Since April 2010, Iowa law has required certification for renovations that disturb painted surfaces in pre-1978 residential housing or child occupied facilities.
Every renovation must have at least one certified lead-safe renovator, and specific lead safe work practices must be followed. Some specific requirements include:
- Certification with the Iowa Department of Inspections, Appeals, and Licensing as a Lead-Safe Renovator.
- 8-hour Lead-Safe Renovator training course from approved provider
- $60 annual certification fee per individual
- 4-hour Lead-Safe Renovator Refresher course every three years
- Firms must be certified too. There is no cost for firm certification
- The rules apply to any renovation that is not considered minor repair and maintenance activities. The definition of minor repair and maintenance activities is:
- “Minor repair and maintenance activities” means activities, including minor heating, ventilation or air-conditioning work, electrical work, and plumbing, that disrupt less than the minimum areas of a painted surface established in this definition where none of the work practices prohibited or restricted by this chapter are used and where the work does not involve window replacement or demolition of painted surface areas. When painted components or portions of painted components are removed, the entire surface area removed is the amount of painted surface disturbed. Projects, other than emergency renovation, performed in the same room within the same 30 days must be considered the same project for the purpose of determining whether the project is a minor repair and maintenance activity. Renovations performed in response to an elevated blood lead (EBL) inspection are not considered minor repair and maintenance activities. The minimum area for minor repair and maintenance activities is:
- Less than one square foot of an interior painted or finished wood surface per renovation; or
- Less than six square feet of a painted or finished drywall or plaster surface per room; or
- Less than 20 square feet of an exterior painted or finished surface per renovation.
- “Minor repair and maintenance activities” means activities, including minor heating, ventilation or air-conditioning work, electrical work, and plumbing, that disrupt less than the minimum areas of a painted surface established in this definition where none of the work practices prohibited or restricted by this chapter are used and where the work does not involve window replacement or demolition of painted surface areas. When painted components or portions of painted components are removed, the entire surface area removed is the amount of painted surface disturbed. Projects, other than emergency renovation, performed in the same room within the same 30 days must be considered the same project for the purpose of determining whether the project is a minor repair and maintenance activity. Renovations performed in response to an elevated blood lead (EBL) inspection are not considered minor repair and maintenance activities. The minimum area for minor repair and maintenance activities is:
- Specific work practices include:
- Warning signs posted
- Dust, paint chips, and debris contained to the work area
- Cover objects in the work area (i.e. furniture)
- Ground cover for exterior work areas
- Waste material contained, stored, and transported safely
- Prohibited work practices (i.e. uncontained water blasting and dry scrapping)
- HEPA vacuums for cleaning
- Work area cleaned and verified with post renovation cleaning verification
- Certified Lead-Safe Renovators can test for presence of lead-based paint using approved test kits.
- On-the-job training required for all non-certified individuals that do renovation work
- Recordkeeping - renovation report is required for each renovation
Prerenovation Notification vs. Disclosure Rule
The Prerenovation Notification Rule, Iowa law, Administrative Code 641 — Chapter 69, requires that any contractor or landlord working on residential properties or child occupied facilities built prior to 1978 must notify residents that lead-based paint disturbed by remodeling, renovation or repainting is a potential hazard.
The Disclosure Rule is a federal law that requires you to disclose any known information (i.e. providing inspection and or clearance reports) about lead-based paint when you sell or rent properties built before 1978. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) jointly enforces the disclosure rule.
For each rule you need to give out copies of the Iowa pamphlet Lead Poisoning: How to Protect Iowa Families. However, each rule requires a different form.
A copy of the regulations for the notification program can be found at: