LSLR Collaborative
  • Home
  • Roadmap
    • Getting Started
    • Legal Factors
    • Funding
    • Plan Development
  • Replacement
    • Approaches to Replacement
    • Preparing an Inventory
    • Understanding Replacement Techniques
    • Communicating About LSLs
    • Coordinating Replacement
  • Equity
    • Guide to Equity Analysis
    • Coordination and Partnership
    • Defining Disadvantaged Communities
    • Equity Tools and Data Sources
  • Policies
    • Community Access to Funding
    • Helping Consumers
    • Requiring LSL Replacement
    • Engaging other Programs
    • Risk Communication Improvement
  • EPA's LCR
    • Key Terms
    • Key Requirements and Opportunities
  • Resources
    • Intro to LSL Replacement
    • LSL Replacement in the News
    • Child Care and Schools
    • Role of Public Health Professionals
    • Webinars >
      • Upcoming Webinars and Events
    • Case Examples
    • Filling Data Gaps
    • Recursos en Español
    • Downloadable Resources
    • Matchmaking Survey
  • About Us
    • FAQs
    • Feedback

LSL Replacement in the NEWS​

Clinic Paper Supports Use of Ratepayer Funds to Replace Lead Service Lines

4/2/2019

 
See the full blog online. 

April 2, 2019 – The Clinic is releasing a paper analyzing the authority of water utilities in thirteen key states to use ratepayer funds to pay for full lead service line (LSL) replacement. The paper, “Rates Could Fund Lead Pipe Replacement in Critical States,” is the product of a partnership between the Clinic and the Environmental Defense Fund (EDF). Clinic Deputy Director Shaun Goho and Clinic student Marcello Saenz (JD ’19) researched and wrote the paper in collaboration with Tom Neltner, Chemicals Policy Director at EDF. Our analysis concludes that there are no explicit legal barriers to using ratepayer funds for LSL replacement in these states.
​
LSLs—the pipes that connect the water main under a street to the plumbing in a building—are the largest source of lead in drinking water in those homes that have them (see diagram).


Lead exposure can cause a variety of health problems and is particularly dangerous for young children. Drinking water can be a major source of exposure: an Environmental Protection Agency analysis concluded that formula-fed infants may receive 40% to 60% of their exposure to lead from drinking water. As a result, there is broad consensus that all six million LSLs in use around the country will eventually need to be replaced.
​
It can cost thousands of dollars to replace each LSL, so one major challenge is to figure out how to pay for these replacements. One logical approach is for water utilities to use rates paid by customers. However, because part of each LSL is on private property, some people have argued that ratepayer funds cannot be used because LSL replacement provides a private benefit to the homeowner.

We reviewed the laws of thirteen states, which collectively have an estimated 4.2 million LSLs, more than two-thirds of the nation’s total. In these states, we found no explicit barriers to using rate funds to replace the lines on private property. Publicly-owned utilities can act pursuant to existing state legislation by determining that the practice serves a public purpose—protecting public health. Investor-owned utilities can do the same, but typically need approval of the state’s utility commission. While we have not reviewed the remaining states, we anticipate that the state laws and policies are similar to the ones we evaluated.

Comments are closed.
    Picture
    Have a suggestion for an article or blog to add?
    Let us know!

    Type

    All
    Announcements
    Articles/ Blogs On The Collaborative
    News/ Blogs About LSLs

    Date

    February 2023
    January 2023
    December 2022
    November 2022
    October 2022
    September 2022
    August 2022
    July 2022
    June 2022
    May 2022
    April 2022
    March 2022
    February 2022
    January 2022
    December 2021
    November 2021
    October 2021
    September 2021
    August 2021
    July 2021
    June 2021
    May 2021
    April 2021
    March 2021
    February 2021
    January 2021
    December 2020
    November 2020
    October 2020
    September 2020
    August 2020
    July 2020
    June 2020
    May 2020
    April 2020
    March 2020
    February 2020
    January 2020
    December 2019
    November 2019
    October 2019
    September 2019
    August 2019
    July 2019
    June 2019
    May 2019
    April 2019
    March 2019
    February 2019
    January 2019
    December 2018
    November 2018
    October 2018
    September 2018
    August 2018
    July 2018
    June 2018
    May 2018
    April 2018
    March 2018
    February 2018
    January 2018
    December 2017
    November 2017
    October 2017
    August 2017
    July 2017
    June 2017
    March 2017
    February 2017
    January 2017

    RSS Feed

Home
About Us
Feedback
The goal of the Lead Service Line Replacement Collaborative is to accelerate voluntary lead service line replacement in communities across the United States.
Links to external resources do not constitute an endorsement from the Collaborative.
  • Home
  • Roadmap
    • Getting Started
    • Legal Factors
    • Funding
    • Plan Development
  • Replacement
    • Approaches to Replacement
    • Preparing an Inventory
    • Understanding Replacement Techniques
    • Communicating About LSLs
    • Coordinating Replacement
  • Equity
    • Guide to Equity Analysis
    • Coordination and Partnership
    • Defining Disadvantaged Communities
    • Equity Tools and Data Sources
  • Policies
    • Community Access to Funding
    • Helping Consumers
    • Requiring LSL Replacement
    • Engaging other Programs
    • Risk Communication Improvement
  • EPA's LCR
    • Key Terms
    • Key Requirements and Opportunities
  • Resources
    • Intro to LSL Replacement
    • LSL Replacement in the News
    • Child Care and Schools
    • Role of Public Health Professionals
    • Webinars >
      • Upcoming Webinars and Events
    • Case Examples
    • Filling Data Gaps
    • Recursos en Español
    • Downloadable Resources
    • Matchmaking Survey
  • About Us
    • FAQs
    • Feedback