Summary: Children with elevated blood lead levels who live in public housing have not been adequately protected from further poisoning from lead-based paint because the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) and local housing authorities have not complied with all the requirements of a 1988 law. The six public housing authorities (PHAs) GAO reviewed often did not comply with HUD regulations for testing these children's homes or relied on testing procedures that may not have fully disclosed the presence of lead-based paint. In only one of the 50 cases GAO reviewed did PHAs comply with emergency abatement or relocation regulations for children with elevated blood lead levels. Many children ended up being exposed to lead-based paint for more than a year after PHAs learned of their diagnoses. A lack of HUD oversight, coupled with PHAs' noncompliance, has left these children vulnerable to lead poisoning and may produce lawsuits that are costly to the federal government. Moreover, HUD regulations do not require either notifying other tenants about lead-based paint dangers or testing other units in buildings where diagnosed children live. Overall, HUD has not complied with all the law's requirements aimed at abating lead-based paint hazards from public housing and has not ensured that PHAs comply with its testing, abatement, and notification requirements.
