CHICAGO (June 20, 2024) — Today, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Region 5 Administrator Debra Shore joined Rep. Robin Kelly, Mayor Vernard L. Alsberry Jr., First Assistant Deputy Governor Shareese Pryor, and Illinois EPA Director John Kim to highlight federal and state funding to help Hazel Crest, Illinois, identify and replace lead service lines, ultimately preventing exposure to lead in drinking water.
“For far too long, our country has underinvested in our nation’s drinking water infrastructure,” said EPA Region 5 Administrator Debra Shore. “Thanks to the Biden Administration’s Investing in America agenda, the United States is allocating a historic $50 billion in our nation’s water infrastructure, including lead service line replacements, to ensure clean, safe, reliable drinking water for every American.”
The Village of Hazel Crest is one of 123 inaugural partners in the White House’s Get the Lead Out initiative, announced in January 2023. The Village approved a resolution to remove all 2,700 lead service lines within Hazel Crest, while prioritizing its most vulnerable residents in its lead pipe replacement plan.
“I was delighted to present $240 million in federal funding coming to Illinois to help advance lead service line replacement efforts in Hazel Crest,” said Rep. Robin Kelly. “Thanks to President Joe Biden’s agenda to Invest in America, we can ensure our kids are drinking clean water. Replacing our nation’s aging water infrastructure is not just a matter of convenience – it is a necessity for communities and families to thrive.”
Funding received by Hazel Crest was made possible, in part, by the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law. Recently, EPA announced more than $240 million in additional Bipartisan Infrastructure Law funding for projects throughout Illinois, including Hazel Crest. This funding builds on the Administration’s Lead Pipe and Paint Action Plan and EPA’s Get the Lead Out Initiative.
During the Hazel Crest event, Regional Administrator Shore and other state and local elected officials met with residents and observed a lead service line replacement. Lead can cause a range of serious health impacts, including irreversible harm to brain development in children. To protect children and families, President Biden has committed to replacing every lead pipe in the country.
“I take pride in Hazel Crest being one of the 123 inaugural partners of President Joe Biden’s “Get The Lead Out” initiative and we look forward to removing all identified, lead service lines in the village,” said Mayor Vernard L. Alsberry Jr. “This is a once in a lifetime opportunity to restore the infrastructure and foundation of the Village of Hazel Crest to ensure our residents have access to safe water.”
“Every community in Illinois deserves access to safe, clean drinking water—regardless of where they live,” said First Assistant Deputy Governor Shareese Pryor. “Today’s event not only demonstrates President Biden’s commitment to improving the lives of our most vulnerable residents, but it also highlights the infusion of federal funding Illinois received to equitably identify and replace lead pipes statewide.”
“Lead service lines are a major obstacle for community water supplies in Illinois, and Hazel Crest joins many of our communities in pursuing funding opportunities like these to help with the cost of removing the threat of lead in drinking water for their residents,” said Illinois EPA Director John J. Kim. “This assistance from the Get the Lead Out initiative along with funding from Illinois EPA through our robust State Revolving Fund will help to provide critical funding to prioritized disadvantaged communities that might have no other resources to take on this challenge.”
In May, EPA announced $3 billion from President Biden’s Investing in America agenda to help every state and territory identify and replace lead service lines, preventing exposure to lead in drinking water. These funds will be distributed through EPA’s successful Drinking Water State Revolving Fund and takes another major step to advance the Administration’s commitment to environmental justice. Working collaboratively, EPA and the states are advancing the President’s Justice40 Initiative to ensure that 40% of overall benefits from certain federal investments flow to disadvantaged communities that are marginalized by underinvestment and overburdened by pollution. Lead exposure disproportionately affects communities of color and low-income families. The $9 billion in total funding announced to date through EPA’s Lead Service Line Replacement Drinking Water State Revolving Fund program is expected to replace up to 1.7 million lead pipes nationwide, securing clean drinking water for countless families.
Background
President Biden’s Bipartisan Infrastructure Law invests a historic $15 billion to identify and replace lead service lines. The law mandates that 49% of funds provided through the Drinking Water State Revolving Fund General Supplemental Funding and the Drinking Water State Revolving Fund Lead Service Line Replacement Funding must be provided as grants and forgivable loans to disadvantaged communities, a crucial investment for communities that have been underinvested in for too long. EPA projects a national total of 9 million lead services lines across the country, based on data collected from the updated 7th Drinking Water Infrastructure Needs Survey and Assessment. The funding announced last month will be provided specifically for lead service line identification and replacement and will help every state and territory fund projects to remove lead pipes and reduce exposure to lead from drinking water.
The Lead Service Line-specific formula used to allot these funds allows states to receive financial assistance commensurate with their need as soon as possible, furthering public health protection nationwide. The formula and allotments are based on need — meaning that states with more projected lead service lines receive proportionally more funding.
###