Bill > S988

Introduced Session

This bill would require the Department of Education (DOE) and the Department of Children and Families (DCF) to establish online reporting systems for schools and child care centers to report lead testing results. In July 2016, the State Board of Education adopted regulations requiring every school in the State to test for lead in drinking water. Shortly thereafter, in January 2017, the Department of Children and Families adopted regulations requiring each child care facility in the State to test for lead in drinking water. While lead test results were required to be submitted to the respective departments and made available to children and parents, there is currently no centralized database for, or report on, this data available to the public and policy makers. Such a centralized database would allow policy makers and the public to better understand the extent of lead contamination in schools and child care centers in the State and allow policy makers to do the necessary analysis to effectuate remedial funding and technical assistance. This bill would require the DOE and the DCF to establish online reporting systems for schools and childcare centers to report their lead testing results electronically. Under the bill, within 90 days after establishment of the databases, each school and childcare center that was required pursuant to law or regulation to test for lead would be required to submit or resubmit its test results and any other required information via the online reporting system. The DOE and DCF would be required to compile the test results on their respective Internet websites for access by the public. Finally, the bill would require both departments to prepare and submit a report to the Governor and the Legislature outlining the extent of lead contamination in the drinking water of schools and child care centers, the associated need for assistance with remediation activities, and recommendations for how the State can assist schools and child care centers with remediating lead in drinking water. This bill stems from recommendations in the Joint Legislative Task Force on Drinking Water Infrastructure's final report, released in January 2018.

AI Summary

Committee Categories

Linda Greenstein (D)*,  Raj Mukherji (D)*,  Declan O'Scanlon (R),  Shirley Turner (D), 

Referred to Senate Budget and Appropriations Committee (on 12/05/2024)

Official Document