Massachusetts law about lead poisoning and control

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Lead safety
A collection of resources from Massachusetts state agencies, including lead and your child's health, finding and removing lead, deleading on my own, lead data, Massachusetts lead law and exemption for short term recreational rentals, and lead information for providers.

Massachusetts laws

MGL c.111, §§ 189A-199B Lead poisoning prevention & control

MGL c.111, § 127B-1/2  Removal of dangerous levels of lead paint

MGL c.93A, §§ 2, 9, 11 Consumer protection

MGL c.112, § 12BB Mandatory screening by physicians of children under the age of six

MGL c.151B, § 4(11) Discrimination against families with young children

MGL c.186, § 18 Reprisals against tenants for reporting violations

Massachusetts regulations

105 CMR 410.502 State sanitary code - use of lead paint prohibited in dwellings

105 CMR 460 Lead poisoning prevention & control – contains mandatory screening requirements for children under age 6 who are entering daycare or school, lead abatement, training and registration of lead inspectors, and enforcement procedures

454 CMR 22 De-leading and lead-safe renovation – training and licensing procedures, work practices, and record keeping requirements

454 CMR 23 Occupational lead poisoning registry

606 CMR 7.07 (15)(a) Lead paint and poisoning information disclosure requirements for family and school age child care programs

760 CMR 14 Lead paint abatement loan program

804 CMR 2.02 (3)(a) Housing discrimination against persons with children

830 CMR 62.6.3 Lead paint removal credit allowed against income tax

Federal laws

42 USC §§ 4821-4846 Lead-based paint poisoning prevention

42 USC §§ 4851-4856 Residential lead-based paint hazard reduction act

15 USC § 1278a Children's products containing lead

Federal regulations

16 CFR Part 1303 Ban of lead-containing paint and certain consumer products bearing lead-containing paint

24 CFR Part 35 Lead-based poisoning prevention in certain residential structures

24 CFR §§ 200.800-200.810 Lead-based poisoning prevention

40 CFR Part 745 Lead-based paint poisoning prevention in certain residential structures

Forms

Tenant lead law notification and certification form, Mass. Department of Public Health.

Property transfer notification certification form, Mass. Department of Public Health.
The form is the final page of this property transfer lead paint notification package. "Under Massachusetts and federal law, this notification package must be given to prospective purchasers of homes built before 1978."

Short term vacation or recreational rental exemption notification form, Mass. Department of Public Health.

Selected case law

Al-Ziab v. Mourgis, 424 Mass. 847 (1997)
A landlord's violation of the lead paint statute does not, without a showing of at least negligent conduct by the landlord, constitute a violation of the statutory covenant of quiet enjoyment for purposes of awarding attorney's fees.

Bencosme v. Kokoras, 400 Mass. 40 (1987)
Owners of residential property are strictly liable for injuries sustained under the lead paint act.

Massachusetts Rental Housing Association Inc. v. Lead Poisoning Control Director, 49 Mass. App. Ct. 359 (2000)
Sodium sulfide test is economical, convenient and endorsed by other testing authorities and thus has a rational basis. Notice to prospective tenants published by Dept. of Public Health is factually accurate and legally correct.

Navarro v. Burgess, 99 Mass. App. Ct. 466 (2021)
Lead inspector owed no duty to person who became a tenant more than 20 years after inspection and several property ownership changes.

Rabassa v. Cerasuolo, 97 Mass. App. Ct. 809 (2020)
Insurance company could not deny coverage when landlord was not informed that his documentation for obtaining lead poisoning policy was inadequate.

Web sources

Childhood lead poisoning prevention program, Mass. Dept. of Public Health.
Everything you need to know about the lead law, including public health fact sheets, downloadable forms, introduction to the lead law, data and reports. Also provides information on finding a licensed lead inspector. 

Deleading and lead safety, Mass. Dept. of Labor Standards.
Information on obtaining deleading licenses and finding licensed deleading contractors.

Lead, US Environmental Protection Agency.
Links to federal laws, regulations and resources on lead paint, including basic information about lead, ways to protect your family, and lead abatement.

Lead paint removal, Citizen Information Service.
This summary of the Massachusetts lead law explains the legal obligations of landlords and property owners.

Legal tactics: self-defense for tenants in Mass., Chapter 9: Lead poisoning, Mass. Law Reform Institute, 2017
Includes how to have children and residences tested, deleading, protections under state and federal laws, and legal remedies for tenants.

National Lead Information Center (NLIC)
1-800-424-LEAD (5323)
Provides the general public and professionals with information about lead hazards and their prevention. Funded by the Environmental Protection Agency and the Department of Housing and Urban Development.

Office of Lead Hazard Control and Healthy Homes (OLHCHH), US Dept. of Housing and Urban Development.
Information on federal government programs, laws, regulations, pamphlets, publications, and links to other web sites.

Print sources

"Landlord's liability for injury or death of tenant's child from lead paint poisoning," 19 ALR 5th 405.

Liability and lead paint litigation, MCLE, 2005.

Massachusetts practice:

• vol. 10-10C (Procedural forms annotated) 6th ed. West, 2009 with supplement, Sections 38:12, 42:63, 79:65.
• vol. 14C (Summary of basic law) 5th ed., Thomson Reuters, 2017 with supplement, Sections 12:96-12:106.
• vol. 33A-34 (Landlord and tenant law) 3rd ed. West, 2000 with supplement, Sections 18:23-18:35, 21:48.
• vol. 36A (Consumer law) 4th ed. West, 2021, Sections 29:38-29:48.
• vol. 37A (Tort law) 3rd ed. West, 2005 with supplement, Section 18.6.

Massachusetts proof of cases: Civil, West, annual softcover edition, chapter 20 Lead poisoning.

Residential and commercial landlord-tenant practice in Massachusetts, 3rd ed. MCLE, loose-leaf, chapter 6 Lead paint: complying with Massachusetts law.

Last updated:	October 28, 2022