(1) The department shall conduct sampling and testing for lead contamination at drinking water outlets in school buildings built, or with all plumbing replaced, before 2016 as specified in this section. The department meets the requirements of this section when a school contracts for sampling and testing that meets the requirements of this section and submits the test results to the department according to a procedure and deadlines determined by the department.

Washington Code 43.70.010

(2) Sampling and testing for the presence and level of lead in drinking water must meet the technical requirements described in the technical guidance.

(3)(a) Initial testing for lead contamination in drinking water must be conducted between July 1, 2014, and June 30, 2026.

(b) Retesting for lead contamination in drinking water must be conducted no less than every five years beginning July 1, 2026.

(4)(a) The department shall develop and publish a two-year plan for sampling and testing. The plan must be updated at least annually. Prior to adding a school to the plan, the department must contact the school to determine whether the school has contracted, or is planning to contract, for sampling and testing.

(b) Beginning July 1, 2026, in developing the two-year plan for sampling and testing, the department must group school buildings by governing body and then prioritize the groups based on the combined length of time since each school building built, or with all plumbing replaced, before 2016 was sampled and tested.

(5) The department shall enter a data-sharing agreement with the office of the superintendent of public instruction for the purpose of compiling a list of school buildings built, or with all plumbing replaced, before 2016.

(6) The definitions in RCW 28A.210.410 apply throughout this section unless the context clearly requires otherwise.

Findings—Intent—2021 c 154: “(1) The legislature recognizes that the United States environmental protection agency and centers for disease control and prevention acknowledge that there is no known safe level of lead in a child’s blood. Even low levels of lead exposure can cause permanent cognitive, academic, and behavioral difficulties in children. The American academy of pediatrics recommends government action to ensure that the lead concentration in drinking water at schools does not exceed one part per billion.

(2) The legislature finds that the department of health sampled and tested drinking water outlets in 551 elementary schools between 2017 and 2020. 82 percent of these schools had lead contamination of five or more parts per billion in one or more drinking water outlets and 49 percent of these schools had lead contamination of 15 or more parts per billion in one or more drinking water outlets.

(3) The legislature acknowledges that the department of health was appropriated $1,000,000 in the 2019-2021 fiscal biennium to continue the testing for lead contamination in school drinking water. The legislature also finds that the office of the superintendent of public instruction was appropriated funds in the 2019-2021 fiscal biennium for the healthy kids/healthy schools initiative. Part of these funds are for the purpose of distributing grants to school districts for remediation of elevated lead levels in drinking water. The legislature encourages districts to apply for these grants when lead test results reveal elevated lead levels, which are lead levels above five parts per billion.

(4) The legislature acknowledges the historically inequitable distribution of lead exposure for communities of color and of low socioeconomic status and plans to make a priority the protection of children from the dangers of lead exposure through school drinking water. The legislature, therefore, intends to require that drinking water outlets in elementary and secondary school buildings built, or with all plumbing replaced, before 2016 be tested for the presence and level of lead contamination by June 30, 2026, and every five years thereafter. The legislature also intends to require that schools notify the school community of lead test results and develop action plans for remediation if test results exceed the health-based standard of five parts per billion.

(5) The legislature recognizes that the youngest children are the most vulnerable to lead exposure and that many of these children spend significant amounts of time at child care facilities.

(6) This act is named for the director of the Washington public interest research group who developed and advocated for this legislation before dying of cancer in 2019 and may be known as the Bruce Speight protect children from being exposed to lead in school drinking water act.” [ 2021 c 154 § 1.]

Short title—2021 c 154: “This act may be known and cited as the Bruce Speight protect children from being exposed to lead in school drinking water act.” [ 2021 c 154 § 8.]