LOS ANGELES — The Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors Oct 22, unanimously approved a motion by Chair Janice Hahn and Supervisor Kathryn Barger to use a recent $134 million settlement to remove lead paint from thousands of homes in LA County. After 19 years of litigation, the County of Los Angeles and nine other local public entities won a landmark legal victory, in 2018, against three former manufacturers of lead paint. the Court found that these companies created an ongoing public nuisance by advertising lead paint use in homes while having knowledge of the toxic hazard to human health. Of the $305 million settlement, the County of Los Angeles will receive $134 million.
The Board of Supervisors voted to use the settlement to create and fund a new, comprehensive Lead Paint Hazard Mitigation Program in partnership with the LA County Department of Public Health and the Los Angeles County Development Authority. Over the next eight years, this program will allow for the removal of lead paint from an estimated 4,000 to 5,000 homes.
The program will target residential properties built before 1951, in low-income communities with a large number of children under the age of six. Services will be free to those who qualify and will include testing for and remediation of lead paint hazards in both indoor and outdoor surfaces of homes. The program will also provide resources and education on lead hazards and how to prevent childhood lead poisoning.
Details:1-800-LA-4-LEAD