The City of Philadelphia has laws and regulations to protect residents from unsafe living conditions.
Philadelphia Lead Paint Disclosure and Certification Law
In 2012, the City Code was amended to include the Lead Paint Disclosure and Certification Law. The law requires owners of properties built before 1978 to provide the tenant with certification prepared by a dust wipe technician stating that the property is either lead-safe or lead-free. Landlords are required to test and certify rental properties as lead-safe or lead-free in order to:
Execute a new or renewed lease
Receive or renew a rental license.
Other regulations
The School District of Philadelphia conducts water testing at every school on a five-year cycle. This helps to guarantee that students have access to safe drinking water at school. All water testing results are posted online for public view.
The School District of Philadelphia must keep its buildings safe from environmental hazards, including asbestos, mold, and lead paint.
All schools and licensed day care facilities caring for 13 or more children are required to test all potable water outlets for lead and submit results to the Department of Public Health.
This ordinance requires educational facilities and child care facilities with more than 13 children to certify that water from each drinking outlet contains less than 10 parts per billion of lead. Such water quality testing must be conducted within five years.
This ordinance amends Title 6 of The Philadelphia Code, entitled “Health Code,” relating to lead paint hazards and other violations, to provide for appeal periods and for penalties, to provide for inspections and fees, to revise definitions, and to promote lead safety.
The Philadelphia Lead Paint Disclosure and Certification Law requires owners of property built before 1978 and rented to children six years or younger to provide the tenant with certification prepared by a certified lead inspector stating that the property is either lead free or lead safe.
This ordinance requires family child day care facilities to be certified as lead-free or lead-safe before a license to operate will be granted by the Department of Licenses and Inspections.
This ordinance requires educational facilities to certify that their facility was built subsequent to 1978 or that the facility is safe from lead paint hazards as determined by a certified lead inspector. If any lead paint hazard is identified during the inspection, the facility must take corrective action or isolate the area.
This ordinance requires physicians to test any child between 9 and 21 months of age for a blood lead level. Children between 21 and 72 months must also have a blood lead level test at least once after the age of 21 months.
