Senator Jim Inhofe (R-Okla.) has reintroduced a bill that would amend the EPA's 2012 Lead Renovation, Repair and Painting (LRRP) Rule. Inhofe and his supporters say S. 484 would maintain the original act's protections of homeowner health while making it more functional for homeowners and remodelers.
The legislation is similar to one introduced in removed before it the rule took effect in April 2010; it allowed homeowners without small children or pregnant women in the residence to decide whether or not to require LRRP. The bill would also allow remodelers to correct paperwork errors without penalty, provide an exemption for renovations after natural disasters and eliminate the requirement that recertification training be hands-on, so remodelers no longer have to travel to training facilities outside their regions.
The bill, co-sponsored by six senate Republicans, is being celebrated by many in the remodeling industry.
"S. 484 will not only make the EPA's lead paint rule more workable, but it will continue to protect pregnant women and small children against lead hazards," said NAHB Remodelers Chairman Bill Shaw, GMR, GMB, CGP, a remodeler from Houston, in a statement. "We thank Sen. Inhofe and the other co-sponsors for supporting these common-sense improvements."
According to the NAHB Remodelers council, the EPA more than doubled the number of houses subject to the LRRP rule when it removed the opt-out provision in July 2010, adding an estimated $336 million per year in compliance costs to the remodeling community.
Chuck Bankston, chairman of the National Lumber and Building Material Dealers Association agreed that the rule needs revision: "While we support the goal of protecting pregnant women and small children from lead hazards, EPA's effort to expand the Lead Rule beyond its original intent, its aggressive pursuit of paperwork violations and its failure to approve a lead test kit meeting its own rule has been an extreme burden on a residential market that is just starting to recover from the recession."
