As Delaware’s budget discussions for FY 2028 kick off, child advocates tell Gov. Matt Meyer not to overlook a program to inspect rentals for lead paint.
Dr. Terry Hodges, co-chair of Action for Delaware's Children, argues 2% of an increase in estimated state revenue discussed at DEFAC last month should support the state’s Lead Based Hazard Control Grant and Loan Program.
The grant program was created by HB 70 in 2025, and allocated more than $1.3 million to enforce its new requirement that places responsibility on landlords to certify units built before 1978 as lead free. The requirements take effect in March 2028.
And the Lead Based Hazard Control Grant and Loan Program offers grants for smaller landlords and loans for larger landlords that can be used to cover the costs of reducing lead exposure in a rental. Hodges said the state's budget for FY 2028 needs to consider the program.
"Having that additional money puts the state in a position where they're able to remediate more units," Hodges said.
The program is under the purview of the Department of Health and Social Services, which had its budget meeting with the Office of Budget and Management on Tuesday.
HB 70 says if a rental unit is uninhabitable, a landlord must provide alternative housing while the unit undergoes lead abatement or remediation. And it also includes a re-certification timeline for rental units.
Hodges pointed out it does include some leniency for a landlord to defer on remediation deadlines, if it can demonstrate that remediation creates a significant economic burden.
"There is a little bit of money in (The Lead Based Hazard Control Grant and Loan Program), just not enough," she said. "I know that there have been homes that have been identified in New Castle County for remediation and currently going through the process, and there's just not enough funds to meet the demand that we anticipate having."
Delaware’s work to reduce lead exposure for children has been ongoing, she added.
Delaware amended its Childhood Lead Poisoning Prevention Act to require that primary healthcare providers report lead poisoning screening results on electronic forms for children’s visits at 1 and 2 years old in 2023.
That same year, it enacted SB 9. It says that properties where a child has high blood lead levels must be screened for lead-based paint, and treated to abate.
The HB 70 and its grant reflects a shift, Hodges said, "going from before being reactive where intervention was happening at the point that a child had already been exposed....To now, we are creating a mechanism whereby property owners can have their homes inspected for lead, and then there's assistance through the state."
The state is still getting referrals based on children who test positive for elevated blood lead levels. And there is no “safe” level of lead exposure.
Last month, Delaware's Economic and Financial Advisory Council (DEFAC) increased its revenue estimates for fiscal years 2027 and 2028 by $241.4 million and $363.1 million, respectively.
The 2% she and other advocates call for would add $12 million to the fund. DEFAC numbers the request is based on are estimates, not money guaranteed to the state yet. Factors like inflation, flat gains from the state's corporate franchise, and money the state's already committed to spend in coming years can all influence what funds the state has available to commit. DEFAC will meet again in December.
Governor Meyer will present his budget proposal in January.
