Stretching the Dollar to Get the Lead Out: Advancing Lead Service Line Programs with Low or No-Cost Policies and Practices

By Marc Santos, Maureen Cunningham, Denise Schmidt, Erica Galante-Johnson, and Janet Pritchard

The price tag to replace 100 percent of the country’s lead pipes is in the tens of billions of dollars. Funding and financing is therefore a key and necessary part of any discussion on solutions. Beyond the funding, however, there is much that water utilities can do to replace lead pipes more cost efficiently, which will help stretch the limited dollars now available even further. As water utilities across the country finalize inventories and start to replace their lead pipes, some of them are leading the way in ensuring cost efficiency is an integral part of their programs. In 2024, EPIC interviewed 26 utilities from 16 states and the District of Columbia to highlight policies and practices that have led to more efficient lead service line identification and replacement programs.

This policy brief highlights low or no-cost policies and practices that have proven successful for many water utilities, and can be replicated in an effort to lower the overall total price tag of lead service line replacement nationwide.

Some of the top ways water utilities are cutting costs include the following:

• Producing simplified but effective communications materials that build public trust and improve customer response rates

• Collaborating with community-based and local organizations as well as with other utilities and communities

• Refining internal processes including scheduling, permitting, documentation, and project prioritization

There are additional actions that states and State Revolving Funds (SRFs) can also embrace to ensure greater efficiencies.