Pou Introduces Safe Water for Schools Act to Protect Students from Lead

Bill would renew federal grants to replace aging school water fountains and monitor lead levels

PATERSON, NJ – Congresswoman Nellie Pou (D-NJ-09), a member of the House Subcommittee on Water Resources and Environment, last week introduced H.R. 10596, the Safe Water for Schools Act, legislation to help schools across the country replace aging drinking water fountains and monitor their water for dangerous lead contamination.

“Every parent should be able to send their child to school knowing the water they drink is safe,” said Congresswoman Pou. “Last year, testing in Paterson in our district found lead in water fountains and faucets throughout our schools, including dangerous levels that forced some fixtures out of service. This is a problem we can fix. My new bill will help schools in New Jersey and across America replace old fountains, monitor water, and keep lead away from our children. Safe drinking water isn’t political and should be something every family can count on, no excuses.”

The Safe Water for Schools Act would reauthorize a federal grant program under the Safe Drinking Water Act at $7 million annually from fiscal years 2027 through 2029. The program helps local school districts replace older drinking water fountains and cover the costs of monitoring lead levels in school drinking water.

The legislation is endorsed by the New Jersey School Boards Association and the American Federation of Teachers.

The need for this investment has hit close to home in the Garden State. Testing conducted in Paterson Public Schools last year found excessive lead levels in fountains and faucets at 10 schools. Fourteen fixtures registered above the federal action level (15 parts per billion, or ppb), while testing found some amount of lead in a whopping 29.5 percent of the district's fountains and faucets.

Congresswoman Pou has made improving water infrastructure a major focus of her first term in Congress. Earlier this month, the House overwhelmingly passed the Water Resources Development Act, which includes more than a dozen priorities Pou championed to advance flood protection and water projects across North Jersey. The legislation also includes Pou’s bipartisan CLEAN-UP Act, designed to remove barriers that have delayed environmental remediation and flood mitigation projects by the U.S. Army Corps.

Earlier this Congress, Pou also introduced H.R. 5072, the Water Crisis Prevention Act, to strengthen the federal response to major water infrastructure failures and direct a federal review to improve infrastructure resilience against flooding.

Pou helped secure $500,000 to improve the Lower Saddle River channel and, with Senator Andy Kim, delivered another $1.2 million this year for stormwater improvements along River Street in Paterson.