Lead in the News
EPA Press Announcements:
August 2008
- August 21, 2008 - EPA issued a proposed rule to address fees for its lead-based paint programs. The rule will address two areas: first, it will modify and lower the existing fees for EPA's Lead-based Paint Activities Regulations; second, it will establish fees for the new Lead Renovation, Repair and Painting rule. The proposed rule would establish fees that will be charged for training programs seeking accreditation, for firms engaged in renovations seeking certification, and for individuals (for example, risk assessors) or firms engaged in lead-based paint activities seeking certification. The proposed rule would apply only in those states and tribes without their own authorized lead programs. The fees were developed as required by section 402 of the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA) to recover the cost of administering and enforcing the law's requirements.
The proposal would slightly lower existing fees -- a significant reduction considering the 35 to 40 percent increase in government labor costs since the original fees were set in 1999.
Read more information on the proposed rule or contact the National Lead Information Center at 1-800-424-LEAD. Also read EPA's fact sheet on the proposed rule. For technical information regarding the proposed rule, contact Marc Edmonds at the EPA at 202-566-0758 or by email at edmonds.marc@epa.gov.
EPA is accepting public comment on its fee proposal until September 22, 2008.
April 2008
- April 22, 2008 - The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is modifying the Request for Proposals (RFP) Number EPA-HQ-OPPT-08-007, Tribal Educational Outreach on Lead Poisoning and Baseline Assessment of Tribal Children's Existing and Potential Exposure and Risks Associated with Lead. The modified RFP (PDF) (24 pp, 180K)
extends the closing deadline to April 30, 2008, due to problems encountered in submitting the proposals through www.grants.gov. The remainder of the information in the RFP is unchanged.
The closing date for applicants to submit proposals under this announcement is April 30, 2008. Applicants can apply via mail or on-line at www.grants.gov. Helpful Grants.gov instructions (PDF) (6 pp, 92K) are provided for on-line application.
March 2008
- March 31, 2008 - To better protect children from lead-based paint hazards, EPA
issued a new rule (PDF)
(79 pp, 847K) for home improvement contractors and maintenance professionals who renovate or repair pre-1978 housing, child care facilities or schools.
The rule requires that by April 2010 contractors and maintenance professionals be certified, that their employees be trained, and that they follow protective lead-safe work practice standards. Trained contractors must post warning signs, restrict occupants from work areas, contain work areas to prevent
dust and debris from spreading, conduct a thorough cleanup, and verify that the cleanup was effective.
To foster adoption of the new measures, EPA is launching an education and outreach campaign promoting use of lead-safe work practices. EPA's analysis indicates that renovation, repair and painting projects in housing and child-occupied facilities that are likely to contain lead-based paint affect 1.4 million children under age six annually. The new requirements are key components of a comprehensive federal effort to eliminate childhood lead poisoning. These include programs to educate parents and caregivers to keep their housing clean and well-maintained, to make sure their young children wash their hands frequently and eat nutritious food, and to talk to their doctor about testing young children for lead poisoning. Read more about the new rule for renovation, repair and painting to protect against lead poisoning. Read the fact sheet on renovation. En Español. Más información en inglés. - March 6, 2008 - EPA is making available approximately $500,000 for
Tribal Lead Grants. EPA is accepting grant proposals from Federally-recognized Indian tribes and tribal consortia to support Tribal educational outreach and to conduct a baseline assessment of Tribal
children's existing and potential exposure to lead-based paint and related lead-based paint hazards. In
the Request for Proposals (PDF) (24 pp, 167K)
. EPA describes activities eligible for funding include educational outreach, data gathering, inspections, risk assessments, training, and development of new and innovative approaches to identifying
or reducing lead poisoning. EPA is awarding grants to Federally-recognized Indian tribes to perform
those activities and to encourage Indian tribes to consider continuing such activities in the future.
The number of grants EPA will fund as a result of this announcement will be based on the quality of proposals received and the availability of funding. It is anticipated that approximately 4-6 awards will
be made.
The closing date for applicants to submit proposals under this announcement is April 21, 2008. Applicants can apply via mail or on-line at www.grants.gov. Helpful Grants.gov instructions (PDF) (6 pp, 84K) are provided for on-line application.
February 2008
- February 15, 2008 - The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is soliciting grant proposals from eligible entities to reduce incidences of childhood lead poisoning in low-income communities with older housing. In the Request for Proposals (PDF)
(19 pp, 94K), EPA describes a new community-based lead grant program and provides potential grant activities that could include outreach, training, ordinance development, and
other activities that would result in reduction of childhood lead poisoning. This grant will support the partnership of national organizations with community-based organizations and local governments to
improve the environmental health of a community regarding lead poisoning prevention. EPA is awarding
grants that will provide approximately $2 million to interested entities. It is anticipated that approximately 6-8 awards will be made. The number of grants EPA will fund as a result of this
announcement will be based on the quality of proposals received and the availability of funding.
The closing date for applicants to submit proposals under this announcement is March 31, 2008. Applicants can apply via mail or on-line at http://www.grants.gov. Helpful Grants.gov instructions (PDF) (5 pp, 32K) are provided for on-line application.
January 2008
- January 29, 2008 - EPA issued a final rule under the Toxic Substances Control Act requiring certain manufacturers, including importers, of consumer products intended for use by children to submit unpublished health and safety information on the lead content of children's products, excluding children's metal jewelry. Read more information on this rule.
June 2007
- June 5, 2007 - To provide the nation's children with additional protection from
lead exposure, EPA issued a supplemental notice of proposed rulemaking to require lead-safe work practices and worker training
and certification for contractors and construction professionals conducting renovation activities in child-occupied facilities. Child-occupied facilities include child-care centers, preschools, and kindergarten classrooms, and may be located in private homes and apartments, as well as in public or commercial buildings. Whether a dwelling or building is covered by the proposal depends on the number of hours that a child under six years of age regularly spends there.
This proposal supplements EPA's January 10, 2006, proposed requirements for training, certification and work practices for contractors who perform renovations in most pre-1978 housing. In addition to extending the proposal to cover renovations in child-occupied facilities, the June proposal also would require renovation firms to distribute lead hazard information to owners and operators of buildings containing child-occupied facilities, as well as to the parents and guardians of children under age six using the facilities.
Renovation activities that disturb lead-based paint can create lead hazards. A 2003 survey of child care centers by the Department of Housing and Urban Development found that 28 percent of all licensed child care centers nationwide still contain some lead-based paint, and more than half of the centers built before 1960 do. This supplemental proposal is another component of a comprehensive program that will include training and an education and outreach campaign to promote lead-safe work practices. As part of this program, EPA has developed model training courses for renovators and for dust sampling technicians. This program will help to meet the goal of eliminating childhood lead poisoning as a major public health concern by the year 2010.
April 2007
- April 13, 2007 - EPA and the Sierra Club reached a settlement on April 13, 2007, under which the Agency will take targeted actions to complement numerous other measures EPA has taken, along with its federal and state partners, to protect children from lead exposure. More information on lead in toy jewelry.
March 2007
- March 15, 2007 - EPA is announcing the availability of two new studies in the Renovation, Repair, and Painting Program rulemaking docket [docket ID number EPA-HQ-OPPT-2005-0049]. On January 10, 2006, EPA proposed a rule establishing requirements to protect residents of pre-1978 housing units from lead hazards due to renovation, repair, and painting activities (71 FR 1588). Since the 2006 proposal, two new studies assessing hazards associated with renovation activities have been completed. They include one study conducted by EPA - Characterization of Dust Lead Levels after Renovation, Repair, and Painting Activities, and a second study conducted by the National Association of Home Builders (NAHB) - Lead-Safe Work Practices Survey Project. EPA is offering the opportunity for the public to comment regarding the proposed work practice standards in light of these studies. Comments should be submitted to the docket for the proposed rule by April 16, 2007. More information about the proposed rule and the studies.
- March 1, 2007 - The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is amending the Request for Proposals (RFP) Number EPA-OPPT-2006-0648, National Community-Based Lead Outreach and Training Grant Program. The amendment (PDF) (1 pg, 9K) clarifies eligibility information and extends the closing deadline. The remainder of the information in the Request for Proposals (PDF) (18 pp, 100K) remains unchanged. The closing date for applicants to submit proposals under this amendment to the announcement is April 12, 2007.
January 2007
- January 29, 2007 - The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is soliciting
grant proposals from eligible entities to reduce incidences of childhood lead poisoning in low-income communities with older housing. In the Request for Proposals (PDF) (18 pp, 100K) EPA describes a new community-based lead grant program and provides potential grant activities that could include outreach, training, ordinance development, and other activities that would result in reduction of childhood lead poisoning. This
grant will support the partnership of national organizations with community-based organizations and
local governments to improve the environmental health of a community regarding lead poisoning
prevention. EPA is awarding grants that will provide approximately $1.5 million to interested entities.
It is anticipated that approximately 6-8 awards will be made. The number of grants EPA will fund as a result of this announcement will be based on the quality of proposals received and the availability of funding.
The closing date for applicants to submit proposals under this announcement is April 2, 2007. Applicants can apply via mail or on-line at www.grants.gov. Helpful instructions (PDF) (3 pp, 26K) are provided for on-line application.
- January 17, 2007 - EPA is making available approximately $1 million for Tribal Lead Grants. EPA is currently evaluating grant proposals from Federally-recognized Indian tribes and tribal consortia to support Tribal educational outreach and to conduct a baseline assessment of Tribal children's existing and potential exposure to lead-based paint and related lead-based paint hazards. Activities eligible for funding include educational outreach, data gathering, inspections, risk assessments, training, and development of new and innovative approaches to identifying or reducing lead poisoning. EPA is awarding grants to Federally-recognized Indian tribes to perform those activities and to encourage Indian tribes to consider continuing such activities in the future. The number of grants EPA will fund as a result of this announcement will be based on the quality of proposals received and the availability of funding. It is anticipated that approximately 15-30 awards will be made. The deadline for submission of grant proposals was January 12, 2007.
- January 17, 2007 - EPA is making available $3 million in funding for Targeted Grants to Reduce Childhood Lead Poisoning, this competitive grant program addresses populations still at risk for elevated blood lead levels. EPA is currently evaluating grant proposals to conduct activities to reduce incidences of childhood lead poisoning in vulnerable populations, including projects to: (1) Reduce lead poisoning in areas with high incidences of elevated blood-lead levels; (2) identify and reduce lead poisoning in under-studied areas with high potential for undocumented elevated blood-lead levels; and (3) develop tools to address unique and challenging issues in lead poisoning prevention, especially tools that are replicable and scalable for other areas. Activities eligible for funding include outreach and public education, data gathering, monitoring, training, inspections and assessments, and demonstrations of new and innovative approaches for identifying or reducing lead poisoning. The deadline for submission of grant proposals was January 12, 2007.
March 2006
- March 16, 2006 - EPA has published "Lead Paint Test Kit Development; Request for Comments" in the Federal Register of March 16, 2006
(71 FR 13561-13563). In
this request, EPA is asking for information concerning the development of test kits or similar
technologies for testing lead in paint that could be used by renovators, repair persons, and painters complying with a future regulation for renovation, repair, and painting activities. The information
will be considered in formulating EPA's policy and research decisions regarding the development of
lead paint test kits.
Comments must be received on or before April 17, 2006. You may submit comments on Lead Paint Test Kit Development; Request for Comments, identified by Docket ID number EPA-HQ-OPPT-2006-0044, online through the Federal eRulemaking Portal at www.regulations.gov. Follow the on-line instructions for submitting comments. Other methods for submitting comments are also described in the Request for Comments.
- March 8, 2006 - EPA published a notice (71 FR 11570-11572) seeking comment on the Agency's new lead hazard information pamphlet for renovation activities, Protect Your Family from Lead During Renovation, Repair & Painting (PDF) (22 pp, 305K). EPA developed this renovation specific pamphlet to better inform families about the potential risk associated with renovation activities in target housing. This new pamphlet gives information on lead-based paint hazards in a home, lead testing, how to select a contractor, what precautions to take during the renovation, and proper cleanup activities. Comments on the new brochure must be submitted by April 7, 2006. More information.
- March 2, 2006 - OPPTS published a notice (71 FR 10628-10630) announcing the availability of, and seeking comment on, a revised Economic Analysis to support the Renovation, Repair, and Painting Program (PDF) (1083 pp, 14M) proposed regulation. As discussed in the proposed rule, the revised economic analysis contains the Agency's updated estimate of the potential costs and benefits of the proposed rule. Comments must be submitted by April 10, 2006. More information.
February 2006
- February 27, 2006 - EPA published a notice (71 FR 9750-9752) announcing five public meetings to receive comments from the public regarding the proposed Renovation, Repair and Painting Program requirements. The meetings will be held in late March and early April in New York, Chicago, Washington, D.C., Atlanta, and San Francisco. The FR Notice announces the locations and times for the meetings, and explains meeting procedures. More information.
January 2006
- January 10, 2006 - EPA published the Renovation, Repair, and Painting Program proposed rule (71 FR 1588). The proposal seeks to minimize the introduction of lead hazards resulting from the disturbance of lead-based paint during renovation, repair, and painting activities in most housing built before 1978. Comments on this proposed rule, identified by the Docket ID number EPA-HQ-OPPT-2005-0049, must be submitted by April 10, 2006, through http://www.regulations.gov. Follow the instructions on the regulations.gov web site to view the index for the docket and access available documents. Other methods for submitting comments are also described in the proposed rule. More information. Más información.