In 2017, the state passed a law to let larger, investor-owned utilities replace those pipes and recover the costs. This bill would let smaller, municipally-owned utilities do the same.

The measure was originally aimed at Lake County schools, but it was recently amended to include all Indiana schools.

A bill that will help smaller utilities address lead in drinking water passed out of a state Senate committee on Thursday. It would allow those utilities to replace lead pipes owned by their customers.

Indiana lawmakers are looking to New Jersey to help craft legislation that would address high blood lead levels in children.

Right now Indianas required threshold for many services is 10 micrograms per deciliter, twice as high as what the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommends.

More than 1,000 people were forced from the West Calumet Housing Complex in 2016 after tests found high blood-lead levels in children.

Researchers say early tests show the blend of manganese and copper is stronger and easier to shape than current alternatives to lead plumbing parts.

The new testing follows tests conducted last summer that led the district to remove 52 drinking fountains from service in nine schools.

Due to the government shutdown, the EPA canceled a public meeting on the cleanup three weeks ago.

Residents are concerned about a contingency that allows the agency to use a less stringent cleanup plan if the city moves forward with industrial, instead of residential, redevelopment.