093_HB3229enr

 
HB3229 Enrolled                      LRB093 11083 MBS 12133 b

 1        AN ACT concerning environmental protection.

 2        Be it enacted by the People of  the  State  of  Illinois,
 3    represented in the General Assembly:

 4        Section  5.  The Lead Poisoning Prevention Act is amended
 5    by adding Section 11.05 as follows:

 6        (410 ILCS 45/11.05 new)
 7        Sec. 11.05.  Advisory Council.
 8        (a)  The General Assembly finds the following:
 9             (1)  Lead-based paint  poisoning  is  a  potentially
10        devastating but preventable disease and is the number one
11        environmental  threat  to children's health in the United
12        States.
13             (2)  The  number  of   lead-poisoned   children   in
14        Illinois  is  among the highest in the nation, especially
15        in older, affordable properties.
16             (3)  Lead poisoning causes  irreversible  damage  to
17        the  development of a child's nervous system. Even at low
18        and  moderate  levels,  lead  poisoning  causes  learning
19        disabilities, speech problems, shortened attention  span,
20        hyperactivity,  and  behavioral problems. Recent research
21        links high levels of lead exposure to lower IQ scores and
22        to juvenile delinquency.
23             (4)  Older housing is the number one risk factor for
24        childhood lead poisoning. Properties  built  before  1950
25        are  statistically much more likely to contain lead-based
26        paint hazards than buildings constructed more recently.
27             (5)  Illinois ranks 10th out of the 50 states in the
28        age of its housing stock. More than 50%  of  the  housing
29        units  in  Chicago  and  in  Rock  Island, Peoria, Macon,
30        Madison, and Kankakee counties were built before 1960 and
31        more  than  43%  of  the  housing  units  in  St.  Clair,
 
HB3229 Enrolled             -2-      LRB093 11083 MBS 12133 b
 1        Winnebago, Sangamon, Kane, and Cook counties  were  built
 2        before 1950.
 3             (6)  There  are  nearly  1.4 million households with
 4        lead-based paint hazards in Illinois.
 5             (7)  Most children are lead-poisoned  in  their  own
 6        homes  through  exposure  to  lead dust from deteriorated
 7        lead-paint surfaces, like windows, and  when  lead  paint
 8        deteriorates  or is disturbed through home renovation and
 9        repainting.
10             (8)  The  control  of  lead  hazards   significantly
11        reduces   lead   poisoning   rates.   Other  communities,
12        including New York City and Milwaukee, have  successfully
13        reduced lead poisoning rates by removing lead-based paint
14        hazards on windows.
15             (9)  Windows  are  considered a higher lead exposure
16        risk more often than other components in a housing  unit.
17        Windows are a major contributor of lead dust in the home,
18        due to both weathering conditions and friction effects on
19        paint.
20             (10)  There is an insufficient pool of licensed lead
21        abatement  workers and contractors to address the problem
22        in some areas of the State.
23             (11)  Training, insurance, and licensing  costs  for
24        lead removal workers are prohibitively high.
25             (12)  Through   grants   from   the   United  States
26        Department  of  Housing  and  Urban   Development,   some
27        communities   in  Illinois  have  begun  to  reduce  lead
28        poisoning of children. While this is an  ongoing  effort,
29        it  addresses  only  a  small  number  of  the low-income
30        children statewide in communities  with  high  levels  of
31        lead paint in the housing stock.
32        (b)  For purposes of this Section:
33        "Advisory  Council"  means the Lead-Safe Housing Advisory
34    Council created under subsection (c).
 
HB3229 Enrolled             -3-      LRB093 11083 MBS 12133 b
 1        "Lead-Safe Housing Maintenance Standards" or  "Standards"
 2    means standards developed by the Advisory Council pursuant to
 3    this Section.
 4        "Low-income"  means  a  household  at or below 80% of the
 5    median income level for a given county as determined annually
 6    by  the  United  States  Department  of  Housing  and   Urban
 7    Development.
 8        "Primary prevention" means removing lead hazards before a
 9    child  is poisoned rather than relying on identification of a
10    lead poisoned child as the triggering event.
11        (c)  The Lead-Safe Housing Advisory Council is created to
12    advise  the   Department   on   lead   poisoning   prevention
13    activities.  The  Advisory  Council  shall  be chaired by the
14    Director or his or her designee and the chair of the Illinois
15    Lead Safe Housing Task Force and provided with administrative
16    support by the Department.  The  Advisory  Council  shall  be
17    comprised  of  (i)  the directors, or their designees, of the
18    Illinois Housing Development Authority and the  Environmental
19    Protection   Agency;   and   (ii)  the  directors,  or  their
20    designees,  of  public   health   departments   of   counties
21    identified  by the Department that contain communities with a
22    concentration of high-risk, lead-contaminated properties.
23        The Advisory Council shall  also  include  the  following
24    members appointed by the Governor:
25             (1)  One    representative    from    the   Illinois
26        Association of Realtors.
27             (2)  One representative from the insurance industry.
28             (3)  Two  pediatricians  or  other  physicians  with
29        knowledge of lead-paint poisoning.
30             (4)  Two representatives  from  the  private-sector,
31        lead-based-paint-abatement  industry  who are licensed in
32        Illinois as an  abatement  contractor,  worker,  or  risk
33        assessor.
34             (5)  Two   representatives   from   community  based
 
HB3229 Enrolled             -4-      LRB093 11083 MBS 12133 b
 1        organizations in communities with a concentration of high
 2        risk lead contaminated properties. High-risk  communities
 3        shall   be   identified  based  upon  the  prevalence  of
 4        low-income families whose children are lead poisoned  and
 5        the age of the housing stock.
 6             (6)  At   least   3   lead-safe  housing  advocates,
 7        including  (i)  the  parent  of  a  lead-poisoned  child,
 8        (ii)  a   representative   from    a    child    advocacy
 9        organization,  and  (iii)  a representative from a tenant
10        housing organization.
11        Within 9 months after its formation, the Advisory Council
12    shall submit a written report to the Governor and the General
13    Assembly on:
14             (1)  developing a  primary  prevention  program  for
15        addressing lead poisoning;
16             (2)  developing  a sufficient pool of lead abatement
17        workers and contractors;
18             (3)  targeting  blood  lead  screening  to  children
19        residing in high-risk buildings and neighborhoods;
20             (4)  ensuring  lead-safe  work  practices   in   all
21        remodeling, rehabilitation, and weatherization work;
22             (5)  funding   mechanisms   to   assist  residential
23        property  owners  in  costs   of   lead   abatement   and
24        mitigation;
25             (6)  providing  insurance subsidies to licensed lead
26        abatement contractors who target their work to  high-risk
27        communities; and
28             (7)  developing   any   necessary   legislation   or
29        rulemaking  to  improve  the  effectiveness  of State and
30        local programs in lead abatement and other prevention and
31        control activities.
32        The Advisory Council shall develop handbooks and training
33    for property owners and tenants explaining the Standards  and
34    State and federal requirements for lead-safe housing.
 
HB3229 Enrolled             -5-      LRB093 11083 MBS 12133 b
 1        The  Advisory Council shall meet at least quarterly.  Its
 2    members shall receive no compensation for their services, but
 3    their reasonable travel expenses actually incurred  shall  be
 4    reimbursed by the Department.