#Middlebury #LeadPaint #VeteranHousing
VETERANS POST
By Freddy Groves
It’s one thing to send phony bills to the Department of Veterans Affairs or claim to be a small business – and quite another to put veterans and their families in danger. An abatement/mitigation company was nailed for saying it had done the work to clear the lead paint in housing units rented to veterans when it had not.
Being in an environment with lead-based paint can be extremely dangerous to everyone, especially to children. Whether it’s from the dust or chipped paint, the damage can be permanent.
The homes in question, 42 in all, are set up as affordable units for veterans and their families. The work the company had agreed to do involved using special paint to cover lead-based paint.
This is serious stuff: The company was not certified, their employees were not certified, and they didn’t apply the special paint correctly. Additionally, the company knew in advance that they wouldn’t actually do the work properly. The company, after their guilty plea, could face a fine of $500,000 plus restitution.
The story gets worse and worse. At that same location, a real estate agent didn’t disclose to veterans that there was lead-based paint in the rental housing units. The arrogance in this case is astounding. The agent claimed that the disclosure laws didn’t apply because the property was built after 1978 – while knowing that the properties were built in 1895 and 1905.
The problem with lead-based paints in the units came to a head when a toddler, after eating flaking paint chips, was tested and found to have very high blood lead levels and had to be treated. In this case, the real estate agent faces up to 15 years in prison and a $250,000 fine.
If you live in a home built before 1978 and suspect you might have lead-based paint, get it tested. Avoid the at-home lead tests you can buy. Instead, have it done with X-ray fluorescence (XRF) or paint chip testing.
© 2024 King Features Synd., Inc.
