2022 -- S 2765

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LC004970

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     STATE OF RHODE ISLAND

IN GENERAL ASSEMBLY

JANUARY SESSION, A.D. 2022

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A N   A C T

RELATING TO HEALTH AND SAFETY -- LEAD POISONING PREVENTION ACT

     Introduced By: Senators McCaffrey, Ruggerio, Goodwin, Gallo, Miller, and Euer

     Date Introduced: March 24, 2022

     Referred To: Senate Health & Human Services

     It is enacted by the General Assembly as follows:

     SECTION 1. Section 23-24.6-4 of the General Laws in Chapter 23-24.6 entitled "Lead

Poisoning Prevention Act" is hereby amended to read as follows:

     23-24.6-4. Definitions.

     For the purposes of this chapter:

     (1) "Childhood lead poisoning" means a confirmed venous blood lead level, measured in

micrograms of lead per deciliter of whole blood, established by rule by the Rhode Island department

of health based on the best available information about the effects of elevated blood lead levels.

     (2) "Comprehensive environmental lead inspection" means the inspection of any structure

or premises for the presence of lead in various media and includes sampling as may be necessary

or expedient in order to determine compliance in the structure or premises with standards for being

lead safe or lead free.

     (3) "Department" means the state department of health.

     (4) "Director" means the director of health.

     (5) "Dwelling" means any enclosed space which is wholly or partly used or intended to be

used for living or sleeping by human occupants.

     (6) "Dwelling unit" means any room or group of rooms located within a dwelling and

forming a single habitable unit with facilities which are used or intended to be used for living,

sleeping, cooking, and eating.

     (7) "Environment intervention blood lead level" means a confirmed concentration, in a

person under six (6) years of age, of lead in whole blood of greater than or equal to twenty (20)

micrograms per deciliter for a single test or for fifteen (15) to nineteen (19) micrograms per deciliter

for two (2) tests taken at least three (3) months apart or as defined by the department consistent

with regulations adopted by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development.

     (8) "Environmental lead hazard reduction" means activities undertaken by or on behalf of

a property owner in order to achieve lead free or lead safe status pursuant to the requirements of

this chapter.

     (9) "Inspection" means the inspection, other than a comprehensive environmental lead

inspection, of any structure or premises undertaken to determine compliance with the requirements

of this chapter or with orders issued pursuant to this chapter.

     (10) "Insurer" means every medical service corporation, hospital service corporation,

health maintenance organization, or other insurance company offering and/or insuring health

services; the term includes any entity defined as an insurer under § 42-62-4.

     (11) "Lead contractor" means any person or entity engaged in lead hazard reduction as a

business and includes consultants who design, perform, oversee, or evaluate lead hazard reduction

projects undertaken pursuant to the requirements of this chapter.

     (12) "Lead exposure hazard" means a condition that presents a clear and significant health

risk to occupants of the dwelling, dwelling unit, or premises, particularly where there are children

under the age of six (6) years.

     (13) "Lead free" means that a dwelling, dwelling unit, or premises either contains no lead

or contains lead in amounts less than the maximum acceptable environmental lead levels

established by department of health regulations.

     (14) "Lead hazard reduction" means any action or actions designed to reduce exposure to

toxic levels of lead which impose an unacceptable risk of exposure in any dwelling or dwelling

unit, where a child under the age of six (6) years, with environmental intervention blood lead level

or greater resides, or on any premises and may include, but is not limited to: repair, enclosure,

encapsulation, or removal of lead based paint and/or lead contaminated dust, soil or drinking water;

relocation of occupants; and cleanup measures or ongoing maintenance measures, which may

include activities and/or measures that do not present an undue risk to children under age six (6)

and can be performed by, or on behalf of, the property owner, without the person performing such

activities being licensed or certified.

     (15) "Lead safe" means that a dwelling, dwelling unit, or premises has undergone sufficient

lead hazard reduction to ensure that no significant environmental lead hazard is present and

includes but is not limited to covering and encapsulation.

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     (16) "Lead service lines" means any part of a public or private service line that is made of,

lined with, or contains, materials consisting of lead. Service lines with galvanized steel shall be

considered lead service lines.

     (16)(17) "Occupant" means any person who legally resides in, or regularly uses, a dwelling,

dwelling unit, or structure; provided, however, that a guest of any age shall not be considered an

occupant for the purposes of this chapter.

     (17)(18) "Owner" means any person who, alone or jointly or severally with others:

     (i) Shall have legal title to any dwelling or dwelling unit with or without accompanying

actual possession of it, or

     (ii) Shall have charge, care, or control of any dwelling or dwelling unit as owner or agent

of the owner, or an executor, administrator, trustee, or guardian of the estate of the owner. Any

person representing the actual owner shall be bound to comply with the provisions of this chapter

and with rules and regulations adopted pursuant to this chapter to the same extent as if that person

were the owner. An agent of the owner excludes real estate and property management functions

where the agent is only responsible for the property management and does not have authority to

fund capital and/or major property rehabilitation on behalf of the owner.

     (iii) For purposes of publicly owned property only, the owner shall be defined to be the

chief executive officer of the municipal or state agency which owns, leases, or controls the use of

the property.

     (18)(19) "Person" means any individual, firm, corporation, association, or partnership and

includes municipal and state agencies.

     (19)(20) "Premises" means a platted lot or part thereof or unplatted lot or parcel of land, or

plot of land, occupied by a dwelling or structure and includes any building, accessory structure, or

other structure thereon which is or will be frequently used by children under the age of six (6) years.

     (21)"Private service line" or "private side" means the portion of the service line including

appurtenances and connections thereto that runs from the curb shutoff valve into the property or

building.

     (20)(22) "Program" means the comprehensive environmental lead program established by

this chapter.

     (23) "Public service line" or "public side" means the portion of the service line including

appurtenances and connections thereto that runs from the water main in the street to the curb shutoff

valve.

     (21)(24) "State inspector" means the director, his or her designee, or any inspector

employed by the department of health who is authorized by the director to conduct comprehensive

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environmental lead inspections and/or other inspections for the department.

     SECTION 2. Chapter 23-24.6 of the General Laws entitled "Lead Poisoning Prevention

Act" is hereby amended by adding thereto the following section:

     23-24.6-28. Lead water supply replacement.

     (a) Water suppliers, as defined in § 39-15.1-2, that provide safe and potable drinking water

to the public shall replace all public side lead service lines connected to residential and non-

residential facilities that provide water for human consumption.

     (b) No later than twelve (12) months after the enactment of this section, water suppliers

shall develop a service line inventory in order to determine the existence or absence of lead within

each water connection in its service area. This inventory shall include information about the service

line locations and composition of service lines at each location. The water supplier shall provide a

list of all service lines and classify which have lead, which do not contain lead and which are of

unknown composition. This information shall be posted on the department’s website and on the

water supplier’s website. Water suppliers without a website shall make the most recent service line

inventory available in a publicly accessible location in each community they serve.

     (c) Water suppliers may utilize the following to develop a service line inventory:

     (1) Visual inspection during planned maintenance, meter replacement, and main

replacement projects;

     (2) Solicitation and receipt of comments, complaints and other input from customers in the

service area;

     (3) Historical building records and other available data from the American Water Works

Association or other industry research groups; and/or,

     (4) Any other procedures and resources the water supplier deems appropriate for

identifying lead service lines.

     (d) Within five (5) days of identifying a lead service line, the water supplier shall provide

written notice to the property owner, the tenants of the building and the director of the presence of

lead service lines. The notice shall include information describing the sources of lead in drinking

water, description of the health effects of lead exposure and steps customers can take to reduce

their exposure to lead in drinking water. This notice shall include lead service line replacement

instructions and contact information to schedule a service line inspection and replacement.

     (e) Water suppliers without an established lead pipe replacement program shall coordinate

with the department and the Rhode Island infrastructure bank to develop a replacement program.

The department and the Rhode Island infrastructure bank shall partner with water suppliers to

implement lead replacement programs including assisting with financial needs that exist.

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     (f) The department and the Rhode Island infrastructure bank shall assist water suppliers

with financing, grants, loans, drinking water funding opportunities or other monetary assistance to

ensure that public service lines containing lead are replaced in an expeditious manner;

     (g) For properties with a public service line containing lead, water suppliers shall inspect,

at no cost to the property owner, the private side service lines to determine whether lead or

galvanized steel is present. If lead is detected in the private service line:

     (1) The Rhode Island infrastructure bank shall provide the property owner with no-cost

financial options to replace the private side line;

     (2) The water supplier shall replace the entire public side service line, if lead is present in

the public side;

     (3) In the event a property owner refuses to allow the inspection or replacement of private

side service lines, the water supplier shall file notice of all attempts to inspect or replace the private

side service lines and the property owner’s refusal to allow inspection or replacement services with

the department. The notice shall state at a minimum: the date and time of each attempt; the name

of the person who refused each attempt; and the name and signature of the person who made each

attempt. The address where each refusal took place shall be published on the appropriate

department website to ensure occupants of the building have notice of the potential lead in the

service line.

     (4) If the property is a rental property, the owner and the department shall inform the

tenants of the presence of lead in accordance with § 23-24.6-15(b). If the owner fails to provide

tenants with notification of lead in service lines to the building the owner shall be subject to civil

penalty in accordance with § 23-24.6-27.

     (h) When a property owner transfers the ownership of property they shall disclose the

presence of lead service lines. Pursuant to § 5-20.8-11, every contract for the transfer or purchase

and sale of real estate that is or may be served by a service line containing lead shall provide that

potential purchasers be permitted a ten (10) day period, unless the parties mutually agree upon a

different period of time, to conduct a risk assessment or an inspection of the property's water service

lines for the presence of lead hazards before becoming obligated under the contract to transfer or

purchase.

     (i) Any private side service line found to have lead, which provides water to a building

subject to sale or transfer, shall be removed and replaced within twelve (12) months of the date of

sale or transfer.

     (j) The department and the Rhode Island infrastructure bank shall prioritize lead service

line replacements based on the percentage of lead services lines present within a community.

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Communities where lead service lines comprise over thirty-five percent (35%) of the public side

service line connections will be prioritized as high-priority.

     (k) Water suppliers subject to this section shall complete the replacement of all lead service

lines in its service area within ten (10) years of the effective date of this section.

     (l) Each water supplier shall provide an annual report to the governor, president of the

senate, speaker of the house, director of the department of health, and executive director of the

Rhode Island infrastructure bank. The report shall contain information, including, but not limited

to, the number of public services lines per community served and the number replaced, the number

of private service lines per community served and the number replaced, an estimated number of

service lines to be replaced, property type, number of private service line inspections conducted,

and annual expense to replace service lines.

     (m) The department shall enforce the provisions of this section.

     SECTION 3. Section 5-20.8-11 of the General Laws in Chapter 5-20.8 entitled "Real Estate

Sales Disclosures" is hereby amended to read as follows:

     5-20.8-11. Lead inspection requirement.

     (a) Every contract for the purchase and sale of residential real estate (1-4 family)-built prior

to 1978 2011 located in the state shall provide that potential purchasers be permitted a ten-day (10)

period, unless the parties mutually agree upon a different period of time, to conduct a risk

assessment or inspection for the presence of lead exposure hazards before becoming obligated

under the contract to purchase.

     (b) Failure to include the provision required in subsection (a) in the purchase and sale

agreement for residential real estate does not create any defect in title; provided, that each violation

of this section by the seller or his or her agent is subject to a civil penalty of not less than one

hundred dollars ($100) nor more than five hundred dollars ($500).

     (c) Failure to provide inspection results and/or educational materials pursuant to

department regulations required by § 23-24.6-16(a) does not create any defect in title; provided,

that each violation of this section by the seller or his or her agent is subject to a civil penalty of not

less than one hundred dollars ($100) nor more than five hundred dollars ($500).

     (d) Failure to include the purchase and sale agreement provision required in subsection (a);

failure to provide inspection results pursuant to § 23-24.6-16(a); or inspection results that show a

lead exposure hazard as defined at § 23-24.6-4(12) entitles the purchaser to void the purchase and

sale agreement by providing notice, in writing, to the seller prior to the transfer of the title at closing.

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     SECTION 4. This act shall take effect upon passage.

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EXPLANATION

BY THE LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL

OF

A N   A C T

RELATING TO HEALTH AND SAFETY -- LEAD POISONING PREVENTION ACT

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     This act would establish a lead water supply replacement program for public and private

service lines and requires disclosure to tenants and buyers of real property of the presence of lead

service lines.

     This act would take effect upon passage.

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