New York City banned building owners, landlords, and property management companies from using lead paint in residential buildings more than 60 years ago. As a result, you won’t find lead paint in newer residential buildings scattered throughout the Big Apple. There are, however, still older buildings constructed before 1960 that contain lead paint.
NYC’s Local Law 31 is designed to combat this problem by ensuring that those who own or operate older residential buildings practice proper lead compliance. It requires every building owner, landlord, and property management company in New York City to perform a lead paint risk assessment to determine if they have toxic paint in their buildings.
If you aren’t familiar with NYC Local Law 31, change that immediately to avoid potential penalties. Read on to discover more about the law and how it impacts you.
What Is NYC’s Local Law 31?
NYC’s Local Law 31, also referred to as NYC Local Law 31 of 2020, actually went into effect almost five years ago. It was put in place on August 9, 2020, and it laid out the lead paint inspection requirements that all NYC residential building owners, landlords, and property management companies need to follow moving forward. The NYC Department of Housing Preservation and Development is in charge of enforcing it.
Here’s how it works: If you own or operate a residential building in one of the Big Apple’s five boroughs with individual units and/or common areas built before 1960, NYC’s Local Law 31 requires you to carry out lead paint inspections before August 9, 2025. You’ll also need to perform lead paint inspections if your building has units and/or common areas built between 1960 and 1978 known to contain lead paint. This law gave residential building owners, landlords, and property management companies five years from when it was enacted to practice lead compliance.
Furthermore, NYC’s Local Law 31 calls for residential building owners, landlords, and property management companies to rely on EPA-certified inspectors to conduct a lead paint risk assessment while using X-Ray Fluorescence (XRF) analyzer testing. The hope, for building owners and operators at least, is that inspections will demonstrate that lead paint readings don’t top the 0.5 mg/cm2 threshold that the NYC Department of Housing Preservation and Development has established.
If you own or operate an NYC residential building with anyone 6 years old or younger living in its units, you’re also required to hire lead compliance inspectors to complete inspections even sooner. In this case, NYC Local Law 31 states that you must schedule inspections within one year of a young child moving into your building.
Why Does NYC’s Local Law 31 Require X-Ray Fluorescence (XRF) Analyzer Testing?
There are several ways to test paint to see if it contains lead. You can, for example, remove paint chips from a wall in an NYC residential building and send them off to a laboratory where either atomic absorption spectrophotometry or inductively coupled plasma can be used to detect lead. You can also find affordable lead paint testing kits at many hardware stores.
So, why then does NYC’s Local Law 31 stipulate that residential building owners, landlords, and property management companies must use X-Ray Fluorescence (XRF) analyzer testing? It should make more sense once you know how this specific type of testing works.
XRF analyzers have radioactive isotopes in them that enable trained professionals to test an NYC residential building for lead compliance within about an hour in most cases. XRF analyzer testing can also deliver comprehensive reports detailing what was found during a lead paint risk assessment.
This is important because, in addition to hiring a company to provide the proper lead compliance testing, NYC’s Local Law 31 also requires residential residential building owners, landlords, and property management companies to hang onto XRF analyzer testing reports for 10 years. You may need to send a copy to the NYC Department of Housing Preservation and Development if the agency requests it.
What Happens If You Don’t Comply With NYC’s Local Law 31?
If you’re a residential building owner, landlord, or property management company that hasn’t arranged to have XRF analyzer testing performed yet, the good news is you still have time to do it. The bad news is that, if you fail to comply with NYC’s Local Law 31 by August 9, 2025, you could deal with stiff fines from the NYC Department of Housing Preservation and Development. A lack of lead paint testing and lead compliance is a Class “C” hazardous violation that could subject you to $250 daily fines and civil penalties of over $1,000.
Not complying with NYC’s Local Law 31 might also cause reputational harm and make it challenging to find tenants for your residential building. Your lead compliance will suggest that you’re fully committed to creating a safe living environment.
Why Was NYC’s Local Law 31 Established?
Lead paint has been a huge problem in New York City and many other cities for decades. So, why is NYC’s Local Law 31 being established now? The answer is simple: It’s for the good of all those who may still be living in close quarters with lead paint and putting their health at risk.
Lead paint exposure can lead to lots of health complications, including headaches, nausea, seizures, renal failure, and even death. Children are especially susceptible to the dangers of lead paint exposure and could be inflicted with:
- Brain damage
- Nervous system problems
- Behavioral issues
- Learning disabilities
NYC Local Law 31 should reduce the chances of New Yorkers being exposed to lead paint and stop it from taking a toll on their overall well-being.
Contact Us To Perform a Comprehensive Lead Paint Risk Assessment
Have you scheduled XRF analyzer testing for your residential building to practice lead compliance when it comes to NYC’s Local Law 31? If not, NY Lead Paint Experts can provide the necessary lead paint risk assessment services. Call us at 646-632-7154 to make an appointment.