HOUSE FILE 85

BY  HUNTER

A BILL FOR

An Act requiring testing and abatement of lead hazards in certain residential dwellings and child care facilities, requiring inspections of certain residential housing for lead hazards prior to sale, establishing a childhood lead poisoning prevention and control committee, and providing a penalty.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF IOWA:

   Section 1.  NEW SECTION.  135.105E  Lead hazard testing —— abatement —— penalty.
   1.  A person who owns or manages a residential dwelling which is target housing as defined in section 135.105C or owns or manages a child care facility licensed under chapter 237A shall have a lead hazard test performed on the dwelling or each dwelling unit or the child care facility to determine whether the dwelling or dwelling unit or child care facility contains lead-based paint, a soil-lead hazard, or a dust-lead hazard. If a lead hazard is found to exist, the owner or manager shall cause the lead hazard to be abated as required by this section.
   2.  A lead inspector certified under section 135.105A shall perform the lead hazard test and provide a written report of the results of such test to each of the following:
   a.  The department.
   b.  The owner or manager of the residential dwelling or child care facility.
   c.  The tenant or occupant of the residential dwelling or dwelling unit or parents or legal guardians of children who attend the child care facility.
   3.  The lead inspector shall issue the written report to the owner or manager within two weeks of the inspection and receipt of any laboratory tests. If the inspector finds that a lead hazard is present in the dwelling or dwelling unit, or child care facility, or on the premises thereof, the written report shall notify the owner or manager that lead hazard abatement must be completed in a time period and manner as determined by the inspector. Such lead hazard abatement shall be performed by a lead abater certified under section 135.105A. If the occupant who occupies the residential dwelling or child who attends the child care facility at the time that this written report is issued vacates the residential dwelling or dwelling unit, or ceases attending the child care facility, the dwelling or dwelling unit or child care facility shall not be leased or occupied or attended by any other person until the certified inspector issues a written report that the lead hazard abatement has been completed.
   4.  The department shall make results of lead hazard tests conducted pursuant to this section available to the public. The department shall adopt rules to implement lead hazard testing and lead hazard abatement in affected residential dwellings which are target housing or child care facilities which are licensed under chapter 237A.
   5.  A person who violates this section is subject to a civil penalty not to exceed five thousand dollars for each offense.
   Sec. 2.  Section 558.69, subsection 1, Code 2011, is amended by adding the following new paragraph:
   NEW PARAGRAPH.  0e.  For housing that was built before 1978, that the housing has been tested by a person who has been certified by the department of public health to perform lead hazard testing and either found to have no lead hazards within the meaning of the federal Residential Lead-based Paint Hazard Reduction Act of 1992, 42 U.S.C. § 4851-4855, and amendments thereto, or found to meet the requirements of the maintenance standard. For purposes of this paragraph,“maintenance standard” means any of the following: repairing and repainting areas of deteriorated paint inside a dwelling, cleaning the interior of the dwelling to remove dust that constitutes a lead poisoning hazard, adjusting doors and windows in the dwelling to minimize friction or impact on surfaces, or providing the purchaser of the dwelling with all information required pursuant to the federal Residential Lead-based Paint Hazard Reduction Act of 1992, 42 U.S.C. § 4851-4855, and amendments thereto.
   Sec. 3.  CHILDHOOD LEAD POISONING PREVENTION AND CONTROL COMMITTEE.
   1.  The childhood lead poisoning prevention and control committee is established in the department of public health for the purpose of collecting information and making recommendations concerning childhood lead poisoning prevention and control.
   2.  The committee consists of the following persons who are voting members:
   a.  The director of public health, or a designee, who shall serve as chairperson.
   b.  The director of the department of natural resources, or a designee.
   c.  The director of human services, or a designee.
   d.  The executive director of the Iowa finance authority, or a designee.
   e.  A member who is a representative of a county health department located in a county with a population of three hundred thousand or more inhabitants, appointed by the governor subject to confirmation by the senate.
   f.  A member who is a representative of a county health department located in a county with a population of less than three hundred thousand inhabitants, appointed by the governor subject to confirmation by the senate.
   g.  A member who is a lead abater certified under section 135.105A, appointed by the governor subject to confirmation by the senate.
   h.  A member who represents the general public, is an inhabitant of a county with a population of three hundred thousand or more inhabitants, and is the parent of a child who has experienced lead poisoning, or is a child advocate who has experience with lead poisoning in children, appointed by the governor subject to confirmation by the senate.
   i.  A member who represents property owners and developers in this state, appointed by the governor subject to confirmation by the senate.
   3.  The members of the committee shall not receive compensation for the performance of their duties as members but each member shall be paid necessary expenses while engaged in the performance of duties of the committee.
   4.  The members of the committee are subject to and are officials within the meaning of chapter 68B.
   5.  A majority of the voting members of the committee constitutes a quorum. The affirmative vote of a majority of the voting members is necessary for any action taken by the committee. The majority shall not include a member who has a conflict of interest and a statement by a member of a conflict of interest is conclusive for this purpose. A vacancy in the voting membership of the committee does not impair the right of a quorum to exercise the rights and perform the duties of the committee.
   6.  The committee shall conduct at least two public hearings to seek input from the general public and from groups and individuals that have an interest in childhood lead poisoning prevention and control including but not limited to physicians, nurses, advanced registered nurse practitioners, health insurers, local boards of health, hospitals, maternal and child health organizations, schools, rental property owners, general contractors, realtors, Iowa department of education, occupational and environmental medicine specialists, parents or patient advocates of children who have experienced lead poisoning, local housing authorities, community reinvestment officers, and any other individual, interest organization, or association concerned with the prevention, treatment, and control of childhood lead poisoning.
   a.  The first public hearing shall be held within sixty days after the commission has been appointed.
   b.  The committee may hold additional public hearings as it determines necessary or appropriate to carry out its duties under this section.
   7.  The committee shall complete its deliberations in December 2011, and submit a final report to the general assembly on or before January 15, 2012, summarizing the committee’s activities, analyzing the issues studied, making recommendations that will aid in the prevention, treatment, and control of childhood lead poisoning in this state, and including any other information that the committee deems relevant and necessary.
EXPLANATION
   This bill requires testing and abatement of lead hazards in certain residential dwellings and child care facilities, requires inspections of certain residential housing for lead hazards prior to its sale, establishes a childhood lead poisoning prevention and control committee, and provides a penalty.
   New Code section 135.105E requires that a person who owns or manages a residential dwelling which meets the definition of target housing or owns or manages a child care facility licensed under Code chapter 237A must have a lead hazard test performed on the dwelling or dwelling unit or child care facility to determine the presence of a lead-based paint, a soil-lead hazard, or a dust-lead hazard. “Target housing” is defined under Code section 135.105C to mean housing constructed prior to 1978, with the exception of housing for the elderly or for persons with disabilities, and housing that does not contain a bedroom, unless at least one child under six years of age resides or is expected to reside in the housing.
   The bill requires that a lead inspector certified under Code section 135.105A must perform a lead hazard test and report the results of the test to the department of public health, the owner or manager of the residential dwelling or dwelling unit or child care facility, and to the tenant or occupant of the dwelling or parents or legal guardians of a child who attends the child care facility.
   The lead inspector must issue a written report to the owner or manager within two weeks of the inspection and receipt of any laboratory tests. If the inspector finds that a lead hazard is present, the report shall notify the owner or manager of that fact and that the hazard must be abated in a time and manner determined by the inspector. Such lead abatement must be performed by a lead abater certified under Code section 135.105A.
   Lead hazard test results must be available to the public. The department of public health is directed to adopt rules to implement lead hazard testing and abatement in affected buildings. A person who violates the provisions of the new Code section is subject to a civil penalty not to exceed $5,000 for each offense.
   The bill also amends Code section 558.69 to provide that each declaration of value submitted to the county recorder in connection with a real estate transfer of housing built before 1978 must include a statement that the housing has been tested for lead hazards by a certified inspector and either is free of such hazards within the meaning of the federal Residential Lead-based Paint Hazard Reduction Act of 1992, 42 U.S.C. § 4851-4855, and amendments thereto, or meets the requirements of the maintenance standard. “Maintenance standard” means any of the following: repairing and repainting areas of deteriorated paint inside a dwelling, cleaning the interior of the dwelling to remove dust that constitutes a lead poisoning hazard, adjusting doors and windows in the dwelling to minimize friction or impact on surfaces, or providing the purchaser of the dwelling with all information required pursuant to the federal Act, and amendments thereto.
   The bill also establishes the childhood lead poisoning prevention and control committee in the department of public health for the purpose of collecting information and making recommendations concerning childhood lead poisoning prevention and control. The committee consists of nine voting members representing specified state and local government agencies, a certified lead abater, a member of the public who lives in a county with a population of 300,000 or more inhabitants and is the parent of a child who has experienced lead poisoning or is a child advocate with experience with childhood lead poisoning, and a member who represents property owners and developers in this state. Members of the committee do not receive compensation for performance of their duties but do receive necessary expenses for that performance.
   The committee is directed to conduct at least two public hearings to seek input from the general public and from groups and individuals that have an interest in childhood lead poisoning prevention and control. The first public hearing must be held within 60 days after appointment of the committee.
   The committee is required to complete its deliberations in December 2011, and to submit a final report to the general assembly by January 15, 2012, summarizing its activities, analyzing the issues studied, making recommendations that will aid in the prevention, treatment, and control of lead poisoning in this state, and including any other information that the committee deems relevant and necessary.