HUD Archives: News Releases
HUD No. 00-245
Further Information: For Release
In the Washington, DC area: 202/708-0685 Friday
Or contact your local HUD office October 06, 2000

CUOMO AWARDS NEARLY $70 MILLION TO HELP COMMUNITIES PROTECT CHILDREN FROM ENVIRONMENTAL AND SAFETY HAZARDS

WASHINGTON - Housing and Urban Development Secretary Andrew Cuomo today continued his campaign to protect America's children by awarding $68.3 million for lead abatement, testing and to reduce other environmental and safety dangers in the home.

Cuomo announced $60 million in Lead Hazard Control grants to remove hazards from 8,000 privately owned low-income homes in 16 states where approximately 12,000 children and their families live. The remaining funds include $7.5 million in Healthy Homes Initiative grants to help protect the health and safety of nearly 18,000 children in seven states. He also announced nearly $800,000 for lead hazard research to discover new technologies and methods for lead abatement.

"Every child deserves to live in a home safe from the dangers of lead," said Cuomo. "Since 1992, we have committed over a half a billion dollars to lead-safety in over 200 cities. Today, we're expanding on our commitment, helping communities create housing that is both affordable and safe."

The Lead Hazard Control grants will fund:

  • Removal of lead-based paint hazards from privately owned low-income homes and apartments
  • Test children's blood to determine lead levels.
  • Inspection and testing homes for lead hazards.
  • Temporarily relocating families during lead control work.
  • Community education and outreach.
  • Job training for lead hazard control workers.
  • Collecting and analyzing lead hazard data.

Lead-based paint was banned from use in homes in 1978. However, many older houses and apartments still contain lead-based paint. Research shows that children with elevated blood lead levels are seven times more likely to drop out of school and twice as likely to lose a few years in language acquisition. Lead poisoning has also been linked to juvenile delinquency and behavioral problems. The burden of lead poisoning falls disproportionately on minority children.

"We cannot afford to put a price tag on a child whose potential may be stolen by lead," Cuomo said. "These grant awards are a critical investment in the future health and well-being of our kids."

Today's announcement is part of HUD's continuing effort to achieve its goal of a lead-safe America by 2010. HUD's new lead paint regulation, which took effect September 15, expands existing federal requirements and will protect more than two million children from lead poisoning over the next five years. To help states and cities comply with the new regulation, HUD also committed nearly $105 million to train workers in lead safety and pay for testing required by the rule. Lead Hazard Control grants were awarded to:

    ALABAMA - Birmingham, $1.2 million
    CALIFORNIA - Los Angeles, $3 million
    CONNECTICUT - Hartford, $2.9 million; New Britain, $2.4 million; New Haven, $2.8 million; Stamford, $2.1 million
    ILLINOIS - Kankakee, $3 million
    MASSACHUSETTS - Boston $3 million; Lawrence, $3 million; Somerville, $1.5 million
    MICHIGAN - $3 million
    MISSOURI - Kansas City, $1 million; St. Louis County, $1 million
    MONTANA - Butte, $545,483
    MINNESOTA - Minneapolis, $3 million; St. Paul/Ramsey County, $1.6 million
    NEW JERSEY - Newark, $3 million
    NEW YORK - Utica, $1.2 million; New York, $3 million
    TENNESSEE - Memphis, $3 million
    OHIO - Akron, $3 million; Cleveland, $3 million
    RHODE ISLAND - Pawtucket, $2.9 million
    SOUTH CAROLINA - Charleston, $3 million
    WISCONSIN - Milwaukee, $3 million

Cuomo also awarded $7.5 million in Healthy Homes Initiative grants to protect nearly 18,000 children in seven states from the risks associated with asthma, lead poisoning and other safety hazards in the home.

Cuomo launched HUD's Healthy Homes Initiative two years ago as a national effort to expand public awareness through TV commercials featuring Tim Allen and Bob Vila, newspaper ads, brochures and a toll-free information line.

Healthy Homes Initiative grants were awarded to:

    CALIFORNIA - Esperanza Community Housing Corp. (Los Angeles), $999,499; Child Abuse Prevention Council of Sacramento, Inc., $1.5 million
    COLORADO - Northeast Denver Housing Center, $931,635
    MASSACHUSETTS - Harvard School of Public Health, $1.2 million
    NEW JERSEY - Children's Health Environmental Coalition (Princeton), $470,646
    NEW YORK - Erie Co. Public Health Dept., $918,752
    WASHINGTON - Opportunity Council (Bellingham), $354,192
    WISCONSIN - Univ. of Wisconsin Board of Regents (Madison), $1,200,847

Lead Research grants, totaling nearly $800,000 were awarded to the following organizations to help develop new technologies and methods in lead testing and abatement:

    MARYLAND - The Kennedy Krieger Research Institute which is affiliated with John's Hopkins University in Baltimore, $491,955
    NEW JERSEY - the New Jersey Department of Health and Senior Services, $250,000
    WISCONSIN - the Wisconsin Department of Health and Family Services, $37,858

Information is also available on HUD's website at www.hud.gov/lea.

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Content Archived: December 13, 2009