AIHA Announces Support for Fix Moldy Housing Act

What: AIHA announced its support for the Fix Moldy Housing Act, introduced by Congresswoman Haley Stevens of Michigan and Congresswoman Jennifer González-Colón of Puerto Rico. The Fix Moldy Housing Act calls for the establishment of an Environmental Protection Agency program that would assist state and tribal governments with mold remediation. The bipartisan bill also proposes a program offering $50 million in grants per year to help state and tribal governments cover costs associated with remediating mold in public buildings and severely impacted homes, prioritizing low-income communities. In addition, the bill would require the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine to launch a study on safe mold remediation and the conditions in which it is necessary.

Why: Millions of Americans are negatively impacted by mold at home and at work every year. Scientists and government agencies in the United States and around the world agree that living or working in moldy buildings increases the risk of respiratory disease, yet no national standards exist for mold investigation, evaluation, or remediation. However, several guidance documents do exist, including AIHA’s publication Recognition, Evaluation, and Control of Indoor Mold, also known as the “Green Book.”

According to AIHA CEO Larry Sloan, “AIHA supports and encourages the passage of the Fix Moldy Housing Act because the National Academies’ study would further our understanding of mold. Building on the results of this study, voluntary national standards could be developed for identifying and safely remediating mold.”

Where: More information about the Fix Moldy Housing Act may be found on Rep. Stevens’ website. Furthermore, AIHA’s Mold Resource Center offers a comprehensive public resource on mold and its dangers.

Contact: To learn more about AIHA’s support for the bill, please email Mark Ames, AIHA’s director of government relations, at mames@aiha.org.

Who: AIHA is the association for scientists and professionals committed to preserving and ensuring occupational and environmental health and safety in the workplace and community. Founded in 1939, we support our members with our expertise, networks, comprehensive education programs, and other products and services that help them maintain the highest professional and competency standards. More than half of AIHA’s nearly 8,500 members are Certified Industrial Hygienists, and many hold other professional designations. AIHA serves as a resource for those employed across the public and private sectors as well as to the communities in which they work. For more information, please visit www.aiha.org.