Sponsors (2)
Official title: To amend the Residential Lead-Based Paint Hazard Reduction Act of 1992 and the Safe Drinking Water Act to modernize existing lead hazard reduction authorities, strengthen local implementation capacity, and improve coordination between housing and drinking water lead reduction efforts, and for other purposes.
Introduced July 22, 2026 by Shontel M. Brown · Last progress July 22, 2026
The bill directs substantial, targeted federal resources to reduce household lead exposure—especially for children—through prioritized remediation and service‑line replacement, but that health gain comes with higher program and compliance costs, added administrative burdens, and potential disruption or displaced needs for some households.
Children and households in high‑risk jurisdictions will receive prioritized lead-hazard remediation and full service-line replacement, substantially reducing lead exposure and improving health outcomes.
Grantees can fund water-service and interior‑plumbing evaluations and repairs tied to long‑term lead control, improving drinking water safety in older housing and preserving safe housing units rather than relying on temporary fixes.
Interim protective measures (e.g., certified point‑of‑use filters or faucet replacements) are required until remediation is complete, giving immediate protection to residents while longer‑term work proceeds.
Expanding eligible activities to include repairs, water remediation, and capacity building will increase program costs per grant and could reduce the total number of recipients served.
Locating and replacing private portions of service lines and coordinating with water utilities requires technical capacity and coordination that may slow implementation and impose costs on property owners and utilities.
Mandated interim measures (filters, faucet replacements) create procurement, distribution, and administrative burdens for grantees, increasing program complexity and costs.
Based on analysis of 3 sections of legislative text.
Expands HUD lead-hazard grant priorities and eligible uses, requires water-service-line evaluation during remediation, and authorizes EPA support for full covered service-line replacement and technical assistance.
Expands federal support for testing, removing, and replacing lead in both housing and drinking water systems. The bill broadens HUD lead-hazard grant priorities and allowable activities (including plumbing and water-line evaluation and post-remediation clearance), and it updates EPA drinking-water grant law to require inventories, replacement coordination, technical assistance, and prioritized funding for jurisdictions with elevated childhood lead exposure or large stocks of pre-1978 housing. The measure authorizes new implementation and coordination activities (project planning, outreach, workforce training, data modernization, and combined replacement of public and private service-line portions), and lets the agencies fund technical assistance and other related actions to accelerate full lead hazard control in homes and water service lines.