EPA Issues Final Lead & Copper Rule Improvements with $2.6 Billion Allocated to Support Replacement of All Lead Drinking Water Pipes in the US

On October 8, the Biden Administration issued its long-awaited final rule, the “Lead and Copper Rule Improvements” (the “LCRI”), requiring drinking water systems across the country identify and replace all lead water pipes within a 10-year period.[1] The LCRI also includes requirements for more rigorous testing of drinking water for lead levels, lower thresholds requiring communities to take action to protect residents from lead exposure, and more consistent communication with communities regarding the schedules for pipe replacement and current locations of lead pipes. To implement these changes, the Biden administration announced an additional 2.6 billion dollars in available funding to accompany the LCRI, 49% of which must be provided to underserved communities in the form of grants or forgivable loans. On October 23, the Biden administration announced that another 3.6 billion dollars in funding would be allocated to support upgrading water infrastructure.[2] Together, the funding is part of a five-year, $50 billion investment in water infrastructure through the administration’s Bipartisan Infrastructure Law.

The original Lead and Copper Rule (the “LCR”), regulating both contaminants in drinking water, was first promulgated in 1991, but has been the subject of consistent criticism for its inability to protect the public from lead exposure. The LCR required corrosion control treatment and reduction measures, but only when drinking water systems exceeded action limits in at least 10% of tap water samples.[3]  Furthermore, the LCR action levels relied on technical feasibility in corrosion control rather than health-based standards. Though the LCR has undergone several revisions to better protect communities, the US has experienced numerous severe lead water crises over the decades since the LCR was implemented, including in Flint, Michigan and Newark, New Jersey. EPA estimates that 9 million homes across the US still rely on lead pipes, many of which are located in disadvantaged communities.[4]

An overhaul of the LCR and widescale replacement of aging water line infrastructure, therefore, has been a long-term priority for EPA, public health officials, and the communities that have already suffered from lead-contaminated drinking water. The Biden administration announced in its first year a “Lead Pipe and Paint Action Plan” to replace every lead pipe in the US within 10 years, citing the need for both lead line replacement and lead paint removal. To accompany this effort, the administration has already allocated hundreds of millions of dollars to support state-level replacement processes: in May 2024, EPA announced that $83,278,00 from the Biden administration program “Investing In America” would be allocated towards identifying and replacing lead service lines in Wisconsin.[5] Both EPA Administrator Michael Regan and Wisconsin Governor Tony Evers emphasized the danger of lead exposure from drinking water, particularly for children, and noted that there is no safe level of lead exposure. At an October 8, 2024 speech announcing the LCRI, Biden confirmed that the “only way forward” in preventing the myriad health concerns linked to lead-contaminated drinking water is “to replace every lead pipeline” in the United States.[6]

EPA will be conducting an info session for drinking water utilities on November 14, 2024, to provide information on the new requirements and how to obtain funding. Sign up for this drinking water utilities information session on EPA’s website here.

[1] “Lead and Copper Rule Improvements,” United States Environmental Protection Agency, https://www.epa.gov/ground-water-and-drinking-water/lead-and-copper-rule-improvements#:~:text=This%20final%20rule%20is%20part,tap%20and%20drink%20clean%20water.

[2] “Biden-Harris Administration Announces $3.6 Billion for Water Infrastructure Through Investing in America Agenda,” United States Environmental Protection Agency (Oct. 23, 2024), https://www.epa.gov/newsreleases/biden-harris-administration-announces-36-billion-water-infrastructure-through.

[3] Stratton, Sean A et al. “The lead and copper rule: Limitations and lessons learned from Newark, New Jersey.” WIREs. Water vol. 10,1 (2023), https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC10077897/.

[4] “EPA Announces More Than $83 Million for Wisconsin Lead Pipe Replacement to Advance Safe Drinking Water as Part of the Biden-Harris Administration Investing in America Agenda,” United States Environmental Protection Agency (May 2, 2024), https://www.epa.gov/newsreleases/epa-announces-more-83-million-wisconsin-lead-pipe-replacement-advance-safe-drinking.

[5] Id.

[6] “Remarks by President Biden on the Biden-⁠Harris Administration’s Progress in Replacing Lead Pipes and Creating Good-Paying Jobs | Milwaukee, WI,” The White House (Oct. 8, 2024), https://www.whitehouse.gov/briefing-room/speeches-remarks/2024/10/08/remarks-by-president-biden-on-the-biden-harris-administrations-progress-in-replacing-lead-pipes-and-creating-good-paying-jobs-milwaukee-wi/.

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