Santa Claus Water Utility, IN
Lead detected, under the action levels
Latest 90th-percentile lead: 3 ppb (monitoring period 2024-2026). The federal action level is 15 ppb today and drops to 10 ppb in Nov 2027; EPA's health goal is 0. Lead was measured in sampled homes but the 90th percentile is under both action levels. EPA's health goal for lead is zero, so test your own tap if your home was built before 1986 or anyone in it is pregnant or a young child.
Who runs the water here
Santa Claus Water Utility serves about 3,683 people through 1,923 service connections, which makes it a medium-sized system under EPA's size classes. It is owned by a local government (city, town, county or district) and draws surface water, in Spencer County, Indiana. EPA system ID: IN5274010; phone on file: 812-544-3329. They can tell you what your service line is made of and whether they pay to replace it.
Lead results over time
That is down 2 ppb from 5 ppb in the period ending 2023. The highest 90th-percentile result EPA holds for Santa Claus Water Utility is 6 ppb across 4 monitoring periods, none of them over 15 ppb.
| Period ending | 90th-percentile lead |
|---|---|
| 2026 | 3 ppb |
| 2023 | 5 ppb |
| 2020 | 6 ppb |
| 2019 | 5 ppb |
Against other Indiana systems
Of the 687 Indiana systems with a lead result, the median latest reading is 1.31 ppb; 6 are over 15 ppb right now and 36 have gone over at some point. Santa Claus Water Utility's 3 ppb sits at the 80th percentile in Indiana and the 82nd nationally (higher means more lead).
Nearby utilities
8 other systems share Spencer County; 2 of them have a higher latest lead result than Santa Claus Water Utility. If you are unsure which one supplies your house, the name on your water bill decides it.
| System | People | Latest lead |
|---|---|---|
| Reo Water Corporation | 3,875 | 6 ppb |
| Finch Newton Water, Inc. | 2,672 | 3.15 ppb |
| Rockport Water | 2,520 | 1.31 ppb |
| Dale Water Works | 1,637 | 1.59 ppb |
| Gentryville Water Utility | 1,625 | 1.53 ppb |
| Chrisney Water Department | 823 | 0.79 ppb |
| Grandview Municipal Water Utility | 765 | 0 (not detected) |
| St. Meinrad Utilities, Inc. | 658 | 3 ppb |
Next steps for Santa Claus, IN
Test your own tap with a certified lab first-draw sample; Santa Claus, IN may offer free or low-cost kits through the utility. If your own line is lead, replacing the private side runs about $1,200-$12,300 (EPA average about $4,700). Ask Santa Claus Water Utility whether it covers that cost before hiring anyone - many utilities now do.
These figures describe homes the utility sampled, not your tap. Only your service line record or a test of your own water answers the question for your house. The lead result guide covers how utilities pick the homes they sample. Systems that went over once often dip back under; here is what that means.