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388 Kentucky water systems have inventoried 1,907,254 service lines for EPA. 5,248 (0.3%) are confirmed lead and 424,074 (22%) are still of unknown material. Below: every large or city-linked Kentucky utility ranked by lead lines.
Kentucky water systems reported 5,248 lead service lines and 22,810 galvanized lines requiring replacement as of Q2 2026 — 0.3% of the 1,907,254 lines inventoried and 0.2% of the national lead total, ranking #24 of 51. NORTHERN KENTUCKY WATER DISTRICT reports the most in the state (4,047).
NORTHERN KENTUCKY WATER DISTRICT (4,047), LOUISVILLE WATER COMPANY (483), PADUCAH WATER WORKS (121) lead the list; 26 Kentucky systems report at least one lead line in total.
Find your utility in the table below, then check its published service line inventory (most utilities post an address-lookup map) or call the number on your water bill. Utilities must notify customers whose line is lead, galvanized-requiring-replacement or unknown. You can also test the pipe entering your home: lead is soft, dull gray, non-magnetic and turns shiny when scratched.
Under EPA's Lead and Copper Rule Improvements, systems must replace lead and galvanized-requiring-replacement lines within 10 years starting in 2027; systems with very high counts can receive longer deadlines. Ask your utility for its replacement plan and whether it covers the homeowner-owned portion.
Use a filter certified to NSF/ANSI 53 for lead for drinking and cooking, flush the tap after water has sat for hours, never use hot tap water for drinking or infant formula, and confirm your actual level with a certified lab test.
Source: EPA SDWIS Service Line Inventory, Q2 2026 snapshot (updated 2026-08-18). Counts are service lines, not people.
A certified mail-in lab test shows exactly what's in your water — lead plus dozens of other contaminants — with EPA-grade accuracy. Know your real levels before spending on a filter.
Certified lab · results in days
Community systems serving 50,000+ people plus systems linked to a city report on this site (25 shown). State totals above include every reporting system.
| # | Water system | Status | Lead | GRR | Unknown | Total lines | City report |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | NORTHERN KENTUCKY WATER DISTRICT KY0590220 · 259,949 served | Lead service lines present | 4,047 | 61 | 21,644 | 93,462 | |
| 2 | LOUISVILLE WATER COMPANY KY0560258 · 806,997 served | Lead service lines present | 483 | 2,064 | 59,521 | 327,653 | |
| 3 | PADUCAH WATER WORKS KY0730533 · 65,004 served | Lead service lines present | 121 | 625 | 17,345 | 34,307 | |
| 4 | KENTUCKY-AMERICAN WATER CO KY0340250 · 669,042 served | Lead service lines present | 28 | 39 | 69,237 | 135,585 | Lexington → |
| 5 | MURRAY WATER SYSTEM KY0180306 · 26,302 served | Lead service lines present | 22 | 1 | 921 | 10,067 | Murray → |
| 6 | MADISONVILLE LIGHT & WATER KY0540936 · 28,102 served | Lead service lines present | 5 | 4 | 5,480 | 10,542 | Madisonville → |
| 7 | BOONE CO WATER & SEWER DISTRICT KY0080034 · 66,300 served | Lead service lines present | 1 | 0 | 1,583 | 28,819 | |
| 8 | ASHLAND WATER WORKS KY0100011 · 44,402 served | Many lines still unverified | 0 | 0 | 12,744 | 14,058 | |
| 9 | FRANKFORT PLANT BOARD KY0370143 · 52,153 served | Lead service lines present | 0 | 30 | 12,648 | 17,524 | Frankfort → |
| 10 | DANVILLE CITY WATER WORKS KY0110097 · 32,600 served | Many lines still unverified | 0 | 0 | 8,064 | 11,067 | |
| 11 | RICHMOND UTILITIES KY0760370 · 35,640 served | Many lines still unverified | 0 | 0 | 6,116 | 16,785 | |
| 12 | WINCHESTER MUNICIPAL UTILITIES KY0250473 · 29,823 served | Lead service lines present | 0 | 16 | 6,100 | 11,389 | |
| 13 | HENDERSON WATER UTILITY/NORTH KY0510188 · 31,705 served | Lead service lines present | 0 | 2,021 | 224 | 12,347 | Henderson → |
| 14 | SHELBYVILLE WATER & SEWER COMMISSION KY1060394 · 23,760 served | Lead service lines present | 0 | 157 | 1 | 9,612 | Shelbyville → |
| 15 | WARREN COUNTY WATER DISTRICT KY1140487 · 91,118 served | No lead service lines reported | 0 | 0 | 0 | 37,177 | |
| 16 | HARDIN COUNTY WATER DISTRICT #2 KY0470175 · 76,326 served | No lead service lines reported | 0 | 0 | 0 | 32,570 | Elizabethtown → |
| 17 | OWENSBORO MUNICIPAL UTILITIES KY0300336 · 60,473 served | No lead service lines reported | 0 | 0 | 0 | 26,522 | Owensboro → |
| 18 | BOWLING GREEN MUNICIPAL UTILITIES KY1140038 · 53,601 served | Lead service lines present | 0 | 3,703 | 0 | 20,716 | Bowling Green → |
| 19 | GEORGETOWN MUNICIPAL WATER SERVICE KY1050157 · 44,608 served | No lead service lines reported | 0 | 0 | 0 | 16,046 | |
| 20 | HOPKINSVILLE WATER ENVIRONMENT AUTHORITY KY0240201 · 41,350 served | Lead service lines present | 0 | 1,949 | 0 | 17,198 | |
| 21 | GLASGOW WATER COMPANY KY0050929 · 36,766 served | No lead service lines reported | 0 | 0 | 0 | 20,284 | Glasgow → |
| 22 | NICHOLASVILLE WATER DEPARTMENT KY0570315 · 35,266 served | No lead service lines reported | 0 | 0 | 0 | 13,994 | Nicholasville → |
| 23 | BARDSTOWN MUNICIPAL WATER DEPT KY0900017 · 31,185 served | Lead service lines present | 0 | 105 | 0 | 13,739 | Bardstown → |
| 24 | HARDIN COUNTY WATER DISTRICT #1 KY0470393 · 30,230 served | No lead service lines reported | 0 | 0 | 0 | 12,598 | |
| 25 | FLORENCE WATER & SEWER KY0080135 · 29,351 served | Lead service lines present | 0 | 59 | 0 | 9,196 | Florence → |
A lead or unknown service line means lead can enter water after it leaves the treatment plant, so city-level test results understate what reaches your tap. Filter drinking and cooking water with an NSF/ANSI 53 lead-certified system, and see the lead in drinking water guide or Kentucky city water reports.
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