Bill Text: NJ SCR125 | 2022-2023 | Regular Session | Introduced
Bill Title: Memorializes President and Congress to require EPA to reassess funding amounts allocated by the "Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act" for lead service line replacement.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 1-0)
Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2022-10-17 - Introduced in the Senate, Referred to Senate Environment and Energy Committee [SCR125 Detail]
Download: New_Jersey-2022-SCR125-Introduced.html
SENATE CONCURRENT RESOLUTION No. 125
STATE OF NEW JERSEY
220th LEGISLATURE
INTRODUCED OCTOBER 17, 2022
Sponsored by:
Senator TROY SINGLETON
District 7 (Burlington)
SYNOPSIS
Memorializes President and Congress to require EPA to reassess funding amounts allocated by the "Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act" for lead service line replacement.
CURRENT VERSION OF TEXT
As introduced.
A Concurrent Resolution memorializing the President and Congress of the United States to require the Environmental Protection Agency to reassess funding amounts allocated by the "Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act" for lead service line replacement.
Whereas, New Jersey has the sixth oldest housing stock in the nation with an average age of 53 years, and approximately 40 percent of all homes in certain areas of the State were built prior to 1950, before the dangers of lead were widely known; and
Whereas, Because older homes, built before 1986, are more likely to have older service lines, indoor plumbing, fixtures, and solder made of lead, New Jersey has an estimated 350,000 lead service lines, the fifth highest in the nation; and
Whereas, In recent years, many areas of the State with aging lead service lines have measured high levels of lead in the drinking water supply, and, in 2021, 29 water systems in the State exceeded and were in violation of the federal lead action level set by the "Safe Drinking Water Act"; and
Whereas, In 2019, the State's largest city, Newark, experienced elevated lead levels in the city's drinking water supply that exceeded the federal lead action level of 15 parts per billion in multiple public schools throughout the city, which led to the discovery of elevated blood lead levels in 281 children; and
Whereas, The long-term ingestion of lead, particularly by children, can cause multiple health problems, such as nervous system disorders, learning disabilities, problems with growth, impaired hearing, and problems with the formation and function of blood cells. Lead is so toxic, moreover, that the federal Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) recommends that no lead be present in drinking water; and
Whereas, In July 2021, New Jersey enacted P.L.2021, c.183 (C.58:12A-40 et seq.), a law that requires community water systems to identify, notify the public about, and replace, all 350,000 lead service lines in the State by 2031, and it has been estimated that it will cost a total of approximately $2.65 billion to facilitate the replacement of all of the State's lead service lines, pursuant to this law; and
Whereas, In 2021, President Biden signed H.R. 3684, the "Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act," which is an infrastructure bill that allocates $15 billion to remove lead service lines nationwide; and
Whereas, In the first round of funding authorized under the "Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act," New Jersey was allocated $48 million for lead service line removal and replacement, or approximately $138 per lead service line. This amount, per service line, was far less than the amount of funding allocated under the act, per service line, to other states having far fewer lead service lines. For instance, the state of Hawaii, which has only about 2,800 lead service lines, received a total of $28 million in funding under the act, which equals approximately $10,000 in funding per lead service line; and
Whereas, This significant disparity in the allocation of funding, per service line, is a result of the EPA's funding distribution formula, which fails to consider the number of lead service lines and average age of housing in each state, despite the fact that such considerations are imperative to understanding and reducing the prevalence of lead in drinking water; and
Whereas, The failure of the EPA's funding distribution formula to account for all factors relevant to the remediation of lead in drinking water has resulted in New Jersey being allocated the second lowest amount in funding in the nation, per service line, under the "Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act," notwithstanding the fact that the scope of lead-related dangers and the nature and extent of lead-contaminated drinking water infrastructure in this State far exceed the dangers and contamination present in many other states; and
Whereas, In order to prevent additional funding disparities and ensure that states like New Jersey have access to sufficient funds, as necessary to properly remove and replace lead service lines and, thereby, protect residents from exposure to lead in the drinking water supply, the EPA should reassess and revise, for all future funding rounds, the funding distribution formula that is used to allocate funding to each state, under the "Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act," for the purposes of lead service line removal and replacement, in order to ensure that the formula takes into account all relevant factors related to the scope and extent of lead contamination in each state; now, therefore,
Be It Resolved by the Senate of the State of New Jersey (the General Assembly concurring):
1. The President and Congress of the United States are respectfully memorialized to require the Environmental Protection Agency to reassess and revise, for all future funding rounds, the funding distribution formula that is used to allocate funds to the states, under the "Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act," for the removal and replacement of lead service lines, in order to ensure that the distribution formula properly accounts for the number of lead service lines and the age of housing stock in New Jersey and other states, as necessary to ensure the full and effective elimination of lead from each state's drinking water supply.
2. Copies of this resolution, as filed with the Secretary of State, shall be transmitted by the Clerk of the General Assembly or the Secretary of the Senate to the President and Vice President of the United States; the Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency; the Majority and Minority Leaders of the United States Senate; the Speaker and Minority Leader of the United States House of Representatives; and every member of the New Jersey Congressional delegation.
STATEMENT
This resolution memorializes the President and Congress of the United States to require the federal Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to reassess funding amounts allocated by the "Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act" for lead service line replacement. The presence of lead in drinking water can cause multiple health problems in children, and is so toxic, the EPA recommends that there be no lead present in drinking water. New Jersey has the sixth oldest housing stock in the nation with an average age of 53 years. Many homes in the State were built prior to 1950 before the dangers of lead were widely known, and homes built prior to 1986 are more likely to have older service lines, indoor plumbing, fixtures, and solder that are made of lead. As a result of its aged housing stock, New Jersey has an estimated 350,000 lead service lines, the fifth highest in the nation.
In recent years, many areas of the State have measured high levels of lead in the drinking water supply. In 2021, 29 water systems in New Jersey exceeded and were in violation of the federal lead action level set by the "Safe Drinking Water Act." In 2019, the State's largest city, Newark, experienced elevated lead levels in the city's drinking water supply that exceeded the federal lead action level, which led to elevated blood lead levels being detected in 281 children. In July 2021, New Jersey enacted P.L.2021, c.183 (C.58:12A-40 et seq.), a law that requires community water systems in the State to identify and replace all 350,000 lead service lines in the State - an undertaking estimated to cost approximately $2.65 billion.
In 2021, President Biden signed H.R. 3684, the "Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act," an infrastructure bill that will allocate $15 billion to remove lead service lines nationwide. During the first round of funding, New Jersey was allocated only $48 million for lead service line replacement, averaging $138 per lead service line. New Jersey received the second lowest amount in funding per lead service line in the nation. Hawaii, a State with an estimated 2,800 lead service lines, was allocated more in funding per lead service line than New Jersey. Hawaii received a total of $28 million in funding, averaging $10,000 per lead service line. This disparity occurred due to the EPA's distribution formula, which fails to consider the number of lead service lines and average age of housing in each state, despite the fact that these considerations are imperative to understanding and reducing the prevalence of lead in drinking water. This resolution urges the President and Congress to require the EPA to reassess and revise, for all future funding rounds, the funding distribution formula that is used to allocate funds to the states, under the "Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act," for lead service line replacement and removal, in order to ensure that the distribution formula properly accounts for the number of lead service lines, and the age of housing stock, in New Jersey and other states, as necessary to ensure the full and effective elimination of lead from each state's drinking water supply.
