FAQs

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Maryland’s Environment Article Title 6, Subtitle 8 is one of the few primary prevention laws in the nation that has worked to drastically reduce children’s exposure to lead-based paint in Maryland’s pre-1950 rental properties. Under the 1994 law, MDE assures compliance with mandatory requirements for lead risk reduction in rental units built before 1950. Maryland maintains a statewide listing of registered and inspected units, and provides blood lead surveillance through a registry of all children tested in the state. The “100 percent rule” of the law that became effective in February 2006, extends this requirement to all pre-1950 residential rental properties regardless of whether there has ever been a change in occupancy. Currently, 85 percent of property owners obtained at least one Full Risk Reduction Lead Inspection Certificate. In fiscal year 2006, 18,000 new registrations were added to the registry, resulting in 87 percent of pre-1950 housing units are registered or certified as lead free. 

It was not until 1978 that the use of lead in residential paint products was completely banned however, and a survey of homes built between 1950 and 1978 fount that as much as 75% of homes built between those years still contained a significant amount of lead-based paint used during their construction. 

For this reason, in 2015 the law was amended to mandate that all residential rental properties in Maryland built before 1978 be tested and found to either be Lead-Free, or pass Full Risk Reduction Dust Wipe Sampling at each tenant turnover. 

Partially as a result of the passage of these laws, and the participation in the program by Maryland rental property owners, the instance of childhood lead poisoning in Maryland has dropped by over 90%, a far greater number than in states that do not have a similar program.