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Date: September 1, 2022​

Dear School Representative,

This email contains important information about the reporting of sample results under Maryland’s “Testing for Lead in Drinking Water- Public and Nonpublic Schools” law. Reporting of results by October 1, 2022 is necessary to ensure that your school’s testing results are properly included in the annual Report to the Governor and the Maryland General Assembly.

This is not a deadline for schools to conduct testing or collect samples. If your school did not have samples collected between July 2, 2021, and July 1, 2022, this reporting deadline does not apply to your school. Please read this email thoroughly.

Under Maryland law, all public, charter, and nonpublic schools serving students in Pre-Kindergarten through grade 12 that receive drinking water from a public utility are required to periodically test all drinking water outlets for the presence of lead in the water on a State-established three-year cycle, unless a waiver from future testing has been granted. This law does not apply to schools that have their own individual wells (i.e., non-transient non-community water systems) and are currently testing for lead in the drinking water under the federal Lead and Copper Rule (LCR). More information on this initiative is available on MDE's web page.

As required by State regulations (COMAR 26.16.07.11), the results of all lead samples collected from schools that receive drinking water from a public utility must be submitted to State and local agencies: the Maryland Department of the Environment (MDE), the Maryland State Department of Education (MSDE), the Maryland Department of Health (MDH), and the local health department within 30 days of the samples being analyzed by the laboratory. 

Please be informed that the results of all lead samples collected from your school(s) during the 2021-2022 school year must be reported by October 1, 2022. The 2022 annual report to the Governor is due December 1, 2022, and will include results of lead samples collected between July 2, 2021, and July 1, 2022.

If your school collected lead samples between July 2, 2021, and July 1, 2022, the sample results and all supporting documentation must be submitted to testresults.leadschoolwater@maryland.gov by October 1, 2022.

Please be sure to include all of the following required documentation in order to complete the submission:

• Laboratory Results Reporting Form (EDD) - must be in MS Excel (.xls or .xlsx) format

• Lead Water Sample Collection Form

• Official Laboratory Analysis Report signed by the Laboratory Director -- (see example here) -- Please also include Laboratory Chain of Custody (COC) form

• School Floor Plan (with locations of outlets identified with unique Outlet IDs) -- (see example here)

• Lead Water Sample Summary Certification Form (only required for each complete round of standard/routine testing)

The forms may be accessed by clicking on the links above and can also be found on MDE's web page. Since State forms are periodically updated, clicking on the above links and/or locating the forms on MDE's web page will ensure that schools are using the most recent version of these forms. For additional information and requirements related to these forms, please refer to the 'Reporting Documents' section on pages 2 and 3 of Testing Requirements and Related Documents.

We appreciate your efforts to meet the requirements of Maryland law and regulations. Please contact the Water Supply Program’s Lead in Drinking Water Division via email at reporting.leadschoolwater@maryland.gov or phone at 410-537-3729 with any questions or concerns.

Sincerely,

Christina Ardito

MDE's “Testing for Lead in Drinking Water - Public and Nonpublic Schools” web page