WASHINGTON – Today, U.S. Senators Ben Cardin and Chris Van Hollen and Congressmen Steny H. Hoyer, Dutch Ruppersberger, John Sarbanes, Kweisi Mfume, Jamie Raskin, David Trone, and Glenn Ivey (all D-Md.) announced $332,000 for the Maryland Department of the Environment for the identification and removal of lead sources in drinking water at schools and childcare facilities across the state. The grant is provided through the Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) Voluntary School and Childcare Lead Testing and Reduction Grant Program, which the lawmakers fought to fund at $28 million in the Fiscal Year 2024 appropriations package. The lawmakers also worked to expand the program through the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, which allows funds to be used for lead pipe remediation in addition to testing.
“Protecting our children’s health is essential, and that includes ensuring they have access to clean, lead-free drinking water at their schools and childcare centers. This federal investment will help our state accelerate efforts to find and replace dangerous lead pipes where Maryland kids are meant to learn and thrive – not face lifelong health risks from drinking water. With this critical work to increase access to clean water, we can keep students safer both today and in the future,” said the lawmakers.
This funding comes after the delegation members announced in May nearly $30 million from the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act to remove and replace lead service lines in communities across Maryland. In all, the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act provides more than $50 billion to EPA over five years to improve the nation’s drinking water, wastewater, and stormwater infrastructure – the single largest investment in water that the federal government has ever made.
Lead can severely harm children’s mental and physical development, slowing down learning, and irreversibly damaging the brain. In adults, lead can cause increased blood pressure, heart disease, decreased kidney function, and cancer. The Voluntary School and Childcare Lead Testing and Reduction Grant Program requires recipients to use the “3Ts” – Training, Testing, and Taking Action – to reduce lead in drinking water. The 3Ts Program provides valuable resources for states to address lead contamination and protect children in educational and childcare settings.
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