WATER QUALITY: Requests the Louisiana Department of Health to review the Community Water System Accountability letter grade point values.

2026 Regular Session Introduced by Beth Mizell

Louisiana LDH should review and potentially adjust the seven-point scoring system for community water system grades to ensure the public-safe, accurate grading reflects performance

Enrolled. Signed by the President of the Senate and sent to the Secretary of State by the Secretary of the Senate on 6/2/2026.

Summary of SR 179 (2026) – Louisiana

Purpose and intent

SR 179 is a Senate Resolution urging the Louisiana Department of Health (LDH) to review the Community Water System Accountability letter grade point values.

The goal is to ensure the public receives an accurate and reliable letter grade for Louisiana water systems.

Key provisions and changes proposed

The resolution directs LDH to conduct a formal review of the current point values assigned to each of the seven standards used to evaluate community water systems, under the Community Drinking Water Infrastructure Sustainability Act.

The seven standards and their current point allocations are:

Federal water quality violations – 30 points
State water quality violations – 10 points
Financial sustainability – 10 points
Operation and maintenance performance – 15 points
Infrastructure violations – 20 points
Customer satisfaction – 10 points
Level of and secondary contaminants – 5 points

Water systems can earn up to 10 bonus points for activities such as asset management, storage assessment and maintenance, well assessment and maintenance, participation in capacity development programs, or management training.

The resolution notes that in May 2026 LDH published the fourth annual grade report, indicating statewide progress but acknowledges that consumer grades do not imply immediate health risk; rather they reflect long-term system viability and needed improvements.

The resolution requests LDH to determine whether any modifications to the point values for each standard are warranted to improve accuracy and reliability of the grades.

Who would be affected

Louisiana community water systems (public drinking water systems) would be evaluated under the revised or reaffirmed point scheme.

The public, as consumers receiving water system grades and related information, would be affected through potentially more accurate or adjusted grade representations.

LDH’s Safe Drinking Water Program would implement any modifications resulting from the review and communicate changes.

Procedural and timeline aspects

The resolution requests LDH to conduct the review and, if modifications are made, to report the results and changes to:

The Senate Committee on Health and Welfare
The David R. Poynter Legislative Research Library

The report is to be submitted no later than March 1, 2027, in accordance with applicable Louisiana law (R.S. 24:771 and 772).

The resolution was introduced in the Senate (sponsor: Sen. Beth Mizell) with Rules suspended as of May 28, 2026.

Overall impact

SR 179 is a directive to reassess the accountability scoring framework for water system grades, with the aim of ensuring public-facing grades accurately reflect system performance, sustainability, and risk factors.

It emphasizes transparency and responsiveness to four years of grading data, balancing public communication with public health considerations.