Lorain County says Lead Safe Ohio funds fully committed; 27 homes approved

Lorain County officials told commissioners they have committed all available Lead Safe Ohio funds after a county outreach campaign generated nearly 400 applications.

County staff said 27 homes in Lorain County have qualified for the program and are in various stages of remediation; staff said they have exhausted the funds allocated to the county and submitted an extension request earlier in the process. The county must have funds expended by Feb. 28 under the current timeline, officials said.

"We have 27 homes in Lorain County that have qualified and have been approved and are in various stages of development," the county administrator said. "That is all that we can handle, from a financial perspective and from a deadline perspective. We have to have all the funds expended by February 28."

Staff said they requested additional funding but none was available; county officials also noted that the state’s recent budget reduced lead funding to $250,000 per year statewide. County staff said they will continue to seek federal funding to expand remediation capacity.

Officials said the county worked with Kleinfelder for program administration and that an in-county contractor participating in training offered at no cost through a state outreach program will increase local capacity to perform lead remediation work.

Staff said the program generated a surge in interest after a March press release and that the county is not returning any allocated federal funds because the program used all appropriated dollars.

Less critical details: staff noted the program’s local economic effects (paying for local labor and materials) and the county’s ongoing contractor-training efforts.