National Primary Drinking Water Regulations: Lead and Copper Rule Revisions; Delay of Effective and Compliance Dates, 31939-31948 [2021-12600]

Agencies

• ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY

[Federal Register Volume 86, Number 114 (Wednesday, June 16, 2021)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Pages 31939-31948]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2021-12600]


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ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY

40 CFR Parts 141 and 142

[EPA-HQ-OW-2017-0300; FRL-10024-33-OW]
RIN 2040-AG15


National Primary Drinking Water Regulations: Lead and Copper Rule 
Revisions; Delay of Effective and Compliance Dates

AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

ACTION: Final rule.

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SUMMARY: The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is delaying until 
December 16, 2021, the effective date of the National Primary Drinking 
Water

[[Page 31940]]

Regulations: Lead and Copper Rule Revisions (LCRR), which was published 
in the Federal Register on January 15, 2021. EPA is also delaying the 
January 16, 2024 compliance date established in the LCRR to October 16, 
2024. The delay in the effective date is consistent with presidential 
directives issued on January 20, 2021, to the heads of Federal agencies 
to review certain regulations, including the LCRR. The delay will allow 
sufficient time for EPA to complete its review of the rule in 
accordance with those directives and conduct important consultations 
with affected parties. The delay in the compliance date of the LCRR 
ensures that any delay in the effective date will not reduce the time 
provided for drinking water systems and primacy states to take actions 
needed to assure compliance with the LCRR.

DATES: Effective date: This final rule is effective December 16, 2021.
    Delayed effective date: As of June 16, 2021, the effective date of 
the final rule published on January 15, 2021, at 86 FR 4198, and then 
delayed in a rule published March 12, 2021, at 86 FR 14003, is 
furthered delayed until December 16, 2021.
    Compliance date: The compliance date for the final rule published 
on January 15, 2021, at 86 FR 4198, is delayed until October 16, 2024.

ADDRESSES: EPA has established a docket for this action under Docket ID 
No. EPA-HQ-OW-2017-0300. All documents in the docket are listed on the 
https://www.regulations.gov website. Although listed in the index, some 
information is not publicly available, e.g., confidential business 
information (CBI) or other information whose disclosure is restricted 
by statute. Certain other material, such as copyrighted material, is 
not placed on the internet and will be publicly available only in hard 
copy form. Publicly available docket materials are available 
electronically through https://www.regulations.gov.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Jeffrey Kempic, Standards and Risk 
Management Division, Office of Ground Water and Drinking Water, U.S. 
Environmental Protection Agency, 1200 Pennsylvania Ave NW, Mail Code 
4607M, Washington, D.C. 20460; telephone number: (202) 564-4880 (TTY 
800-877-8339); email address: [email protected]. For more 
information visit https://www.epa.gov/dwreginfo/lead-and-copper-rule.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

I. Purpose of the Regulatory Action

    On January 15, 2021, EPA published in the Federal Register the 
``National Primary Drinking Water Regulation: Lead and Copper Rule 
Revisions'' (86 FR 4198) (LCRR) with an effective date of March 16, 
2021, and a compliance date of January 16, 2024. On January 20, 2021, 
President Biden issued the ``Executive Order on Protecting Public 
Health and the Environment and Restoring Science to Tackle the Climate 
Crisis.'' (86 FR 7037, January 25, 2021) (Executive Order 13990). 
Section 1 of Executive Order 13990 states that our nation has an 
abiding commitment to empower our workers and communities; promote and 
protect our public health and the environment; and conserve our 
national treasures and monuments, places that secure our national 
memory. Where the Federal Government has failed to meet that commitment 
in the past, it must advance environmental justice. In carrying out 
this charge, the Federal Government must be guided by the best science 
and be protected by processes that ensure the integrity of Federal 
decision-making. It is, therefore, the policy of the Administration to 
listen to the science, to improve public health and protect our 
environment, to ensure access to clean air and water, to limit exposure 
to dangerous chemicals and pesticides, to hold polluters accountable, 
including those who disproportionately harm communities of color and 
low-income communities, to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, to bolster 
resilience to the impacts of climate change, to restore and expand our 
national treasures and monuments, and to prioritize both environmental 
justice and the creation of the well-paying union jobs necessary to 
deliver on these goals. Section 2 of Executive Order 13990 directs the 
heads of all Federal agencies to immediately review regulations that 
may be inconsistent with, or present obstacles to, the policy set forth 
in Section 1 of Executive Order 13990. The January 20, 2021 White House 
``Fact Sheet: List of Agency Actions for Review,'' identified the LCRR 
as an agency action to be reviewed in conformance with Executive Order 
13990 (https://www.whitehouse.gov/briefing-room/statements-releases/2021/01/20/fact-sheet-list-of-agency-actions-for-review/).
    In conducting its review, EPA will carefully consider the concerns 
raised by stakeholders, including disadvantaged communities that have 
been disproportionately impacted, states that administer national 
primary drinking water regulations, consumer and environmental 
organizations, water systems, and other organizations.
    Stakeholders have a range of concerns about the LCRR. For example, 
a primary source of lead exposure in drinking water is lead service 
lines. Stakeholders have raised concerns that despite the significance 
of this source of lead, the LCRR fails to require, or create adequate 
incentives, for public water systems to replace all of their lead 
service lines. In addition, stakeholders have raised concerns that 
portions of many lead service lines are privately owned and 
disadvantaged homeowners may not be able to afford the cost of 
replacing their portion of the lead service line and may not have this 
significant source of lead exposure removed if their water system does 
not provide financial assistance. Other stakeholders have raised 
concerns regarding the significant costs public water systems and 
communities would face to replace all lead service lines. Based upon 
information from the Economic Analysis for the Final Lead and Copper 
Rule, EPA estimates that there are between 6.3 and 9.3 million lead 
service lines nationally and the cost of replacing all of these lines 
is between $25 and $56 billion.
    Another key element of the LCRR relates to requiring public water 
systems to conduct an inventory of lead service lines so that systems 
know the scope of the problem, can identify potential sampling 
locations, and can communicate with households that are or may be 
served by lead service lines to inform them of the actions they may 
take to reduce their risks. Some stakeholders have raised concerns that 
the LCRR's inventory requirements are not sufficiently rigorous to 
ensure that consumers have access to useful information about the 
locations of lead service lines in their community. Other stakeholders 
have raised concerns that water systems do not have accurate records 
about the composition of privately owned portions of lead service lines 
and also concerns about public water systems publicly releasing 
information regarding privately owned property.
    A core component of the LCRR is maintaining an ``action level'' of 
15 parts per billion (ppb), which serves as a trigger for certain 
actions by public water systems such as lead service line replacement 
and public education. The LCRR did not modify the existing lead action 
level but established a 10 ppb ``trigger level'' to require public 
water systems to initiate actions to decrease their lead levels and 
take proactive steps to remove lead from the distribution system. Some 
stakeholders support this new trigger level, while others argue

[[Page 31941]]

that EPA has unnecessarily complicated the regulation. Some 
stakeholders suggest that the agency should eliminate the new trigger 
level and instead lower the 15 ppb action level.
    Some stakeholders have indicated that the agency has provided too 
much flexibility for small water systems and that it is feasible for 
many of the systems serving 10,000 or fewer customers to take more 
actions to reduce drinking water lead levels than those actions under 
the LCRR. Other stakeholders have highlighted the limited technical, 
managerial, and financial capacity of small water systems and support 
the flexibilities provided by the LCRR to all of these small systems.
    Stakeholders have divergent views of the school and childcare 
sampling provisions of the LCRR; some believe that the sampling should 
be more extensive, while others do not believe that community water 
systems should be responsible for provisions and that such a program 
would be more effectively carried out by the school and childcare 
facilities.
    Finally, some stakeholders have expressed concerns that the agency 
did not provide adequate opportunities for a public hearing and did not 
provide a complete or reliable evaluation of the costs and benefits of 
the proposed LCRR.
    In addition, the LCRR has been challenged in court by the Natural 
Resources Defense Council, Newburgh Clean Water Project, NAACP, Sierra 
Club, United Parents Against Lead, and the Attorneys General of New 
York, California, Illinois, Maryland, Minnesota, New Jersey, Oregon, 
Pennsylvania, Wisconsin, and the District of Columbia. Those cases have 
been consolidated in Newburgh Clean Water Project, et al. v EPA, No. 
21-1019 (D.C. Cir.). EPA also received a letter on March 4, 2021, from 
36 organizations and 5 individuals requesting that EPA suspend the 
March 16, 2021 effective date of the LCRR to review the rule and 
initiate a new rulemaking. EPA also received a letter on February 4, 
2021, from the American Water Works Association requesting that EPA not 
delay the rule.
    Consistent with Executive Order 13990 and the Memorandum for the 
Heads of Executive Departments and Agencies titled, ``Regulatory Freeze 
Pending Review'' (86 FR 7424, January 28, 2021), EPA decided to review 
the LCRR. EPA published a final rule on March 12, 2021 (86 FR 14003), 
which provided for a short delay of the LCRR's effective date from 
March 16, 2021 to June 17, 2021, to allow the agency to seek comment on 
a separate proposal, also published on March 12, 2021 (86 FR 14063), to 
extend the effective date further to December 16, 2021. EPA explained 
that the further delay was needed to allow the agency adequate time to 
conduct a thorough review of the complex set of LCRR requirements and 
to assess whether the regulatory changes are inconsistent with, or 
present obstacles to, the policy set forth in Section 1 of Executive 
Order 13990, and to consult with stakeholders, including those who have 
been historically underserved by, or subject to discrimination in, 
Federal policies and programs prior to the LCRR going into effect. In 
the proposal, EPA also sought comment on an extension of the compliance 
dates by nine months from January 16, 2024, to September 16, 2024.
    The LCRR's effective date (i.e., when the rule is codified into the 
Code of Federal Regulations) is different from the compliance dates. 
Section 1412(b)(10) of the Safe Drinking Water Act (SDWA) specifies 
that drinking water regulations shall generally take effect (i.e., 
require compliance) three years after the date the regulation is 
promulgated.\1\ This 3-year period is used by states to adopt laws and 
regulations in order to obtain primary enforcement responsibility 
(primacy) for the rule and by water systems to take any necessary 
actions to meet the compliance deadlines in the rule. EPA is extending 
the January 16, 2024 compliance date in the LCRR by nine months to 
October 16, 2024, to correspond to the delay in the effective date. EPA 
set the compliance date to October 16, 2024, to be consistent with its 
intent, described in the proposal, to provide a full nine month delay, 
to maintain the same time period between the effective date and the 
compliance date in the LCRR, published on January 15, 2021. EPA expects 
that the duration of the compliance date extension will provide 
drinking water systems with adequate time to take actions needed to 
assure compliance with the LCRR after it takes effect.
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    \1\ In this action, EPA uses the term ``compliance date'' to 
refer to the date water systems must comply with national primary 
drinking water regulations (referred to as the ``effective date'' in 
Section 1412(b)(10) of the SDWA) and the term ``effective date'' to 
refer to when the rule is codified into the Code of Federal 
Regulations (see Section 553(d) of the Administrative Procedure Act 
and 1 CFR 18.17).
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    EPA recognizes that under Section 1413(a)(1) and 40 CFR 142.12(b), 
states must submit complete and final requests for approval of program 
revisions to adopt new or revised EPA regulations not later than two 
years after promulgation of the LCRR (with the possibility for an 
extension of up to two years based on certain criteria in EPA's 
regulations). After completion of the stakeholder engagement process, 
EPA will consider whether to let the rule take effect on December 16, 
2021, with a compliance deadline of October 16, 2024, or whether the 
agency intends to initiate a new rulemaking to withdraw or modify the 
LCRR. At that time, EPA and states will have greater clarity with 
respect to the primary enforcement (primacy) application process and 
relevant timeframes. If EPA decides to withdraw the LCRR before it 
takes effect, then there will be no revised regulation that triggers 
the duty for primacy agencies to submit a program revision to EPA since 
the previous regulation (i.e., those regulations that are in place 
until such time that the LCRR takes effect) will remain in effect. If 
EPA modifies the LCRR, the agency will establish a new deadline for 
primacy applications as a part of that regulatory action. If EPA 
decides to make no further changes to the rule, the agency intends to 
use the date on which EPA announces that decision in the Federal 
Register--no later than December 16, 2021--as the promulgation date for 
the LCRR for purposes of the primacy revision application deadline 
under 40 CFR 142.12(b)(1). Accordingly, EPA recommends that states 
consider each of these possibilities in their planning and resource 
allocation decision-making and that states do not submit primacy 
applications to the agency at this time because EPA is not expecting to 
begin review of primacy packages until there is more certainty as to 
the agency's path forward on the LCRR.

II. Importance of EPA's Review of the LCRR for Protection of Public 
Health

    The impact of lead exposure, including from drinking water, is a 
public health issue of paramount importance and its adverse effects on 
children and the general population are serious and well known. For 
example, exposure to lead is known to present serious health risks to 
the brain and nervous system of children. Lead exposure causes damage 
to the brain and kidneys and can interfere with the production of red 
blood cells that carry oxygen to all parts of the body. Lead has acute 
and chronic impacts on the body. The most robustly studied and most 
susceptible subpopulations are the developing fetus, infants, and young 
children. Even low-level lead exposure is of particular concern to 
children because their growing bodies absorb

[[Page 31942]]

more lead than adults do, and their brains and nervous systems are more 
sensitive to the damaging effects of lead. EPA estimates that drinking 
water can make up 20 percent or more of a person's total exposure to 
lead. Infants who consume mostly formula mixed with tap water can, 
depending on the level of lead in the system and other sources of lead 
in the home, receive 40 to 60 percent of their exposure to lead from 
drinking water used in the formula. Scientists have linked lead's 
effects on the brain with lowered intelligence quotient (IQ) and 
attention disorders in children. Young children and infants are 
particularly vulnerable to lead because the physical and behavioral 
effects of lead occur at lower exposure levels in children than in 
adults. During pregnancy, lead exposure may affect prenatal brain 
development. Lead is stored in the bones and it can be released later 
in life. Even at low levels of lead in blood, there is an increased 
risk of health effects in children (e.g., less than 5 micrograms per 
deciliter) and adults (e.g., less than 10 micrograms per deciliter).
    The 2013 Integrated Science Assessment for Lead and the Health and 
Human Services National Toxicology Program Monograph on Health Effects 
of Low-Level Lead have both documented the association between lead and 
adverse cardiovascular effects, renal effects, reproductive effects, 
immunological effects, neurological effects, and cancer. EPA's 
Integrated Risk Information System (IRIS) Chemical Assessment Summary 
provides additional health effects information on lead.
    Because of disparities in the quality of housing, community 
economic status, and access to medical care, lead in drinking water 
(and other media) disproportionately affects lower-income people. 
Minority and low-income children are more likely to live in proximity 
to lead-emitting industries and to live in urban areas, which are more 
likely to have contaminated soils, contributing to their overall 
exposure. Additionally, non-Hispanic black individuals are more than 
twice as likely as non-Hispanic whites to live in moderately or 
severely substandard housing, which is more likely to present risks 
from deteriorating lead based paint. The disparate exposure to all 
sources of environmental lead experienced by low-income and minority 
populations may be exacerbated because of their more limited resources 
for remediating lead service lines, which if present in a home, can be 
a significant source of lead exposure.
    For example, stakeholders have raised concerns that, to the extent 
water systems rely on homeowners to pay for replacement of customer-
owned portions of lines, lower-income homeowners may be unable to 
afford to replace lines, resulting in disparate levels of protection. 
In addition, a higher incidence of renting among lower-income people 
may prevent residents from removing lines where the property owner does 
not consent or finance replacement of the customer-owned portion of the 
line. Moreover, the crisis in Flint, Michigan, has brought increased 
attention to the challenge of lead in drinking water systems across the 
country.
    Prior to EPA's actions to delay the effective and compliance dates 
of the LCRR, litigants and stakeholders had expressed a wide range of 
concerns about the LCRR's requirements that addressed both the rule's 
ability to protect public health and the implementation burden that 
will be placed on systems and states. Specific components of the rule 
for which concerns have been raised include: The 15 parts per billion 
(ppb) action level; the 10 ppb trigger level; the lead service line 
inventory requirements, the lead service line replacement requirements; 
the flexibility given to small systems; and the sampling of drinking 
water at schools and child care facilities.
    Given the paramount significance to the public's health for 
ensuring that lead in drinking water is adequately addressed under the 
SDWA, and the concerns raised by litigants and other stakeholders about 
the LCRR, it is critically important that EPA's review of the LCRR be 
deliberate and have the benefit of meaningful engagement with the 
affected public, including overburdened and underserved communities 
disproportionately affected by exposure to lead, prior to the rule 
going into effect.

III. Summary of Public Comments on the Extension of the Effective and 
Compliance Dates of the LCRR and EPA's Responses

    In the proposed rulemaking, EPA solicited public comment on ``the 
duration of the effective date and compliance date extensions and 
whether the compliance date extension should apply to the entire LCRR 
or certain components of the final rule.'' A summary of the comments 
received on the extensions, as well as the agency's responses is 
provided in this section.
    The majority of commenters expressed support for the delay of the 
effective and compliance dates of the LCRR. These commenters, 
representing states, water systems, environmental and public health 
organizations, provided a number of reasons for their support as well 
as suggestions for how EPA should utilize the additional time. 
Commenters indicated that the delay would allow time for the agency to 
conduct a more thorough and complete review, collect and analyze new 
data, engage with stakeholders, and hold public meetings to solicit 
further comment on the LCRR as it relates to state and local 
implementation of drinking water standards, public health protections, 
lead in school drinking water issues, and specifically to listen to 
people who are living in communities disproportionately affected by 
exposure to lead and underserved communities suffering from lead-
contaminated drinking water about their recommendations for the rule. 
Several commenters urged EPA to suspend the March 16, 2021 effective 
date of the LCRR to review the rule and initiate a new rulemaking to 
address issues with the rule published in the Federal Register on 
January 15, 2021 at 86 FR 4198. Commenters also expressed support for 
the 9-month compliance date extension from the current compliance date 
of January 16, 2024. Commenters stated that if the rule's effective 
date were delayed from March 16, 2021, to December 16, 2021, the 
compliance date should be delayed the same amount of time, ensuring 
that utilities do not lose any of the time they had been expecting to 
have available to implement the rule once there is regulatory 
certainty. Additional commenters indicated that the extension of the 
compliance date would allow resource-constrained systems and 
communities needed time to implement the regulatory requirements of the 
LCRR in general, and more specifically, the lead service line (LSL) 
inventory and school and child care facility monitoring requirements. 
Two commenters indicated that the compliance date should be delayed as 
long as possible.
    EPA agrees with commenters that support a delay of the effective 
date of the LCRR to December 16, 2021. This time is necessary and 
sufficient to accommodate a thorough review of the requirements of the 
LCRR and engage with a wide range of stakeholders, including 
disproportionally affected and underserved communities on the issue of 
controlling lead in drinking water. The additional 6-month delay of the 
June 17, 2021 effective date to December 16, 2021, is necessary to 
develop, publicize, and implement a public engagement process that 
accommodates

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the significant and widespread public interest in this rulemaking, 
coupled with the time needed to compile and evaluate input received 
during the public engagement process and make a decision as to whether 
to let the LCRR as published take effect or initiate a rulemaking to 
withdraw or modify the rule. EPA is currently implementing a public 
engagement plan that includes public listening sessions, community, 
tribal, and stakeholder roundtables, and a co-regulator meeting in 
addition to receiving written public comment on the LCRR as part of its 
engagement process. EPA believes that the extension of the effective 
date to December 16, 2021, is sufficient for the review of the LCRR in 
accordance with Executive Order 13990.
    EPA also agrees with commenters that support the 9-month delay of 
the compliance date. The SDWA typically provides a 3-year time period 
for drinking water systems and states to assure compliance with new or 
revised drinking water standards. If the compliance date is not 
delayed, systems and states would expend resources now to assure 
compliance with the LCRR by January 16, 2024, particularly given the 
significant effort required to develop the LSL inventory, LSL 
replacement plan, and to re-evaluate the tap sampling locations used in 
their sampling pool, all of which are required before the compliance 
date and underpin the implementation of the larger requirements of the 
LCRR. EPA estimated in the economic analysis of the final LCRR that 
systems and states would spend between $57-60 million, in 2016 dollars, 
in the first year following promulgation of the rule, working towards 
compliance by January 16, 2024. The majority of these funds are spent 
by systems to read and understand the new regulatory requirements, 
develop implementation plans, train staff, and participate in trainings 
and technical assistance interactions with the states; and by states to 
adopt the rule and develop the changes needed to their implementation 
programs, modify their data systems, provide training to their staff, 
and provide training and technical assistance to the regulated systems.
    If EPA determines to initiate a rulemaking to withdraw the LCRR or 
significantly revise it as a result of the Executive Order 13990 review 
process, then these compliance expenditures might be unnecessary to 
comply with applicable regulatory requirements. Without a delay in the 
effective and compliance dates of the rule, states and regulated 
entities may make decisions and spend scarce resources on compliance 
obligations that could change at the end of EPA's review period. To 
avoid imposing unnecessary costs on water systems and states, and to 
allow systems and states sufficient time to prepare for compliance once 
regulatory certainty has been achieved, EPA has determined to delay 
both the effective and compliance dates of the LCRR to December 16, 
2021, and October 16, 2024, respectively.
    EPA received a small number of comment letters that, in general, 
supported a delay in the effective date and compliance dates, but did 
not want the agency to delay the implementation of some of the 
regulatory requirements they felt would increase public health 
protection. These commenters indicated that the following improvements 
could be implemented during EPA's reconsideration of the other aspects 
of the LCRR: The LSL inventory requirements, improved corrosion control 
treatment requirements, and strengthened monitoring provisions, 
including provisions that would prevent sampling that is likely to 
underestimate the actual lead levels in drinking water. Other 
commenters indicated that any delay to the LCRR effective date and 
compliance date must apply to the entire LCRR given the interrelated 
nature of the different aspects of the rule. According to these 
commenters, having the compliance date extension apply to the LCRR in 
its entirety will simplify communication, reduce complexity and 
confusion, improve compliance by the regulated community, and provide 
additional time to obtain the data management tools and resources 
required to implement the rule.
    Because there is only one effective date for the LCRR, it can take 
effect or be withdrawn only in its entirety. EPA cannot selectively 
allow some aspects of the rule to become effective in advance of other 
parts of the rule without undertaking a separate notice and comment 
rulemaking. While EPA could establish different compliance dates for 
different parts of the LCRR as part of a notice and comment rulemaking, 
the agency has determined not to do so at this time because it would 
pre-determine the outcome of the public stakeholder process, create 
confusion for implementing authorities and regulated entities, impose 
potentially unnecessary costs, and undermine the re-evaluation process 
by diverting agency and stakeholder resources that would otherwise be 
devoted to the re-evaluation process. EPA is currently seeking input on 
all aspects of the rule as part of the stakeholder engagement process. 
To proceed with implementation of selected portions of the rule during 
EPA's review of the entire rule would be both impractical and 
inconsistent with the agency's stated intention to re-evaluate the LCRR 
in light of stakeholder input on the entire LCRR. Moreover, as 
explained in the proposal, stakeholders have raised concerns with 
nearly all aspects of the LCRR, including the LSL inventory 
requirements. Therefore, EPA has determined to delay the effective date 
and all of the compliance dates in the rule at this time.
    EPA received a total of four comment letters indicating opposition 
to the extensions of the effective and compliance dates, and an 
additional two that did not explicitly support or oppose the delay in 
the effective and compliance dates of the LCRR. In general, the 
commenters opposing the extensions stated that delaying the effective 
and compliance dates would delay the public health improvements that 
would be achieved with implementing the LCRR, in part or in total, as 
finalized on January 15, 2021.
    The comments opposing a delay in the compliance deadline include 
the following, from the Association of Metropolitan Water Agencies 
(AMWA), which stated that it ``has concerns that EPA's proposal to 
delay the effective date . . . would postpone the significant public 
health improvements that will be achieved by implementing the rule as 
finalized.'' They go on to state, ``the benefits of this [delay] must 
be weighed against the costs of postponing the public health 
improvements that will be achieved when water systems begin to comply 
with the final rule in its current form.'' AMWA identifies the 
customer-initiated LSL replacement provision, the LSL inventory, and 
the school and child-care testing provisions as public health 
improvements that would be postponed by a delay of the rule effective 
and compliance dates. Also, the Kentucky and Tennessee Water Utility 
Councils (KY/TN WUC) of the American Water Works Association stated 
that they ``are concerned that extending the dates of the Rule could 
delay the enhanced awareness, detection, communication, and elimination 
of potential lead exposure in communities.'' Another public commenter 
opposed the effective and compliance date extensions, arguing that EPA 
should instead simultaneously implement and revise the LCRR because of 
certain aspects of the rule that the commenter claims ``would provide 
immediate public health benefits''--such as the LSL inventory and 
associated public

[[Page 31944]]

notification requirements, as well as changes in the sampling 
requirements.
    Similarly, one anonymous commenter argued that to delay the rule is 
tantamount to repeal of the rule and that EPA has not analyzed the 
effects on human health of the delay that the LCRR was designed to 
benefit, or considered why it is worth forgoing the benefits of the 
rule for nine months in exchange for evaluation of the LCRR which, the 
commenter claims, could be done without delaying the compliance dates. 
The commenter also claims that EPA has failed to provide a meaningful 
opportunity for the public to comment ``[b]ecause of these substantive 
oversights, including the failure to consider the merits of the LCRR 
and the deficiencies of the preexisting requirements in its proposal 
that would allow those preexisting requirements to remain in effect for 
a longer period of time.''
    The KY/TN WUC opposed the delay of the LCRR effective and 
compliance dates, noting that EPA has already conducted extensive 
outreach during the development of the LCRR, stating, ``EPA's thorough 
and extensive review and stakeholder engagement process resulted in a 
final Rule that strengthens every aspect of the current rule and 
accelerates actions that can reduce lead in drinking water.'' This 
concept of EPA having already conducted extensive outreach was echoed 
by AMWA, noting that the agency ``has been discussing options for the 
rule with these communities, other stakeholders, and the public since 
at least 2010.'' However, AMWA ``agrees that engagement with at-risk 
communities is critical.'' The commenter opposing the delay and arguing 
that EPA should simultaneously implement and revise the LCRR, also 
expressed support for EPA's effort to seek additional stakeholder input 
on the LCRR. Another comment letter, from the American Water Works 
Association (AWWA) recommended that EPA consider the extensive outreach 
that the agency has already conducted on the LCRR.
    EPA received two comment letters that did not explicitly support or 
oppose the delay in the effective and compliance dates of the LCRR. One 
comment letter, jointly signed by the U.S. Conference of Mayors, the 
National League of Cities, and the National Association of Counties, 
indicated that the LCRR as published on January 15, 2021, at 86 FR 4198 
``satisfactorily addressed the local government perspective in both 
protecting public health and reducing lead contamination of drinking 
water.'' Another comment letter from AWWA requests that the effective 
and compliance dates be extended in an amount commensurate with the 
additional time used for stakeholder outreach. AWWA noted that the 
``[u]ncertainty . . . which is naturally generated through 
reconsideration efforts'' will make it difficult for public water 
systems to prepare for compliance and make investments needed to meet 
the interrelated requirements of the rule, as such efforts may prove to 
be wasted or wasteful if the Rule ultimately changes in its 
particulars.'' Accordingly, AWWA requests that ``all extensions to the 
effective date of the LCRR and any subsequent agency activity that 
seeks to change the LCRR should be accompanied by an extension to the 
compliance timeframes.'' AMWA, though opposing the delays in the LCRR 
implementation, also expressed support for an extension of the 
compliance dates by nine months if EPA delays the June 17, 2021 
effective date of the rule.
    For reasons discussed in the proposal and this action, EPA 
disagrees with the commenters asserting that the LCRR, as published on 
January 15, 2021, at 86 FR 4198, should take effect on June 17, 2021. 
EPA provided a reasoned explanation in the proposal for the delayed 
effective and compliance dates while the agency conducts this re-
evaluation. The explanation identified EPA's concern that water systems 
and states could unnecessarily expend significant resources on 
compliance with a rule that may ultimately be withdrawn or 
substantially modified and, which many commenters have urged, may not 
be a sufficient improvement in public health protection in comparison 
to the existing protection of the LCR, or even possibly reduce public 
health protections.
    This action will enable EPA to engage with communities, 
stakeholders, tribes, and states to gather more information about their 
concerns with the LCRR and to share information about actions that can 
reduce drinking water lead exposure. The LCRR virtual engagement 
process is providing benefits in three ways. First, the engagement is 
increasing public and community awareness of the potential harmful 
health effects of lead and the ways individuals and communities may 
proactively reduce their exposure. Because the effective implementation 
of drinking water lead reduction requirements, such as LSL replacement, 
depends on the actions of both water systems and private citizens, the 
increased awareness fostered by EPA's LCRR review outreach activities 
will improve the implementation of the LCRR and/or a future lead in 
drinking water regulatory action. Second, the information gained by the 
agency from listening to the public and communities that have been 
dealing with lead in drinking water issues across the country will 
provide EPA with new information that will help in the development of 
more effective implementation guidance for the LCRR or any future 
revisions of the LCRR. Information gathered from this process may be 
especially useful for the guidance on developing the initial LSL 
inventory and the LSL replacement plan. Third, the delay of the 
effective date, to engage with communities, will allow the agency to 
potentially develop future regulatory revisions to the Lead and Copper 
Rule, consistent with Executive Order 13990, that will be more 
effective at reducing the lead in drinking water in real world 
communities and better at targeting disadvantaged underserved 
communities.
    EPA's economic analysis of the LCRR supports the conclusion that 
the relatively-short delay in the effective date and compliance dates 
for this rule, in particular, will not significantly reduce the 
benefits of the LCRR. The economic analysis of the final LCRR estimated 
that the annual total incremental cost of the regulatory requirements, 
in 2016 dollars, would range from $161 to $335 million at the 3 percent 
discount rate, and $167 to $372 million at the 7 percent discount rate. 
The annual total incremental monetized benefits, in 2016 dollars, of 
the final rule were estimated to be between $223 to $645 million, at a 
3 percent discount rate, and $39 to $119 million at the 7 percent 
discount rate. The delay of the original compliance date, of January 
16, 2024, by nine months pushes back in time both the cost born by 
complying entities and the monetized benefits received by the public as 
a result of lower lead levels in drinking water, by nine months, 
assuming all other environmental and regulatory conditions remain the 
same. EPA selected the conservative assumption of modeling a one year 
delay in the regulatory costs and benefits impacts. The estimated 
annual total incremental cost of the rule given the one-year delay 
ranged from $153 to $320 million, at the 3 percent discount rate, and 
$155 to $346 million at the 7 percent discount rate, in 2016 dollars. 
The monetized annual incremental benefits, in 2016 dollars, given a 
one-year delay of the compliance date would range from $213 to $616 
million, at the 3 percent discount rate, and $37 to $111 million at the 
7 percent discount rate. The estimated change in the monetized

[[Page 31945]]

incremental annualized social costs and benefits of the delay in the 
compliance date are approximately of equal size over the 35-year period 
of analysis ($7 to $27 million for costs and $3 to $29 million for 
benefits in 2016 dollars), but, as previously discussed, the expected 
first year (post rule effective date) expenditures by systems and 
states would be between $57-60 million, in 2016 dollars. These first-
year expenditures to prepare for regulatory compliance with the LCRR 
could be unnecessary if EPA determines to initiate a rulemaking to 
withdraw or significantly revise the LCRR as a result of the Executive 
Order 13990 review process. The estimated first year (post rule 
effective date) benefits are zero given that the regulatory 
requirements that produce monetized benefits are not implemented until 
the compliance date three years after the effective date.
    Moreover, EPA notes that there is an existing National Primary 
Drinking Water Rule, the Lead and Copper Rule, that will continue to 
provide public health protection and benefits during this short delay 
in the most recent revisions to that rule. Water systems will continue 
to implement the LCR, which includes requirements to monitor for lead 
and optimize corrosion control treatment.
    Given the relatively small impact to the stream of monetized social 
costs and benefits over the 35-year period of analysis, which has the 
potential to dramatically change based on the results of EPA's 
Executive Order 13990 review process, the significant and potentially 
unnecessary implementation expenses estimated in the first year 
following the original effective date, of March 16, 2021; the need to 
provide systems and states sufficient time to prepare for compliance; 
the potential positive gains to implementation and collection of new 
information; and, the existing safeguards to protect against lead 
contamination in drinking water, EPA has determined to delay both the 
effective and compliance dates of the LCRR to December 16, 2021, and 
October 16, 2024, respectively.
    EPA also disagrees with those commenters that suggested EPA let the 
LCRR take effect on June 17, 2021, and then initiate a process to 
revise it. Although EPA carefully considered whether to allow the rule 
to take effect on June 17, 2021, while postponing the compliance dates 
for only certain aspects of the rule, EPA has determined not to do so 
at this time because it would pre-determine the outcome of the public 
stakeholder process, create confusion for implementing authorities and 
regulated entities, impose potentially unnecessary costs, and undermine 
the re-evaluation process by diverting EPA and stakeholder resources 
that would otherwise be devoted to the re-evaluation process. Moreover, 
as explained in the proposal, stakeholders have raised concerns with 
nearly all aspects of the LCRR, including the LSL inventory 
requirements. Accordingly, EPA has determined that this approach, to 
let the rule take effect while postponing compliance dates for some 
aspects of the rule, is not appropriate at this time.
    EPA agrees that in developing the LCRR it has already conducted 
extensive stakeholder engagements. However, to the extent commenters 
are suggesting that additional stakeholder input is not warranted at 
this time, the agency disagrees. EPA did not conduct any public 
meetings on the LCRR revisions in the two years prior to promulgation 
of the final rule, which includes the time period between the proposal 
and the final rule. Similarly, in the two years preceding promulgation 
of the final rule, EPA did not conduct any targeted meetings to get 
input on the proposed revisions from communities historically 
underserved by, or subject to discrimination in, Federal policies and 
programs, or those communities that have been significantly affected by 
lead in drinking water. The information shared by these communities 
could prove to be valuable in understanding potential rule 
implementation issues that could lead to improved and more effective 
LCRR requirements and implementation guidance. As discussed previously, 
EPA agrees with commenters that the delay of the effective date 
warrants a delay in the compliance dates for the rule. EPA's re-
evaluation of the LCRR creates regulatory uncertainty during the 3-year 
time period typically provided for drinking water systems and states to 
assure compliance with new or revised drinking water standards. If the 
compliance date is not delayed, systems and states would expend 
resources now, to assure compliance with the LCRR by January 16, 2024. 
EPA estimated in the economic analysis of the final LCRR that systems 
and states would spend between $57-60 million, in 2016 dollars, in the 
first year following promulgation of the rule working towards 
compliance. If EPA were to initiate a rulemaking to withdraw or 
significantly revise the LCRR, then these compliance expenditures would 
be unnecessary to comply with applicable regulatory requirements. 
Therefore, EPA is delaying the compliance date of the LCRR to October 
16, 2024, to avoid imposing these potentially unnecessary costs on 
water systems and states, and to allow systems and states sufficient 
time to prepare for compliance once regulatory certainty has been 
achieved.
    EPA has complied with the applicable Administrative Procedure Act 
and SDWA requirements for this rule. If EPA decides that further 
regulatory changes are necessary, EPA will comply with the applicable 
requirements of the Administrative Procedure Act and the SDWA, and 
conform to the relevant EOs, including EOs 13132 and 13175, regarding 
federalism and tribal consultations, respectively.
    Many commenters on the proposal to extend the effective and 
compliance dates also provided input on all aspects of the LCRR, 
including the action and trigger levels, LSL inventories, LSL 
replacement requirements, as well as the requirements for optimal 
corrosion control treatment, tap sampling, public education and 
notification, and school sampling, and EPA's compliance with both the 
substantive and procedural requirements for promulgation of a revised 
drinking water regulation. The extent and breadth of these comments 
demonstrates the significant concern that stakeholders, from a range of 
perspectives, have with the LCRR and the procedures EPA followed in 
promulgating the rule. EPA appreciates this input on the LCRR and is 
considering these comments as part of its re-evaluation process.

IV. Final Rule Revisions

    This final rule extends the effective date of the National Primary 
Drinking Water Regulations: Lead and Copper Rule Revisions (LCRR) to 
December 16, 2021. This rule also extends the compliance date to 
October 16, 2024.
    The significant factual, legal, and policy issues identified by 
stakeholders and litigants, and summarized in Section II of this 
document, warrant careful and considerate review of the rule, as well 
as relief from the compliance deadlines as EPA considers these issues. 
After publication of the final National Primary Drinking Water 
Regulation, states and water systems commence activities to achieve 
compliance with the rule by the deadline established in the LCRR based 
on the requirements of Section 1412(b)(10) of the SDWA. Under the final 
rule promulgated on January 15, 2021, water systems will begin the 
actions to prepare LSL inventories, and, as appropriate, to prepare LSL 
replacement plans. The postponement of compliance dates through this 
action is intended as a stopgap measure to prevent the unnecessary 
expenditure of

[[Page 31946]]

resources by water systems on those efforts until EPA completes its 
review of the LCRR and can provide some certainty that the regulatory 
requirements will not be changed. Without a delay in the effective and 
compliance dates of the rule, regulated entities may make decisions and 
spend scarce resources on compliance obligations that could change at 
the end of EPA's review period.
    Section 1412(b)(9) of the SDWA authorizes EPA to review and revise 
national primary drinking water rules ``as appropriate'' and directs 
that any revision ``shall maintain, or provide for greater, protection 
of the health of persons.'' 42 U.S.C. 300g-1(b)(9). This delay is 
consistent with EPA's exercise of this discretionary authority to 
revise its drinking water rules.
    EPA will engage with stakeholders during this time period to 
evaluate the rule and determine whether to initiate a process to revise 
components of the rule. If EPA decides to withdraw the LCRR, the agency 
will propose, take comment on, and issue a withdrawal prior to December 
16, 2021. If EPA decides it is appropriate to modify the LCRR, it will 
consider whether those modifications warrant further extensions to 
compliance dates for the requirements that will be modified to provide 
time to promulgate those revisions before water systems and states must 
take actions to comply. If EPA decides to revise the LCRR, the agency 
will follow the requirements of the SDWA and other applicable statues 
and EOs to propose and promulgate those revisions.

V. Compliance With the Administrative Procedure Act

    Section 553(d) of the Administrative Procedure Act (APA), 5 U.S.C. 
Chapter 5, generally provides that rules may not take effect until 30 
days after they are published in the Federal Register. The purpose of 
this APA provision is to ``give affected parties a reasonable time to 
adjust their behavior before the final rule takes effect.'' Omnipoint 
Corp. v. Fed. Commc'n Comm'n, 78 F.3d 620, 630 (D.C. Cir. 1996); see 
also United States v. Gavrilovic, 551 F.2d 1099, 1104 (8th Cir. 1977) 
(quoting legislative history). However, when an agency grants or 
recognizes an exemption or relieves a restriction, affected parties do 
not need a reasonable time to adjust because the effect is not adverse. 
Thus, APA Section 553(d) allows an effective date less than 30 days 
after publication for any rule that ``grants or recognizes an exemption 
or relieves a restriction'' (see 5 U.S.C. 553(d)(1)). An accelerated 
effective date may also be appropriate for good cause pursuant to APA 
Section 553(d)(3) where an agency can ``balance the necessity for 
immediate implementation against principles of fundamental fairness, 
which require that all affected persons be afforded a reasonable amount 
of time to prepare for the effective date of its ruling.'' Gavrilovic, 
551 F.2d at 1105.
    EPA has determined that this final rule is effective immediately 
upon publication because it relieves a restriction by extending the 
effective date and compliance deadlines of the LCRR, thereby providing 
water systems with additional time to come into compliance. In 
addition, there is good cause for immediate implementation of these 
provisions because, as previously explained, the impact of this rule is 
to ensure that water systems do not unnecessarily expend resources to 
come into compliance with the LCRR until EPA concludes its review and 
stakeholder engagement process and makes a decision as to whether to 
revise the LCRR in whole or in part or to let it take effect as 
published on January 15, 2021.

VI. Statutory and Executive Order Reviews

A. Executive Order 12866: Regulatory Planning and Review and Executive 
Order 13563: Improving Regulation and Regulatory Review

    This action is a significant regulatory action that was submitted 
to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) for review. Any changes 
made in response to OMB recommendations have been documented in the 
docket.

B. Paperwork Reduction Act (PRA)

    This action does not impose any new information collection burden 
under the PRA. OMB has previously approved the information collection 
activities contained in the existing regulations and has assigned OMB 
control number 2040-0204. This action delays of the effective and 
compliance dates of the LCRR until December 16, 2021 and October 16, 
2024, respectively, and does not alter any of the information 
collection activities required under the LCRR.

C. Regulatory Flexibility Act (RFA)

    EPA certifies that this action will not have a significant economic 
impact on a substantial number of small entities under the RFA. In 
making this determination, the impact of concern is any significant 
adverse economic impact on small entities. An agency may certify that a 
rule will not have a significant economic impact on a substantial 
number of small entities if the rule relieves regulatory burden, has no 
net burden or otherwise has a positive economic effect on the small 
entities subject to the rule. This action delays compliance with the 
regulatory requirements of the LCRR and does not impose any additional 
requirements on either large or small entities. EPA has therefore 
concluded that this action will have no net regulatory burden for all 
directly regulated small entities.

D. Unfunded Mandates Reform Act (UMRA)

    This action does not contain any unfunded mandate as described in 
UMRA, 2 U.S.C. 1531-1538, and does not significantly or uniquely affect 
small governments. The action imposes no enforceable duty on any state, 
local or tribal governments or the private sector.

E. Executive Order 13132: Federalism

    This action does not have federalism implications. It will not have 
substantial direct effects on the states, on the relationship between 
the National Government and the states, or on the distribution of power 
and responsibilities among the various levels of government.

F. Executive Order 13175: Consultation and Coordination With Indian 
Tribal Governments

    This action does not have tribal implications as specified in 
Executive Order 13175. The Executive order defines tribal implications 
as ``actions that have substantial direct effects on one or more Indian 
Tribes, on the relationship between the Federal Government and Indian 
Tribes, or on the distribution of power and responsibilities between 
the Federal Government and Indian Tribes.'' The delay of the effective 
and compliance dates of the LCRR until December 16, 2021 and October 
16, 2024, respectively, will not have a substantial direct effect on 
one or more tribes, change the relationship between the Federal 
Government and tribes, or affect the distribution of power and 
responsibilities between the Federal Government and Indian Tribes. 
Thus, Executive Order 13175 does not apply to this action.

G. Executive Order 13045: Protection of Children From Environmental 
Health Risks and Safety Risks

    EPA interprets Executive Order 13045 as applying only to those 
regulatory actions that are economically significant, per the 
definition of ``covered regulatory action'' in Section 2-202 of the 
Executive order. This

[[Page 31947]]

action is not subject to Executive Order 13045 because the delays of 
the effective and compliances dates, until December 16, 2021 and 
October 16, 2024, respectively, do not have a significant economic 
impact.

H. Executive Order 13211: Actions Concerning Regulations That 
Significantly Affect Energy Supply, Distribution, or Use

    This action is not a ``significant energy action'' because it is 
not likely to have a significant adverse effect on the supply, 
distribution or use of energy. EPA has concluded that the delay of the 
effective and compliance dates of the LCRR, which were published in the 
Federal Register on January 15, 2021, until December 16, 2021 and 
October 16, 2024, respectively, is not likely to have adverse energy 
effects. This conclusion is based on the fact that delaying the 
regulatory requirements of the LCRR will reduce near term demand for 
energy commodities that would be required to install and operate 
corrosion control equipment, remove LSLs, or produce and deliver public 
education materials.

I. National Technology Transfer and Advancement Act (NTTAA)

    This rulemaking does not involve technical standards.

J. Executive Order 12898: Federal Actions to Address Environmental 
Justice in Minority Populations and Low-Income Populations

    EPA believes that it is not feasible to determine whether this 
action has disproportionately high and adverse effects on minority 
populations, low-income populations and/or indigenous peoples, as 
specified in Executive Order 12898 (59 FR 7629, February 16, 1994).
    The purpose of this rule is to extend effective date of the LCRR to 
December 16, 2021, to allow EPA to conduct a review of the LCRR, under 
Executive Order 13990, and consult with stakeholders, including those 
who have been historically underserved by, or subject to discrimination 
in, Federal policies and programs prior to the LCRR going into effect. 
Because EPA is still in the collection process of potentially 
significant environmental justice information on the distributional 
impacts of drinking water lead-related regulatory requirements, it is 
not feasible to determine with certainty the impact of the delay of the 
effective and compliance dates of the LCRR.

K. Congressional Review Act (CRA)

    This action is subject to Subtitle E of the Small Business 
Regulatory Enforcement Fairness Act of 1996 (also known as the 
Congressional Review Act or CRA), and EPA will submit a rule report to 
each House of the Congress and to the Comptroller General of the United 
States. The Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs has determined 
that this action is not a ``major rule'' as defined by 5 U.S.C. 804(2).

List of Subjects in 40 CFR Part 141

    Environmental protection, Copper, Drinking water, Indians--lands, 
Intergovernmental relations, Lead, Lead service line, Reporting and 
recordkeeping requirements, Water supply.

Michael S. Regan,
Administrator.

    For the reasons stated in the preamble, the Environmental 
Protection Agency amends 40 CFR part 141 as follows:

PART 141--NATIONAL PRIMARY DRINKING WATER REGULATIONS

0
1. The authority citation for part 141 continues to read as follows:

    Authority: 42 U.S.C. 300f, 300g-1, 300g-2, 300g-3, 300g-4, 300g-
5, 300g-6, 300j-4, 300j-9, and 300j-11.


0
2. Amend Sec.  141.80 by revising paragraphs (a)(2) through (4) to read 
as follows:


Sec.  141.80  General requirements.

    (a) * * *
    (2) The requirements of this subpart are effective as of December 
16, 2021.
    (3) Community water systems and non-transient, non-community water 
systems must comply with the requirements of this subpart no later than 
October 16, 2024, except where otherwise specified in Sec. Sec.  
141.81, 141.84, 141.85, 141.86, and 141.90, or where an exemption in 
accordance with 40 CFR part 142, subpart C or F, has been established 
by the Administrator.
    (4)(i) Between December 16, 2021, and October 16, 2024, community 
water systems and non-transient, non-community water systems must 
comply with 40 CFR 141.80 through 141.91, as codified on July 1, 2020.
    (ii) If an exemption from subpart I of this part has been issued in 
accordance with 40 CFR part 142, subpart C or F, prior to December 16, 
2021, then the water systems must comply with 40 CFR 141.80 through 
141.91, as codified on July 1, 2020, until the expiration of that 
exemption.
* * * * *

0
3. Amend Sec.  141.84 by revising paragraphs (a)(1) and (b) 
introductory text to read as follows:


Sec.  141.84  Lead service line inventory and replacement requirements.

    (a) * * *
    (1) All water systems must develop an initial inventory by October 
16, 2024, and submit it to the primacy agency in accordance with Sec.  
141.90(e).
* * * * *
    (b) Lead service line replacement plan. All water systems with one 
or more lead, galvanized requiring replacement, or lead status unknown 
service lines in their distribution system must, by October 16, 2024, 
submit a lead service line replacement plan to the State in accordance 
with Sec.  141.90(e). The lead service line replacement plan must be 
sufficiently detailed to ensure a system is able to comply with the 
lead service line replacement requirements in accordance with this 
section. The plan must include a description of:
* * * * *

0
4. Amend Sec.  141.86 by revising paragraphs (d)(1)(i) and (d)(1)(ii) 
introductory text to read as follows:


Sec.  141.86  Monitoring requirements for lead and copper in tap water.

* * * * *
    (d) * * *
    (1) * * *
    (i) All water systems with lead service lines, including those 
deemed optimized under Sec.  141.81(b)(3), and systems that did not 
conduct monitoring that meets all requirements of this section (e.g., 
sites selected in accordance with paragraph (a) of this section, 
samples collected in accordance with paragraph (b) of this section, 
etc.) between January 15, 2021, and October 16, 2024, must begin the 
first standard monitoring period on January 1 or July 1 in the year 
following October 16, 2024, whichever is sooner. Upon completion of 
this monitoring, systems must monitor in accordance with paragraph 
(d)(1)(ii) of this section.
    (ii) Systems that conducted monitoring that meets all requirements 
of this section (e.g., sites selected in accordance with paragraph (a) 
of this section, samples collected in accordance with paragraph (b) of 
this section, etc.) between January 15, 2021, and October 16, 2024, and 
systems that have completed monitoring under paragraph (d)(1)(i) of 
this section, must continue monitoring as follows:
* * * * *

0
5. Amend Sec.  141.90 by revising paragraphs (e)(1) and (2) to read to 
read as follows:


Sec.  141.90  Reporting requirements.

* * * * *
    (e) * * *

[[Page 31948]]

    (1) No later than October 16, 2024, the water system must submit to 
the State an inventory of service lines as required in Sec.  141.84(a).
    (2) No later than October 16, 2024, any water system that has 
inventoried a lead service line, galvanized requiring replacement, or 
lead status unknown service line in its distribution system must submit 
to the State, as specified in Sec.  141.84(b), a lead service line 
replacement plan.
* * * * *
[FR Doc. 2021-12600 Filed 6-15-21; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6560-50-P