The U.S. EPA has issued a memorandum which delays enforcement action in regard to the Renovation, Repair and Painting Rule (RRP Rule) which is the federal rule regarding the containment of lead based paint dust in renovation and repair activities in residential housing. The EPA acknowledges the difficulties that renovators have in getting the necessary training in lead-safe work practices since the Rule went into effect in April, 2010. The renovation and remodeling community has expressed concerns about these difficulties to the EPA and to members of Congress.

The EPA memo, dated June 18th, states, “Acknowledging those concerns and to facilitate the transition to full implementation of the RRP Rule, EPA will offer additional and sufficient time for renovation firms and workers to obtain the necessary training and certification to comply as follows:

• Until October 1, 2010, EPA will not take enforcement action for violations of the RRP Rule’s firm certification requirement.
• For violations of the RRP Rule’s renovation worker certification requirement, EPA will not enforce against individual renovation workers if the person has applied to enroll in, or had enrolled in , by not later than September 30, 2010, a certified renovator class to train contractors in practices necessary for compliance with the final rules. Renovators must complete the training by December 31, 2010. 

Information about training is accessible on EPA’s web site.