| 1 | A bill to be entitled |
| 2 | An act relating to the Lead Poisoning Prevention Screening |
| 3 | and Education Act; providing a popular name; providing |
| 4 | legislative findings; providing definitions; providing for |
| 5 | the establishment of a statewide comprehensive educational |
| 6 | program on lead poisoning prevention; providing for a |
| 7 | public information initiative; providing for distribution |
| 8 | of literature about childhood lead poisoning; requiring |
| 9 | the establishment of a screening program for early |
| 10 | identification of persons at risk of elevated levels of |
| 11 | lead in the blood; providing for screening of children; |
| 12 | providing for prioritization of screening; providing for |
| 13 | the maintenance of records of screenings; providing for |
| 14 | reporting of cases of lead poisoning; providing an |
| 15 | effective date. |
| 16 |
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| 17 | Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida: |
| 18 |
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| 19 | Section 1. Popular name.--This act may be cited as the |
| 20 | "Lead Poisoning Prevention Screening and Education Act." |
| 21 | Section 2. Legislative findings.-- |
| 22 | (1) Nearly 300,000 American children may have levels of |
| 23 | lead in their blood in excess of 10 micrograms per deciliter |
| 24 | (ug/dL). Unless prevented or treated, elevated blood-lead levels |
| 25 | in egregious cases may result in impairment of the ability to |
| 26 | think, concentrate, and learn. |
| 27 | (2) A significant cause of lead poisoning in children is |
| 28 | the ingestion of lead particles from deteriorating lead-based |
| 29 | paint in older, poorly maintained residences. |
| 30 | (3) Childhood lead poisoning can be prevented if parents, |
| 31 | property-owners, health professionals, and those who work with |
| 32 | young children are informed about the risks of childhood lead |
| 33 | poisoning and how to prevent it. |
| 34 | (4) Knowledge of lead-based-paint hazards, their control, |
| 35 | mitigation, abatement, and risk avoidance is not sufficiently |
| 36 | widespread. |
| 37 | (5) Most children who live in older homes and who |
| 38 | otherwise may be at risk for childhood lead poisoning are not |
| 39 | tested for the presence of elevated lead levels in their blood. |
| 40 | (6) Testing for elevated lead levels in the blood can lead |
| 41 | to the mitigation or prevention of the harmful effects of |
| 42 | childhood lead poisoning and may also prevent similar injuries |
| 43 | to other children living in the same household. |
| 44 | Section 3. Definitions.--As used in this act, the term: |
| 45 | (1) "Affected property" means a room or group of rooms |
| 46 | within a property constructed before January 1, 1960, or within |
| 47 | a property constructed between January 1, 1960, and January 1, |
| 48 | 1978, where the owner has actual knowledge of the presence of |
| 49 | lead-based paint, that form a single independent habitable |
| 50 | dwelling unit for occupation by one or more individuals and that |
| 51 | has living facilities with permanent provisions for living, |
| 52 | sleeping, eating, cooking, and sanitation. Affected property |
| 53 | does not include: |
| 54 | (a) An area not used for living, sleeping, eating, |
| 55 | cooking, or sanitation, such as an unfinished basement; |
| 56 | (b) A unit within a hotel, motel, or similar seasonal or |
| 57 | transient facility, unless such unit is occupied by one or more |
| 58 | persons at risk for a period exceeding 30 days; |
| 59 | (c) An area that is secured and inaccessible to occupants; |
| 60 | or |
| 61 | (d) A unit that is not offered for rent. |
| 62 | (2) "Dust-lead hazard" means surface dust in a residential |
| 63 | dwelling or a facility occupied by a person at risk which |
| 64 | contains a mass-per-area concentration of lead equal to or |
| 65 | exceeding 40 ug/ft2 on floors or 250 ug/ft2 on interior |
| 66 | windowsills based on wipe samples. |
| 67 | (3) "Elevated blood-lead level" means a quantity of lead |
| 68 | in whole venous blood, expressed in micrograms per deciliter |
| 69 | (ug/dL), which exceeds 10 ug/dL or such other level as |
| 70 | specifically provided in this act. |
| 71 | (4) "Lead-based paint" means paint or other surface |
| 72 | coatings that contain lead equal to or exceeding 1.0 milligram |
| 73 | per square centimeter, 0.5 percent by weight, or 5,000 parts per |
| 74 | million (ppm) by weight. |
| 75 | (5) "Lead-based-paint hazard" means paint-lead hazards and |
| 76 | dust-lead hazards. |
| 77 | (6) "Owner" means a person, firm, corporation, nonprofit |
| 78 | organization, partnership, government, guardian, conservator, |
| 79 | receiver, trustee, executor, or other judicial officer, or other |
| 80 | entity which, alone or with others, owns, holds, or controls the |
| 81 | freehold or leasehold title or part of the title to property, |
| 82 | with or without actually possessing it. The definition includes |
| 83 | a vendee who possesses the title, but does not include a |
| 84 | mortgagee or an owner of a reversionary interest under a ground |
| 85 | rent lease. The term includes any authorized agent of the owner, |
| 86 | including a property manager or leasing agent. |
| 87 | (7) "Paint-lead hazard" means any one of the following: |
| 88 | (a) Any lead-based paint on a friction surface that is |
| 89 | subject to abrasion and where the dust-lead levels on the |
| 90 | nearest horizontal surface underneath the friction surface, such |
| 91 | as the windowsill or floor, are equal to or greater than the |
| 92 | dust-lead-hazard levels defined in subsection (2); |
| 93 | (b) Any damaged or otherwise deteriorated lead-based paint |
| 94 | on an impact surface that is caused by impact from a related |
| 95 | building material, such as a door knob that knocks into a wall |
| 96 | or a door that knocks against its door frame; |
| 97 | (c) Any chewable lead-based painted surface on which there |
| 98 | is evidence of teeth marks; or |
| 99 | (d) Any other deteriorated lead-based paint in or on the |
| 100 | exterior of any residential building or any facility occupied by |
| 101 | a person at risk. |
| 102 | (8) "Person at risk" means a child under the age of 6 |
| 103 | years or a pregnant woman who resides or regularly spends at |
| 104 | least 24 hours per week in an affected property. |
| 105 | (9) "Secretary" means the secretary of the Department of |
| 106 | Health or a designee chosen by the secretary to administer the |
| 107 | Lead Poisoning Prevention Screening and Education Act. |
| 108 | (10) "Tenant" means the individual named as the lessee in |
| 109 | a lease, rental agreement, or occupancy agreement for a dwelling |
| 110 | unit. |
| 111 | Section 4. Educational programs.-- |
| 112 | (1) LEAD POISONING PREVENTION EDUCATIONAL PROGRAM |
| 113 | ESTABLISHED.--In order to achieve the purposes of this act, a |
| 114 | statewide, multifaceted, ongoing educational program designed to |
| 115 | meet the needs of tenants, property owners, health care |
| 116 | providers, early childhood educators, care providers, and |
| 117 | realtors is established. |
| 118 | (2) PUBLIC INFORMATION INITIATIVE.--The Governor, in |
| 119 | conjunction with the Secretary of Health and his or her |
| 120 | designee, shall sponsor a series of public service announcements |
| 121 | on radio, television, the Internet, and print media about the |
| 122 | nature of lead-based-paint hazards, the importance of standards |
| 123 | for lead poisoning prevention in properties, and the purposes |
| 124 | and responsibilities set forth in this act. In developing and |
| 125 | coordinating this public information initiative, the sponsors |
| 126 | shall seek the participation and involvement of private industry |
| 127 | organizations, including those involved in real estate, |
| 128 | insurance, mortgage banking, and pediatrics. |
| 129 | (3) DISTRIBUTION OF LITERATURE ABOUT CHILDHOOD LEAD |
| 130 | POISONING.--By January 1, 2006, the Secretary of Health or his |
| 131 | or her designee shall develop culturally and linguistically |
| 132 | appropriate information pamphlets regarding childhood lead |
| 133 | poisoning, the importance of testing for elevated blood-lead |
| 134 | levels, prevention of childhood lead poisoning, treatment of |
| 135 | childhood lead poisoning, and where appropriate, the |
| 136 | requirements of this act. These information pamphlets shall be |
| 137 | distributed to parents or the other legal guardians of children |
| 138 | 6 years of age or younger on the following occasions: |
| 139 | (a) By the owner of any affected property or his or her |
| 140 | agents or employees at the time of the initiation of a rental |
| 141 | agreement with a new tenant whose household includes a person at |
| 142 | risk or any other woman of childbearing age. |
| 143 | (b) By a health care provider at the time of a child's |
| 144 | birth and at the time of any childhood immunization or |
| 145 | vaccination unless it is established that such information |
| 146 | pamphlet has been provided previously to the parent or legal |
| 147 | guardian by the health care provider within the prior 12 months. |
| 148 | (c) By the owner or operator of any child care facility or |
| 149 | preschool or kindergarten class on or before October 15 of the |
| 150 | calendar year. |
| 151 | Section 5. Screening program.-- |
| 152 | (1) The secretary shall establish a program for early |
| 153 | identification of persons at risk of having elevated blood-lead |
| 154 | levels. Such program shall systematically screen children under |
| 155 | 6 years of age in the target populations identified in |
| 156 | subsection (2) for the presence of elevated blood-lead levels. |
| 157 | Children within the specified target populations shall be |
| 158 | screened with a blood-lead test at age 12 months and age 24 |
| 159 | months, or between the ages of 36 months and 72 months if they |
| 160 | have not previously been screened. The secretary shall, after |
| 161 | consultation with recognized professional medical groups and |
| 162 | such other sources as the secretary deems appropriate, |
| 163 | promulgate rules establishing: |
| 164 | (a) The means by which and the intervals at which such |
| 165 | children under 6 years of age shall be screened for lead |
| 166 | poisoning and elevated blood-lead levels. |
| 167 | (b) Guidelines for the medical followup on children found |
| 168 | to have elevated blood-lead levels. |
| 169 | (2) In developing screening programs to identify persons |
| 170 | at risk with elevated blood-lead levels, priority shall be given |
| 171 | to persons within the following categories: |
| 172 | (a) All children enrolled in the Medicaid program at ages |
| 173 | 12 months and 24 months, or between the ages of 36 months and 72 |
| 174 | months if they have not previously been screened. |
| 175 | (b) Children under the age of 6 years exhibiting delayed |
| 176 | cognitive development or other symptoms of childhood lead |
| 177 | poisoning. |
| 178 | (c) Persons at risk residing in the same household, or |
| 179 | recently residing in the same household, as another person at |
| 180 | risk with a blood-lead level of 10 ug/dL or greater. |
| 181 | (d) Persons at risk residing, or who have recently |
| 182 | resided, in buildings or geographical areas in which significant |
| 183 | numbers of cases of lead poisoning or elevated blood-lead levels |
| 184 | have recently been reported. |
| 185 | (e) Persons at risk residing, or who have recently |
| 186 | resided, in an affected property contained in a building that |
| 187 | during the preceding 3 years has been subject to enforcement for |
| 188 | violations of lead-poisoning-prevention statutes, ordinances, |
| 189 | rules, or regulations as specified by the secretary. |
| 190 | (f) Persons at risk residing, or who have recently |
| 191 | resided, in a room or group of rooms contained in a building |
| 192 | whose owner also owns a building containing affected properties |
| 193 | which during the preceding 3 years has been subject to an |
| 194 | enforcement action for a violation of lead poisoning prevention |
| 195 | statutes, ordinances, rules, or regulations. |
| 196 | (g) Persons at risk residing in other buildings or |
| 197 | geographical areas in which the secretary reasonably determines |
| 198 | there to be a significant risk of affected individuals having a |
| 199 | blood-lead level of 10 ug/dL or greater. |
| 200 | (3) The secretary shall maintain comprehensive records of |
| 201 | all screenings conducted pursuant to this section. Such records |
| 202 | shall be indexed geographically and by owner in order to |
| 203 | determine the location of areas of relatively high incidence of |
| 204 | lead poisoning and other elevated blood-lead levels. |
| 205 |
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| 206 | All cases or probable cases of lead poisoning found in the |
| 207 | course of screenings conducted pursuant to this section shall be |
| 208 | reported to the affected individual, to his or her parent or |
| 209 | legal guardian if he or she is a minor, and to the secretary. |
| 210 | Section 6. This act shall take effect July 1, 2005. |