Lead paint disclosure in Arizona

The federal rule says sellers and landlords have to share anything they know about lead-based paint or lead hazards in the home. They also have to pass along any records on file and give you the EPA's lead pamphlet. Every contract or lease has to carry a Lead Warning Statement, a required notice about lead's dangers. The EPA's page walks through how the rule works for sales and rentals alike.

Buyers have 10 days to check the house for lead. That window lets you find out what's really in the walls before the purchase is final.

By the Census count, 921,033 of Arizona's 3,299,178 homes (28%) went up before 1980. For rentals, 287,752 of 961,653 homes (30%) date from before 1980. The Census table uses 1980 as its line, so the figure is near the federal 1978 cut-off but not identical.

Arizona treats putting lead-based paint on any interior surface of a home as a class 1 misdemeanor. The rule covers exterior surfaces and porches too, whenever a child under 7 could reach them easily. See A.R.S. 36-1674.

A.R.S. 32-2156 protects sellers, landlords and real estate agents from lawsuits or discipline when they stay quiet about certain facts. Those facts:

• A death or felony happened there.
• A past resident had HIV or AIDS.
• A registered sex offender lives close by.

When you buy unsubdivided land in an unincorporated county area from a seller offering five or fewer parcels, that seller has to hand you a signed affidavit of disclosure under oath. You need to receive it at least 7 days before the transfer, and you can back out within 5 days of getting it. The source is A.R.S. 33-422.

ADHS, the state's health department, makes a strong push for a blood lead test at ages 1 and 2. A child aged 3 to 6 who has never had one should be tested too. Arizona Medicaid (AHCCCS) requires the test for every member at 1 and 2 years old. When a result is above 3.5 micrograms per deciliter, AHCCCS also requires follow-up and care coordination.

ADHS found that in 2022, just 6.1% of the state's children got screened at 12 and 24 months. The agency aims its testing at kids living in ZIP codes with high risk, and providers can check where a child lives against the state's map of lead risk areas or its ZIP code list.

Doctors, labs and other providers must send any lead test results for children straight to ADHS. Very high results in a child (45 micrograms per deciliter or more) must be reported right away, and results from 10 up to 45 within 5 days. Details are on the ADHS rules and statutes page.

Phoenix operates Lead Safe Phoenix. The program is free, paid for by a HUD grant, and it fixes homes to make them lead-safe and cut down on childhood lead poisoning. Residents can apply with an online Lead Safe Assessment or by emailing leadsafephoenix@phoenix.gov.