093_HB3229eng HB3229 Engrossed 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 Engrossed -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 Engrossed -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 Engrossed -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 Engrossed -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.