MARTINEZ ANNOUNCES $147 MILLION TO PROTECT CHILDREN AND
FAMILIES FROM DANGEROUS LEAD AND OTHER HOME HEALTH AND SAFETY HAZARDS
New York City To Receive over $3 Million

NEW YORK - Thousands of children and families in 27 states and the District of Columbia will live in healthier homes due to more than $147 million in grants announced today by Housing and Urban Development Secretary Mel
Martinez. Martinez made today's record funding announcement to officially launch National Healthy Homes Month during October.

The grants will help 70 local programs around the country to remove potentially dangerous lead from lower income homes; to stimulate private sector investment in lead hazard control; to educate the public about the dangers of lead-based paint; to fund model programs promoting healthier and safer home environments; and, to support
scientific research into innovative methods of identifying and eliminating health hazards in housing (see attached
list). New York City will receive $2,600,000 under HUD's Lead Hazard Reduction Demonstration Program and
$500,000 under the Department's Lead Outreach Grant Program.

"Whether it's eliminating lead hazards in housing or studying new ways to make our homes healthier, the funds we announce today are all designed to protect our most precious resource - our children," said Martinez. "Today we continue HUD's investment in making our homes a healthier and safer place for parents to raise their kids."

Lead Hazard Control Grant Programs

The funding announced today includes $124 million to eliminate dangerous lead paint hazards in thousands of
privately owned, low-income housing units. These funds are provided through HUD's Lead-Based Paint Hazard
Control and the Lead Hazard Reduction Demonstration grant programs.

In addition, HUD's Operation LEAP (Lead Elimination Action Program) will provide $9.9 million to stimulate private sector contributions that will enable children to grow up in homes that are free from lead-based paint hazards. HUD will also award $2.4 million in Lead Outreach grants to support public education campaigns on the hazards of lead-based paint and what parents, building owners and others can do to protect children. Further, $2.8 million will assist local research institutions to study ways to drive down the cost and increase the effectiveness of lead hazard identification and control.

HUD's lead hazard control program is working. Today, the Department estimates that 26 million fewer homes have lead-based paint compared to 1990 when the program began. Last year, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reported that the average amount of lead in children's blood has declined by 50 percent from a decade ago. Ten years ago, there was no federal funding for local lead hazard control work in privately owned housing;
today, the HUD program is active in over 250 communities across the country.

The following is a breakdown of the funding announced today:

Below is a description of New York City's awards plus a listing identifying all grantees nationwide.

Lead Hazard Reduction Demonstration Grant

The City of New York will be awarded $2,600,000 to assist the city's on-going commitment to eliminating lead-based paint hazards and childhood lead poisoning. The city intends to make 425 homes lead-safe by focusing on high-risk neighborhoods in the boroughs of Brooklyn and Queens. Moderate rehabilitation loans, weatherization grants, and federal lead grant funding will support these projects for owners and tenants living in units built before 1940. Community-based organizations including the Brooklyn Housing and Family Services (BHFS), St. Nicholas
Neighborhood Preservation Corporation, and HANAC, Inc will partner with the city and provide trained staff,
outreach services to owners for building improvements, youth services, and referral services for immigrant
populations.

Outreach Grant

The City of New York will conduct lead outreach in two high-risk communities: Astoria (in Queens) and East Flatbush/Flatbush (in Brooklyn). The City will partner with two-community based organizations, hardware stores
and the Office of Code Enforcement to accomplish three objectives: 1) enroll units in lead hazard control programs,
2) educate owners, tenants and contractors about lead safety, and 3) enroll owners of multifamily housing buildings
in the Voluntary Repair Program of the Office of Code Enforcement to bring the buildings up to code and reduce
lead hazards.

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The following is a state-by-state breakdown of the funding announced today:

* LHC - Lead Hazard Control Grant Program
   LHRD - Lead Hazard Reduction Demonstration
   LEAP - Operation Lead Elimination Action Program
   LPO - Lead Paint Outreach Grant Program
   LTS - Lead Technical Studies
   HHTS - Healthy Homes Technical Studies
   HHD - Healthy Homes Demonstration Program