Letter to the Hon. Joseph R. Biden, President of the United States - Rep. Payne, Jr. Requests More Testing for Lead in School Drinking Water

Letter

Dear President Biden:

We write to urge your administration to prioritize lead testing and abatement in public schools' water systems. America's oldest cities and communities continue to suffer from excess lead levels, placing children at risk from lead-contaminated pipes in schools.

In drinking water, even low lead levels can accumulate over years, causing significant harm. Children's brains and nervous systems are more sensitive to the damaging effects of lead, and even low levels of lead in children's bloodstream can result in behavior and learning disabilities, lower IQ, and other developmental problems. Fundamentally, there is no such thing as a "safe" level of lead exposure, which is why any lead contamination in drinking water needs to be treated with the utmost seriousness. While the correlation between high lead levels and negative health outcomes is clear, any prolonged exposure to lead can cause irreversible harm to children.

The Transparent Environment in School Testing for Lead Act or TEST for Lead Act, introduced in the U.S. House of Representatives in 2016, would require states to implement a lead-testing program in public schools. The program includes testing water from faucets used for food preparation, sinks in bathrooms, and drinking water coolers. Testing must be conducted at least twice a year at schools built prior to 1996 and at least annually at schools built in 1996 or later. The bill would also require local educational agencies to notify parents, the Environmental Protection Agency, and the state in which they are located within 48 hours if a level of lead exceeds the EPA's lead action level.

We encourage you to prioritize funding for lead removal and mitigation in your administration. We know the problems that lead exposure causes, but we also know how to fix this problem. A dedicated source of funds for testing and immediate remediation, coupled with an administration that will hold polluters accountable, has the potential to improve millions of lives by preventing the harm of lead exposure.

Thank you for your attention, and we stand ready to work with you and your administration to remove lead and other toxic contaminants from our drinking water.

Sincerely,

Donald M. Payne, Jr. Gwen Moore Albio Sires

Member of Congress Member of Congress Member of Congress

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