FARGO, N.D. – A Moorhead real estate company is sentenced in federal court for failing to tell a Hillsboro homebuyer it used lead-based paint as required by the Toxic Substances Control Act.
In 2022 doctors diagnosed two children between the ages of one and two-years-old living at the home with elevated blood lead levels. In June of that year, the North Dakota Department of Environmental Quality inspected the home finding positive results for lead-based paint in multiple areas of the home including the children’s playroom.
Valley Property Partners and House Dudes must pay $10,000 in fines and $4,274.78 in restitution, serve one year of probation and perform 50 hours of community service. The company must also include information about the harmful effects of lead-based paint exposer and required obligation to homebuyers about the paint on its website.
“The Toxic Substances Control Act protects kids and homebuyers, and while most sellers make the required disclosures in good faith, there can be serious health impacts on children when the law is violated,” U.S. Attorney for North Dakota Mac Schneider said. “As this case shows, there are also legal consequences for the violators. I want to thank our career prosecutors and their federal and state partners for providing accountability and reaching a fair outcome in this case.”
“Childhood lead exposure remains a significant public health concern and the EPA is committed to reducing lead exposures among children, who are the most vulnerable to the effects of lead,” said Special Agent in Charge Lance Ehrig of the Environmental Protection Agency’s Criminal Investigation Division in North Dakota. “The actions of the defendant in this case resulted in two childhood lead exposures, which could have been prevented if the defendant had followed the law. Today’s sentencing demonstrates that those who violate our nation’s environmental laws and place children at risk will be held accountable for their actions.”
