
chemical or biological weapons during the Persian Gulf
Conflict.
(c) It shall not be a function of the Committee to
conduct scientific research. The Committee shall review
information and provide advice and
recommendations on the activities
undertaken related to the matters described in (b)
above.
(d) It shall not be a function of the Committee to
provide advice or recommendations on any legal
liability of the Federal Government for any claims or
potential claims against the Federal Government.
(e) As used herein, “Gulf War Veterans'
Illnesses” means the symptoms and illnesses reported
by United States uniformed services personnel who
served in the Persian Gulf Conflict.
(f) The Committee shall submit an interim report
within 6 months of the first meeting of the Committee
and a final report by December 31, 1996, unless
otherwise provided by the President.
Sec. 3. Administration. (a) The heads of executive
departments and agencies shall, to the extent permitted
by law, provide the Committee with such information as
it may require for purposes of carrying out its
functions.
(b) Members of the Committee shall be compensated
in accordance with Federal law. Committee members may
be allowed travel expenses, including per diem in lieu
of subsistence, to the extent permitted by law for
persons serving intermittently in the Government
service (5 U.S.C. 5701-5707).
(c) To the extent permitted by law, and subject to
the availability of appropriations, the Department of
Defense shall provide the Committee with such funds as
may be necessary for the performance of its functions.
Sec. 4. General Provisions. (a) Notwithstanding the
provisions of any other Executive order, the functions
of the President under the Federal Advisory Committee
Act that are applicable to the Committee, except that
of reporting annually to the Congress, shall be
performed by the Secretary of Defense, in accordance
with the guidelines and procedures established by the
Administrator of General Services.
(b) The Committee shall terminate 30 days after
submitting its final report.
(c) This order is intended only to improve the
internal management of the executive branch and it is
not intended to create any right, benefit or trust
responsibility, substantive or procedural, enforceable
at law or equity by a party against the United States,
its agencies, its officers, or any person.
(Presidential Sig.)
THE WHITE HOUSE,
May 26, 1995.Reproduced from the Federal Register plain-text record, signed May 26, 1995. Typesetting artifacts are removed; no wording is changed.