City Council passes bill to strengthen NY lead laws
BY BILL PARRY
Three Queens lawmakers
played key roles as the City
Council passed a package of
legislation March 13 that would
give New York City the most
comprehensive, far-reaching
lead laws in the nation.
Among the 10 pieces of
legislation that were passed
were two drafted by City
Councilman Daniel Dromm
to address the continued lead
poisoning of children.
A recent Court of Appeals
ruling that a young girl who
spent 50 hours a week at her
grandmother’s apartment did
not “reside” in the apartment
absolving the landlord from any
responsibility to abate the leadbased
paint. Dromm’s bill. Intro.
464-B, will resolve this issue with
existing law by expanding the
definition of the term “reside”
to cover cases where children
become exposed to lead while
spending extended time with a
temporary caretaker.
“Our families should not
have to endure the pain of
having a child suffer lead
poisoning,” Dromm said.
“This bill fills a gap in the
current code and, as a result,
protects New York’s children
from the myriad health risks
associated with lead poisoning,
including irreversibly impaired
neurological development,
behavioral disorders,
and reduced educational
attainment.”
The city’s Department of
Health would be required
to investigate the potential
sources of elevated lead levels
in children’s blood, including
inspecting any dwelling where
a child with elevated blood lead
level spends 10 or more hours
per week. Dromm’s second
bill, Intro. 881-A, addresses the
lack of public knowledge about
lead paint hazards requiring
the DOH to establish and
implement an education and
outreach program to increase
awareness of childhood lead
poisoning. This program would
be linguistically and culturally
tailored to immigrant
communities, especially those
who have limited English
proficiency.
“My bill ensures that our
families will be educated on the
City Councilman Daniel Dromm announces the passing of two of his
bills to protect children from lead poisoning.
negative impact lead can have
on a child’s health,” Dromm
said. “Now fewer low-income
and immigrant families will
suffer the pain and hardship
that results in having a child
exposed to lead.”
When City Councilman
Robert Holden took office in
2017, lead-contaminated soil
was excavated during a sewer
reconstruction project on
Penelope Avenue in Middle
Village. Holden wasn’t
informed of the contamination
until six months later and the
Courtesy of Dromm’s offi ce
excavated soil had been stored
in uncovered piles merely 50
yards from a school and a dense
residential area.
Holden drafted INT. 1063
which would require that after
any discovery of hazardous lead
in soil must be reported to the
relevant Council member and
community board within five
business days.
“Increased transparency
between city agencies and the
public is a value I campaigned
on, and I’m pleased to see this
bill accomplishing that,” Holden
said. “It is common sense that
local officials should be notified
of any dangerous contamination
so they can help inform and
protect their constituents. There
is no excuse for the carelessness
that this bill will correct.”
The bill is Holden’s first
to pass in the City Council.
Intro. 0709, authored by City
Councilman Jimmy Van Bramer,
would require the Department
of Environmental Protection to
create an online map that will
report information on lead pipes
throughout the city.
“It is imperative that New
Yorkers know when there are
toxic levels of lead in our drinking
water and how to prevent
contamination,” Van Bramer
said. “This critical legislation
would require unprecedented
depth and transparency in
reporting lead poisoning by
creating and searchable online
map identifying all known lead
water service lines in NYC.
Making this data available and
engaging in public outreach
and education around this issue
will better protect children and
families from dangerous lead
poisoning.”
NYC Health + Hospitals/Elmhurst
Hosts Queens Medical Simulation
“Wars” Between Area Hospitals
Stonybrook, Good Samaritan, Northwell, and New York Presbyterian-Queens Hospitals
recently competed at NYC Health + Hospitals/Elmhurst’s Simulation Center’s “Queens
Sim Wars” event, in which physicians in training used high-fidelity manikins to simulate
real-life medical emergencies. The competition was judged by a panel of physicians led by
Elmhurst Simulation Center Director Dr. Suzanne Bentley.
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