Assigned
to ED & APPROP FOR
COMMITTEE
ARIZONA STATE SENATE
Fifty-Sixth Legislature, Second Regular Session
lead testing; schools; childcare
Purpose
Requires each school district and child care facility in Arizona to
conduct periodic
first-drawn tap testing of potable water systems to monitor for lead
contamination in each occupied school and child care facility building under
its control, and outlines testing and reporting requirements.
Background
The U.S. Congress passed the Safe Drinking Water Act in 1974, granting the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) the authority to set the standards for drinking water quality and monitor states, local authorities and water suppliers who enforce the standards. As part of the Safe Drinking Water Act, the EPA has set maximum contaminant levels, as well as treatment levels, for over 90 different contaminants in public drinking water, including arsenic, radionuclides, copper and lead (EPA).
Lead and copper enter drinking water primarily through plumbing materials, and can cause health problems ranging from stomach distress to brain damage. In 1991, the EPA published a regulation to control lead and copper in drinking water. The rule requires systems to monitor drinking water at customer taps. If lead concentrations exceed an action level of 15 parts per billion (ppb) in more than 10 percent of customer taps sampled, the system must undertake prescribed additional actions to control corrosion, inform the public about steps that should be taken to protect public health and may be required to replace lead service lines under the system's control (EPA Lead and Copper Rule).
The Arizona Department of Environmental Quality (ADEQ) must: 1) conduct research on its own initiative or at the request of the Governor, the Legislature or state or local agencies pertaining to any ADEQ objectives; 2) provide information and advice on request of any local, state or federal agencies and private persons and business enterprises on matters within the scope of ADEQ; 3) promote and coordinate the protection and enhancement of the quality of water resources consistent with Arizona's environmental policy; and 4) prevent pollution through the regulation of the storage, handling and transportation of solids, liquids and gases that may cause or contribute to pollution (A.R.S. § 49-104).
There is no anticipated fiscal impact to the state General Fund associated with this legislation.
Provisions
1. Requires each school district and child care facility in Arizona to conduct periodic first-drawn tap testing of potable water systems to monitor for lead contamination in each occupied school and child care facility building under its control.
2. Requires a lead contamination testing and service provider approved by ADEQ to conduct the testing and analyze the results.
3. Exempts, from the requirement to conduct and analyze the tests, a school or child care facility building in which the plumbing and equipment complies with the prescribed definition of lead free.
4. Allows ADEQ to exempt a school district from additional testing requirements if sufficient testing has been conducted within the previous five years before the general effective date.
5. Requires a school district or child care facility at which lead contamination is found to:
a) continue first-drawn tap water testing pursuant to rules adopted by ADEQ;
b) provide occupants with an adequate supply of safe, potable water for drinking as required by rules adopted by ADEQ until subsequent testing indicates lead levels lower than five ppb;
c) provide parents or guardians of the children attending the school or child care facility with written notice of test results; and
d) post the test results on the school district's website.
6. Requires each school district and child care facility that conducts the testing to make a copy of the results of all testing and any lead remediation plans available to the public on its website and by any additional means as determined by the school district or child care facility.
7. Requires each school district and child care facility to immediately transmit a copy of the results of all testing to ADEQ in a format prescribed by ADEQ and to the county health department or the public health services district for the county in which the school district building or child care facility building is located.
8. Requires ADEQ to publish a report once every two years based on the findings from the tap water testing conducted and transmit the report to the Governor, the President of the Senate and the Speaker of the House or Representatives and post the report on the ADEQ's website.
9. Requires ADEQ, 60 days after the general effective date and annually thereafter, to identify existing federal, state and other grant monies that can be made available to school districts and child care facilities to assist with the prescribed testing.
10. Allows ADEQ, subject to legislative appropriations, to provide financial assistance to assist school districts and child care facilities in complying with the testing requirements, if compliance imposes an unreasonable financial hardship, as prescribed by rules adopted by ADEQ.
11. Requires ADEQ to adopt rules that are consistent with the federal Safe Drinking Water Act.
12. Defines child care facility as any facility in which child care is regularly provided for compensation for five or more children not related to the proprietor.
13. Becomes effective on the general effective date.
Prepared by Senate Research
February 12, 2024
MH/SDR/slp