1995 Presidential advisory committee on Gulf War Illness

[Weekly Compilation of Presidential Documents]
From the 1996 Presidential Documents Online via GPO Access [frwais.access.gpo.gov]
[DOCID:pd29my95_txt-26]

[Page 911-912]

Monday, May 29, 1995

Volume 31--Number 21
Pages 867-914

Week Ending Friday, May 26, 1995

Executive Order 12961--Presidential Advisory Committee on Gulf War
Veterans' Illnesses

May 26, 1995

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

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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.
William J. Clinton
The White House,
May 26, 1995.

[Filed with the Office of the Federal Register, 10:36 a.m., May 30,
1995]

Note: This Executive order will be published in the Federal Register
on May 31.

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