Are you wondering what’s included in the new bill for infrastructure that was passed by Congress and signed into law in 2021? You are not alone. The bill includes a lot of money for funding, projects and grants, but reducing lead in drinking water is one focus of this bill that impacts every person in the county. Below, we’ll show you how the bill deals with the effects of lead in drinking water and how it impacts landlords and property owners.
The Safe Drinking Water Act (SDWA)
In 1974, Congress passed an Act to protect public health by establishing regulations and standards for the nation’s public drinking water supply. These standards protect against harmful contaminants or threats that occur naturally or are man made. Public drinking water can be harmed by chemical disposal negligence, agriculture related contamination like animal waste and pesticides, wastes injected underground into porous rock foundations, and naturally occurring sources such as bacteria and arsenic. The goal is to protect drinking water from the source to the tap. The SDWA is enforced through the United States Environmental Protection Agency (US EPA).
How the EPA Enforces the SDWA
The EPA is authorized by the Safe Drinking Water Act to set national standards and to work together with Native American tribes, states, public water systems, and the public to ensure that drinking water is safe. With the exception of Wyoming and the District of Columbia, states have the authority to implement SDWA within their jurisdiction and adopt standards that meet or exceed EPA requirements. The EPA sets national drinking water standards with health goals in mind that include protecting vulnerable populations such as infants, children, pregnant women, the elderly, and the immune-compromised. Both the EPA and states can enforce these standards against water system operators through administrative orders, legal actions, or fines. The EPA also provides grants to implement state drinking water programs, and sets up a revolving fund to help states create their own special funds to assist public water system operators with financing the cost of improvements.
Harmful Impacts of Lead in Drinking Water
Lead is a silent danger. Lead poisoning happens through repeated exposure causing lead levels to increase in the body over time. Small amounts can cause health problems and high levels can cause death. The Mayo Clinic reports that lead poisoning can be hard to detect or notice until dangerous levels have already been reached. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the most common causes for the presence of lead in drinking water include lead pipes, faucets, and plumbing fixtures. As the metals in these objects wear away due to corrosion, lead can start entering into the water without being seen, smelled, or tasted. Children younger than 6 are highly vulnerable to lead poisoning which can affect their mental or physical development. However, lead is dangerous to both children and adults.
How the New Bill for Infrastructure Supports Reducing Lead in Drinking Water
The EPA has enforceable procedures for water systems to provide treatment for lead by controlling the corrosivity of the water. The lead health goal for public drinking water is set to zero because lead can be harmful at low levels, and there is no proven safe level of lead in a child’s blood. Unlike the treatment procedures, this health goal is not enforceable because the lead contamination is often due to the corrosive plumbing systems owned by the customer/homeowner. Standards also determine what level of lead is allowable in “lead free” products which helps to reduce the impact of corrosion.
Funding for lead reduction projects
The new bill for infrastructure amends the Safe Drinking Water Act and expands the EPA’s existing authorization to establish grant programs for projects that reduce the concentration of lead in drinking water. Prior to the signing of the new bill, activities of the projects included testing for lead content in drinking water, corrosion control, replacement of publicly owned service lines, and assistance to low-income homeowners in order to replace privately owned lead service lines.
Now, in addition to low-income homeowners, the new infrastructure bill adds disadvantaged communities and landlords or property owners providing housing to low-income renters as potential recipients of assistance. Priority is being given to the low-income homeowners and these additional groups. Funding is now $100M for each fiscal year as an increase from $60M. There is also an additional one-time $10M fund as a pilot program for grants that would be made available to existing lead reduction projects until exhausted.
How landlords and property owners can benefit from funding
When it comes to lead contamination in drinking water, the federal government does not require landlords to test or even disclose the presence of lead unlike the disclosures required for lead-based paint. However, some states like New Jersey have enacted state laws that require landlords to notify tenants of the issue if a public water system has warned the public of high lead levels. The state of Virginia requires landlords to disclose actual knowledge of the existence of plumbing that is not “lead free” according to the SDWA.
As a landlord, we mentioned in a previous article the importance of reducing the time associated with rental turnover. Disclosing the presence of lead in your property can cause potential tenants to look elsewhere and increase the time your rental property is left unoccupied. You also have a legal, and more importantly a moral, obligation to make sure tenants are safe. As a property owner, you risk lead exposure hazards to yourself, family members, or friends if using the property as a primary residence, vacation home, or other various purposes.
If you are aware of the presence of lead already, desire to test for lead in drinking water associated with your property, or seek remediation services, you may be able to take advantage of assistance. The actual grants are given to eligible entities defined as community water systems, water systems governed by Native American tribes, non-transient/non-community water systems (schools for example), a qualified non-profit organization with experience in lead reduction, or a municipality or State, interstate, or intermunicipal agency. Definitions of these entities can be found in this publication from the EPA.
These eligible entities will have access to the grant funding mentioned earlier. The new infrastructure bill also includes stronger language stating that the eligible entities “shall” offer to replace the privately owned portion of the lead service for low-income homeowners and “may” do so for other homeowners. Furthermore, the new bill adds “at no cost to the homeowner”! For you, this means FREE if you are a low-income homeowner, and possibly free if you aren’t.
In Conclusion
If you are a low-income homeowner, a property owner in a disadvantaged community, or a landlord or property owner providing housing to low-income renters, you may have an opportunity to receive assistance. Congress’ new bill for infrastructure and its amendments to the Safe Drinking Water Act’s sections targeting reducing lead in drinking water could help you replace lead service lines and keep you, family, friends and tenants healthy. As a landlord, you could prevent loss of tenants and rental income due to required lead disclosures. Since implementation of the bill’s amendments may take some time for programs, the EPA, states, and grant recipients to get started, pay attention to notifications from utilities, local governments, or look online for opportunities to take advantage of program funding.
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