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WASHINGTON, DC—Congressman Paul D. Tonko, Chair of the Environment and Climate Change Subcommittee, today cheered the Biden-Harris Lead Pipe and Paint Action Plan, which works to eliminate all lead contamination from communities and replace every one of the estimated 10 million lead service lines still in operation across the United States.

“For years I have pushed to repair our crumbling water systems because I believe that no child should be drinking water from lead pipes,” Congressman Tonko said. “These contaminated water systems are not only dangerous for our families, they are terrible for our environment and our economy and drain precious resources from our budgets. Today’s announcement is a powerful step to make clean water a reality for all of our communities. I applaud President Biden for his strong leadership delivering this much needed action. I will do all I can to help execute a whole-of-government approach that ensures that every American can turn on their faucet and be confident that their water is clean and safe.”

The Biden-Harris plan enlists funds from Tonko backed Bipartisan Infrastructure Law which allocates billions to the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to fund water infrastructure, including lead service line replacement. New York State is estimated to receive $428,072,000 in the first year of the program, including over $115 million dedicated to lead line removal. Further breakdown of that funding can be found HERE.

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