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HB477 • 2025

AN ACT TO AMEND TITLES 7 AND 16 OF THE DELAWARE CODE RELATING TO LEAD PAINT ON OUTDOOR FACILITIES.

AN ACT TO AMEND TITLES 7 AND 16 OF THE DELAWARE CODE RELATING TO LEAD PAINT ON OUTDOOR FACILITIES.

Passed Legislature

This bill passed both chambers and reached final enrollment, even if later executive action is not shown here.

Sponsor
Lambert
Last action
2026-06-18
Official status
House Natural Resources & Energy 6/18/26
Effective date
Not listed

Plain English Breakdown

The effective date is not provided in the source material, leaving the start of the two-year inspection window unknown.

HB477: Rules for Lead Paint on Outdoor Structures

This bill requires owners of outdoor buildings with lead paint to check their property and fix hazards, while giving state agencies more power to enforce these rules.

What This Bill Does

  • Removes the exemption that allowed facilities where the only contaminant is lead-based paint to skip certain cleanup laws under specific conditions.
  • Requires owners to hire a licensed inspector to check for lead paint hazards within two years of the law taking effect.
  • Mandates that owners report any found hazards and submit a plan to fix them to state health and environmental agencies if an imminent threat is discovered.
  • Allows outdoor structures with lead paint to join the Voluntary Cleanup Program managed by DNREC.
  • Gives both DHSS and DNREC the authority to enforce rules about lead-based paint on outdoor facilities.

Who It Names or Affects

  • Owners of outdoor structures such as bridges, playgrounds, water towers, or power poles that contain lead paint.
  • Licensed lead inspectors who must perform assessments for property owners.
  • The Department of Health and Social Services (DHSS) and the Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Control (DNREC).

Terms To Know

Outdoor structure
Any man-made permanent or semi-permanent building exposed to weather, including bridges, pipes, playgrounds, highways, parking lots, guard rails, and power towers.
Lead paint
Paint that contains more than 90 parts per million of lead by weight in the dried film or total nonvolatile content.
Remedial action plan
A written strategy describing how an owner will fix a hazard to stop lead from entering the environment, submitted after finding deteriorating paint that poses an imminent threat.

Limits and Unknowns

  • The bill does not state when it officially becomes effective, so the two-year deadline for inspections has not started yet.
  • Penalties are limited to administrative fines of up to $10,000 per day; no other specific criminal punishments or fine amounts are listed in this text.

Bill History

  1. 2026-06-18 Delaware General Assembly

    Introduced and Assigned to Natural Resources & Energy Committee in House

Official Summary Text

AN ACT TO AMEND TITLES 7 AND 16 OF THE DELAWARE CODE RELATING TO LEAD PAINT ON OUTDOOR FACILITIES.
This Act requires that the Delaware Hazardous Substance Cleanup Act (HSCA) include facilities with lead-based paint on outdoor structures. Current DNREC regulations specifically exempts facilities where the sole contaminant is lead-based paint and the Department determines the facility is appropriately regulated and adequately addressed by another state or federal agency, statute, or regulation. By bringing these facilities under the HSCA, contaminated outdoor structures would be eligible for DNREC’s Voluntary Cleanup Program, which provides a framework to enforce the provisions of Chapter 30M of Title 16, relating to the prohibition of lead-based paint on outdoor structures.
This Act also requires owners of existing structures with lead-based paint to assess the lead-based paint hazard on the owner’s structure within 2 years of the effective date of this Act. The assessment must be done by a licensed lead inspector and if a hazard is found, a report must be submitted to DHSS and DNREC and a remedial action plan must be implemented. It further clarifies that DNREC, in addition to DHSS, has enforcement authority over Chapter 30M of Title 16, relating to lead-based paint on outdoor structures.

Current Bill Text

Read the full stored bill text 
Legislation Document

SPONSOR:

Rep. Lambert & Sen. Cruce & Sen. Walsh

Rep. Burns

HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

153rd GENERAL ASSEMBLY

HOUSE BILL NO. 477

AN ACT TO AMEND TITLES 7 AND 16 OF THE DELAWARE CODE RELATING TO LEAD PAINT ON OUTDOOR FACILITIES.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF DELAWARE:

Section 1. Amend § 9104, Title 7 of the Delaware Code by making deletions as shown by strike through and insertions as shown by underline as follows:

§ 9104. Secretary’s powers and duties.

(a) The Secretary may exercise the following powers in addition to any other powers granted by law:

(1) The Secretary shall take any actions necessary to carry out the provisions of this chapter, including but not limited to adoption of emergency or interim regulations, when immediate promulgation of regulations is necessary to implement this chapter prior to the adoption of final regulations.

(2) The Secretary shall, after notice and public hearing, promulgate and revise such regulations as deemed necessary for the implementation, administration and enforcement of this chapter. Such regulations may include provisions waiving or limiting the applicability of this chapter which the Secretary determines to be adequately regulated by state or federal statute or regulation.

(3) The Secretary may, after notice and public hearing, exempt certain facilities or properties or classes of facilities or properties from the provisions of this chapter upon finding that these facilities or properties do not pose an imminent threat to public health or welfare or the environment.

(4) The Secretary shall plan, study or conduct, or order a potentially responsible party to plan, study or conduct, appropriate actions to remedy a release or imminent threat of release.

(d) Notwithstanding paragraphs (a)(2) and (a)(3) of this section, the Secretary may not exclude or exempt facilities with lead-based paint on outdoor structures from the requirements of this chapter. For purposes of this subsection, “facilities with lead-based paint on outdoor structures” means those outdoor structures covered by Chapter 30M of Title 16.

Section 2. Amend Chapter 30M, Title 16 of the Delaware Code by making deletions as shown by strike through and insertions as shown by underline as follows:

§ 3001M. Purpose.

The purpose of this chapter is to

do the following:

(1) Reduce

reduce

risks to public health and welfare by banning the use of lead paints on outdoor structures in Delaware.

(2) Reduce risks to public health and welfare by preventing the release of lead from existing outdoor structures into the environment.

(3) Ensure owners of structures that contain lead paint comply with the Delaware Hazardous Substances Cleanup Act and prevent, minimize, and mitigate the release of lead into the environment.

§ 3002M. Definitions.

For purposes of this chapter, the following terms shall have the meanings defined in this section:

(1) “Hazardous substance” means as defined in § 9103 of Title 7.

(1)

(2)

“Lead paint” means paint containing lead or lead compounds and in which the lead is in excess of 90 parts per million (ppm) by weight of the total nonvolatile content of the paint or the weight of the dried paint film.

(2)

(3)

“Outdoor structure” means any manmade permanent or semi-permanent structure or assemblage of parts, some or all of the surface of which is exposed to rain, snow, sunlight, humidity, or other outdoor forces of nature. Outdoor structures include bridges, water towers, pipes, playground equipment, highways, parking lots, guard rails, and poles or towers used in the transmission of telephone, internet, or electric power.

(4) “Owner” means as defined in § 9103 of Title 7.

(3)

(5)

“Paint” means varnishes, lacquers, enamels, glazes, primers, or other surface-coating materials used for any purpose; and is typically a mixture of resins, pigments, fillers, solvents, and other additives that constitute a finished product.

(4)

(6)

“Person” means an individual, partnership, corporation, association, nonprofit, or governmental entity.

(7) “Release” means as defined in § 9103 of Title 7 and includes the deterioration, flaking, chipping, sanding, chalking, or leaching of lead-based paint from an outdoor structure into the environment.

(8) “Remedial action” means as defined in § 9103 of Title 7.

§ 3003M-A. Hazardous Substances Cleanup Act.

(a) Any owner of an outdoor structure that contains lead paint is subject to the Delaware Hazardous Substances Cleanup Act under Chapter 91 of Title 7 and must take all reasonable steps to prevent the release of lead into the environment.

(b) Before [2 years after the effective date of this Act], owners must conduct an initial lead paint risk assessment of the owner’s outdoor structures using a licensed lead inspector.

(c) An owner who discovers through inspection that the owner’s outdoor structure has deteriorating lead paint that poses an imminent threat of release must report the results of the inspection to the Department of Health and Social Services and the Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Control within 30 days.

(d) Following a report under subsection (c) of this section, owners must submit a remedial action plan to the Department of Health and Social Services and the Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Control that describes the remedial action the owner will implement to prevent the release of lead into the environment.

(e) An owner subject to this section may apply to the Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Control’s Voluntary Cleanup Program.

§ 3004M. Penalties and enforcement.

(a) The Secretary of Department of Health and Social Services, or the

Director of the Division of Public Health,

Secretary of the Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Control,

or their designee shall enforce this chapter.

(b) Whoever violates this chapter or any rule or regulation duly promulgated thereunder, shall be

punishable as follows by

assessed

an administrative penalty

imposed

of not more than $10,000 per day for each completed violation. Each day of continued violation shall be considered as a separate violation.

SYNOPSIS

This Act requires that the Delaware Hazardous Substance Cleanup Act (HSCA) include facilities with lead-based paint on outdoor structures. Current DNREC regulations specifically exempts facilities where the sole contaminant is lead-based paint and the Department determines the facility is appropriately regulated and adequately addressed by another state or federal agency, statute, or regulation. By bringing these facilities under the HSCA, contaminated outdoor structures would be eligible for DNREC’s Voluntary Cleanup Program, which provides a framework to enforce the provisions of Chapter 30M of Title 16, relating to the prohibition of lead-based paint on outdoor structures.

This Act also requires owners of existing structures with lead-based paint to assess the lead-based paint hazard on the owner’s structure within 2 years of the effective date of this Act. The assessment must be done by a licensed lead inspector and if a hazard is found, a report must be submitted to DHSS and DNREC and a remedial action plan must be implemented. It further clarifies that DNREC, in addition to DHSS, has enforcement authority over Chapter 30M of Title 16, relating to lead-based paint on outdoor structures.