* WARNING: THIS IS AN UNOFFICIAL, INTRODUCTORY COPY OF THE BILL.
THE OFFICIAL COPY CONSIDERED BY THE CITY COUNCIL IS THE FIRST READER COPY.
INTRODUCTORY*
CITY OF BALTIMORE
COUNCIL BILL R
(Resolution)
Introduced by: Councilmembers Middleton, Curran
A RESOLUTION ENTITLED
A COUNCIL RESOLUTION concerning
title
Informational Hearing - Baltimore City Health Department - Loss of Federal Lead Paint Abatement Funding
FOR the purpose of requesting the Commissioner of Health and the Commissioner of Housing to address the City Council on the loss of Department of Housing and Urban Development funds for the abatement of lead-based paint in homes of low income residents with children; to report on what remedial efforts are being taken to correct the error that resulted in the loss of funding; and to present reported plans to transfer the lead paint abatement program to the Department of Housing and Community Development to remedy compliance issues and to restore the City's eligibility for future funding.
body
Recitals
Recently print and broadcast media has inundated the public with reports that the Baltimore City Health Department lost anticipated funding from the Department of Housing and Urban Development's (HUD) Healthy Homes and Lead Hazard Control Grant Program that awarded nearly $127 million in grants to 48 local projects to conduct a wide range of activities intended to protect children and families from potentially dangerous lead-based paint and other home health safety hazards.
Reports are that HUD officials said that the City Health Department was not included in the grant funding because it failed to fix up enough homes under the last $4 million grant which expired in January and, as a result, was deemed a "high-risk" grantee ineligible to receive more funds. HUD officials also reportedly said that they are investigating the way the City managed its last grant, including "administrative issues", and seeking documentation that all the money was spent appropriately. The City allegedly paid to replace windows that did not have lead paint on them and failed to document that all the homes treated housed families poor enough to qualify for aid or that children under 6 lived or visited there.
While statistics released by the Maryland Department of the Environment show that there is a continuing decline in the number of Baltimore City children exposed to lead, the City Health Commissioner estimates that there are tens of thousands of homes built before 1978 that still have lead hazards and emphasizes the need to continue to test all 1- and 2- year - old children for exposure to lead that can harm their young brains, impact their nervous systems, reduce their IQs and cause learning and behavioral problems that last a lifetime.
Whether, as reported by the media, the lead-paint abatement program is being transferred to the Department of Housing and Community Development, or the existing program in the Baltimore City Health Department is being overhauled to regain eligibility for federal funding, it must be ensured that Baltimore City continue its fight against the tragic blight of lead-based paint hazards in our communities.
NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED BY THE CITY COUNCIL OF BALTIMORE, That this Body requests the Commissioner of Health and the Commissioner of Housing to address the City Council on the loss of Department of Housing and Urban Development funds for the abatement of lead-based paint in homes of low income residents with children; to report on what remedial efforts are being taken to correct the error that resulted in the loss of funding; and to present reported plans to transfer the lead paint abatement program to the Department of Housing and Community Development to remedy compliance issues and to restore the City's eligibility for future funding.
AND BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, That a copy of this Resolution be sent to the Mayor, the Commissioner of Health, the Commissioner of Housing, the Director of the Coalition to End Childhood Lead Poisoning, and the Mayor's Legislative Liaison to the City Council.
dlr11-2373~intro/03Mar11
ccres/Abatement/nf
dlr11-2373~intro/03Mar11
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ccres/Abatement/nf