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Agenda Item
6 25-0662 Subject: Home Rehab Program: Limit Increase And Consultant
From: Housing And Community Development Department
Recommendation: Adopt The Following Pieces Of Legislation:
1) A Resolution Authorizing The City Administrator To: (1) Increase The Grant Limit Of The Lead Safe And Healthy Homes Program From $33,575 To $40,000 Per Project, (2) Increase The Grant Limit Of The Access Improvement Program From $33,575 To $40,000 Per Project And From $53,720 To $60,000 Per Project If A Wheelchair Lift Is Required, (3) Increase The Loan Limit Of The Emergency Home Repair Program From $33,575 To $40,000 Per Project, (4) Increase The Loan Limit Of The Home Maintenance Improvement Program From $167,874 To $250,000 Per Project, And (5) Modify The City's Residential Lending Home Rehabilitation Programs Guidelines To Allow For Annual Increases To Grant And Loan Per Project Limits Of Home Rehabilitation Programs In The City Administrator's Discretion, Without Returning To Council; And
My name is Rafaela Vieira, and I am a medical student at the UC Berkeley/UCSF Joint Medical Program. I'm speaking today to express disappointment that the City of Oakland has yet to take meaningful action to address the lead poisoning crisis in our communities, despite funds being allocated.
As medical trainees, we’ve seen the irreversible harm lead exposure inflicts on patients. It causes cognitive delays, behavioral issues, and lifelong learning disabilities. There is no safe level of lead exposure in children, yet Oakland children are still being poisoned in their own homes and schools.
We were moved by the students of Project NEMO from OUSD, who are demanding action where adults have failed them. It is unacceptable that youth must fight for basic environmental safety when the science, the funding, and the urgency are well-established. This is a public health failure and a moral one.
We demand that the City of Oakland immediately:
Disclose how the allocated funds for lead abatement have been used, if at all.
Implement a clear, time-bound action plan for lead testing and remediation in homes, schools, and childcare centers.
Center community voices, Oakland Unified School District, parents, teachers, and local health advocates, in every stage of planning, decision-making, and implementation.
Lead poisoning is a public health emergency. Continued delay makes you complicit in a preventable tragedy. We are watching—and so are your constituents.
My name is Pariswi, and I am a medical student at UCSF reaching out to express my deep alarm and disappointment that Oakland has yet to take meaningful action regarding the significant lead contamination afflicting Oakland communities.
As medical trainees, I've seen firsthand the irreversible harm lead exposure inflicts on patients, especially young children. Lead causes cognitive delays, behavioral issues, and lifelong learning disabilities. There is NO safe level of lead exposure in children. And yet, Oakland children, many of whom are low-income, Black, and brown, are still being poisoned in their own homes and schools.
We were moved by the students of Project NEMO from OUSD who are demanding action where adults have failed them. It is unacceptable that youth must fight for basic environmental safety when the science, the funding, and the urgency are all well-established. This is a public health failure and a moral one.
We demand that the City of Oakland immediately:
1. Disclose how the allocated funds for lead abatement have been used—if at all.
2. Implement a clear, time-bound action plan for lead testing and remediation in homes, schools, and childcare centers.
3. Center community voices, especially youth-led groups like Project NEMO, as well as the Oakland Unified School District, parents, teachers, and local health advocates in every stage of decision-making.
Lead poisoning is a public health emergency, and children’s lives and futures are on the line. Act now.
Dear Councilmembers. My name is Shelene stine and I am an internist seeing patients in Oakland. I want to share my deep alarm that the City of Oakland has yet to take meaningful action despite funds being allocated to address the lead poisoning crisis in our communities. This is a public health failure and a moral one.
I ask that the City of Oakland immediately:
Disclose how the allocated funds for lead abatement have been used—if at all.
Implement a clear, time-bound action plan for lead testing and remediation in homes, schools, and childcare centers.
Center community voices—especially youth-led groups like Project NEMO—as well as the Oakland Unified School District, parents, teachers, and local health advocates—in every stage of planning, decision-making, and implementation.
My name is Semira and I am a medical student at the UCB-UCSF Joint Medical Program. I'm writing to you today alongside fellow collegues to express our deep alarm that the City of Oakland has yet to take meaningful action to address the lead poisoning crisis in our communities, despite funds being allocated to address the issue since as far as 2019.
As medical students, we’ve seen firsthand the irreversible harm lead exposure inflicts on patients, especially young children. It can cause cognitive delays, behavioral issues, and lifelong learning disabilities. There is NO safe level of lead exposure in children. And yet, Oakland children, —many of them low-income, Black and brown—are still being poisoned in their own homes and schools, where they should be feeling the safest.
We were moved by the students of Project NEMO from OUSD who are demanding action where adults have failed them. It is unacceptable that youth must fight for basic environmental safety when the science, the funding, and the urgency are all well-established. This is a public health failure and a moral one.
We demand that the City of Oakland immediately increase the grant limit of the Lead Safe And Healthy Homes Program.
My name is Xy Indigo Golden, and I am a medical student at the Joint Medical Program with UCSF and UC Berkeley. I am writing today to demand that Oakland takes action on the lead poisoning crisis. Despite being allocated 14 million in a settlement to address this issue, Oakland has yet to take action. After Los Angeles County received money in the same settlement, they immediately created a service to repair lead-ridden residences and maintained the program through the COVID-19 pandemic. Despite LA county showing us that it is possible to act quickly, Oakland has yet to respond in any meaningful way.
As medical trainees, we are intimately familiar with the harms that lead exposure inflicts on patients—especially young children. There is no safe level of lead exposure in children.
We demand that the City of Oakland immediately:
-Disclose how the allocated funds for lead abatement have been used—if at all.
-Implement a clear, time-bound action plan for lead testing and remediation in homes, schools, and childcare centers.
-Center community voices—especially youth-led groups like Project NEMO—as well as the Oakland Unified School District, parents, teachers, and local health advocates—in every stage of planning, decision-making, and implementation.
If the city continue to delays, Oakland city officials will be complicit in a preventable tragedy. We are watching, and so are your constituents. Children’s lives and futures are on the line. Act now.
I'm writing in strong support of increasing the Lead Safe and Healthy Homes grant limit from $33,575 to $40,000. It is unacceptable that in 2025, Oakland families—especially low-income, Black, and immigrant households—are still being exposed to toxic lead in their homes.
Lead poisoning causes irreversible harm, especially to children: it impairs brain development, contributes to chronic illness, and fuels cycles of poverty and displacement. The fact that we have a program in place but have failed to update its funding limits to match real construction costs is disgraceful.
This increase is urgently needed. Families should not be stuck on waitlists or blocked by outdated caps while their health is at risk. Every month of delay is another child exposed to harm that could have been prevented.
This is not just a housing issue—it’s a racial and environmental justice issue. I urge the Council to approve this item and commit to fully funding and expanding these programs moving forward.
Oakland residents deserve safe homes—this is the bare minimum.
Hello, Councilmembers.
My name is Rafaela Vieira, and I am a medical student at the UC Berkeley/UCSF Joint Medical Program. I'm speaking today to express disappointment that the City of Oakland has yet to take meaningful action to address the lead poisoning crisis in our communities, despite funds being allocated.
As medical trainees, we’ve seen the irreversible harm lead exposure inflicts on patients. It causes cognitive delays, behavioral issues, and lifelong learning disabilities. There is no safe level of lead exposure in children, yet Oakland children are still being poisoned in their own homes and schools.
We were moved by the students of Project NEMO from OUSD, who are demanding action where adults have failed them. It is unacceptable that youth must fight for basic environmental safety when the science, the funding, and the urgency are well-established. This is a public health failure and a moral one.
We demand that the City of Oakland immediately:
Disclose how the allocated funds for lead abatement have been used, if at all.
Implement a clear, time-bound action plan for lead testing and remediation in homes, schools, and childcare centers.
Center community voices, Oakland Unified School District, parents, teachers, and local health advocates, in every stage of planning, decision-making, and implementation.
Lead poisoning is a public health emergency. Continued delay makes you complicit in a preventable tragedy. We are watching—and so are your constituents.
My name is Pariswi, and I am a medical student at UCSF reaching out to express my deep alarm and disappointment that Oakland has yet to take meaningful action regarding the significant lead contamination afflicting Oakland communities.
As medical trainees, I've seen firsthand the irreversible harm lead exposure inflicts on patients, especially young children. Lead causes cognitive delays, behavioral issues, and lifelong learning disabilities. There is NO safe level of lead exposure in children. And yet, Oakland children, many of whom are low-income, Black, and brown, are still being poisoned in their own homes and schools.
We were moved by the students of Project NEMO from OUSD who are demanding action where adults have failed them. It is unacceptable that youth must fight for basic environmental safety when the science, the funding, and the urgency are all well-established. This is a public health failure and a moral one.
We demand that the City of Oakland immediately:
1. Disclose how the allocated funds for lead abatement have been used—if at all.
2. Implement a clear, time-bound action plan for lead testing and remediation in homes, schools, and childcare centers.
3. Center community voices, especially youth-led groups like Project NEMO, as well as the Oakland Unified School District, parents, teachers, and local health advocates in every stage of decision-making.
Lead poisoning is a public health emergency, and children’s lives and futures are on the line. Act now.
Dear Councilmembers. My name is Shelene stine and I am an internist seeing patients in Oakland. I want to share my deep alarm that the City of Oakland has yet to take meaningful action despite funds being allocated to address the lead poisoning crisis in our communities. This is a public health failure and a moral one.
I ask that the City of Oakland immediately:
Disclose how the allocated funds for lead abatement have been used—if at all.
Implement a clear, time-bound action plan for lead testing and remediation in homes, schools, and childcare centers.
Center community voices—especially youth-led groups like Project NEMO—as well as the Oakland Unified School District, parents, teachers, and local health advocates—in every stage of planning, decision-making, and implementation.
Good evening, Councilmembers.
My name is Semira and I am a medical student at the UCB-UCSF Joint Medical Program. I'm writing to you today alongside fellow collegues to express our deep alarm that the City of Oakland has yet to take meaningful action to address the lead poisoning crisis in our communities, despite funds being allocated to address the issue since as far as 2019.
As medical students, we’ve seen firsthand the irreversible harm lead exposure inflicts on patients, especially young children. It can cause cognitive delays, behavioral issues, and lifelong learning disabilities. There is NO safe level of lead exposure in children. And yet, Oakland children, —many of them low-income, Black and brown—are still being poisoned in their own homes and schools, where they should be feeling the safest.
We were moved by the students of Project NEMO from OUSD who are demanding action where adults have failed them. It is unacceptable that youth must fight for basic environmental safety when the science, the funding, and the urgency are all well-established. This is a public health failure and a moral one.
We demand that the City of Oakland immediately increase the grant limit of the Lead Safe And Healthy Homes Program.
My name is Xy Indigo Golden, and I am a medical student at the Joint Medical Program with UCSF and UC Berkeley. I am writing today to demand that Oakland takes action on the lead poisoning crisis. Despite being allocated 14 million in a settlement to address this issue, Oakland has yet to take action. After Los Angeles County received money in the same settlement, they immediately created a service to repair lead-ridden residences and maintained the program through the COVID-19 pandemic. Despite LA county showing us that it is possible to act quickly, Oakland has yet to respond in any meaningful way.
As medical trainees, we are intimately familiar with the harms that lead exposure inflicts on patients—especially young children. There is no safe level of lead exposure in children.
We demand that the City of Oakland immediately:
-Disclose how the allocated funds for lead abatement have been used—if at all.
-Implement a clear, time-bound action plan for lead testing and remediation in homes, schools, and childcare centers.
-Center community voices—especially youth-led groups like Project NEMO—as well as the Oakland Unified School District, parents, teachers, and local health advocates—in every stage of planning, decision-making, and implementation.
If the city continue to delays, Oakland city officials will be complicit in a preventable tragedy. We are watching, and so are your constituents. Children’s lives and futures are on the line. Act now.
I'm writing in strong support of increasing the Lead Safe and Healthy Homes grant limit from $33,575 to $40,000. It is unacceptable that in 2025, Oakland families—especially low-income, Black, and immigrant households—are still being exposed to toxic lead in their homes.
Lead poisoning causes irreversible harm, especially to children: it impairs brain development, contributes to chronic illness, and fuels cycles of poverty and displacement. The fact that we have a program in place but have failed to update its funding limits to match real construction costs is disgraceful.
This increase is urgently needed. Families should not be stuck on waitlists or blocked by outdated caps while their health is at risk. Every month of delay is another child exposed to harm that could have been prevented.
This is not just a housing issue—it’s a racial and environmental justice issue. I urge the Council to approve this item and commit to fully funding and expanding these programs moving forward.
Oakland residents deserve safe homes—this is the bare minimum.
Sincerely,
a concerned Bay Area medical student