The U.S. Senate Committee on Environment and Energy has passed the bill that seeks to give financial incentives and reliefs to homeowners for the removal of asbestos and lead from their homes.
The U.S. Senate Committee on Environment and Energy has passed the bill that seeks to give financial incentives and reliefs to homeowners for the removal of asbestos and lead from their homes.
The legislation, sponsored by Senator Christopher “Kip” Bateman, underscored the need for the state to help and encourage owners in the removal of dangerous lead and asbestos in their homes.
The bill has been referred to the Senate Budget and Appropriations Committee, then it will be debated and voted upon in the plenary.
In a statement, Senator Bateman said that the bill would urge homeowners to “do the right thing and have trained professionals remediate toxins and carcinogens from their property ensuring a healthy environment for current and future residents of the property.”
“For the health of residents, it is crucial to mitigate the risks of lead and asbestos in the home, but hazard abatement is costly,” Bateman said, adding that asbestos exposure has been linked to lung cancer and other serious health conditions, such as mesothelioma and asbestosis.
As the removal of lead and asbestos from homes turns to be costly, the bill, according to Batemen, will help eradicate the threats of asbestos and lead exposure as the expenses for the abatement is allowed as a gross income tax deduction for the taxpayer’s residence.
The provisions of the bill state that homeowners can deduct up to a combined $45,000 for asbestos hazard abatement, lead-based paint hazard abatement, replacement of a water service line containing hazardous amounts of lead, replacement of plumbing containing hazardous amounts of lead.
Once approved, a taxpayer will be eligible for said deduction provided the lead-based paint and asbestos abatement will be done in the taxpayer’s primary residence, the water pipeline is in the taxpayer’s primary residence and provided abatement and removal are performed by a state-certified lead abatement contractor.
Studies found that asbestos exposure can cause serious health risks that significantly increase the chances of developing asbestos-related cancers, including the terminal and rare diagnosis of mesothelioma. The National Cancer Institute reports millions of Americans have had asbestos exposure since the 1940s where about 90% of 3000 mesothelioma cases reported yearly are due to asbestos.
The type of cancer likely to occur generally corresponds to the source of asbestos exposure and the type of asbestos. A study found out that Asbestos and ARDs have become global health issues. ARDs which are usually due to inhaling asbestos fibers have been shown to cause thousands of lung cancer deaths each year making the once considered a magic mineral a masked killer dust. Mesowatch.com
