The terms that come up around EPA Lead-Safe (RRP) firm certification, defined in plain language for contractors. When you are ready, start your filing or read the full guide.
The EPA’s Renovation, Repair and Painting Rule. It requires firms and workers to follow lead-safe work practices and hold certification when they perform paid work that disturbs lead-based paint in housing and child-occupied facilities built before 1978.
The credential issued to a company, allowing it to be hired for and to advertise regulated renovation work. It is valid for five years in EPA-administered states. This is the credential we prepare and file for you.
An individual who has completed an accredited one-day (8-hour) course and is responsible for performing or directing lead-safe work practices on the job and training other workers. Different from firm certification, most firms need both.
Most housing built before 1978. Narrow exceptions include zero-bedroom dwellings and housing for the elderly or people with disabilities, unless a child under six lives there.
A pre-1978 building, such as a daycare, preschool, or kindergarten, where children under six are present on a regular basis. These are covered by the RRP Rule alongside target housing.
The thresholds that trigger the RRP Rule: more than six square feet of interior paint disturbed per room, more than twenty square feet of exterior paint, or any window replacement or demolition of painted surfaces.
Residential lead-based paint was banned in the United States in 1978, so the RRP Rule targets structures built before that year. When the build date is uncertain, treat the property as pre-1978 unless you can prove otherwise.
The Toxic Substances Control Act, the federal law the RRP Rule sits under. Civil penalties for violations are set by statute and adjusted for inflation annually under 40 CFR 19.4.
The EPA’s Central Data Exchange, the online system used to apply for firm certification in EPA-administered states. We file through CDX as your authorized agent so you do not need an account.
A state where the EPA runs the RRP program directly. Firms there certify federally through the EPA rather than a state agency.
A state authorized by the EPA to run its own RRP program with its own application and fee. Among the states we file, North Carolina, Wisconsin, Delaware, and Washington run their own programs.
The required methods for regulated jobs: containing the work area, avoiding prohibited practices (open-flame burning, high-heat guns, and power sanding without HEPA control), and cleaning thoroughly afterward.
The post-work check a certified renovator performs to confirm the area is clean, comparing wipe samples against a verification card before the job is considered complete.
The documentation a certified firm must keep to prove it followed the rule. Records are generally retained for three years after a job.
EPA & state Lead-Safe firm certification, prepared and filed for you. No SSN.
Start Your Filing