NYS looks to filtration systems to address lead in school drinking water

ALBANY — State lawmakers are looking to require filtration systems for school drinking water in an effort to reduce students’ exposure to lead.

The proposal comes as Gov. Kathy Hochul and the Democratic-led State Legislature discuss making additional funding available for school filtration systems as part of the more than $260 billion state budget.

Health and environmental advocates are pushing for both the mandate and funding to make it into the final budget, due April 1.

"It would basically mean there would never be lead in drinking water supplies," said Blair Horner, senior policy adviser with the New York Public Interest Research Group. "There’s no safe level of exposure to lead, particularly in drinking water."

Lead exposure can cause damage to children’s developing brains, negatively impact academic ability and can lead to behavioral issues, according to the American Academy of Pediatrics.

The state requires school districts to test for lead in drinking water every three years. If lead levels are 5 parts per billion or higher, or 0.005 milligrams per liter, the fixtures must be taken out of service and replaced — a process that can be costly and time-consuming.

For some districts, that means hanging an out-of-order sign on water fountains and supplying bottled water until they can remediate the issue, lawmakers and advocates said. Districts with 4.99 parts per billion or lower aren’t required to act.

Despite the law, lead is still present in drinking water in schools statewide and on Long Island, particularly in underserved communities and communities of color, state lawmakers said. A recent Newsday analysis of testing reports found nearly 3,000 drinking water fountains and other fixtures in Long Island schools exceed the state’s standard for lead. Though districts took action to shut off or fix noncompliant fixtures, thousands of children were still exposed to water with high lead levels, the report found.

'Filter first'

The proposed legislation would require a "filter first approach," meaning districts whose water exceeds the state limit would have to install at least one filtered bottle-filling station for every 100 school occupants.

It also would require all districts that are replacing faucets, drinking fountains or bottle-filling stations to put in a filter.

"If we can have the proper filter on the water when it comes through, then we can have a better opportunity to make sure children aren’t poisoned by lead when they’re drinking from water fountains in school," said Assembly Majority Leader Crystal Peoples-Stokes (D-Buffalo), the bill's sponsor. "If we enacted a filter-first policy, I think we have a better opportunity, I would say in the next five to 10 years, to have healthier children."

The proposal, if passed this year, would take effect in 90 days and the replacement requirement would start 12 months later, likely the 2027-28 school year.

Districts that install filters may also qualify for a waiver and no longer have to test, according to the bill.

"It costs less and it’s an immediate solution," said Senate Environmental Conservation Committee Chairman Pete Harckham (D-South Salem), who is sponsoring the  bill. "It’s kind of simple really, it's to replace your water fountains with certified filters that take lead out."

Some school groups questioned why both filters and testing and remediation are necessary.

There are no objections to clean water, said Brian Fessler, chief advocacy officer for the New York State School Boards Association. 

"I’m not aware of what the gap is given the fact that the remediation piece via testing ... seems to be working," he said. "If the filter approach is better and more foolproof then perhaps that should be the approach rather than both."

Budget talks

It would cost an estimated $100 million for schools across the state to put filters in place, Horner said, adding that some localities have already done something similar.

The state provides funding to help reimburse districts for drinking water remediation projects. The bill would require filters to be covered by the state’s Clean Water Infrastructure Act, Harckham told Newsday.

Assemb. Josh Jensen (R-Greece) agreed with the concept but cited concerns with the costs.

"If we’re not seeing the desired results and seeing it addressed, especially in schools, then it makes sense that we would pursue an alternative solution," said Jenson, ranking minority member of the Assembly health committee.

"The devil will be in the details," he told Newsday. "What’s the cost going to be for taxpayers?"

Hochul in her State of the State address called for schools to be reimbursed for clean water projects, including making filters reimbursable. 

"The Governor looks forward to working with the Legislature throughout the budget process to deliver clean water for residents across New York," Hochul spokesperson Nicolette Simmonds told Newsday in an email.

The Senate included a similar proposal in its one-house budget proposal.

More than 60 environmental, health and community groups including NYPIRG are pushing for not only the funding but the mandate to be included in the budget.

"New York’s current 'test and fix' policy is leaving the risk of lead contamination at thousands of taps where our kids go to learn and play every day," the groups wrote in a December letter to Hochul. "Moreover, allowing New York’s children to drink water with 5 parts per billion of lead is inconsistent with the consensus in the public health community that lead exposure is unsafe at any level."

The filter would ensure no amount of lead is in the drinking water and, though not required by law, also would filter out other harmful contaminants, Harckham said.

And it would help if the problem is with water pipes feeding into the building — an issue that districts can’t remediate, advocates said.

"New York has to get the lead out and the way to do that is through filtration, not through telling us about it after the fact," Horner said.