What Is the Lead-Based Paint Renovation, Repair and Painting Program (RRP)?
The lead-based paint Renovation, Repair and Painting regulation rule (
RRP) applies to residential and child-occupied properties built before 1978 that have not been certified as free of lead-based paint. Under the regulation, as of April 22, 2010, work performed on such properties that disturbs lead-coated surfaces must be performed by certified renovators. It also requires property owners to provide residents with the
EPA pamphlet, Renovate Right: Important Lead Hazard Information for Families, Child Care Providers, and Schools. Importantly, these regulations apply to all covered properties, not just properties receiving federal assistance.
Background: On March 31, 2008, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) issued the final regulation under the Residential Lead-Based Paint Hazard Reduction Act of 1992 (40 CFR 745.80 to 745.91; known as Title X). Title X aims to protect the health of children by eliminating lead hazards in housing, and it focused on public education and training as a way to accomplish this goal.
The law requires the elimination of lead hazards and specifically distinguishes lead hazard repair as distinct from abatement. Intact lead-based paint is not considered a lead hazard. Aspects of Title X are within the jurisdiction of several federal agencies including the EPA, the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) and the Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC).
Any residential or child-occupied facility that has not been determined to be free of lead by a state certified inspector using the protocol detailed in 40 CFR Part 745.227 (after March 2000) or;
Chapter 7 of the HUD Guidelines for the Evaluation and Control of Lead-Based Paint Hazards in Housing (prior to March 2000) is subject to the provisions of Title X.
The RRP rule establishes requirements for the lead-safe activities on market-rate properties that differ from the requirements imposed on properties that accept federal assistance, including properties that accept Section 8 vouchers.
In addition to the RRP requirements, all properties (market-rate and affordable) are still required to comply with federal regulations requiring the disclosure of any known lead-based paint or lead hazards at time of a leasing or sale transaction.
What does the RRP apply to?
The RRP rule applies to activities that are done for compensation; maintenance activities on multifamily properties fall into this category. Under the RRP rule, pre-1978 properties will be required to use certified workers anytime work is likely to disturb six (6) square feet or more of lead-coated surface (i.e., paint, stain, shellac and varnish) unless:
Which activities trigger the RRP rule?
Activities which disrupt six (6) square feet or more of painted surface per room inside a building or 20 square feet or more of painted surface of exterior building surfaces are defined as renovations.
NOTE: This is a different definition of disruption than has been previously employed by EPA. Until the publication of this rule, both EPA and HUD agreed on the definition of disturbance as any activity that disturbed more than two (2) square feet of paint on interior components with large surface areas (e.g., walls, ceilings, floors, doors); or 10 percent of the surface area of interior or exterior components with small surface areas (window sills, baseboards, soffits, trim) and involving more than 20 square feet of paint on exterior components with large surface areas. HUD still observes these more conservative surface area limitations for renovations activities on federally assisted properties.
The term "renovation" includes (but is not limited to): the removal, modification or repair of painted surfaces or painted components (e.g., modification of painted doors, surface restoration, window repair, surface preparation activity such as sanding, scraping, or other such activities that may generate paint dust; the removal of building components (e.g., walls, ceilings, plumbing, windows); weatherization projects (e.g., cutting holes in painted surfaces to install blown-in insulation or to gain access to attics, planning thresholds to install weather-stripping), and interim controls that disturb painted surfaces.
A renovation performed for the purpose of converting a building, or part of a building, into target housing or a child-occupied facility is a renovation. Any activity that is performed as part of an abatement project (i.e., the permanent elimination of lead-based paint) is covered by a different set of rules since it is, by definition, not performed in occupied housing.
Minor repair and maintenance activities are activities that do not meet the area test described above and may include “minor heating, ventilation or air conditioning work, electrical work, and plumbing, that disrupt six (6) square feet or less of painted surface per room for interior activities or 20 square feet or less of painted surface for exterior activities where none of the work practices prohibited or restricted by Section 745.85(a)(3) are used, and where the work does not involve window replacement or demolition of painted surface areas.“
“When removing painted components, or portions of painted components, the entire surface area removed is the amount of painted surface disturbed. Jobs, other than emergency renovations, performed in the same room within the same 30 days must be considered the same job for the purpose of determining whether the job is a minor repair and maintenance activity.”
What is required of Apartment Owners/Managers
If you choose to have your on-site staff perform the activities described above that trigger the rule, you must use appropriately trained workers, observe specific work practices and keep the necessary records.
Worker Training“Beginning on April 22, 2010, all renovations in target housing or child-occupied facilities must be directed by certified renovators, certified and performed by certified renovators or trained individuals (working under the supervision of a certified renovator), unless the renovations qualify for one of the exceptions identified in accordance with Section 745.90(a),
Section 745.82(a) or (c).”
Will all maintenance staff be required to be trained?
It depends on the firm’s use of maintenance personnel as well as whether or not the property receives federal assistance. The RRP rule requires that renovation activities be performed by workers who have received at least one day of training in an EPA-approved training course and who are subsequently certified. Maintenance staff working under the supervision of a certified renovator who provides on-the-job training may engage in renovation activities.
Firm Certification
Property owners and/or third party property management firms will, for the first time (excluding some local state rules), become “accredited.” Any firm that employs workers who are certified renovators or who perform tasks covered by this rule must be accredited. If an owner employs (1) a third-party property management firm or (2) a third-party renovation contractor who employs workers who perform these tasks (i.e., certified renovators), then the owner is not required to be accredited, but the third-party management firm is required to be accredited. If, however, the third-party management firm hires subcontractors to perform any and all tasks that meet the definitions covered under the RRP rule, then the third-party management firm is not required to be accredited.
EPA will require property owners and/or third party property management firms of affected properties to complete an application and pay a $300 fee to become “accredited.” This accreditation will be renewed every five years. Failure to do so may result in a fine of up to $32,500. Firms may start to apply to EPA after October 22, 2009. All affected firms must be accredited by April 22, 2010. The EPA review process may take up to 180 days, so firms are encouraged to submit early.
- To become certified, property owners must submit an;application for firm certification (PDF) and fee payment to EPA. The EPA will begin processing applications on October 22, 2009. The Agency has up to 90 days after receiving a complete request for certification to approve or disapprove the application.
Special Work Practices
“Beginning on April 22, 2010, all renovations must be performed in accordance with the work practice standards in Section 745.85 and the associated recordkeeping requirements in Section 745.86(b)(6) and (b)(7) in target housing or child-occupied facilities, unless the renovations qualify for one of the exceptions identified in accordance with Section 745.82(a)
or (c).”
To assist property owners in complying with these regulations, EPA has prepared guidance information,
Steps to LEAD SAFE Renovation, Repair and Painting. (PDF) Lead safe practices are demonstrated and practiced in the one-day training course required for workers. Topics included are: setup of work area with temporary barriers to prevent spread of dust; worker use of personal protective equipment; and cleanup verification using disposable cleaning cloths (electrostatic cleaning cloths such as Swiffers).
Under the RRP, the following practices are banned:
- Open flame burning or torching;
- Sanding, grinding, planing, needle gunning or blasting with power tools unless equipped with a shroud and HEPA vacuum attachment; and
- Using a heat gun at temperatures great than 1100 degrees Farenheit.
Clean Up and Verification
Once the job has been completed and the plastic barriers have been removed and prepared for disposal, a HEPA vacuum must be used on all surfaces in the Work Area, including walls, before the Work Area is washed with a general purpose cleaner.
Once “cleaned,” the Work Area is eligible for Cleaning Verification. This process involves wiping horizontal surfaces with a moist cleaning cloth (i.e., a wet Swiffer) and comparing it to the EPA Cleaning Verification card. (Cleaning verification cards are available through the National Lead Information Center at 1-800-424-LEAD). The wet cleaning cloth from the Work Area must be "cleaner" than the “EPA Failing Cleaning Cloth” baseline picture to “Pass.” If the Work Area cloth is “dirty,” then the Work Area fails.
If the cleaning cloth fails, workers must re-clean the area and conduct another moist cleaning cloth review. If the second review is a "Pass," the property is in compliance. If it fails, however, workers must re-clean the Work Area, wait one hour or until it is dry–whichever is longer—and then wipe the Work Area with a dry cleaning cloth. Regardless of color or dirt level, EPA now considers the Work Area to be clean.
NOTE: There are many electrostatic cleaning cloths like Swiffer on the market. EPA has not; specified a particular brand of cloth. It states only that evidence of compliance with this rule depends on matching the color of the used cloth to a white card provided by EPA.
Recordkeeping and Reporting Requirements
Title X has several recordkeeping requirements separate from the RRP rule. Since 1996, owners and managers have been required to keep paperwork indicating that they disclosed any lead-based paint or lead hazards at time of lease signing or sale (Section 1018). Since 1999, they have had to keep paperwork indicating that such disclosures were also done when repairs were undertaken (Section 406b). Properties that receive federal assistance have additional requirements.
In general, the RRP rule requires that records (paint testing/environmental assessment reports, information on who performed the work, notification provided to residents, details about how the work was conducted and results of the cleaning verification) must be kept for at least three (3) years from the date of completion of the renovation activity. EPA has prepared
a sample checklist to assist property owners in complying with the required recordkeeping. It is available at
www.epa.gov/lead/pubs/samplechecklist.pdf.
If the specific “renovation” event was performed on an emergency basis (as defined in Section 745.82) and the renovation firm was unable to comply with all of the requirements of this rule due to an emergency, the firm must document the nature of the emergency and the provisions of the rule that were not followed. Worksite cleanup and cleaning verification are still required in the case of an emergency.
Penalties
Under the RRP rule, firms performing renovations must retain all records necessary to demonstrate compliance for a period of three (3) years following completion of the renovation. For work performed by on-site staff, the record keeping responsibility is with the certified renovator and the owner/property manager.; Failure to comply with the RRP, including the preparation and retention of properly executed documents, can result in
substantial fines of up to $32,500 per required item, per day, for each business day for three (3) years from the date of the original violation. EPA and HUD have an ongoing compliance assurance program and work with the Department of Justice to vigorously pursue cases against properties that are non-compliant with the requirements of Title X.
What is required on federally assisted properties?
HUD’s position is that the Lead Safe Housing Rule is strengthened by the RRP rule to the extent that in the areas where EPA had more stringent requirements (for example, length of training class, requirement for worker certification, use of disposable personal protective gear of worker) owners/managers of assisted property must observe these “additional requirements. ” PDF
In the specific areas in which EPA has less restrictive terms (such as how presence of lead-based paint may be determined, what area size paint disturbance triggers the rule, how clean up is verified) HUD maintains that the more restrictive terms found in the Lead Safe Housing Rule must be applied.
What are the differences between the HUD and EPA regulations?
Training: All workers on federally assisted properties must be trained. Workers performing renovation activities must either become a certified renovator or work under the supervision of a certified renovator. Although EPA initially agreed to provide an online “refresher” course for workers who had been trained under the HUD course, these workers will now be required to attend the one-day EPA course, if they are to be considered as certified renovators for compliance with the RPP.
Worker Certification: Workers on federally assisted properties will now need to be certified and follow EPA's requirements for periodic re-certification.
Area of Disturbance: HUD will retain the definition of disturbance as being more than two (2) square feet of interior surface; two (2) square feet of paint on interior components with large surface areas (e.g., walls, ceilings, floors, doors); or 10 percent of the surface area of interior or exterior components with small surface areas; and (window sills, baseboards, soffits, trim) and involving more than 20 square feet of paint on exterior components with large surface areas as the trigger for required use of lead safe work practices, notification to resident and the associated recordkeeping responsibilities.
Personal Protective Gear: Prior to the RRP, workers on assisted property were not required to wear disposable uniforms when conducting these tasks.