A lead service line inventory is a water utility's record of what each service line in its system is made of, address by address. Federal rules required every community water system to file one by October 16, 2024, and systems serving more than 50,000 people must post theirs online, so many Bay Area owners can look up their own line.
This guide explains what the inventory covers, what its categories mean, and how to check your address with seven Bay Area water providers: San Jose Water, Cal Water, Palo Alto Utilities, the cities of Sunnyvale and Mountain View, the East Bay Municipal Utility District (EBMUD) and the San Francisco Public Utilities Commission (SFPUC). We read their pages, and those of the State Water Resources Control Board and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), in November 2026.
What the inventory covers
EPA defines a service line as the pipe that connects the water main to the building inlet. The State Water Board says the water system typically owns the part from the main to the meter, and the customer typically owns the part from the meter or property line to the building. The inventory covers both parts, whoever owns them, but not the plumbing inside the house.
Two federal rules under the Safe Drinking Water Act set the schedule, as of November 2026:
Initial inventory, October 16, 2024. The 2021 Lead and Copper Rule Revisions required it for all service lines, and EPA's Lead and Copper Rule Improvements (LCRI), issued in October 2024, kept that requirement.
Baseline inventory, November 1, 2027. It adds connectors, the short bendable pieces also called goosenecks or pigtails, no longer than 3 feet. From then on, the public inventory must list a street address for each line.
Annual updates are due each January 30 starting in 2029; systems whose lines are all non-lead don't have to file them.
California is adopting the LCRI through emergency rules the State Water Board approved on August 19, 2026, anticipated to take effect November 1, 2027.
What the four categories mean
EPA sorts every line into one of four categories:
Lead. A line made of lead, or with any portion made of lead. A lead-lined galvanized line counts as lead.
Galvanized requiring replacement (GRR). A galvanized iron or steel line that is or ever was downstream of a lead line, or is now downstream of a line of unknown material. If the utility can't show it was never downstream of lead, it's GRR.
Non-lead. A line shown not to be lead or GRR through records or another evidence-based method. The State Water Board says a line installed after California's January 1, 1986 lead ban, or one 4 inches or larger, may be designated non-lead.
Lead status unknown. A line whose material hasn't been shown yet.
The State Water Board's statewide table as of August 1, 2026, with 4,022 of 4,309 water systems reporting, lists no lead service lines; 0.1 percent of lines are GRR, 6.9 percent unknown and 93 percent non-lead. Galvanized is the category to watch in a mid-century house: EBMUD says it installed galvanized service lines until about 1960.
How to look up your address, utility by utility
Start with the utility named on your water bill. The State Water Board also publishes a statewide summary map, launched in February 2026, from its service line inventory data page. What we found, as of November 2026:
San Jose Water offers an interactive map and address lookup, plus a questionnaire for reporting your pipe material. It says there are no lead service lines in its distribution system, that some homes may have a lead gooseneck, and that it owns the line up to about the property line.
Cal Water posts inventory maps by district. Its Bay Area districts include Bayshore (San Carlos, San Mateo and South San Francisco), Bear Gulch, Los Altos Suburban and Livermore.
Palo Alto Utilities submitted its inventory on October 16, 2024 and offers an interactive map. It says it has certified that no lead is present in the city-owned portion, from the main up to and including the meter, and it is investigating services 3 inches or smaller installed before January 1, 1987.
Sunnyvale says neither the city's side, from the main to the meter, nor the customer's side has any lead or GRR service lines. Staff field-verified 1,150 lines, all services are classified non-lead, and the page has no address lookup.
Mountain View says its 2024 inventory, like earlier efforts, found no lead lines, and offers an interactive map of service line materials. Small areas served by Cal Water aren't on it; Cal Water's Los Altos Suburban map covers those.
EBMUD says it has no lead service lines today. It installed some during World War II and later replaced them with copper or plastic, and customer-side galvanized pipe once connected to them is classified GRR. In its lookup app, "no information available" means lead was never present at that address, about 98 percent of addresses. When a GRR line is confirmed, EBMUD places a "GRR Follow Protocol" tag inside the meter box.
The SFPUC says it removed all known lead utility service lines in the 1980s and plans to remove all galvanized utility-owned lines. It mailed letters to customers whose line material is galvanized or unknown, says there's less than a 1 percent chance a customer-owned line is lead, and offers an interactive map.
Checking the pipe at your meter
If your line shows as unknown, the SFPUC publishes steps for checking it yourself:
Find the water meter, usually under a cover in the sidewalk, and look at the pipe on your side of it.
Scratch the pipe lightly with a key or coin, never a knife. A shiny silver scratch could mean lead or galvanized steel.
Hold a strong refrigerator magnet to it. A magnet sticks to galvanized steel but not to lead or copper.
Compare the look: lead is gray, dull and soft; copper is orange or green; galvanized steel is beige with gray spots; plastic is black.
The SFPUC notes that EPA-recognized test kits test the pipe, not the water. If you think your line is lead, it asks you to contact it to schedule an inspection.
If your line is GRR or unknown
Under the LCRI, water systems must fully replace all lead and GRR lines under their control within 10 years, unless the state sets a shorter deadline or the system qualifies for a deferred one. Key details from EPA's October 2024 service line fact sheet:
Full means both sides. A line counts as replaced only when its whole length, customer side and system side, is non-lead.
Consent. Where the utility needs the owner's consent, it must make at least four attempts using at least two methods, such as a letter, phone call or door hanger.
After a replacement, the utility must give occupants flushing instructions and a certified filter with six months of cartridges, and offer a follow-up tap sample three to six months later.
The State Water Board says systems with lead, GRR or unknown lines must notify the people they serve within 30 days of completing the inventory and every year after. Supply pipes in or under a slab floor are a separate question, covered in our guide to slab leaks in mid-century homes.
For buyers and sellers
A sale can prompt an offer from the utility. Once the LCRI takes effect, the water system must offer full replacement of a lead or GRR line to a new owner within six months of a change in ownership. Buyers can add the address lookup to our mid-century home inspection checklist and ask the seller for any utility letter or meter-box tag. Lead-based paint falls under a separate federal disclosure rule, covered in our lead paint disclosure guide.
What the inventory doesn't show: plumbing inside the house
The State Water Board's February 2026 announcement says the inventory doesn't cover piping, solder and fixtures inside buildings. Its FAQ, last updated January 26, 2026, says that among homes without lead service lines, the leading source of lead is brass or chrome-plated brass faucets and plumbing with lead solder.
Two laws limited lead in household plumbing. After June 19, 1986, the Safe Drinking Water Act required lead-free pipe, solder and flux in plumbing connected to a public water system. In 2010, California Health and Safety Code section 116875 lowered the limits to 0.2 percent lead in solder and flux and a 0.25 percent weighted average for the wetted surfaces of pipes, fittings and fixtures. The board says faucets and valves made before January 1, 2010 may contain more lead.
To test the water at a tap, the board says to contact your water provider first, since some offer free testing, and otherwise to use a laboratory certified by the state's Environmental Laboratory Accreditation Program (ELAP). EBMUD offers one free lead test per customer per year, the SFPUC offers free testing to customers who received its letter, and Cal Water says it doesn't test inside homes.
This is general information as of November 2026, not legal advice. Lookup tools, deadlines and replacement plans differ by water system and are changing as California adopts the LCRI, so confirm your line's status with your own utility and talk with a licensed plumber before replacing any pipe.
Frequently asked questions
Does "unknown" mean my house has a lead line?
No. Unknown means the utility hasn't yet shown what the line is made of. The State Water Board's August 1, 2026 data lists no lead service lines statewide, and under the LCRI each system must identify its unknown lines by its replacement deadline.
Who pays to replace a galvanized line on my side of the meter?
It depends on the utility. The SFPUC says it's the owner's responsibility. Under the LCRI, each system with lead, GRR or unknown lines must file a replacement plan with a funding strategy by November 1, 2027, so ask your utility what its plan says about the customer-owned portion.
Where can I see my service line?
Much of it is buried between the water main and the house, but you can usually see a short section at the meter box.
Related reading
Eichler Radiant Heat: Copper vs. Steel, Repair, Replace or Retire
California Home Sale Requirements for Older Homes: Alarms to Fixtures
More guides on this topic: Owning & Renovating a Mid-Century Modern Home
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Buying or selling a mid-century home and want to know what the water service records show? Call or text the Boyenga Team at Compass at (408) 373-1660 or (650) 383-8606, or contact the Boyenga Team to talk through what to check before you write an offer or list.
