Changes in the Renovation, Repair & Painting Rule in effect

In This Article: Hingham Lumber - Changes in the Renovation, Repair & Painting Rule in effect

• Certified Renovators must now become licensed Lead-Safe Renovation Contractors.
• Lead-Safe Renovation Contractor must remain on the job.
• The fines, $5000.00 per day fine.

Changes in the Renovation, Repair & Painting Rule in Effect
by Lester Gammon, Contractor Sales

On 9 July 2010 the Commonwealth of Massachusetts took over the administration and enforcement of the Environmental Protection Agency’s RRP Rule. Although most of the practices and procedures of the EPA’s Rule carry over to the way lead-safe activities are to be performed in the Commonwealth, there are some changes that each Certified Renovation Contractor and/or Certified Firm must address.

The first point to act on is administrative. Certified Renovators must now become licensed Lead-Safe Renovation Contractors.  If you are currently an EPA Certified Renovator AND EPA Certified Firm (certified before and up to 9 July), your task is simply to fill out a ‘Lead-Safe Renovation Contractor Licensing Waiver’ and send it into the Division of Occupational Safety. Your prior training and Firm fee will be recognized and you will become compliant with Massachusetts licensing. If, you hold a Certified Renovator’s Certificate but are not currently a Certified Firm nor applied to become one before 9 July, then you must apply for the Lead-Safe Renovation Contractor license, which will cost you $375.00. Finally, if you are not currently certified and work on any target housing; be advised that you ought to start the process of obtaining your license. The Federal suspension of penalties for not being certified is not applicable in Massachusetts.

The second point to understand is that a licensed Lead-Safe Renovation Contractor must remain on the job while lead-safe practices are being performed, from set up to final cleaning. No longer is the renovator allowed to leave the job in the hands of trained workers for those parts of the job that formerly did not require the renovator’s presence. The significance of this policy change is that a crew boss or company owner will want to have some or all of his crew licensed if that boss/owner wishes to run more than one job at a time, or take a day off, etc.

A final point to know is about the fines. The up-to-$37,500.00 per infraction fine of the EPA has been changed. Massachusetts is listing a $5000.00 per day fine, which brings us to the notion of enforcement. The DOS inspector is in the area, and will never be far from the area. The local inspector’s territory is from Cape Cod to Quincy. The DOS has more administrative help on the way to augment their current staff.

To obtain accurate information, a copy of the Rule and links to all necessary forms refer to the Division of Occupational Safety website. There is also a brief Q&A page.

Email:

See all Summer 2010 The Sounding Board Articles