Environmental Justice Groups Sue New York Department of Health for Failing to Protect Tenants from Lead Under Nation-Leading Law

Today, environmental justice groups sued New York’s Department of Health (DOH) for leaving tenants at risk of lead poisoning in violation of a New York law that requires inspections and the elimination of lead in many units of rental housing across the state. The case, filed in the New York State Supreme Court, was brought by AVillage, Inc., WE ACT for Environmental Justice, and the New York Public Interest Group Fund, all represented by Earthjustice.

Rather than follow the clear directives in the law, DOH’s regulations (67-2 and 67-5) will allow hazards to be missed and children continuing to be exposed to lead. Specifically, the final rules fail to address critical lead exposure pathways (friction and impact surfaces, porches, and soil), they use obsolete metrics for determining whether soil samples are contaminated and paint is lead-based, they fail to require sufficient certification for local health department inspectors and unlawfully weaken a prior law by permitting repainting over lead hazards in homes where children have already tested with elevated blood lead levels.

Specifically, the final rules fail to address critical lead exposure pathways (friction and impact surfaces, porches, and soil), they use obsolete metrics for determining whether soil samples are contaminated and paint is lead-based, they fail to require sufficient certification for local health department inspectors, and unlawfully weaken a prior law by permitting repainting over lead hazards in homes where children have already tested with elevated blood lead levels.

Background:

New York has the greatest number of children with elevated blood lead levels in the nation. In 2023, the New York Legislature took aggressive action and passed a nation-leading proactive inspection law that requires rental housing in communities with high rates of lead poisoning to be inspected and to have lead hazards remediated.

As a result, these insufficient lead inspections will mislead New Yorkers, already living in communities of concern with unacceptable levels of lead poisoning, into false confidence that their children will not be exposed to lead in their homes.

“The law protect tenants from lead in their homes. Now, it’s time for the regulations to do the same,” said Torie Atkinson, Senior Attorney at Earthjustice. “Without complete and accurate inspections and the elimination of any lead found in the home, New York children will continue to face serious and irreversible harm from lead exposure.”

“Lead poisoning is one of the most preventable public health crises we continue to face, yet it still disproportionately impacts low-income communities and communities of color,” said Eva Bass, Executive Director of AVillage Inc. and a resident of Albany, New York’s capital city. “As both a community leader and resident, I have seen firsthand the lasting harm that lead exposure can have on children, families, and entire neighborhoods. The Department of Health must implement this program in a way that prioritizes prevention, equity, and accountability, ensuring that every New Yorker—especially those in our most vulnerable communities—is protected from the devastating effects of lead exposure.”

“New York City has proven that there are technologically feasible and health protective standards to measure lead hazards,” said Anhthu Hoang, PhD, Esq. General Counsel & Deputy Director of WE ACT for Environmental Justice. “WE ACT has been advocating for lead-free homes in our impacted communities for decades. We have serious concerns that the

“NYPIRG has been fighting for lead-free kids for decades and a proactive rental inspection regime was long-necessary to catch lead hazards before a child is exposed,” said Russ Haven, Esq., General Counsel for the New York Public Interest Research Group Fund, Inc. “But a proactive inspection regime only works when DOH follows the science and implements a program that is effective at screening homes and correctly identifying lead-hazards. We’re looking forward to getting this right and eliminating childhood lead poisoning in New York.”