HUD AWARDS NEARLY $29 MILLION TO PROTECT THOUSANDS OF CHILDREN FROM DANGEROUS LEAD HAZARDS
Top programs in nine states receive renewed funding

WASHINGTON - Eleven communities that currently operate highly successful lead hazard control programs will be able to continue protecting thousands of children because of nearly $29 million awarded today by Housing and Urban Development Secretary Mel Martinez. The grants by HUD will enable the programs to continue their work for another three years.

In addition to the HUD grants awarded today, these programs expect to generate an estimated $13.4 million in local funding to build upon their excellent work in controlling lead-based paint hazards.

"These programs really are among the best of the best," said Martinez. "Each has demonstrated an ability to make their program a model for others in the country to imitate. In the end, more children and families living in low-income housing will be protected from potentially dangerous lead poisoning."

The following communities received funding (see attached list for detailed summaries):

The funding announced today is part of HUD's $176 million commitment this year to protect children from lead and other home health and safety hazards. Earlier this month, HUD also made available nearly $50 million in lead hazard control funding to communities with the greatest need. Areas with the highest lead-based paint abatement needs are defined as having the highest number of pre-1940 rental units and a disproportionately high number of documented cased of lead-poisoned children. This funding helps communities to pay for the costs of inspections, risk assessments, temporary relocations and controlling lead hazards in low-income, privately owned housing.

HUD's Healthy Homes and Lead Hazard Control grants are targeted to low-income privately owned homes most likely to expose children to health hazards. Learn more about HUD's Healthy Homes and Lead Hazard Control Program, or find out how you can protect your family from lead, visit www.hud.gov/offices/lead.

Lead poisoning in children can reduce IQ, cause learning disabilities and impair hearing. Children who have elevated blood lead levels often experience reduced attention spans, are hyperactive and can exhibit behavior problems. At higher exposures, lead can damage a child's kidneys and central nervous system and cause anemia, coma, convulsions and even death. Nearly one half million of the nation's children under age six have blood lead levels high enough to impair the ability to think, concentrate and learn.

Since the landmark Residential Lead-Based Paint Hazard Reduction Act became law more than 10 years ago, millions of children have been protected from dangerous lead. Though average blood lead levels have declined significantly over the past decade, one in six low income children living in older housing is believed to be lead poisoned. Pregnant women poisoned by lead can transfer lead to a developing fetus, resulting in adverse developmental effects.

It is estimated that 26 million fewer homes contain lead-based paint compared to 1990 when the Department's Lead Hazard Control program began. In addition, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reports the average amount of lead in children's blood has declined by 25% from 1996-99. Ten years ago, there was no federal funding dedicated to lead hazard control work in privately owned housing; today, the HUD program is active in over 250 jurisdictions across the country.

HUD is the nation's housing agency committed to increasing homeownership, particularly among minorities, creating affordable and decent housing opportunities for low-income Americans, supporting the homeless, elderly, people with disabilities and people living with AIDS. The Department also promotes economic and community development as well as enforces the nation's fair housing laws. More information about HUD and its programs is available on the Internet.

Lead Hazard Control Renewal Grants

San Diego County, California
Amount of Award: $647,177
Contact: Catherine J. Trout, (858) 694-4801

San Diego County, California will be awarded $647,000 to continue its successful San Diego Lead Based Paint Hazard Control Program (LBPHCP) under the Lead Hazard Control Grant Program, and will be assisted by nearly $90,000 in additional local funding. With the funds awarded, San Diego County's Department of Housing and Community Development (DHCD) intends to provide lead-based paint hazard control intervention services in 30 additional eligible low-income privately owned housing units in the County.

Encompassing the San Diego Urban County, the unincorporated County, and cities of Coronado, Del Mar, Imperial Beach, Lemon Grove, Poway, and Solana Beach, LBPHCP will target pre-1970 housing where below poverty families with children under 6 years old reside. LBPHCP will collaborate with San Diego County Housing Authority, Childhood Lead Poisoning Prevention Program, Environmental Health Coalition, San Ysidro Health Center, Hope World Wide, and Grossmont-Spring Valley Family Health Center to bring about safer living conditions throughout San Diego County.

Chicago, Illinois
Department of Public Health
Amount of Award: $3,000,000
Contact: John Wilhelm, (312) 747-9884

The City of Chicago, Illinois will be awarded $3,000,000 to continue its successful Chicago Lead Safe Homes Initiative (CLSHI) under the Lead Hazard Control Grant Program, and will be assisted by over $1 million in additional local funding. With the funds awarded, the City of Chicago's Department of Public Health (CDPH) intends to provide lead-based paint hazard control intervention services in 200 additional eligible low-income privately owned housing units in the County.

CDPH will partner with Neighborhood Housing Services, El Valor, Children's Home Aid Society, and the Chicago Lead Elimination Task Force, which includes Lawndale Christian Health Center, Circle Christian Family Health Center, Westside Health Authority, and Westside Ministers Coalition to target and educate at-risk areas in Chicago.

CPDH and its partners will continue to target high-risk areas with high rates of childhood lead poisoning and pre-1950 housing in sub-standard condition where low-income families reside. CPDH will target a south area and a west area; the south area is comprised of the Englewood, West Englewood, New City, Fuller Park, Washington Park, Greater Grand Crossing, Auburn Gresham, and Roseland community areas. The west target area consists of the Austin, East and West Garfield, Humboldt Park, North and South Lawndale, and Lower West Community areas.

Kankakee, Illinois
Community Development Agency
Amount of Award: $3,000,000
Contact: Donald E. Green, Mayor, (815) 933-0501

The City of Kankakee, Illinois Community Development Agency (CDA) will be awarded $3,000,000 to continue its successful Kankakee Lead-Safe Homes Initiative (KLHSI) under the Lead Hazard Control Grant Program, and will be assisted by over $2.6 million in additional local funding. With the funds awarded, the City of Kankakee intends to provide lead-based paint hazard control intervention services in 240 additional eligible low-income privately owned housing units in the City.

Located roughly 70 miles south of Chicago, almost 95% of Kankakee's housing stock was built prior to 1978 and approximately 11,380 units of these are pre-1930. Nearly 70% of the City's housing units are believed to contain lead-based paint, and low-to-moderate income families inhabit more than 90% of these units. Working closely with the Kankakee County Health Department and the Kankakee Code Enforcement Department, KLSHI will focus its efforts on three low-income census tracts-North Side, Upper Riverview, and Washington Avenue-areas with disproportionate numbers of below poverty level families residing in decayed housing stock, but will be open to all income-eligible properties in Kankakee.

Madison County, Illinois
Community Development Department
Amount of Award: $3,000,000
Contact: Alan J. Dunstan, County Board Chairman, (618) 692-6200, x 4341

Madison County, Illinois will be awarded $3,000,000 to continue its successful Lead Safe Madison County initiative (LSMC) under the Lead Hazard Control Grant Program, and will be assisted by over $900,000 in additional local funding. With the funds awarded, Madison County's Community Development Department (MCCD) intends to provide lead-based paint hazard control intervention services in 240 additional eligible low-income privately owned housing units in the County.

As one of the ten largest counties in Illinois, 35% of Madison County's housing stock is pre-1950, and nearly 10% of its residents live below the federal poverty level. Based on test results, age of housing stock, poverty rates, and the number of children age six and younger, the Illinois Department of Public Health has designated 11 of the County's 29 zip codes as "high-risk." Recent data indicate that blood lead levels were above 10µg/dL (micrograms per deciliter) in 23% of children residing in these "high-risk" zip code areas, and 10% had blood levels above 15µg/dL. These 11 zip codes are home to more than half of all the at-risk children in Madison County.

In partnership with Madison County's Health Department, the Illinois Department of Public Health, Head Start, and others, the Lead Safe Madison County Program will focus its efforts on the 11 State-designated "high-risk" zip codes primarily, and those children at-risk residing in pre-1978 housing stock in its broader efforts.

Somerville, Massachusetts
Office of Housing and Community Development
Amount of Award: $2,071,247
Contact: Dorothy A. Kelly Gay, Mayor, (617) 625-6600

The City of Somerville, Massachusetts Office of Housing and Community Development (OHCD) will be awarded $2,071,247 to continue its successful Somerville Lead Hazard Abatement Program (SLHAP) under the Lead Hazard Control Grant Program, and will be assisted by over $270,000 in additional local funding. With the funds awarded, the City of Somerville intends to provide lead-based paint hazard control intervention services in 120 additional eligible low-income privately owned housing units in the City.

Somerville continues to be ranked among the highest municipalities in Massachusetts for risk of childhood lead poisoning, according to the state's Department of Public Health. It is estimated that 94% of Somerville's housing stock is pre-1950, with over 400 at-risk children living below the federal poverty level. Partnering with over 30 local agencies, SLHAP will target these at-risk children and provide outreach, education, and training to over 5,000 individual property owners, tenants, community-based organizations, local businesses, service providers, contractors, and others. In addition, the City intends to initiate a scholarship-funded training program for abatement contractor training and licensure in order to encourage minority owned business development.

Baltimore, Maryland
Health Department
Amount of Award: $2,998,474
Contact: Peter L. Beilenson, (410) 396-4387

The City of Baltimore, Maryland will be awarded $2,998,000 to continue its successful Lead Based Paint Hazard Control Program (LBPHCP) under the Lead Hazard Control Grant Program, and will be assisted by nearly $2.25 million in additional local and State funding. With the funds awarded, the City of Baltimore's Health Department (BCHD) intends to provide lead-based paint hazard control intervention services in 120 additional eligible low-income privately owned housing units in the City.

In collaboration with the Baltimore Childhood Lead Poisoning Prevention Program of the City Health Department, the Coalition to End Childhood Lead Poisoning, the Baltimore Department of Housing and Community Development, Empower Baltimore Management Corporation, and the Maryland Departments of the Environment and Housing and Community Development to target the entire City of Baltimore under this award. While the City's previous lead programs have made enormous strides in reducing the incidences of childhood lead poisoning, 27% of all Maryland children with a blood level equal to or greater than 20µg/dL (micrograms per deciliter) reside in Baltimore City. In one area of significant emphasis, Baltimore City's Empowerment Zone, as much as 64% of the housing stock is believed to be lead contaminated.

State of Michigan
Division of Environmental & Occupational Health
Amount of Award: $3,000,000
Contact: Janet Olszewski, (517) 373-3500

The State of Michigan will be awarded $3,000,000 to continue its successful Lead Hazard Remediation Program (LHRP) under the Lead Hazard Control Grant Program, and will be assisted by nearly $790,000 in additional local and state funding. With the funds awarded, the State of Michigan's Department of Community Health (DCH) intends to provide lead-based paint hazard control intervention services in 297 additional eligible low-income privately owned housing units across the State.

Focusing its efforts on Genesee, Ingham, and Muskegon counties, DCH will partner with each county's health department to identify and test candidates, oversee the lead hazard control work process, perform clearance testing, and assist affected families. Each local health department will work directly in high-risk neighborhoods where lead poisoned children continue to be identified. Additionally, the Lead Hazard Remediation Program will continue its collaboration with MDCH's Childhood Lead Poisoning Prevention Program to provide surveillance, education/outreach, blood lead testing promotion, medical treatment consultation, data collection and reporting, and in-home public health nursing assessment consultation.

Saint Paul - Ramsey County, Minnesota
Department of Public Health
Amount of Award: $1,800,000
Contact: Rob Fulton, (651) 266-1200

The Saint Paul - Ramsey County, Minnesota Department of Public Health will be awarded $1,800,000 to continue its successful Lead Hazard Control Program (LHCP) under the Lead Hazard Control Grant Program, and will be assisted by $790,000 in additional local funding. With the funds awarded, Saint Paul - Ramsey County intends to provide lead-based paint hazard control intervention services in 375 additional eligible low-income privately owned housing units in Saint Paul - Ramsey County.

Continuing its successful collaboration with the City of Duluth's Housing and Rehabilitation Authority and the City of Saint Paul's Department of Planning and Economic Development, Saint Paul - Ramsey County will target areas reporting the highest concentrations of children with elevated blood lead levels. The Program will expand its focus on a predominantly Hispanic neighborhood on St. Paul's Westside, where the largest increase in elevated blood levels have been reported, in addition to the continued emphasis on addressing window components throughout the older, deteriorated neighborhoods home to low-income families scattered across the area.

City of Albany, New York
Community Development Agency
Amount of Award: $3,000,000
Contact: Gerald Jennings, Mayor, (518) 434-5240

The City of Albany, New York will be awarded $3,000,000 to continue its successful lead based paint hazard reduction initiative under the Lead Hazard Control Grant Program, and will be assisted by nearly $3.5 million in additional local funding. With the funds awarded, Albany's Community Development Agency (ACDA) intends to provide lead-based paint hazard control intervention services in 215 additional eligible low-income privately owned housing units in the City.

The Lead Hazard Control Program is available to all eligible households in the city, but the City's efforts will target the Arbor Hill, West Hill, and South End neighborhoods. These neighborhoods are federally designated Medically Under-served Areas, and the Arbor Hill and West Hill areas are located in the Enterprise Community. Of the 17,199 households in the target areas, 31% are below poverty income levels and 62% of the housing stock dates to before 1940.

In concert with numerous State and local agencies, including the Albany County Health Department and the Tri-Cities Laborers Union, Albany's Environmental Services staff will focus its efforts within the target areas on those neighborhoods with the highest incidences of children under 6 with elevated blood lead levels.

City of Cleveland, Ohio
Department of Public Health
Amount of Award: $2,999,649
Contact: Matthew Carroll, (216) 664-2300

The City of Cleveland, Ohio's Department of Public Health will be awarded $2,999,649 to continue its successful lead hazard control efforts under the Lead Hazard Control Grant Program, and will be assisted by over $1.1 million in additional local funding. With the funds awarded, the City of Cleveland intends to provide lead-based paint hazard control intervention services in 220 additional eligible low-income privately owned housing units in the City.

Cleveland is a major urban area with a housing stock comprised of 95% pre-1978 housing and over half built before 1950. Added to this condition, 44% and 64% of Cleveland's households have incomes below 50% and 80% respectively of the area wide median family income. Cleveland's Lead Program will target the City's high-risk or target areas, such as Glenville, St. Clair-Superior, and Fairfax, where lead poisoning rates exceed 50% in some census tracts and contain significantly older and more deteriorated housing stock. According to a 2002 citywide screening, of over 17,500 children, 20% had blood lead levels greater than 10µg/dL (micrograms per deciliter), the threshold level established by the Centers for Disease Control (CDC).

Partnering with local non-profit housing development and rehab agencies to manage licensed lead abatement contractors, the Lead Program staff will conduct inspections, approve specs and work plans, monitor job progress, and perform clearance testing upon completion of work. In addition to the City's current partnerships, the Lead Program will further collaborate with the Cleveland Housing Network to receive and respond to qualified referrals from agencies in the City's Weatherization Program and with the Cleveland Municipal Housing Court to establish a loan deferral program for low-income rental property owners subject to criminal fines under the Rental Property Code Compliance Project (CCP).

State of Vermont
Housing and Conservation Board
Amount of Award: $3,000,000
Contact: Gustave Seelig, (802) 828-3250

The State of Vermont will be awarded $3,000,000 to continue its successful Vermont Lead-Based Paint Hazard Reduction Program under the Lead Hazard Control Grant Program, and will be assisted by at least $1.1 million in additional state and local funding. With the funds awarded, Vermont's Housing and Conservation Board (VHCB) intends to provide lead-based paint hazard control intervention services in 250 additional eligible low-income privately owned housing units in the State.

Vermont has some of the oldest housing stock in the nation and a continuing childhood lead poisoning problem. Hundreds of children are still identified each year with dangerous levels of lead in their blood. Current demand for the Lead Program assistance exceeds funding such that Vermont no longer has need to seek out applicants. In fact, waiting lists for lead hazard assistance continue to grow. Drawing upon Vermont's strong network of non-profit housing developers, VHCB will continue to provide funding to achieve affordable and lead-safe housing rehabilitation throughout the state. New efforts will focus on creating arrangements with CDBG grantees to encourage lead-safe renovation and target additional resources to communities where children are at high-risk for lead poisoning. The awarded funds will directly improve the lives of hundreds of low-income Vermont children.

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