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Minneapolis lead service line replacement: free through the City, or your own plumber at your cost

Minneapolis is replacing private lead water service lines at no cost to eligible property owners, paid for with State and Federal money, toward a State goal of every lead line gone by 2033. A plumber is usually only needed if you cannot wait: Minneapolis plumbers filed 20,012 plumbing permits on homes from October 2023 to September 2026, and the usual one reached its final 113 days after issue.

By Contractor Records · data through October 16, 2026

The program, from the City and the State

Question Answer Source
Cost to the owner None for eligible owners; "State and Federal funds are paying for this work" City project page, updated 2 March 2026
Who does the work Contractors; the City inspects City project page
How you hear The City contacts eligible owners before work starts City project page
Where Project areas set by State funding rules; 27 neighborhoods on the 2025 map City project page
Deadlines State goal 2033; federal requirement 2037 City project page
Who owns the line The property owner, main to house, including the stop box City service lines page
Can a lead line be repaired? No: "You can only replace them" City service lines page
Replacing it yourself Allowed, at your own non-reimbursable expense; notify the water system Minnesota Department of Health

The City's service lines page says lines installed before 1930 usually used lead from the main to the stop box, with galvanized steel from the stop box to the meter. Most faucets bought before 1997 were brass with up to 8% lead; a faucet marked NSF 61/9 is lead-free. Meanwhile the City adds orthophosphate (0.4 ppm) and keeps the water at pH 8.8 to 9.0 to make it less corrosive.

Check your line in five minutes

  1. Look up your address on the City's lead service line map.
  2. Check whether your block is in a current project area on the project page.
  3. Order a free lead test kit from the City's water quality page.
  4. Not sure? Call Water Treatment & Distribution Services, 612-673-5600, 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. weekdays.

Wait for the City, or hire a plumber?

Situation What the rules point to
Your block is in a project area Wait; the City will contact you, and the work is free
Not yet scheduled, no leak The State's 2033 goal applies to all lines; the City picks areas each year
Leaking or failed line You own it and it cannot be repaired, only replaced; a plumber at your cost
Planned excavation anyway (foundation, new driveway) Ask Public Works first whether your line can be scheduled with it

If you hire your own plumber, MDH says the water system then replaces any public portion "in a timely manner", and nobody reimburses you later. Ask the plumber which City permits the job needs and to pull them in their company's name, to name the pipe material and size, and to flush the house plumbing afterwards using the City's home flushing guide. Check the plumbing license first on Minneapolis contractor license lookup; 74.0% of Minneapolis plumbing firms in our file matched an active license.

What Minneapolis plumbing permits show

Measure Minneapolis plumbing
Permits on homes, October 2023 to September 2026 20,012
Firms 497
Reached final (permits a year or more old) 70.6%
Usual days from issue to final 113
Finished share, 10th to 90th percentile of firms with 10+ permits 61.4% to 91.9%
Firms whose matched license is expired or inactive 59
Busiest / quietest month April / December

Plumbers vary more in follow-through than in volume: busy firms' finished share runs from 61.4% to 91.9%. A permit that never reaches final means the City never signed off on the work, so sort the list by finished share, not by size.

Compare Minneapolis plumbers by finished share →

Permit rules and fees: Minneapolis plumbing permit. Checklist: hiring a plumber in Minneapolis. National rules for buried pipe: do I need a permit for a sewer line. Counts by year: Minneapolis permit statistics. Selling the house? Minneapolis Truth in Sale of Housing.

What this does not tell you

Our permit file does not separate water service replacements from other plumbing permits, and Minneapolis plumbing permits carry no filed value, so we cannot give a price for a self-paid replacement. The City's pages do not give a count of remaining lead lines or a date for any one address; Public Works (612-673-5600) is the only source for that.

How we know this

Program details are from the City of Minneapolis lead service line project page (updated 2 March 2026), its Lead in water page (updated 18 August 2026) and Service lines and faucets page (updated 5 September 2025), and the Minnesota Department of Health page for residents (updated 18 January 2024), all read 23 October 2026. Permit counts are City of Minneapolis plumbing permits on homes, October 2023 to September 2026; finished share uses permits a year or more old.

Numbers come from City of Minneapolis construction permits (CCS), data through October 16, 2026. Nobody paid to be on this page and nobody can.

Questions

  • Does Minneapolis replace lead service lines for free?

    Yes, for eligible property owners. The City says State and Federal funds pay for the work 'at no cost to property owners', that contractors do the work and the City inspects it, and that it contacts eligible owners before work begins (City of Minneapolis, updated 2 March 2026).

  • How do I know if my Minneapolis house has a lead service line?

    Use the City's interactive lead service line map or call Water Distribution. As a rule of thumb, the City says lines installed before 1930 usually used lead from the main to the stop box, with galvanized steel from the stop box to the meter.

  • Who owns the water service line in Minneapolis?

    The property owner, for the whole line from the main in the street to the house, including the stop box (City of Minneapolis).

  • Can I hire my own plumber to replace a lead line in Minneapolis?

    You can, but the Minnesota Department of Health says self-replacement is at your own, non-reimbursable expense; you notify the water system, which then replaces any public portion. If your property is in a City project area, waiting is usually the cheaper choice.

  • When will Minneapolis finish replacing lead lines?

    The State's goal is all lead service lines replaced by 2033 and the federal requirement is 2037, per the City's project page. The City picks project areas each year under State funding rules; its 2025 map lists 27 neighborhoods.

Build your own list

Every firm with that kind of permit on record. Pick what you value. The list moves.

Minneapolis plumbing

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Sources
  1. Lead water service line replacement — City of Minneapolis (updated 2026-03-02, accessed 2026-10-23)
  2. Lead in water — City of Minneapolis (updated 2026-08-18, accessed 2026-10-23)
  3. Service lines and faucets — City of Minneapolis (updated 2025-09-05, accessed 2026-10-23)
  4. Lead service line replacement: information for residents — Minnesota Department of Health (updated 2024-01-18, accessed 2026-10-23)