But just a few weeks into the work, district officials were forced to halt that plan, pull Pepper Environmental off the job and apologize to parents and teachers who complained that the district didn't tell them that lead paint was being removed and that painters for both the district and Pepper left behind toxic dust and debris in classrooms. The district paid Pepper $288,182 for work started at eight schools. Seven of those schools have to be redone, either because of poor work or because the district, before launching Hite's plan, failed to fully identify all areas with deteriorating lead paint.