The program
| Item | What GCWW says |
|---|---|
| Name | Enhanced Lead Service Line Replacement Program |
| Cost to owner | No additional cost for the public and private sides, paid from local, state and federal money |
| Replaced so far | More than 6,100 lines since February 2018 (October 2024) |
| Pace | About 1,200 a year, expected to rise to about 3,600 a year |
| Goal | Every lead service line in GCWW's area by 2037 |
| Who gets it first | Child care facilities, water main projects, leaking or high-lead lines, targeted areas |
| Contact | 513-651-LEAD (5323), lead@GCWW.Cincinnati-OH.gov |
Sources: GCWW's October 2024 news release and its lead site, read 23 October 2026.
The change to full payment came in December 2021. Before it, the City paid 40% of the private-side cost for residential owners and 45% to 50% for low-income owners, and nearly 40,000 private lead lines were left (WVXU, 13 December 2021). If a plumber quotes you for the whole lead line from the street, ask whether GCWW has looked at the address first.
The steps, from GCWW's lead site
- Sign and return the service agreement; nothing is scheduled until GCWW has it.
- GCWW's contractor calls to explain the work and schedule it.
- The line is replaced.
- Flush the plumbing for 30 minutes and clean the faucet aerators.
- Take a water sample within three days and use the GCWW-supplied filter until results are shared.
- The contractor restores the property: within 60 days for April to September replacements, and by 15 June for October to March ones.
Check your line in five minutes
- Open the lead map on la.myGCWW.org and find your address.
- If the record looks wrong, look at the pipe where the water line comes through the basement wall and report what you see on the site's self-identification page.
- If the map shows lead and no replacement is scheduled, call 513-651-5323 and ask where your street sits in the program.
When you still hire a plumber
GCWW's program covers the service line. Inside the house you pay for any lead or galvanized supply pipe, a new main shutoff, a pressure-reducing valve, or a repipe, and that work needs a licensed plumber and a City plumbing permit; see the Cincinnati plumbing permit guide for the rules.
| Measure | Cincinnati plumbing |
|---|---|
| Permits on homes, October 2023 to September 2026 | 6,119 |
| Firms | 258 |
| Usual filed value | $3,500 |
| Middle half of plumbers' usual value (162 firms) | $2,500 to $7,000 |
| Usual days, issue to final | 90 |
| Share finished | 85.9% |
| Busiest firm, last 12 months | Recker and Boerger (163 permits) |
| Busiest / quietest month | August (125) / September (78) |
Cincinnati plumbing permits close out well: 85.9% finished overall, and only 4 of 98 plumbers with ten or more permits finished under 70%. A plumber's finished share on our list is the quickest way to see whether its permits get closed.
Compare Cincinnati plumbers by finished share →
Typical filed values by firm: Cincinnati plumbing cost. Older permits on your address: Cincinnati building permit search. Timing by trade: how long a Cincinnati permit takes. Other cities' programs: Columbus and Chicago.
What this does not tell you
GCWW's own replacement crews and contractors work under the utility's program, so their service line jobs may not appear as private plumbing permits in our file; the table shows plumbing work homeowners hire. The program figures are GCWW's from October 2024; ask GCWW for your street's current status.
How we know this
Program rules are from GCWW's October 2024 news release and its lead site, read 23 October 2026; the pre-2022 cost share is from WVXU, December 2021. Permit counts and filed values are City of Cincinnati residential plumbing permits, October 2023 to September 2026; firm value ranges use plumbers with three or more permits.
Numbers come from City of Cincinnati building permits (residential, Residential Code of Ohio), data through October 16, 2026. Nobody paid to be on this page and nobody can.
Questions
- Does Cincinnati pay to replace my lead water line?
Yes. Greater Cincinnati Water Works replaces both the public and the privately owned part of a lead service line at no additional cost to the property owner, under its Enhanced Lead Service Line Replacement Program. Before 2022 owners paid most of the private side.
- How do I know if my Cincinnati house has a lead service line?
Open the lead map on GCWW's lead site (la.myGCWW.org). If you think the record is wrong, GCWW's self-identification page lets you report what your line is made of; the pipe where it enters the basement is the place to look.
- When will GCWW replace my lead line?
GCWW replaces lines at child care facilities, during water main projects, where a line is leaking or tests high for lead, and in targeted areas, with a goal of replacing every lead service line in its area by 2037. Call 513-651-5323 to ask about your address.
- Should I hire my own plumber to replace a lead service line in Cincinnati?
Ask GCWW first, since its program pays the full cost and its contractor restores the yard. Hire your own plumber for the house side: interior lead or galvanized pipe, the shutoff and meter area, and any repiping. That work goes on a Cincinnati plumbing permit; the usual one was filed at $3,500.
- What do I do after GCWW replaces my lead line?
Flush the plumbing for 30 minutes, clean the faucet aerators, take the water sample within three days, and use the filter GCWW supplies until the results come back.
Build your own list
Every firm with that kind of permit on record. Pick what you value. The list moves.
Related guides
- Cape Coral UEP: connecting to City water and sewer within 180 days, the septic abandonment, and hiring the plumber
- Chicago lead service line replacement: the free programs, the $5,000 permit fee waiver, and hiring a plumber
- Columbus lead service line replacement: Lead-Safe Columbus, the work agreement, and the LEAP loan
- Columbus Project Dry Basement: a free sewer backflow valve after a backup, and when you need a waterproofer instead
- Saint Paul lead service line replacement: Lead Free SPRWS, the intent form, and hiring your own plumber