HUD visited Baltimore today to mark the 30th anniversary of the creation of the Office of Lead Hazard Control and Healthy Homes and to highlight the progress by the Green & Healthy Homes Initiative (GHHI), the City of Baltimore and partners in the fight to end childhood lead poisoning. That partnership has achieved a 99% reduction in childhood lead poisoning prevalence in Baltimore since 1993.

The OLHCHH provided Baltimore City with one of the country’s original HUD Lead Hazard Control grants and has sustained that funding commitment for thirty years. The Office of Lead Hazard Control and Healthy Homes currently provides $13 million in Lead Hazard Reduction grant funding for the City of Baltimore. Lead by GHHI and Baltimore City DHCD’s strong federal, state, city and community partnership and supported by tens of millions in HUD investments, GHHI and the City have made significant progress in reducing this preventable disease.

“Funding provided through HUD’s Office of Lead Hazard Control and Healthy Homes over the years has been critical to our work to eradicate lead in Baltimore city,” said Housing Commissioner Alice Kennedy. “While we’ve made progress, lead remains an ongoing concern that we must address not only from a health perspective but also a racial equity perspective, with lower-income, minority communities being most affected.”

“We honor the commitment of HUD’s Office of Lead Hazard Control and Healthy Homes to making investments in lead hazard remediation that support intergenerational wealth building, academic achievement and lifelong success and stability for Baltimore families, and other communities across the country” said GHHI President and CEO Ruth Ann Norton. “In this critical moment, our mission continues to be to drive the elimination of lead poisoning at scale through community-led solutions that further health and racial equity. Together, we can achieve the end of lead poisoning for this generation of our children.”