Drinking Water_Content Page_Upcoming LC Rule Requirements

Upcoming Lead And Copper Rule Requirements

In 2026, Wisconsin Administrative Code NR 809 was revised to be consistent with the federal 2021 Lead and Copper Rule Revisions (LCRR), the federal 2024 Lead and Copper Rule Improvements (LCRI), and other federal rules related to the regulation of lead and copper in public drinking water.

All community water systems (CWS) and non-transient non-community water systems (NTNCWS) were required to comply with certain LCRR requirements by 2024 and will be required to comply with all LCRI requirements by Nov. 1, 2027. The LCRI includes both new requirements for public water systems (PWSs) and also changes to existing requirements. Below is an overview of the new and updated requirements that PWSs will be required to comply with beginning Nov. 1, 2027.

Click on each tab to learn more about the new and updated requirements in chapter NR 809 and which water systems need to follow the requirements.
 

Service Line Inventory & Replacement

Service Line Inventory & Replacement

Requirements that Apply to All CWS and NTNCWS

  • Submit a baseline inventory by Nov. 1, 2027. To prepare a baseline inventory, water systems must do all of the following:
    • Review all available water system information and records that describe service line and connector materials and locations, including any new information or records identified since the 2024 initial service line inventory submission.
    • Include:
      • A street address for every service line in the inventory or an alternative locational identifier if a street address is not available
      • Information about the presence and material of service line connectors (i.e. goosenecks or pigtails) at every location in the inventory
      • Information about how the baseline inventory was made publicly accessible
      • Inventory methods and completeness certification
  • Validate a random selection of nonlead service line materials by 2034, unless the department designates an alternative deadline.

Requirements that Only Apply to Water Systems with One or More Lead, GRR and/or LSU Service Lines

  • Submit a Service Line Replacement Plan by Nov. 1, 2027, which includes, but is not limited to:
    • A strategy to identify and eliminate lead-status-unknown (LSU) service lines by 2037
    • A standard operating procedure for full lead and galvanized-requiring-replacement (GRR) service line replacements
    • A communication strategy for informing consumers about the replacement plan and program
  • Notify consumers who are served by lead, GRR and LSU service lines every year until only non-lead service lines remain.
  • Report service line replacement information by submitting updated service line inventory to the department annually.
  • Replace all lead and GRR service lines by 2037
    • Water systems must replace at least 10% of their lead and GRR service lines each program year
    • Water systems are prohibited from conducting partial service line replacement unless it is conducted as part of an emergency repair or in coordination with planned infrastructure work that impacts service lines (excluding planned infrastructure work solely for lead or GRR service line replacement)
    • Some systems may be eligible for a deferred replacement deadline
    • Some systems may be required to replace all lead and GRR service lines on a shortened timeline
  • Classify all LSU service lines as lead, GRR or non-lead by the water system's replacement deadline, which is 2037 for most systems. Water systems must replace any LSUs they find to be lead or GRR service lines by their replacement deadline.
  • Notify consumers of lead exposure risk due to service line disturbances and replacements, and offer follow-up tap sampling and provide filters after service line replacements.
  • Offer tap sampling to customers with lead, GRR and LSU service lines.

For more information on service line inventory and replacement requirements, please see s. NR 809.545 , Wis. Adm. Code.

Resources 

Lead Pipe Legislation in Wisconsin

EPA Fact Sheets

Compliance Monitoring

Compliance Monitoring

Requirements that Apply to all CWS and NTNCWS

  • A lower lead action level of 10 µg/L.
  • Develop a lead and copper monitoring site plan (MSP) based on the baseline service line inventory and submit the MSP to the department 60 days before the start of the next sampling period.
  • Select monitoring sites in accordance with the updated tiering criteria (with Tier 1 being the highest priority and Tier 5 being the lowest priority). All higher tier/priority sites must be exhausted before selecting lower tier/priority locations (ex. all Tier 1 sites must be exhausted before adding Tier 2 locations):
    • Tier 1 - Single family structures with lead building plumbing and/or a lead service line
    • Tier 2 - Non-residential or multi-family structures with lead building plumbing and/or a lead service line
    • Tier 3 - 
      • CWS - Single family structures that meet at least one of the Tier 3 Material Criteria below
      • NTNCWS - Any residential or non-residential buildings that meet at least one of the Tier 3 Material Criteria below
      • Tier 3 Material Criteria
        • Structures with a lead connector
        • Structures with a galvanized service line that was previously downstream of a lead service line
        • Structures with galvanized building plumbing that is currently or was ever previously downstream of a lead service line
    • Tier 4 -
      • CWS - Single family structures with copper building plumbing with lead solder built before Sept. 1, 1985.
      • NTNCWS - Any residential or nonresidential buildings with copper plumbing with lead solder built before Sept. 1, 1985.
    • Tier 5 - Building with plumbing materials that are commonly found at other sites in the distribution system.
  • Make at least two outreach attempts to sample at each monitoring site and track any customer refusals or nonresponses (documentation may be required). A site can be considered unavailable after a customer refusal or after two outreach attempts with no response.
  • Follow an updated tap sampling protocol, which includes taking first- and fifth-liter samples at sites with lead service lines.
  • Conduct several new types of monitoring, including follow-up sampling at individual locations that exceed 10 µg/L and sampling upon consumer request after a lead action level exceedance, after a service line replacement, or when the consumer has a lead, GRR or LSU service line.
  • Calculate the lead and copper 90th percentile in accordance with the updated requirements.
  • Conduct standard monitoring for at least two consecutive tap sampling periods beginning Jan. 1, 2028, if the water system's lead 90th percentile exceeded 10 µ/L and/or if the copper 90th percentile exceeded 1300 µ/L in its most recent monitoring period.
    Note:  See NR § 809.547 (3) (b), Wis. Adm. Code, for additional criteria that will require some water systems to conduct standard monitoring for at least two consecutive tap sampling periods beginning in 2028 and beyond.

Requirements that Apply to Water Systems with Lead or GRR Service Lines in Baseline Inventory

Conduct standard monitoring for at least two consecutive tap sampling periods beginning Jan. 1, 2028.
Note:  See NR § 809.547 (3) (b), Wis. Adm. Code for additional criteria that will require some water systems to conduct standard monitoring for at least two consecutive tap sampling periods in 2028 and beyond.

For more information on monitoring requirements for lead and copper in tap water, please see s. NR 809.547 , Wis. Adm. Code.

Resources

Corrosion Control Treatment

Corrosion Control Treatment

Requirements that Apply to All CWS and NTNCWS

  • Conduct follow-up lead sampling at each location where the lead concentration exceeds 10 µ/L, even if system's 90th percentile does not exceed 10 µ/L, and provide public education to all such locations.
    Note:  Follow-up lead sampling is a component of the distribution system and site assessment (DSSA) requirements. 
  • Report short-term source water and water treatment changes lasting more than 30 days and complete any additional actions required by the department.
  • Conduct standard monitoring for at least two consecutive tap sampling periods if the system has an upcoming addition of a new source or long-term change in water treatment.
    Note:  See NR § 809.547 (3) (b), Wis. Adm. Code for additional criteria that will require some water systems to conduct standard monitoring for at least two consecutive tap sampling periods in 2028 and beyond. 
  • Conduct pipe-rig/loop studies using harvested lead services lines from the distribution system after a lead action level exceedance if the water system serves more than 10,000 people and has lead service lines in its baseline inventory.
  • Conduct regular WQP monitoring if the lead 90th exceeds 5 µ/L at a water system that serves more than 10,000 people.

Requirements that May Apply to Water Systems with CCT

  • Conduct standard monitoring for at least two consecutive tap sampling periods if:
    • The system is re-optimizing optimized corrosion control treatment (OCCT) after DSSA activities.
      or
    • The system has been assigned optimal water quality parameters (OWQPs) monitoring and fails to operate within/above the range/minimum values of state-designated OWQPs for more than nine days in any monitoring period.
      Note: See NR § 809.547 (3) (b), Wis. Adm. Code, for additional criteria that will require some water systems to conduct standard monitoring for at least two consecutive tap sampling periods in 2028 and beyond.
  • Conduct follow-up water quality parameter (WQP) sampling near locations where the lead concentration exceeded 10 µ/L, even if system's 90th percentile did not exceed 10 µ/L, in addition to follow-up lead sampling. Follow-up WQP monitoring is a component of DSSA requirements.

Requirements that May Apply to Water Systems without CCT

  • Conduct standard monitoring for at least two consecutive tap sampling periods whenever any of the following occurs:
    • PWS installs optimized corrosion control treatment (OCCT) following a DSSA.
    • PWS lead 90th at a water system that serves more than 50,000 exceeds 5 µ/L.
    • A small or medium water system grows to serve more than 50,000 people.
      Note: See NR § 809.547 (3) (b), Wis. Adm. Code, for additional criteria that will require some water systems to conduct standard monitoring for at least two consecutive tap sampling periods in 2028 and beyond.

Alternative Compliance Pathways

Water Systems with lead and galvanized-requiring-replacement (GRR) service lines

May defer corrosion control treatment (CCT) steps if the system replaces all lead and GRR service lines within five (5) years or less.

CWSs that serve 3,300 or fewer people and all NTNCWSs

May select an alternative compliance pathway instead of installing CCT:

  • Option to replace lead-bearing plumbing materials within one (1) year instead of completing CCT steps.
  • Option to install and maintain point-of-use (POU) treatment devices instead of completing CCT steps.

For a complete description of the corrosion control treatment requirements and the applicability of CCT steps, please see s. NR 809.542 and NR 809.543 (effective Nov. 1, 2027), Wis. Adm. Codes.

Resources

Public Education Related to Tap Sampling

Public Education Related to Tap Sampling

Requirements that Apply to All CWS and NTNCWS

  • Send Consumer Notice of Tap Sampling Results within three (3) business days of receiving lead or copper sample results.
  • Include updated Health Effects of Lead language in any public education materials.

Additional Requirements that Apply to CWS

Include updated Health Effects of Lead language in the Consumer Confidence Report (CCR).

Requirements that Apply to Water Systems that Experience a Lead Action Level Exceedance (ALE)

  • Include updated information about the Health Effects and Sources of Lead in public education materials.
  • Provide tap sampling to consumers upon request and send Consumer Notices of Tap Sampling Results.
  • Conduct standard monitoring for at least two consecutive tap sampling periods after a lead or copper ALE occurs, beginning in the tap monitoring period immediately following one in which the ALE occurred. 

Requirements that Apply to Water Systems that Experience Multiple Lead ALEs

  • Repeat public education activities if the water system experiences any subsequent lead ALEs.
  • Create a Filter Plan and submit it to DNR for approval after a water system experiences two (2) ALEs in a rolling 5-year period. The first rolling 5-year period begins Nov. 1, 2027.
  • Enact the approved Filter Plan and conduct public outreach to discuss the situation and the Filter Plan after a water system experiences three (3) ALEs in a rolling 5-year period.

Requirements that Apply to Water Systems that Experience a Copper ALE

  • Provide public education materials to consumers that include updated information about:
    • Health effects of copper
    • Sources of copper
    • Consumer steps to reduce copper exposure
    • More information about copper

Note: The updated ch. NR 809 clarifies the state's copper Public Education requirements.

For more information on public education requirements, please see s. NR 809.546 (effective Nov. 1, 2027), Wis. Adm. Code.

Resources

School and Child Care Facility Monitoring

School and Child Care Facility Monitoring

Requirements that Apply to Community Water Systems

  • Send the department a list of the schools and regulated child care facilities the water system serves, OR certify that the system does not serve schools or regulated child care facilities by Nov. 1, 2027.
    Note:  CWSs do not need to include schools and regulated child care facilities on the list that were constructed or had full plumbing replacement after Jan. 1, 2014 AND that are not served by a lead, galvanized-requiring-replacement (GRR) or lead-status-unknown (LSU) service line. 
  • Provide annual lead public education and sampling information to the schools and regulated child care facilities they serve.
  • Sample for lead at each elementary school and regulated child care facility the system serves one time from November 2027 - December 2032 unless the school or facility declines sampling or is unresponsive to four contact attempts using at least two different methods of communication (e.g. email, phone).
  • Notify all secondary schools the system serves that they can request sampling, and sample for lead at each secondary school that requests sampling one time from November 2027 - December 2032.

Note: These requirements do not apply to a school or child care facility that is its own public water system with a PWS ID.

For more information on requirements for monitoring for lead in schools and child care facilities, please see s. NR 809.551, Wis. Adm. Code.

What is a School or Regulated Child Care Facility?

  • A school refers to any building that primarily provides teaching and learning for elementary or secondary students that may be:
    • Public
    • Private
    • Charter
  • An elementary school refers to a school with at least one grade from pre-school through grade 8. If a school includes both elementary and secondary grades, then it is considered an elementary school
  • A secondary school refers to a school with at least one grade from grade 9 to grade 12
  • A regulated child care facility refers to any of the following that is certified or licensed by a local or state agency:
    • Child care
    • Day care
    • Early learning service

Resources

For information on LSLI & Replacement Requirements

For information on corrosion control requirements

For info on lead & copper monitoring requirements