HUD Halts City Lead Treatment Program
Barrett requested review; temporary stop work order cites possible lead hazards.
The federal government has issued a “stop work order” for the city’s troubled lead abatement program. The move comes after a site visit last week by federal officials.
The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, which provides grants to fund the city’s lead abatement program, sent the letter after it identified issues with the city’s program and its execution.
Mayor Tom Barrett and the Health Department had asked the federal government to review a recent internal investigation of the department.
“Areas of concern were noted including issues with lead hazard control scopes of work in which owners are completing work that may be noncompliant and unsafe,” HUD’s letter reported.
A statement from the Health Dept. said: “HUD’s analysis affirmed the findings related to our HUD-funded activities, and we have agreed that a temporary pause will provide us with welcome support in improving the program.”
HUD issued warning letters and a stop order to the city in 2017 related to falling behind on spending according to recent testimony from Barrett and representatives of the Health Department before the Common Council. Those letters were the trigger that caused the Mayor’s office to dig into the Health Dept, culminating in the January 11th resignation of commissioner Bevan K. Baker. The department was previously able to get back into compliance.
Barrett has yet to confirm interim commissioner Patricia McManus who was appointed by the Common Council last week. McManus found herself shrouded in controversy by the end of the week following her statement on a radio show saying “the science is still out” on vaccines in response to a question whether immunizations might cause autism.
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More about the Lead Crisis
- Baldwin Delivers Over $83 Million to Replace Lead Pipes, Expand Access to Safe Drinking Water - U.S. Sen. Tammy Baldwin - May 2nd, 2024
- Congresswoman Gwen Moore Statement on Milwaukee Designation as Workforce Hub - U.S. Rep. Gwen Moore - Apr 26th, 2024
- Biden Announces Milwaukee As New “Workforce Hub” For Lead Pipe Removal - Jeramey Jannene - Apr 25th, 2024
- Senator Baldwin Delivers Nearly $2 Million to Keep Wausau Families Safe from Lead Contamination - U.S. Sen. Tammy Baldwin - Apr 12th, 2024
- IRS Rules that Homeowners Won’t Have to Pay Additional Taxes for Subsidized Replacement of Lead Pipes - Milwaukee Water Works - Feb 29th, 2024
- Milwaukee Makes It Far Easier To Replace Your Lead Service Line - Jeramey Jannene - Dec 18th, 2023
- Congresswoman Gwen Moore Praises Biden Administration Effort to Remove Lead Pipes in 10 Years - U.S. Rep. Gwen Moore - Nov 30th, 2023
- Biden-Harris Administration Announces Partnership with 10 Wisconsin Communities to Accelerate Lead Service Line Replacement as Part of Investing in America Agenda - U.S. Environmental Protection Agency - Nov 2nd, 2023
- Evers, DNR Announce $402 Million Funding to Improve Local Drinking Water - Henry Redman - Oct 24th, 2023
- How EPA’s Proposed Lead Dust Rules Would Impact Wisconsin - Farrah Anderson - Aug 30th, 2023
Read more about Lead Crisis here
Political Contributions Tracker
Displaying political contributions between people mentioned in this story. Learn more.
- March 30, 2016 - Tom Barrett received $100 from Bevan K. Baker
- August 29, 2015 - Tom Barrett received $25 from Bevan K. Baker