Fed. Mold Legislation Pending

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Thought this may be of interest to many...

Beverly Weikert

Public Relations Supervisor/Board Member,

National Toxic Mold Coalition and Foundation

www.geocities.com/marbme12/NTMC.html Fed mold legislation pending By McCagg WASHINGTON — Mold remediators would be required to be licensed and the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and Centers for Disease Control (CDC) would be mandated to develop safe standards for mold levels under a first-of-its-kind federal legislative initiative about to be unveiled.An aide to US Rep. Conyers Jr. (D-Detroit), told CM e-News Daily/CMM Online on Wednesday that the congressman will officially propose the mold bill — dubbed the Melina bill — in the coming two weeks. The legislation is named after an 8-year-old daughter of a Conyers staff member who developed asthma after her family moved into mold contaminated home last year.Conyers' aide Segal said the legislation will: Have the EPA and CDC establish guidelines specifically stating what level of toxic mold is acceptable and what level is danger Require states to license and monitor mold inspectors and remediatorsRequire additional research into mold contamination by the EPA"Basically we want some government oversight of what has become an unruly and unregulated industry," Segal told CM e-News Daily/CMMOnline.No federal standards for an acceptable level of mold in a facility has been set because, EPA officials have said, there is not enough scientific evidence to support such criteria.Texas mold remediator Bob , president of the International Association of Mold Remediation Specialists (IAMRS) welcomed the proposal, saying his association has been fighting for the licensing of mold remediators in his home state of Texas.He said licensing would eliminate those remediators who are frauds and giving the industry a bad name.But he, along with wide Melinda , questioned the ability of federal officials to establish a safe level of mold contamination."It gets problematic when they try to set the levels — there is not enough good science or the levels would have already been set," said Melinda .The s own Video-Aire Enviro-Mold, a Fort Worth, TX, mold remediation and indoor air quality improvement firm. Karr, the spokesman for the American Insurance Association (AIA) who handles the association's governmental media relations, said he was not familiar with Conyers' pending proposal.The mold remediation industry has clashed in the past year with insurers over the coverage of mold claims, most notably in Texas.Backed by property owners, mold remediators have fought mold coverage limits insurers have been trying to place on property insurance policies in Texas and other states.Insurers, though, say that absent a standard establishing safe and acceptable levels of mold, and other limitations, their industry will be placed, and to some extent already is, in dire financial straits.