Council Member Farias on Intro 181: shower hoses and tenant notification

We will now move to Councilmember Amanda Farias for a brief statement on her bill.

Good morning and thank you Speaker Menon and Chair Shulman and the members of the Committee on Health.

Thank you for hearing Intro 181.

Today I have been working for years to push this legislation forward along with many others that are on the docket.

After an outbreak in my district and many other communities of color made the clear need for a defined protocol to get information and practical protections to tenants when a confirmed case of Legionnaires disease is identified in their building.

In 2022, residents at Class and Point Gardens were advised not to use their showers while the Department of Health and Mental Hygiene evaluated the development following two confirmed cases.

When my office pressed for an alternative that residents could actually use during what could be a very lengthy testing process, as many were people with disabilities, older adults, and

needed mobility assistance, we worked with DOHMH and NYCHA to get shower hoses installed for the affected residents following the need of

no water vapor or steam, just water for people to use and not inconvenience their day-to-day lives as many were told they could not use their showers.

That experience largely informed the legislation before us today.

Since then, we have continued to see this issue arise in resident

water systems including in Parkchester in my district where DOHMH initiated a building evaluation after multiple residents sharing a hot water system were diagnosed with Legionnaires disease.

And after the Legionnaires cluster we saw this summer,

The need to strengthen every stage of the city's response remains just as relevant.

Even while DOHMH is investigating a source, directing testing, and overseeing any necessary remediation,

residents are still living in their homes and making decisions on how to use their water safely, or even having to purchase water to use water safely.

When a case is confirmed in a residential building, the response has to reach the tenants in that building quickly.

DOHMH's guidance should get to residents and they deserve to know what practical precautions are available to reduce their risk of exposure while the building response is underway.

The 24-hour requirement in my bill ensures that once DOHMH has provided notice, building owners are equipped with standardized guidance to communicate clearly with tenants and take the immediate mitigation steps available to them.

The shower hose provision is another practical tool alongside the health guidance that they are given.

What we were able to coordinate with Class 10 Point Guardage should be built into the response when these circumstances arise.

Residents should not have to wait for an elected office, a building manager, and a health agency to work out an alternative after the fact when we now know that there is one available.

That also can help reduce risks, as we saw no other other.

people in class and point houses be diagnosed with Legionnaires disease.

Intro 181 is not intended to replace DOHMH's investigation or existing requirements around a building's water system.

It's just meant to ensure that while those processes are underway, there is also a defined responsibility for getting appropriate information and a practical precaution to people living there.

I'm interested in hearing from DOHMH today about how Intro 181 can be incorporated into its existing notification and investigation process and how the department would operationalize the 24-hour requirement.

And truthfully, I'm looking forward to the existing feedback we receive on all the bills before the committee today.

After carrying this legislation for several years, I hope this hearing positions us to move toward enactment and effective implementation.

Thank you again to Chair Shulman for bringing in TRO 181 before the committee, and thank you to my colleagues who have joined me as sponsors of this legislation.

I look forward to hearing back from the administration after today's hearing.

Thank you again.