Health and Safety Code section 116277
(a)
(1)When making outreach attempts to elementary schools and childcare facilities for the purposes of offering lead sampling in drinking water, pursuant to Sections 141.90(i) and 141.92 of Title 40 of the Code of Federal Regulations, a community water system shall do both of the following:(A)
Compile all of the following information:(i)
The number and names of schools and childcare facilities served by the water system.(ii)
The number and names of schools and childcare facilities sampled in the previous year.(iv)
The number and names of elementary schools and childcare facilities that did not respond to outreach attempts for sampling.(v)
Information that pertains to outreach attempts for sampling that were declined or not responded to by an elementary school or childcare facility.(vi)
Sampling results from sampled schools and childcare facilities.(B)
Provide elementary schools and childcare facilities that decline lead testing with an opportunity to provide information about their reasons for declining by allowing them to select from a list that includes all of the following options:(i)
All drinking and food preparation water outlets were tested for lead within the last five years under an independent program in which the elementary school or childcare facility participated.(ii)
The elementary school or childcare facility already maintains a routine water quality testing program, inclusive of lead sampling in drinking water.(iv)
The elementary school or childcare facility has opted to coordinate testing for lead in drinking water with a third-party vendor for operational reasons.(v)
The elementary school or childcare facility was constructed after January 1, 2010.(vi)
The elementary school or childcare facility was modernized after January 1, 2010, and the elementary school or childcare facility was fully replumbed as part of the modernization.(ix)
The elementary school or childcare facility is currently undergoing major modernization or construction.(x)
Logistical barriers such as timing, access, or personnel coordination prevent the elementary school or childcare facility from participating in the community water system’s offer to test.(2)
(A)If a community water system has received a written waiver from the state board exempting it from lead sampling requirements pursuant to Section 141.92 of Title 40 of the Code of Federal Regulations, the community water system shall be exempt from the requirements under subparagraphs (A) and (B) of paragraph (1) for the subset of schools or childcare facilities to which the waiver applies.(B)
The state board may issue a statewide written waiver exempting more than one community water system from lead sampling requirements pursuant to Section 141.92 of Title 40 of the Code of Federal Regulations, for community water systems subject to a statewide sampling law or program, through the policy handbook adopted pursuant to paragraph (3) of subdivision (b).(b)
(1)Notwithstanding paragraph (2) of subdivision (a), a community water system shall submit all of the information that it compiles or that is provided to it pursuant to paragraph (1) of subdivision (a) to the state board pursuant to a process specified by the state board.(2)
The state board may add additional reasons for declining lead testing to the list specified in subparagraph (B) of paragraph (1) of subdivision (a).(3)
The state board may implement this subdivision through the adoption of a policy handbook. The policy handbook shall not be subject to the requirements of Chapter 3.5 (commencing with Section 11340) of Part 1 of Division 3 of Title 2 of the Government Code.(c)
On or before June 30, 2028, the state board shall make all of the information submitted to it pursuant to paragraph (1) of subdivision (b) publicly available in a searchable format on its internet website. In order to aid members of the public in understanding this information, the state board shall do all of the following:(1)
To the extent possible, present sampling results on its internet website as a specific value and not in a format that uses the mathematical symbol meaning less than.(2)
Bold or otherwise highlight on its internet website sampling results that are above five parts per billion.(3)
Indicate whether a test result represents an exceedance of the action level for lead in drinking water under the federal Lead and Copper Rule.(4)
Provide information on its internet website that explains the health harms posed by lead in drinking water and that even low blood lead levels can result in lasting cognitive impairment in children.(d)
On or before December 31, 2028, a community water system shall include both of the following in its annual consumer confidence report prepared pursuant to Article 20 (commencing with Section 64480) Chapter 15 of Division 4 of Title 22 of the California Code of Regulations:(1)
A written statement that information pertaining to lead testing in schools and childcare facilities, including the names of schools and childcare facilities that received testing from community water systems, is available on the state board’s internet website.(2)
A direct link to the state board’s internet website, developed pursuant to subdivision (c).(e)
This section shall not be construed as altering the compliance dates specified in Sections 141.90(i) and 141.92 of Title 40 of the Code of Federal Regulations.(f)
For purposes of this section, “childcare facility,” “elementary school,” and “school” have the same meanings as those terms are defined in Section 141.2 of Title 40 of the Code of Federal Regulations.
Source:
Section 116277, https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/codes_displaySection.xhtml?lawCode=HSC§ionNum=116277. (updated Jan. 1, 2026; accessed Dec. 15, 2025).
