Port Arthur officials told the City Council on April 21 that the city has secured a state-funded award to begin inventorying and replacing aging lead and copper water service lines as required under the Environmental Protection Agency's revised Lead and Copper Rule (LCRR). The city's consultant said Port Arthur has been approved by the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality (TCEQ) for an allocation of about $4,800,806 to support the first phases of work.

The consultant, identified in the meeting as the EJES representative, said the federal rule requires water providers to inventory service lines from the distribution main to the outside of residences and to replace lead-bearing materials where they exist. "This is not a choice'this is a mandate from EPA," the EJES representative said. He told the council that the award to Port Arthur includes roughly 51% grant forgiveness for the award amount, with the remainder available as a 0% interest loan repayable over 25 to 30 years.

EJES described the program in two phases. Phase 1 is a comprehensive inventory: staff and contractors will locate and document the service line material at the meter and on the customer side to create a complete system map. EJES estimated the city would need to inspect about 14,000'1,500 service lines to build the inventory. Phase 2 is the actual construction work to replace lead-bearing service lines identified by the inventory; EJES said the state funding is intended to help cities offset that cost but that the full construction cost depends on how many lines are found to require replacement.

City staff told the council the city met an October 2024 filing requirement to TCEQ and that the application for funding has been approved by TCEQ; EJES said the approval places Port Arthur ahead of many other applicants statewide. "We worked very hard to get Port Arthur approved," the EJES representative said. He described the award package and said the state has a multi-round allocation process. "Port Arthur was approved for 4,800,806.0 some dollars," the EJES representative said; he added that "51% of that money that you take is totally forgiven" and that the remaining portion is delivered as a low- or no-interest loan.

Council members pressed staff and the consultant on several practical and programmatic points. Councilman Lewis described a personal family history with lead and asked where city responsibility ends and homeowner responsibility begins. The EJES representative and city staff said the LCRR requires the water provider to document and, in many cases, pay to replace the service line from the main to the outside of the house (the service from the public main to the meter and to the property line). They clarified that the program does not cover internal household plumbing. "We're just responsible from the main to the home," the EJES representative said.

Multiple council members asked about timing, outreach and property restoration. EJES said the city had already begun limited inventory work to meet the October deadline, that TCEQ requires prioritizing inventory near day-care centers, schools and socio-economically vulnerable areas, and that contractors often restore yards to an equivalent or better condition after trenching and replacement. EJES said the state program anticipates community outreach and written consent or documented refusal from homeowners; if a homeowner refuses access, the city will record that refusal and retain the documentation.

City staff and EJES also answered questions about funding coverage and next steps. The consultant described the typical state funding structure: approximately half of the award is forgivable, and the rest is structured as a long-term 0% interest loan. "You can take this free money or you're going to pay it all yourself," the EJES representative said, describing the financial trade-off. Several council members asked that the city publish inventory results and that staff coordinate a clear public outreach plan. Councilman Lewis asked that line-by-line inventory results be posted on the city website so prospective buyers and residents can see whether a given property's service line has been addressed; the EJES representative confirmed EPA rules require notification and prioritized public notice for locations where children congregate.

Why this matters: The LCRR changes the responsibility and reporting expectations for water providers. Port Arthur's award is an early state allocation that should fund inventory and initial replacements; the program will determine how many lines must be replaced and whether additional funding rounds or loans will be required for full replacement. Council members said they plan ongoing oversight of the inventory and replacement process and asked staff to return with a detailed timeline and a public outreach plan.

Ending: City staff said they will return to council with more detailed implementation steps and an estimated timeline once the inventory contract and work plans are finalized. EJES and city staff said they would coordinate the public information campaign and share the TCEQ award letter with council.