§ 23-24.6-2 - Legislative findings.
SECTION 23-24.6-2
§ 23-24.6-2 Legislative findings. –The general assembly finds, upon the report of the environmental lead taskforce and the reports, hearings, and records of its own committees and offederal agencies including the environmental protection agency and centers fordisease control, that:
(1) Environmental exposures to even low levels of leadincrease a child's risks of developing permanent learning disabilities, reducedconcentration and attentiveness and behavior problems, problems which maypersist and adversely affect the child's chances for success in school and life.
(2) Childhood lead poisoning is caused by environmentalexposure to lead. The most significant sources of environmental lead are leadbased paint in older housing and house dust and soil contaminated by this paint.
(3) Childhood lead poisoning is completely preventable.
(4) Rhode Island does not currently have a comprehensivestrategy in place for preventing childhood lead poisoning. As a result, tens ofthousands of Rhode Island's children are poisoned by lead at levels believed tobe harmful with most of these poisoned children going undiagnosed and untreated.
(5) Childhood lead poisoning is dangerous to the publichealth, safety, and general welfare of the people and necessitates excessiveand disproportionate expenditure of public funds for health care and specialeducation, causing a drain upon public revenue.
(6) The enactment and enforcement of this chapter isessential to the public interest. It is intended that the provisions of thischapter be liberally construed to effectuate its purposes.
(7) The magnitude of the childhood lead poisoning in RhodeIsland's older homes and urban areas is a result of approved use of lead basedmaterials over an extended period in public buildings and systems and privatehousing that a comprehensive approach is necessary to alleviate the cause,identify and treat the children, rehabilitate the affected housing where youngchildren reside, and dispose of the hazardous material. Rhode Island presentlydoes not have the public or the private resources to handle the total problem,requiring prioritizing on a need basis.