Magnolia Homes, the Waco, Texas, renovation company featured on HGTV’s *Fixer Upper*, reached a settlement with the Environmental Protection Agency over alleged violations of federal lead-paint safety rules. The EPA reviewed footage from the show and information supplied by Magnolia and found evidence of noncompliance at 33 properties. The company cooperated with the agency and began taking steps to comply after the EPA raised its concerns.

The alleged violations involved renovations of older homes without required protections against exposure to lead-based paint. Federal rules generally require firms renovating homes built before 1978 to obtain EPA certification, assign a certified renovator, inform occupants about lead hazards, mark work areas and use precautions that contain paint chips and dust. The EPA alleged that Magnolia failed to meet these and other requirements.

Under the settlement, Magnolia agreed to pay a $40,000 civil penalty and spend $160,000 on a lead-abatement project in the Waco area. Working with an independent abatement firm, the company will address hazards in homes and child-occupied facilities through measures such as replacing windows and doors, removing lead dust, and enclosing or replacing lead-painted surfaces. The EPA noted that some Waco neighborhoods have historically had elevated rates of childhood lead exposure.

Magnolia also committed to maintaining compliance through staff training, improved recordkeeping and reports to the EPA. To educate its national audience, the company agreed to publish a video featuring Chip Gaines discussing lead safety and required work practices. A March 2018 episode of *Fixer Upper* had already addressed lead-paint precautions, and Gaines shared related information on social media.

Lead-based paint was banned in 1978 but remains in millions of American homes. Renovation can release hazardous dust, and young children are especially vulnerable to effects that can include learning and behavioral disorders, seizures and death.