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DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — The Iowa Department of Education must gather information from schools about whether they are testing for radon gas under a bill Gov. Terry Branstad has signed into law.
Branstad signed the bill Thursday to require school districts to tell the department about radon testing by the end of this year. The department must then report to the Legislature by January.
An original draft of the bill required schools to test for the gas and deal with problems if levels exceed recommendations. The House removed testing requirements, instead opting to gather information and assess how schools handle radon.
Lawmakers plan to use the information collected to create a proposal for testing next year.
The EPA estimates about 21,000 people die nationally each year from lung cancer caused by radon exposure.
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