Two new EPA grant programs intended to help communities, schools and low-income homeowners reduce lead in drinking water are in line to become operational this year after Congress’ FY18 omnibus appropriations bill delivered their first infusion of funding. AMWA supported creation of both programs when they were included in the WIIN Act that was passed into law in 2016.
The omnibus appropriations bill carries $10 million for a new grant program to help communities and low-income households offset costs associated with fully replacing lead service lines. Communities awarded grants will notify homeowners of plans to replace the publicly owned portion of a lead service line and may offer to simultaneously replace the homeowner’s portion of the lead service line at cost, though any grant-funded replacement of a publicly owned portion of a lead service line may not proceed unless any corresponding privately owned portion of the lead service line is replaced at the same time. In the case of low-income households (as defined by the governor of a state), communities may use grant funds to also replace the portion of a lead service line owned by a low-income households when the publicly owned portion of the line is simultaneously replaced.
Priority for grants will be given to communities otherwise unable to pay for lead service line replacements and which have exceeded EPA’s action level for lead within the previous three years, and the authorizing language includes a savings clause that affirms that the bill does not affect a public water system’s responsibility for lead service lines that are located on private property. The program bars the use of grant funds on partial lead service line replacements. The program was based on legislation introduced by Sen. Ben Cardin (D-Md.) in 2016 and endorsed by AMWA.
EPA estimates that each individual lead service line replacement could cost as much as $8,000, and that there as many as 10 million households nationwide connected to a lead service line. The agency has not announced when it plans to begin work to implement the new grant program.
The omnibus bill also provides another $20 million for a separate new grant program to help schools and child care centers voluntarily test their drinking water for elevated levels of lead. State or local educational agencies that receive grant funds through the program will be required to spend them in accordance with EPA’s “3Ts for Reducing Lead in Drinking Water in Schools” guidance, and must post a copy of the test results on school websites. The program specifies that school officials – and not public water system personnel – are responsible for carrying out and reporting the results of in-school tests. Congress also authorized this program through the 2016 WIIN Act.
The appropriation for each program in the omnibus bill means that grant funding could be available as early as this year, though lawmakers have directed EPA to brief them on planned program implementation prior to publishing any request for applications.