Lead paint testing labs in Texas

Texas lead rules in brief

• Who runs the program: The Texas DSHS Environmental Lead Program certifies lead professionals under the Texas Environmental Lead Reduction Rules (TELRR). (Texas Environmental Lead Reduction Rules (TELRR)) source
• Renovation and abatement rules: Texas is not on EPA's list of states authorized to run their own RRP program, so EPA runs the RRP program there, and it has an EPA-authorized lead-based paint (abatement, inspection and risk assessment) program. (TSCA sections 402 and 404; 40 CFR Part 745) source
• State rule to know: In Texas, only a trained and certified Lead Inspector or Lead Risk Assessor (not a home inspector) can test for lead in paint or soil in housing and child-occupied facilities built before 1978. The Texas Environmental Lead Reduction Rules do not require lead abatement even when lead is found, but DSHS says that if a lead hazard is found, interim controls such as paint stabilization should be used. (Texas Environmental Lead Reduction Rules (TELRR)) source

Read on the official pages linked, November 15, 2026, and re-checked by a second reader. A summary, not legal advice: rules change, so confirm with the agency before work starts.

Older homes in Texas and where the labs are

In Texas, 4,029,680 of 12,128,515 housing units (33%) were built before 1980, rank 41 of 45 states and DC by that share (Census ACS 2020–2024, table B25034). Homes of that age are the ones most likely to contain lead-based paint (EPA: homes built before 1978). The counties with the most older homes, and how far each is from the nearest NLLAP-recognized lead lab:

Over 50 miles from the nearest listed site: Bexar County, Travis County, El Paso County, Nueces County, Lubbock County. Many labs accept samples by mail; ask before you ship. Distance runs from the county’s centre (mean of its ZIP-code points) to the lab’s ZIP-code point, in a straight line. EPA’s NLLAP list prints a city but no ZIP code; a lab known only from that list is placed at its city’s most common ZIP code. Source: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 2020-2024 5-year estimates, table B25034 (Year structure built), county level, downloaded November 15, 2026.

How far the labs stretch in Texas

Texas has 6 listed lead lab sites for about 4,029,680 homes built before 1980: one site per 671,613 older homes, the 19th most stretched of 32 states with a listed site (the middle state has one per 717,498).

• 6 of the 6 sites are accredited for paint chips (paint chips scraped from walls, trim or windows).
• 6 of the 6 sites are accredited for dust wipes (dust wipes from floors and window sills, the test used after renovation).
• 6 of the 6 sites are accredited for soil (soil from play areas and the drip line around the house).

Counts from the accreditation list; homes from Census ACS 2020–2024 (B25034). A site count, not capacity: one lab can process many samples, and many accept samples by mail.