58:12A-43 Written notice of composition of service line.

753 words·~3 min read·/nj/title-58/chapter-12a/58-12a-43·

A research copy — for the controlling text, always check the official state or federal source. Not legal advice.

4. a. No later than 30 days after submitting an initial service line inventory to the department pursuant to subsection c. of section 3 of P.L.2021, c.183 (C.58:12A-42), and periodically thereafter as the department may require, a public community water system shall send, to each customer and non-paying consumer served by a lead service line in the service area, and to any off-site owner of property served by a lead service line in the service area, written notice of the composition of the service line.

b. A notice provided pursuant to this section shall:

(1)be sent, by certified mail, to each residential, commercial, or institutional address affected by the known lead service line and addressed to the primary resident or commercial or institutional occupant thereof, as appropriate. Notice shall be sent to all affected addresses, as provided in this paragraph, regardless of whether the resident or occupant is a system customer or is a non-paying consumer;

(2)be sent, by certified mail, to each off-site owner of property affected by the known lead service line and addressed to the property owner's last known address, as determined through the review of local property tax and other available records;

(3)be included in a mailing that is separate and distinct from the water bill that is issued for the property. The notice shall contain large, easily readable text and be presented on distinctly colored paper or other paper that is easily distinguishable from the water billing statement; and

(4)include, at a minimum:

(a)a list of the lead service lines that are being used to serve the customer or non-paying consumer;

(b)information describing the sources of lead in drinking water, including lead service lines and household plumbing;

(c)a description of the health effects of lead exposure; and

(d)the steps that system customers and non-paying consumers in the service area can take to reduce their exposure to lead in drinking water.

(1)If the recipient of notice provided pursuant to this section is the owner or operator of an apartment building, group home, or other multi-family or multi-unit dwelling, such owner or operator shall provide a hard copy of the notice to each existing resident of the multi-family or multi-unit dwelling and shall additionally post a copy of the notice in a conspicuous location in a common area of the dwelling. The owner or operator shall also inform each new resident of the multi-family or multi-unit dwelling, prior to their residence, about the existence of the lead service line, and shall provide each new resident with a hard copy of the notice received pursuant to this section, upon the commencement of their residence. A notice posted in a common area of a multi-family or multi-unit dwelling, pursuant to this subsection, may be removed only after all of the lead service lines identified in the notice have been replaced and determined to be non-lead service lines.

(2)If the owner or operator of a residential rental property, including an apartment building, group home, or other multi-family or multi-unit dwelling, receives notice pursuant to this section, and the owner or operator offers a dwelling unit within the residential property for rent to a prospective or current tenant, then the lease or renewal agreement shall be conditioned on the owner’s or operator’s commitment not to obstruct a public water system, as defined in section 3 of P.L.1977, c.224 (C.58:12A-3), from replacing a lead service line by denying access to the property owner-side of the lead service line. If the owner or operator obstructs the replacement of a lead service line by denying access to the property owner-side of the lead service line, then the lease or renewal agreement shall remain in effect, but the tenant may terminate the agreement any time thereafter without incurring any charge or penalty otherwise imposed under the agreement for such termination.

(3)Nothing in this section shall be deemed to preclude an owner from seeking to arrange reasonable conditions upon a public water system, its contactors, or subcontractors, specifically with regard to scheduling the replacement of a lead service line and related site restoration work.

d. If a public community water system serves a municipality in which the primary language of 10 percent or more of the residents is a language other than English, the public community water system shall provide the notice required pursuant to subsection a. of this section in both English and the other language spoken by residents.

L.2021, c.183, s.4; amended 2025, c.144, s.5.