Michael S. Regan 16th Administrator, United States Environmental Protection Agency | Official Website
On August 22, 2024, the United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced a $26 million grant aimed at protecting children from lead in drinking water at schools and childcare facilities. This funding will be distributed across 55 states and territories, including the District of Columbia, to reduce lead exposure where children learn and play. The initiative supports the Biden-Harris Administration's Lead Paint and Pipes Action Plan.
"Science is very clear: There is no safe level of lead exposure," stated Bruno Pigott, Acting Assistant Administrator for Water. "As part of the Biden-Harris Administration's Investing in America agenda, this $26 million will help protect our children from the harmful effects of lead. The EPA is also investing $15 billion under the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law to remove lead pipes and provide technical assistance to communities for developing and implementing lead pipe replacement projects."
Lead exposure in children can severely impair physical and mental development, slow learning processes, and cause irreversible brain damage. In adults, it can result in hypertension, heart disease, reduced kidney function, and cancer.
The grant announced today was approved by the National Water Infrastructure Improvement Act and will be provided as grants to states, the District of Columbia, and participating territories for testing and mitigating lead in schools and childcare facilities. Since 2019, the Voluntary School and Child Care Lead Testing Reduction Grant Program has allocated over $150 million for testing and removing lead sources from drinking water in schools and childcare facilities nationwide.
The grant program mandates recipients to use the 3Ts – Training, Testing, and Taking Action – to reduce lead levels in drinking water. The 3Ts program offers valuable resources for states, territories, and tribes to take leadership actions protecting children in educational and early care environments.
Additionally, the EPA promotes the Get the Lead Out (GLO) initiative. This collaborative effort assists underserved communities nationwide with technical support needed to identify and eliminate lead service lines. GLO aids participating communities by identifying primary service lines, creating replacement plans, and securing funding for lead removal efforts. Communities seeking GLO resources can request assistance via the WaterTA request form on EPA’s WaterTA website.
Background
The Biden-Harris Administration's Bipartisan Infrastructure Law allocated an unprecedented $15 billion for eliminating lead from drinking water. This funding supports implementing the White House’s Lead Paint Action Plan by encouraging federal, state, and local governments to utilize all tools available for providing clean drinking water, replacing lead pipes, and addressing lead paint hazards. These efforts are crucial for improving environments where children spend significant time such as schools, childcare centers (both institutional and home-based), preschools, Head Start programs.
The Bipartisan Infrastructure Law builds on successful programs like those funded under the National Water Infrastructure Improvement Act Grants Program to deliver more benefits nationwide.
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