AJR 35

Introduced by Assembly Members Sanchez, Davies, and Dixon
 Relative to Pediatric Cancer Clusters in South Orange County.
Pediatric Cancer Clusters in South Orange County
Environmental investigations: pediatric cancer clusters.
This measure would petition the President and the Congress of the United States to direct specified federal agencies to, among other things, oversee targeted scientific research into the environmental co-factors and potential triggers of Ewing Sarcoma. The measure would request the Governor to direct specified state agencies to establish a scientific partnership to, among other things, enable joint access to epidemiological data. The measure would further urge specific federal agencies to make grant funding available to California academic medical institutions and state agencies, among others, to investigate chemical exposure pathways and localized cluster dynamics in south Orange County.
WHEREAS, The State of California places the highest priority on protecting children and communities from potential environmental health hazards, hazardous chemical exposure, and toxic runoff in residential environments; and
WHEREAS, Families residing in the South Orange County community of Ladera Ranch and surrounding municipalities have identified an alarming concentration of rare pediatric cancer diagnoses, including multiple confirmed cases of Ewing sarcoma, a primary bone and soft-tissue malignancy that affects only about 200 to 250 children and adolescents nationwide each year; and
WHEREAS, Ewing sarcoma is predominantly characterized by specific genetic mutations, yet the scientific understanding of how environmental exposures, multi-chemical synergies, or prenatal factors may interact with genetic vulnerabilities to trigger onset remains critically underdeveloped; and
WHEREAS, On July 16, 2026, the United States Attorney’s Office for the Central District of California formally petitioned the United States Environmental Protection Agency to initiate an investigation into whether environmental contamination or chemical runoff contributes to these rare childhood cancer diagnoses and whether federal environmental safety statutes have been violated; and
WHEREAS, The National Institutes of Health, as the primary federal agency conducting and funding biomedical and public health research, encompasses specialized entities, including the National Cancer Institute and the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences; and
WHEREAS, The National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences and the National Toxicology Program possess premier scientific capabilities required to evaluate low-dose, multi-chemical toxicity, pesticide exposure pathways, and gene-environment interactions in pediatric populations; and
WHEREAS, Unraveling the etiology of rare pediatric cancer clusters in suburban residential environments requires dedicated federal scientific grants, advanced toxicological modeling, and interagency collaboration between federal researchers and state health agencies; now, therefore, be it
 Resolved by the Assembly and the Senate of the State of California, jointly,  That the Legislature of the State of California respectfully petitions the President and the Congress of the United States to direct the National Institutes of Health, the National Cancer Institute, and the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences to prioritize, fund, and oversee targeted scientific research into the environmental co-factors and potential triggers of Ewing sarcoma and other rare pediatric bone cancers; and be it further
 Resolved,  That the Legislature respectfully requests the Governor to direct the California Department of Public Health and the California Environmental Protection Agency to establish a formal scientific partnership with University of California, Irvine Health and the Children’s Hospital of Orange County, enabling joint access to epidemiological data, state testing resources, and specialized research support; and be it further
 Resolved,  That the Legislature urges the National Institutes of Health and the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences to make federal research grant funding available to California academic medical institutions, epidemiological researchers, and the California Department of Public Health to investigate chemical exposure pathways and localized cluster dynamics in south Orange County; and be it further
 Resolved,  That the Chief Clerk of the Assembly transmit copies of this resolution to the President and Vice President of the United States, the Speaker of the House of Representatives, the President pro Tempore of the Senate, the Director of the National Institutes of Health, the Director of the National Cancer Institute, the Director of the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences, each Senator and Representative from California in the United States Congress, and the author for appropriate distribution.