City of Great Falls clarifies water service line inspections

We respectfully urge Congress to consider the following actions:

1 . Increase Federal Support: More comprehensive funding is required to ensure municipalities can meet the LSL replacement mandate without placing an undue financial burden on ratepayers. We recommend increasing the federal grant portion and expanding eligibility for principal forgiveness loans to low-income communities. We recommend programs that enable individual property owners who have lead service lines to access these funds.

2. Extend the Replacement Timeline: Many cities, particularly small and rural ones, will struggle to meet the I 0-year deadline. A more feasible timeline would allow communities to plan effectively and avoid unnecessary rate hikes for residents.

3. Address Property Owner Costs: There is also concern about the financial burden on property owners for replacing service lines between water mains and their homes. Congress should consider legislation that provides relief to homeowners facing these costs, ensuring the transition is equitable. In the absence of additional financial resources, city water customers, most of whom do not have lead service lines, will end up covering the cost for lead service line removal in their utility rates.

4. Replace only Known Lead Service Lines: Many cities, like ours, are not able to verify that existing galvanized lines are or ever were downstream of lead lines; therefore, all are assumed to be requiring replacement. This will cost City homeowners additional millions of dollars. The health benefits of replacing galvanized lines are not as immediate or apparent as known lead lines. Similarly, the assumption that unknown lines count as lead will cost City homeowners tens of millions of dollars in additional replacement fees. In light of the questionable benefit and the immense cost, replacement of galvanized and unknown lines should be removed from the requirements.

Public health advocates make a compelling case that the long-term health benefits of removing lead lines far outweigh the costs. However, we must balance these benefits with our responsibility to protect utility customers from unsustainable rate increases. Without additional federal support and flexibility in compliance timelines, many municipalities will face difficult financial choices that could disproportionately impact our most vulnerable residents.