Revised Total Coliform Rule (RTCR) in drinking water
30,005 active public water systems in 50 states had a Revised Total Coliform Rule (RTCR) violation in the past three years, and 7,820 had one in the latest quarter of EPA's data.
You are on Tapcensus, an independent guide to the EPA compliance records of every public water system in the United States. This page explains Revised Total Coliform Rule (RTCR) and lists the water systems whose records include a related violation. It does not show measured levels.
Is Revised Total Coliform Rule (RTCR) in the records for your water system?
Enter a ZIP code, town, or street address to see the water systems that serve your area, their status, and which rules and contaminants appear in their violations.
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What it is and where it comes from
The 2013 RTCR (effective 2016) replaced the original TCR. It triggers automatic E. coli testing whenever total coliform is found. A single E. coli-positive sample is an acute MCL violation. It also requires systems exceeding 5% total coliform-positive samples to conduct a formal assessment and correct any deficiencies, helping prevent contamination before it escalates.
Health effects
Total coliform bacteria indicate that the disinfection barrier has been breached or fecal contamination is entering the system. E. coli specifically indicates fecal contamination and the possible presence of disease-causing pathogens (norovirus, Salmonella, Shigella, Campylobacter). Illness can be severe in elderly, young children, and immunocompromised individuals.
The standard and what a violation means
EPA limit: Zero E. coli; ≤5% of monthly samples total coliform-positive.
Water systems with a Revised Total Coliform Rule (RTCR) violation, by state
Active public water systems that reported at least one related violation to EPA in the past three years. Each state links to the list of its affected systems.
| State | Systems with violations, 3 yr | Share of active systems | In violation, latest quarter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Michigan | 3,299 | 30% | 847 |
| New York | 2,505 | 31% | 523 |
| Pennsylvania | 2,192 | 29% | 691 |
| Florida | 1,844 | 36% | 202 |
| Indiana | 1,320 | 34% | 439 |
| Texas | 1,311 | 18% | 313 |
| Oregon | 1,105 | 43% | 307 |
| New Jersey | 900 | 26% | 671 |
| Wisconsin | 888 | 8% | 97 |
| Missouri | 858 | 30% | 228 |
| Washington | 845 | 18% | 133 |
| Illinois | 829 | 16% | 196 |
| North Carolina | 800 | 16% | 256 |
| California | 774 | 10% | 100 |
| Ohio | 760 | 18% | 236 |
| Maine | 668 | 36% | 175 |
| Virginia | 666 | 24% | 110 |
| Idaho | 630 | 31% | 152 |
| Montana | 620 | 26% | 204 |
| Oklahoma | 514 | 40% | 73 |
| Alaska | 498 | 38% | 193 |
| Arizona | 495 | 29% | 204 |
| Connecticut | 466 | 20% | 161 |
| New Hampshire | 444 | 18% | 151 |
| Georgia | 426 | 18% | 31 |
| Colorado | 421 | 19% | 165 |
| Maryland | 361 | 11% | 3 |
| Iowa | 341 | 19% | 58 |
| Vermont | 314 | 23% | 76 |
| Utah | 297 | 28% | 122 |
| West Virginia | 270 | 35% | 110 |
| Kansas | 263 | 28% | 36 |
| Arkansas | 237 | 24% | 70 |
| Minnesota | 233 | 4% | 38 |
| New Mexico | 197 | 17% | 63 |
| Wyoming | 180 | 23% | 54 |
| Mississippi | 179 | 15% | 25 |
| Massachusetts | 151 | 9% | 63 |
| Nebraska | 145 | 12% | 22 |
| South Carolina | 128 | 9% | 37 |
| South Dakota | 116 | 17% | 25 |
| Nevada | 102 | 17% | 11 |
| Tennessee | 88 | 12% | 16 |
| North Dakota | 84 | 22% | 14 |
| Rhode Island | 80 | 18% | 29 |
| Alabama | 69 | 12% | 41 |
| Louisiana | 50 | 4% | 43 |
| Kentucky | 33 | 8% | 4 |
| Delaware | 5 | 1% | 0 |
| District of Columbia | 4 | 29% | 2 |
Largest water systems with a Revised Total Coliform Rule (RTCR) violation
The ten biggest systems, by people served, whose records include a related violation in the past three years.
| System | Serves | Status | Rules violated, 3 yr | Unresolved |
|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Mdwasa Main System Miami · Miami-Dade County |
2,377,460 | 2 | 0 | |
|
Phoenix City of Phoenix · Maricopa County |
1,695,000 | 2 | 0 | |
|
Metro Water Services Nashville · Davidson County |
789,969 | 2 | 0 | |
|
Palm Beach County Water Utilities West Palm Beach · Palm Beach County |
671,114 | 1 | 0 | |
|
Pinellas County Utilities Clearwater · Pinellas County |
506,353 | 4 | 0 | |
|
Mesa City of Mesa · Maricopa County |
466,000 | 3 | 0 | |
|
ST Petersburg, City of Odessa · Pinellas County |
349,979 | 4 | 0 | |
|
Manatee County Utilities Dept Bradenton · Manatee County |
347,800 | 2 | 0 | |
|
Lubbock Public Water System Lubbock County |
266,450 | 2 | 0 | |
|
City of Laredo Webb County |
260,046 | 4 | 0 |
About this data
A system is counted once if any of its violations in the past three years involved Revised Total Coliform Rule (RTCR), including monitoring and reporting lapses. Rules violated and status in the systems table are for the whole system, not Revised Total Coliform Rule (RTCR) alone. Counts cover active systems in all 50 states and the District of Columbia.
Source: the U.S. EPA's Enforcement and Compliance History Online system (ECHO), which publishes the federal Safe Drinking Water Information System. EPA's terms and values are shown as published. The records are from EPA's data refresh of Oct 7, 2026; EPA refreshes this data quarterly, and states report to EPA with a lag of three to six months, so the newest violations may not appear yet.