Before hiring someone to cut or remove painted drywall in an older Jackson home, check the Mississippi lead-renovation program as well as City permits. EPA lists Mississippi among the states authorized to administer their own Renovation, Repair and Painting (RRP) programs. An EPA-only certification search is therefore not the whole local check. EPA program overview
Start with MDEQ, not the contractor’s course certificate
The Mississippi Department of Environmental Quality distinguishes training from State certification. Its certification page calls for separate applications for the individual and the employing firm, and links its certified-person-and-firm list. It describes MDEQ certification as valid for one year and lead training as valid for three years.
For a proposed renovation, ask for the exact firm name and the individual responsible for the lead-renovation work. Compare the appropriate activity, certificate and dates with MDEQ’s information; refer unclear or missing records to MDEQ. A training completion date alone is not the same as current State certification.
LSL has not searched or certified any particular contractor. For ordinary construction credentials and the name on the contract, use the separate Jackson-area hiring checklist.
Send a paint-disturbance description with the drywall scope
Calling a proposal “patching” does not explain which painted surfaces would be disturbed. EPA’s overview addresses compensated work disturbing paint in pre-1978 housing and distinguishes renovation from lead abatement. MDEQ’s program and regulations page provides the State route for applicability questions.
Use this LSL preparation card when requesting a proposal and asking MDEQ which program requirements apply. Describe what is already known; do not scrape, sand or cut a surface to complete it.
- Building: address, approximate construction year, and the document supporting that year; write unknown if unverified.
- Use: owner-occupied home, rental, childcare use or another arrangement.
- Proposed disturbance: room, wall or ceiling, adjacent painted trim, and the contractor’s proposed cutting, removal or surface preparation.
- Dimensions: contractor-provided extent of the work, including surrounding painted surfaces—not only the replacement drywall panel.
- People and business: firm name, proposed lead renovator and the credential information supplied.
- Unresolved program questions: applicability, required notices, work documentation and how completion will be documented.
The card is not an exemption calculator. Building age is a screening fact, not a test result proving that paint contains—or does not contain—lead. This guide does not supply numerical disturbance exemptions or a do-it-yourself testing procedure.
Three documents that cannot substitute for one another
| Document | Question it helps answer | What remains separate |
|---|---|---|
| MDEQ certification information | Which firm and individual have the relevant State credentials? | Whether Jackson has authorized the construction scope |
| City permit decision and issued permit, if required | What construction or trade work has the City reviewed? | The State lead-program requirements |
| Written repair proposal | What work and documentation is the contractor agreeing to supply? | Independent confirmation of credentials and required approvals |
Send the whole repair description to Jackson Code Services, including associated electrical, plumbing or structural changes. The City’s permit page lists repair, alteration and trade routes; it does not decide a private project from the word “drywall.” Outside Jackson city limits, identify the applicable permit office separately.
What LSL checked
On September 20, 2026, LSL read the EPA overview and MDEQ’s certification and regulations-information pages; Jackson’s permit guidance was checked September 19. The resulting preparation card and document comparison correct this article’s earlier federal-only routing. We did not verify a firm’s listing, read every State regulatory exception, sample paint, assess exposure or inspect a completed job. Ask MDEQ about the current requirements for your described work before treating a claimed exemption as settled.