II 

Calendar No. 1097 

110TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION S. 3639 

[Report No. 110–515] 

To protect pregnant women and children from dangerous lead exposures. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

SEPTEMBER 26 (legislative day, SEPTEMBER 17), 2008 

Mrs. BOXER, from the Committee on Environment and Public Works, reported the following original bill; which was read twice and placed on the 

calendar 

A BILL 

To protect pregnant women and children from dangerous 

lead exposures. 

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

4 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Protect Pregnant 

5 Women and Children from Dangerous Lead Exposures 

6 Act of 2008’’. 

7 SEC. 2. FINDINGS. 

8 Congress finds that— 


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1 (1) the Centers for Disease Control and Preven2 tion recognize that lead is a poison that— 

3 (A) affects virtually every system in the 

4 human body; and 

5 (B) is particularly harmful to the devel6 oping brains and nervous systems of fetuses 

7 and young children; 

8 (2) the Administrator has determined that 

9 lead— 

10 (A) is associated with a wide array of 

11 harmful impacts, including damage to the nerv12 ous system, the reproductive system, the cardio13 vascular system, physical development, the kid14 neys, hearing, and the immune system; and 

15 (B) can cause adverse behavioral impacts. 

16 (3) the Centers for Disease Control and Preven17 tion and the Administrator have determined that 

18 children in general, and children in low socio19 economic conditions and minority children in par20 ticular, are at increased risk of lead exposure and 

21 adverse health impacts from that exposure; 

22 (4) the Census Bureau estimates that in 2006 

23 more than 12,800,000 children under the age of 18 

24 lived in poverty; 


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1 (5) in 1991, the Centers for Disease Control 

2 and Prevention recognized that 10 micrograms per 

3 deciliter of lead in blood should prompt public health 

4 actions, but that harmful impacts may occur at 

5 blood lead levels below 10 micrograms per deciliter; 

6 (6) the Environmental Protection Agency (in7 cluding the Children’s Health Protection Advisory 

8 Committee of the Environmental Protection Agency) 

9 and other Federal entities recognize that scientific 

10 studies since 1991 have strengthened the evidence 

11 that blood lead levels below 10 micrograms per deci12 liter, particularly in children, can harm human 

13 health; 

14 (7) the Administrator recognizes that recent 

15 studies have demonstrated that some reductions in 

16 cognitive function can occur at the initial and lowest 

17 levels of lead exposure, though additional harm can 

18 occur with continued exposure to lead; 

19 (8) according to the Administrator, approxi20 mately 310,000 children in the United States be21 tween the ages of 1 and 5 years have blood-lead lev22 els greater than 10 micrograms per deciliter; 

23 (9) the Administrator has determined that lead24 based paint can pose a health threat through various 


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1 types of exposure, including through indoor dust and 

2 paint chips following renovation activities; 

3 (10) in 1992, Congress passed Public Law 

4 102–550 (106 Stat. 3672), title X of which is cited 

5 as the Residential Lead-Based Paint Hazard Reduc6 tion Act of 1992 (42 U.S.C. 4851 et seq.); 

7 (11) section 1021(a) of the Residential Lead8 Based Paint Hazard Reduction Act of 1992 amend9 ed the Toxic Substances Control Act (15 U.S.C. 

10 2601 et seq.) by adding a title IV to that Act relat11 ing to lead exposure reduction (106 Stat. 3912); 

12 (12) title IV of the Toxic Substances Control 

13 Act (15 U.S.C. 2681 et seq.) required the Adminis14 trator to undertake a number of actions to protect 

15 individuals, including pregnant women and children, 

16 from dangerous lead exposures, including by requir17 ing the Administrator— 

18 (A) by not later than April 28, 1994, to 

19 promulgate regulations identifying lead-based 

20 paint hazard standards for use in determining 

21 standards and regulations for reducing the risk 

22 of exposure to those hazards; 

23 (B) by not later than April 28, 1995, to 

24 conduct and publish a study on the extent to 

25 which persons engaged in various types of renVerDate Aug 31 2005 05:06 Sep 27, 2008 Jkt 069200 PO 00000 Frm 00004 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S3639.PCS S3639

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1 ovation and remodeling activities in target 

2 housing, public buildings constructed before 

3 1978, and commercial buildings are exposed to 

4 lead in the conduct of the activities, or disturb 

5 lead and create a lead-based paint hazard, on a 

6 regular or occasional basis; and 

7 (C) by not later than October 28, 1996, to 

8 revise the regulations that apply to renovation 

9 and remolding activities in target housing, pub10 lic buildings constructed before 1978, and com11 mercial buildings that create lead-based paint 

12 hazards; 

13 (13) on January 5, 2001, the Administrator 

14 promulgated the lead-based paint hazard regulations 

15 required under section 403 of the Toxic Substances 

16 Control Act (15 U.S.C. 2683), which identified dan17 gerous levels of lead dust on floors at 40 micrograms 

18 per square foot or greater and for window sills at 

19 250 micrograms per square foot or greater; 

20 (14) in promulgating the regulations, the Ad21 ministrator stated that the ‘‘standards [were] based 

22 on the best science available to the Agency. The En23 vironmental Protection Agency recognizes, however, 

24 that the science is constantly developing. . . If new 

25 data become available (e.g., empirical data showing 


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1 that very small amounts of deteriorated paint pose 

2 a serious health risk or data showing that hazard 

3 control activities are more effective at reducing long4 term dust-lead levels than assumed by the Environ5 mental Protection Agency), the Agency will consider 

6 changing the standards to reflect these data.’’; 

7 (15) on January 23, 2007, the Administrator 

8 issued a draft final dust study examining renovation 

9 and remodeling activities and lead-contaminated 

10 dust hazards; 

11 (16) on August 30, 2007, the Clean Air Science 

12 Advisory Committee of the Environmental Protec13 tion Agency— 

14 (A) reviewed the study on renovation and 

15 remodeling activities and lead-contaminated 

16 dust hazards and the approach of the Environ17 mental Protection Agency to characterizing 

18 lead-contaminated dust levels after renovation 

19 and remodeling activities; and 

20 (B) concluded that— 

21 (i) ‘‘[s]tandards need to be strength22 ened in view of recent epidemiological data 

23 indicating that children are more suscep24 tible to effects from lead than was pre25 viously thought.’’; 


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1 (ii) ‘‘[t]he lead dust loading values of 

40 μg/ft2 for floors and 250 μg/ft2 2 for win3 dow sills are presented as adequately pro4 tective of children against lead poisoning, 

5 i.e., to guard against blood lead levels of 

6 greater than 10 (>10) μg/dL. However, 

7 the Panel notes that these residual surface 

8 contamination standards are obsolete on 

9 the basis of recent epidemiology findings 

10 that indicate that adverse health effects 

11 are found in children with blood lead levels 

12 less than five (<5) μg/dL. . .).’’; 

13 (iii) ‘‘[t]he cleaning procedures em14 ployed are inadequate, such that post15 cleaning lead levels do not even meet the 

16 existing Environmental Protection Agency 

17 standards. Moreover, the qualitative and 

18 simplistic method used to verify the effec19 tiveness of these cleaning procedures, i.e., 

20 the ‘white cloth verification tests’, does not 

21 yield consistently reliable results, leading 

22 to an inaccurate assessment of cleaning ef23 ficiency after repair and renovation activi24 ties.’’; and 


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1 (iv) ‘‘[t]he Panel strongly feels that it 

2 is imprudent to substitute a simplistic and 

3 qualitative white cloth test for highly spe4 cific, analytical measures of lead in house 

5 dust.’’; 

6 (17) on March 31, 2008, the Administrator 

7 issued final lead-based paint renovation, repair, and 

8 painting regulations that are based on— 

9 (A) cleaning practices that— 

10 (i) the scientific advisors of the Ad11 ministrator have criticized as ‘‘inad12 equate’’; and 

13 (ii) are based on the goal of meeting 

14 the lead dust loading values of 40 

15 micrograms per square foot for floors and 

16 250 micrograms per square foot for win17 dow sills, which those scientific advisors 

18 have called ‘‘obsolete’’ based on studies 

19 demonstrating that the values may be in20 adequately protective of children’s health; 

21 and 

22 (B) the ‘‘white cloth’’ method to verify the 

23 effectiveness of cleaning practices, which the 

24 scientific advisors of the Administrator have 

25 called ‘‘inaccurate’’ and ‘‘simplistic’’; and 


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1 (18) the revised lead-based paint renovation, re2 pair, and painting rule of the Environmental Protec3 tion Agency fails— 

4 (A) to use the best available science on the 

5 adverse impacts of lead on children’s health; 

6 (B) to adequately protect the health of 

7 pregnant women and children from lead poi8 soning; and 

9 (C) to contain enforceable methods of 

10 verifying that lead levels in homes and other fa11 cilities are safe following lead-based paint ren12 ovation, repair, and painting activities. 

13 SEC. 3. DEFINITIONS. 

14 In this Act: 

15 (1) ADMINISTRATOR.—The term ‘‘Adminis16 trator’’ means the Administrator of the Environ17 mental Protection Agency. 

18 (2) BEST AVAILABLE SCIENCE.—The term 

19 ‘‘best available science’’ includes, with respect the 

20 establishment of standards for the protection of indi21 viduals from exposure to lead, studies on the health 

22 effects of lead completed since the Environmental 

23 Protection Agency last updated the lead-based paint 

24 hazard standard under section 403 of the Toxic 

25 Substances Control Act (15 U.S.C. 2683), including 


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1 especially recent epidemiological studies, dem2 onstrating that lead levels below 10 micrograms per 

3 deciliter of blood pose a threat to children’s health. 

4 SEC. 4. PROTECTION OF PREGNANT WOMEN AND CHIL5 DREN. 

6 (a) BEST AVAILABLE SCIENCE.— 

7 (1) FINAL REGULATIONS.—Not later than April 

8 30, 2009, the Administrator shall use the best avail9 able science— 

10 (A) to promulgate a final rule revising the 

11 lead-based paint hazard standard of the Envi12 ronmental Protection Agency promulgated 

13 under section 403 of the Toxic Substances Con14 trol Act (15 U.S.C. 2683) to a more protective 

15 level that safeguards the health of pregnant 

16 women and children; and 

17 (B) to require the use of a lead dust clean18 ing clearance methodology that ensures lead 

19 dust levels meet the standard revised under 

20 subparagraph (A). 

21 (2) PEER REVIEW OF ANALYSES.—The Admin22 istrator shall ensure that the Clean Air Science Ad23 visory Committee of the Environmental Protection 

24 Agency peer reviews the analyses that the Adminis25 trator uses— 


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1 (A) to revise the lead-based paint hazard 

2 standard; and 

3 (B) to require the use of a lead dust clean4 ing clearance methodology. 

5 (b) IMPLEMENT PROTECTIONS FOR PREGNANT

6 WOMEN AND CHILDREN.—Not later than April 22, 2010, 

7 the Administrator shall integrate into the revised rules of 

8 the Environmental Protection Agency on renovation and 

9 remolding activities that create lead-based paint haz10 ards— 

11 (1) the lead-based paint hazard standard re12 vised under subsection (a)(1)(A); and 

13 (2) the lead dust cleaning clearance method14 ology required under subsection (a)(1)(B). 

15 (c) PERIODIC REVALUATION.—The Administrator 

16 shall review and reevaluate the health protectiveness of the 

17 rule promulgated under subsection (a)(1)(A), for the sole 

18 purpose of determining whether to increase protections for 

19 the health of pregnant women and children, with the re20 view and reevaluation occurring— 

21 (1) at least once every 5 years; or 

22 (2) more frequently, as necessary, if significant 

23 scientific findings indicate that the standard de24 scribed in subsection (a)(1)(A) should be revised to 


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1 increase protections for the health of pregnant 

2 women and children. 

3 SEC. 5. REGULATIONS RELATING TO LEAD-BASED PAINT 

4 HAZARDS, LEAD-CONTAMINATED DUST, AND 

5 LEAD-CONTAMINATED SOIL. 

6 (a) DEFINITIONS.—In this section: 

7 (1) FINAL RULE.—The term ‘‘final rule’’ means 

8 the final rule promulgated by the Administrator en9 titled ‘‘Lead; Renovation, Repair, and Painting Pro10 gram’’ (73 Fed. Reg. 21692 (April 22, 2008)). 

11 (2) INDEPENDENT CLEARANCE.—The term 

12 ‘‘independent clearance’’ means clearance of a ren13 ovation performed by a certified assessor or certified 

14 sampling technician who was not an individual per15 forming the renovation. 

16 (b) RENOVATION AND REMODELING REGULA17 TIONS.—Not later than 90 days after the date of enact18 ment of this Act, the Administrator shall update the final 

19 rule to include requirements that— 

20 (1) independent clearance shall be performed by 

21 a certified risk assessor or certified sampling techni22 cian to ensure compliance with lead hazard stand23 ards relating to lead, lead dust, and lead-based paint 

24 in effect as of the date of enactment of this Act, 

25 such that— 


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1 (A) ongoing, periodic random sampling 

2 shall be permitted so long as a sufficient num3 ber of samples are selected to provide a 95-per4 cent level of confidence that none of the renova5 tions completed by a certified renovation firm 

6 would result in levels that exceed the standards, 

7 as determined by the Administrator; and 

8 (B) if random sampling indicates that a 

9 group of particular renovations results in a level 

10 that exceeds the standards, until such time as 

11 the Administrator determines that the renova12 tions of the individual or entity achieve the level 

13 of confidence described in subparagraph (A), 

14 the individual or entity that completed the ren15 ovations shall be responsible for providing for 

16 independent clearance of— 

17 (i) each subsequent renovation com18 pleted by the individual or entity; and 

19 (ii) each unit renovated during the pe20 riod beginning on the date of the most re21 cent clear inspection and ending on the 

22 date of failure of clearance, including offer23 ing to perform recleaning on any unit that 

24 exceeds standards; 


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1 (2) a written renovation completion report shall 

2 be provided to both owners and occupants of a cov3 ered property describing all the actions that were 

4 performed to reduce lead hazards during the work 

5 and the results of all tests performed as part of ef6 forts to ensure compliance with the final rule and 

7 other applicable regulations; 

8 (3) work practices used shall be at least as pro9 tective as those of the Department of Housing and 

10 Urban Development described in 35.1350 of title 24, 

11 Code of Federal Regulations (or successor regula12 tions); and 

13 (4) an individual who has completed a lead14 based paint training and certification program shall 

15 be present at all times that work is undertaken at 

16 a work site. 

17 (c) TRAINING OPPORTUNITIES.— 

18 (1) GRANT PROGRAM TO EXPAND TRAINING OP19 PORTUNITIES.— 

20 (A) ESTABLISHMENT.—The Administrator 

21 shall establish a grant program to expand train22 ing opportunities relating to lead-based paint 

23 that are available at the State and tribal level. 


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1 (B) USE OF FUNDS.—Funds provided 

2 through grants under the program established 

3 under subparagraph (A)— 

4 (i) shall be used by a recipient to pro5 vide no-cost, culturally and linguistically 

6 appropriate lead-based paint training and 

7 certification opportunities, giving priority 

8 to those opportunities established and car9 ried out in partnership with nongovern10 mental organizations, for low-income work11 ers, in order to ensure the presence, at all 

12 times that work is undertaken at a work 

13 site, of an individual who has completed a 

14 lead-based paint training and certification 

15 program; and 

16 (ii) may be used by a recipient— 

17 (I) to expand new and supple18 mental training opportunities to in19 crease the number of individuals who 

20 have completed lead-based paint train21 ing and certification programs that 

22 are in compliance with updates to the 

23 final rule required under subsection 

24 (b); 


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1 (II) to maintain, improve, or de2 velop infrastructure and oversight to 

3 ensure that— 

4 (aa) individuals engaged in 

5 renovation activities are properly 

6 trained; 

7 (bb) lead-based paint train8 ing programs are accredited; 

9 (cc) contractors and firms 

10 engaged in renovation activities 

11 are certified; and 

12 (dd) renovation activities are 

13 carried out in accordance with 

14 the final rule (including updates 

15 to that final rule required under 

16 subsection (b)) and other applica17 ble regulations; 

18 (III) to provide for training of 

19 sampling technicians and enforcement 

20 personnel in compliance and lead dust 

21 sampling techniques; 

22 (IV) to implement lead-based 

23 paint compliance assistance programs; 

24 and 


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1 (V) to engage in education and 

2 outreach activities regarding the final 

3 rule. 

4 (C) TREATMENT OF FUNDS.—The pro5 gram established under subparagraph (A), and 

6 funds provided through grants under that pro7 gram, shall supplement, and not supplant, lead8 based paint training programs and grants avail9 able as of the date of enactment of this Act. 

10 (D) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIA11 TIONS.—There is authorized to be appropriated 

12 to carry out this paragraph $7,000,000 for the 

13 period of fiscal years 2009 through 2012. 

14 (2) REPORT.—Not later than 1 year after the 

15 date of enactment of this Act, the Administrator, in 

16 collaboration with the Secretary of Housing and 

17 Urban Development, shall prepare, publish, and sub18 mit to the appropriate committees of Congress a re19 port that— 

20 (A) analyzes the impact of the final rule on 

21 preventing lead poisoning; 

22 (B) analyzes training opportunities for 

23 contractors and renovators; and 


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1 (C) makes recommendations for expansion 

2 and coordination of that training in a manner 

3 that, to the maximum extent practicable— 

4 (i) maximizes coordination between 

5 the Department of Housing and Urban 

6 Development and the Environmental Pro7 tection Agency to ensure standard training 

8 and curriculum development; 

9 (ii) ensures that contractors, ren10 ovators, owners, occupants, and State, 

11 tribal, and local governments are aware of 

12 training and certification activities pro13 vided through the Department of Housing 

14 and Urban Development and the Environ15 mental Protection Agency; 

16 (iii) expands the number of individ17 uals who have completed lead-based paint 

18 training and certification programs so as 

19 to ensure that such an individual is avail20 able to be present at a work site at all 

21 times that work is undertaken during ren22 ovations; and 

23 (iv) expands the number of individuals 

24 who have completed sampling technician 

25 training. 


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1 SEC. 6. NO EFFECT ON OTHER EFFECTIVE DATES. 

2 Except as provided in section 5, nothing in this Act 

3 or any amendment made by this Act modifies or otherwise 

4 affects any effective date described in the final rule (as 

5 defined in section 5(a)). 


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Calendar No. 1097 

110TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION S. 3639 

[Report No. 110–515] 

A BILL 

To protect pregnant women and children from 

dangerous lead exposures. 

SEPTEMBER 26 (legislative day, SEPTEMBER 17), 2008 

Read twice and placed on the calendar 


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