Lowest drinking-water violations by state

How to read this ranking

Delaware has the lowest published drinking-water violations in this comparison, at 0.0%. The next states shown are Hawaii (0.0%) and Georgia (0.1%).

The table orders 51 states by community water systems with current health-based violations. It describes one published measure, not an overall judgment about where to live.

Use the result as a starting point, then compare the underlying source, dates, and local county figures before making a decision. Share of active community water systems serving the county that EPA flags with a current health-based violation—an exceeded contaminant or disinfectant limit, or a required treatment-technique violation. A system serving multiple counties is included in each county; state figures count each system once. This is system compliance context, not a tap-water test, a severity score, or a measure of private wells. Federal SDWIS/ECHO data update quarterly and can lag three to six months; EPA also warns that reported records can contain inaccuracies or underreporting.