PROVIDENCE, RI – Today, U.S. Senators Jack Reed and Sheldon Whitehouse and Congressmen Jim Langevin and David Cicilline announced that Providence’s Department of Planning and Development (DPD) has received $3.9 million from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) to protect city residents from the hazards of lead-based paint in their homes.  

The funding will be used as part of DPD’s Lead Safe Providence Program, which coordinates existing city services to mitigate lead hazards in Providence’s low-income communities.  The funding will support the building or renovation of 250 safe, healthy, and sustainable housing units in the city. 

“Lead poisoning is a preventable tragedy that dramatically impacts a child's ability to learn and has a significant cost for schools and our society.  Without this federal funding, fewer parents would be able to protect their children from lead hazards that may be present in their homes.  Too many children and families right here in Rhode Island remain at risk.  We must be proactive and continue to invest in the health and development of our children,” said Senator Jack Reed, who was awarded the 2014 National Child Health Champion Award by the National Center for Healthy Housing and the Rhode Island Childhood Lead Action Project.  Earlier this year, Reed, a member of the Appropriations Committee, successfully restored $15 million in federal funding for the CDC’s Healthy Homes and Lead Poisoning Prevention Program.

“Rhode Islanders continue to deal with the toxic legacy of lead paint.  In 2013, over 1,000 Rhode Island children under the age of six, including more than 400 in Providence, were diagnosed with lead poisoning,” said Senator Sheldon Whitehouse, who, while serving as Rhode Island Attorney General, took legal action against lead paint companies over the risk they presented to the public.  “I applaud Mayor Taveras on his efforts to respond to the health risks from lead paint, and I am grateful to see federal funds helping to keep Rhode Island families healthy and safe in their homes.”

“Lead hazards have been on the decline since Rhode Island passed crucial lead-paint legislation, but there is still much work to be done to bring our state into compliance. Lead paint poses a significant health risk to Rhode Islanders, and children in particular, and this funding will go a long way to making homes across our state safer for everyone,” said Congressman Jim Langevin.

“Children deserve a healthy home free from the serious danger of lead poisoning and these federal funds will help protect children and families from the hazards of lead paint,” said Congressman David Cicilline. “I will continue working with my colleagues, Mayor Taveras and other local officials to ensure our communities have the resources they need to remove lead paint from homes and improve the health and well-being of Rhode Island families.”

“With the support of the U.S. Housing and Urban Development’s lead abatement program over the past 15 years, our city has addressed the hazards of household lead paint in 1500 units for Providence children and their families,” said Providence Mayor Angel Taveras. “These additional funds allow us to continue the work to improve the well-being, educational potential and life prospects of all residents. I’m grateful to the congressional delegation for their efforts on our behalf.”

The funding comes in the form of two grants from HUD programs designed to help cities reduce risks from lead-based paint and other housing-related environmental hazards.  Providence has received $3.5 million from HUD’s Lead Hazard Reduction Demonstration program, which assists cities with the highest incidence of lead-based paint to implement programs to protect residents.  The City has also received $400,000 in supplemental funding from HUD’s Healthy Homes program, which helps cities to coordinate their response to housing-related hazards.

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