Every year, Chuck commits to traveling to all62 counties in New York to meet with constituents.
On February 29th, 2016, Senator Schumer announced new legislation that would directly address the persistent lead problem in Westchester County and the Hudson Valley. Paint with more than .06 percent lead was banned for residential use in 1978 and countless homes built before then contain toxic lead-based paint. Schumer said federal funding for lead poisoning prevention has plummeted and Congress must act fast and pass this legislation to help homeowners reduce the cost of removing lead from homes. Schumer said that, while progress has been made in New York to combat this problem, lead poisoning still remains a major issue. Based on the most recent Children’s Blood Lead Surveillance Data compiled by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), in 2014 more than 2,300 Upstate New York children tested were found with blood-lead levels of above 5 micrograms per deciliter, which is associated with permanent neurological damage and behavioral disorders, according to the CDC. The CDC says even low blood-lead levels is a major concern for children under 6 years of age because their brains are not fully developed and are sensitive to lead exposure. Out of 4,203 tested, 158 children in Westchester County were found to have lead poisoning and approximately 42 percent of its housing stock was built before 1950.