Lead Service Lines: A State-by-State Audit Following the 2024 LCRI Rule

The Flint water crisis of 2014–2016 made *lead service lines* a household phrase, but the underlying problem long predated Flint and extends far beyond it. A lead service line is the pipe that connects a residential building to the water main beneath the street. They were installed widely in U.S. cities from the late 1800s through the 1950s, and despite decades of replacement programs, an estimated 9.2 million still deliver drinking water to American homes.

In October 2024, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency finalized the Lead and Copper Rule Improvements (LCRI) — the most consequential update to federal lead-in-water regulation in three decades. The rule requires water systems to replace lead service lines within ten years, with limited exceptions, and tightens the action level for lead in tap water.

This piece is a data-driven audit of the post-Flint service-line landscape. We examine state-by-state inventory data, the funding mechanisms now in play, and what residents can do this week to find out whether the pipe entering their home is lead.

## What an LSL Actually Is

A water service line typically runs from the water main in the street, beneath the sidewalk and front yard, to a curb stop (the shut-off near the property line) and then into the home, terminating at the water meter. The portion on the public side is owned by the utility; the portion on the private side is owned by the property owner. **Either side, or both, can be lead.**

EPA’s regulatory framework distinguishes four service-line classifications under the LCRI:

– **Lead** — the line is confirmed lead.
– **Galvanized requiring replacement (GRR)** — galvanized iron downstream of a current or former lead pipe.
– **Non-lead** — confirmed copper, plastic, or other non-lead material.
– **Lead status unknown** — material has not been verified.

Utilities were required to submit baseline inventories by **October 16, 2024**. The “lead status unknown” category in those inventories represents the largest open question in U.S. drinking-water infrastructure.

## The National Picture

The Bipartisan Infrastructure Law (also known as the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, or IIJA) appropriated $15 billion specifically for lead service line replacement, distributed through the Drinking Water State Revolving Fund. EPA estimates that this represents roughly 30 to 40 percent of the total cost of nationwide LSL replacement, depending on per-line replacement costs that vary substantially by region.

## State-Level Concentration

Lead service lines are not evenly distributed. They cluster in older industrial cities — Chicago, Detroit, Cleveland, Pittsburgh, and the New England corridor — where late-19th-century and early-20th-century plumbing codes preferred lead for its workability. Six states account for the majority of confirmed lead service lines:

– **Illinois.** Reports the highest count of any state, driven primarily by Chicago, which has more lead service lines than any other U.S. city.
– **Ohio.** Substantial concentrations in Cleveland, Cincinnati, and Akron.
– **Michigan.** Detroit, Flint, and Grand Rapids contribute most of the state’s count.
– **Pennsylvania.** Philadelphia and Pittsburgh are the largest holders.
– **New York.** Buffalo, Rochester, and Syracuse drive much of the upstate count; New York City’s count is notably low for the city’s size.
– **New Jersey.** Newark’s well-documented lead-in-water crisis of 2018–2019 produced the most aggressive replacement program in the country, but counts elsewhere in the state remain significant.

Several states — including Florida, the Carolinas, and most of the West — have very low confirmed LSL counts, reflecting the timing of their water-system buildout and the use of galvanized iron, copper, or, later, plastic for service lines.

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The “lead status unknown” category in utility inventories is, in effect, the federal acknowledgment that the country does not know what most of its service lines are made of.

## How Utilities Are Paying for Replacement

The replacement workflow under the LCRI is technically the responsibility of the water utility, but the funding picture is complicated by the public-private split in line ownership:

### Full Replacement vs. Partial Replacement

The LCRI strongly disfavors **partial replacements** — replacing only the public-side portion of a lead service line while leaving the private-side portion in place. Research has shown that partial replacements can temporarily *increase* lead leaching, as the disturbance of the pipe disrupts the protective scale on the inner surface. Utilities are now required to replace the full line wherever possible, including the private-side portion.

### Funding Mechanisms

There are four primary funding mechanisms now in play:

1. **DWSRF and IIJA funds.** The largest pot. State-administered, with eligibility tied to disadvantaged-community criteria.
2. **Utility rate-base recovery.** Utilities recover replacement costs through customer rates over time. Politically contested in jurisdictions where rates are already high.
3. **General-obligation bonds.** Several large cities (Chicago, Detroit) have issued or proposed bonds specifically for LSL replacement.
4. **Private-side replacement programs.** Some utilities cover the full line replacement at no direct cost to the homeowner. Others offer subsidies; others require the homeowner to pay for the private side. Practice varies sharply.

The variation in private-side cost handling has produced equity concerns. In communities where the homeowner is responsible for the private-side cost — typically $3,000 to $8,000 — replacement rates are markedly lower in lower-income census tracts, even when the public-side replacement is fully funded.

## What Residents Can Do This Week

Waiting for the utility’s ten-year replacement schedule is a long horizon. Residents can take three steps now to evaluate their own service line and reduce exposure in the interim:

### 1. Check Your Utility’s Service-Line Inventory

Every U.S. drinking-water utility was required to publish a service-line material inventory by October 16, 2024. Most have made the inventory searchable by address through a public-facing map. Check the utility’s website or call the utility’s customer service line. The inventory will list your service line as Lead, Galvanized Requiring Replacement, Non-Lead, or Lead Status Unknown.

### 2. Self-Inspect at the Water Meter

Where the service line enters the home — typically at the water meter in the basement, utility room, or crawl space — the material is visible. Use this quick test:

– **Scratch the pipe with a coin.** A lead pipe will be silver-gray, very soft, and the scratch will appear shiny silver.
– **Tap the pipe with a metal object.** Lead pipes produce a dull thud; copper pipes ring.
– **Use a magnet.** Magnets do not stick to lead, copper, or plastic, but do stick to galvanized iron.

Document the section between the floor (or wall) and the water meter, then both sides of the meter. The utility may treat this as confirmation evidence for inventory updates.

### 3. Use a Faucet Filter Certified to NSF/ANSI 53 for Lead

Until the line is replaced, a faucet filter certified to **NSF/ANSI Standard 53** for lead reduction is the most-evidence-based interim measure. Pitcher filters certified to the same standard are also acceptable but require attention to filter-life limits, since lead breakthrough can occur once the filter is exhausted.

## What’s Next

The LCRI’s ten-year clock began running in 2027 — three years after the rule’s October 2024 finalization, to give utilities time to develop replacement plans. The most aggressive replacement programs (Newark’s, Chicago’s, Pittsburgh’s) are operating ahead of that schedule. Most utilities are still completing inventories.

We track utility-by-utility replacement progress in our [Lead Service Line Replacement Tracker](#) and the state-level allocation of IIJA drinking-water funds in [Lead Hazard Funding by State](#).