Public Act 093-0789
 
HB4481 Enrolled LRB093 20796 RXD 46713 b

    AN ACT concerning public health.
 
    Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
represented in the General Assembly:
 
    Section 5. The Lead Poisoning Prevention Act is amended by
changing Section 11.05 as follows:
 
    (410 ILCS 45/11.05)
    Sec. 11.05. Advisory Council.
    (a) The General Assembly finds the following:
        (1) Lead-based paint poisoning is a potentially
    devastating but preventable disease and is the number one
    environmental threat to children's health in the United
    States.
        (2) The number of lead-poisoned children in Illinois is
    among the highest in the nation, especially in older,
    affordable properties.
        (3) Lead poisoning causes irreversible damage to the
    development of a child's nervous system. Even at low and
    moderate levels, lead poisoning causes learning
    disabilities, speech problems, shortened attention span,
    hyperactivity, and behavioral problems. Recent research
    links high levels of lead exposure to lower IQ scores and
    to juvenile delinquency.
        (4) Older housing is the number one risk factor for
    childhood lead poisoning. Properties built before 1950 are
    statistically much more likely to contain lead-based paint
    hazards than buildings constructed more recently.
        (5) Illinois ranks 10th out of the 50 states in the age
    of its housing stock. More than 50% of the housing units in
    Chicago and in Rock Island, Peoria, Macon, Madison, and
    Kankakee counties were built before 1960 and more than 43%
    of the housing units in St. Clair, Winnebago, Sangamon,
    Kane, and Cook counties were built before 1950.
        (6) There are nearly 1.4 million households with
    lead-based paint hazards in Illinois.
        (7) Most children are lead-poisoned in their own homes
    through exposure to lead dust from deteriorated lead-paint
    surfaces, like windows, and when lead paint deteriorates or
    is disturbed through home renovation and repainting.
        (8) The control of lead hazards significantly reduces
    lead poisoning rates. Other communities, including New
    York City and Milwaukee, have successfully reduced lead
    poisoning rates by removing lead-based paint hazards on
    windows.
        (9) Windows are considered a higher lead exposure risk
    more often than other components in a housing unit. Windows
    are a major contributor of lead dust in the home, due to
    both weathering conditions and friction effects on paint.
        (10) There is an insufficient pool of licensed lead
    abatement workers and contractors to address the problem in
    some areas of the State.
        (11) Training, insurance, and licensing costs for lead
    removal workers are prohibitively high.
        (12) Through grants from the United States Department
    of Housing and Urban Development, some communities in
    Illinois have begun to reduce lead poisoning of children.
    While this is an ongoing effort, it addresses only a small
    number of the low-income children statewide in communities
    with high levels of lead paint in the housing stock.
    (b) For purposes of this Section:
    "Advisory Council" means the Lead-Safe Housing Advisory
Council created under subsection (c).
    "Lead-Safe Housing Maintenance Standards" or "Standards"
means standards developed by the Advisory Council pursuant to
this Section.
    "Low-income" means a household at or below 80% of the
median income level for a given county as determined annually
by the United States Department of Housing and Urban
Development.
    "Primary prevention" means removing lead hazards before a
child is poisoned rather than relying on identification of a
lead poisoned child as the triggering event.
    (c) The Lead-Safe Housing Advisory Council is created to
advise the Department on lead poisoning prevention activities.
The Advisory Council shall be chaired by the Director or his or
her designee and the chair of the Illinois Lead Safe Housing
Task Force and provided with administrative support by the
Department. The Advisory Council shall be comprised of (i) the
directors, or their designees, of the Illinois Housing
Development Authority and the Environmental Protection Agency;
and (ii) the directors, or their designees, of public health
departments of counties identified by the Department that
contain communities with a concentration of high-risk,
lead-contaminated properties.
    The Advisory Council shall also include the following
members appointed by the Governor:
        (1) One representative from the Illinois Association
    of Realtors.
        (2) One representative from the insurance industry.
        (3) Two pediatricians or other physicians with
    knowledge of lead-paint poisoning.
        (4) Two representatives from the private-sector,
    lead-based-paint-abatement industry who are licensed in
    Illinois as an abatement contractor, worker, or risk
    assessor.
        (5) Two representatives from community based
    organizations in communities with a concentration of high
    risk lead contaminated properties. High-risk communities
    shall be identified based upon the prevalence of low-income
    families whose children are lead poisoned and the age of
    the housing stock.
        (6) At least 3 lead-safe housing advocates, including
    (i)  the parent of a lead-poisoned child, (ii) a
    representative from a child advocacy organization, and
    (iii) a representative from a tenant housing organization.
        (7) One representative from the Illinois paint and
    coatings industry.
    Within 9 months after its formation, the Advisory Council
shall submit a written report to the Governor and the General
Assembly on:
        (1) developing a primary prevention program for
    addressing lead poisoning;
        (2) developing a sufficient pool of lead abatement
    workers and contractors;
        (3) targeting blood lead screening to children
    residing in high-risk buildings and neighborhoods;
        (4) ensuring lead-safe work practices in all
    remodeling, rehabilitation, and weatherization work;
        (5) funding mechanisms to assist residential property
    owners in costs of lead abatement and mitigation;
        (6) providing insurance subsidies to licensed lead
    abatement contractors who target their work to high-risk
    communities; and
        (7) developing any necessary legislation or rulemaking
    to improve the effectiveness of State and local programs in
    lead abatement and other prevention and control
    activities.
    The Advisory Council shall develop handbooks and training
for property owners and tenants explaining the Standards and
State and federal requirements for lead-safe housing.
    The Advisory Council shall meet at least quarterly. Its
members shall receive no compensation for their services, but
their reasonable travel expenses actually incurred shall be
reimbursed by the Department.
(Source: P.A. 93-348, eff. 1-1-04.)
 
    Section 99. Effective date. This Act takes effect upon
becoming law.