Massachusetts LCRI will require community water systems to offer and expand school lead testing beginning in 2027
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Summary
Under the Lead and Copper Rule Improvements (LCRI), community water systems must submit lists of schools and childcare facilities to MassDEP by Nov. 1, 2027, offer free testing and collect samples from 20% of eligible elementary schools and childcare facilities each year through 2032 until all have been sampled.
The Massachusetts Lead and Copper Rule Improvements (LCRI) will require community public water systems (PWSs) to identify and outreach to every school and childcare facility they serve and to begin expanded sampling on Nov. 1, 2027, presenters said in a MassDEP/RCAP webinar.
Jasmine, a presenter, told attendees that PWSs must compile a list of schools and childcare facilities they serve and may exclude only facilities that both were built or had full plumbing replacements on or after Jan. 1, 2014, and are not served by lead, galvanized or unknown service lines. The initial list must be submitted to the Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection (MassDEP) by Nov. 1, 2027, and certified or revised at least once every five years thereafter.
The LCRI expands school sampling requirements: for elementary schools the rule will require five lead samples per school (up from two under the current Lead and Copper Rule) and two samples per childcare facility. Beginning on Nov. 1, 2027, PWSs must offer sampling and collect samples from 20% of eligible elementary schools and 20% of eligible childcare facilities each year through 2032 until 100% of facilities have been sampled, Jasmine said. Nonresponses or refusals may be documented and may count toward the sampling target; PWSs must maintain documentation of nonresponses and refusals.
Sampling protocol spelled out by presenters requires samples to be representative of normal water use conditions: fixtures should be inactive for at least eight hours but not more than 18 before sampling. The draft LCRI also requires first-liter and fifth-liter sampling at tiered sites; for schools the primary (first) and flush (taken after 30 seconds) samples are used together to help determine whether elevated results come from a fixture or upstream plumbing.
The rule also requires annual outreach: PWSs must contact schools and childcare facilities at least once per year with information about health risks from lead in drinking water and steps consumers can take to reduce exposure. PWSs that join MassDEP’s pilot Water Smart program will receive templates and contact lists to assist with that outreach, presenters said.
Why this matters: the changes expand the number of samples required at schools and create an explicit timeline for sampling every eligible facility in a five-year ramp-up. PWS operators should confirm which facilities are served by their system, track refusals or nonresponses and prepare to submit the required list to MassDEP by the Nov. 1, 2027, compliance date.
Next steps: presenters advised systems to begin identifying facilities now, to review and update contact lists when they receive them from MassDEP or its partners, and to watch for follow-up guidance and the final regulatory text. The webinar presenters said additional materials and the recording will be posted to the session materials and to the program’s training channel.
