Asbestos Management in School Buildings
What the domain tests
This domain tests AHERA duties for local education agencies (LEAs) under 40 CFR 763 Subpart E. It focuses on the management plan, inspections, periodic surveillance, reinspection, notification, and the rule that school abatement uses accredited persons.
Core rules
- An LEA must designate a responsible person, inspect each school for asbestos-containing material, and develop a management plan.
- The plan must be available to parents, teachers, and employee organizations; annual notification is required, and abatement activities must be communicated as the regulations require.
- Periodic surveillance is every 6 months; reinspection is every 3 years. Surveillance is a visual check and does not replace reinspection.
- Friable ACM and assumed ACM must be labeled or the location must be documented in the plan; custodial and maintenance staff must know how to avoid disturbance.
- Abatement in a school must be performed by accredited workers and supervised by an accredited contractor/supervisor; inspectors and management planners must also be accredited.
Worked example
A 1968 school's management plan lists friable boiler-room insulation as assumed ACM. The LEA has done nothing for four years. The custodian reports a damaged section. The correct response is to restrict access, prevent disturbance, and have an accredited inspector assess the material. Because more than three years have passed, a reinspection is overdue; the six-month surveillance record should also be checked. If repair or abatement is chosen, the school must use accredited personnel and update the plan and notification records.
Traps that cost marks
Treating the management plan as a one-time document; confusing six-month surveillance with three-year reinspection; assuming a contractor's presence satisfies the LEA's own duty; and ignoring parent/teacher notification. A common scenario trap is a custodian cleaning up debris-without training and accreditation, that is disturbance, not routine maintenance.