For purposes of the Nebraska Safe Drinking Water Act, unless the context otherwise requires:

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(1) Council means the Advisory Council on Public Water Supply;

(2) Department means the Department of Environment and Energy;

(3) Director means the Director of Environment and Energy or his or her authorized representative;

(4) Designated agent means any political subdivision or corporate entity having the demonstrated capability and authority to carry out in whole or in part the Nebraska Safe Drinking Water Act and with which the director has consummated a legal and binding contract covering specifically delegated responsibilities;

(5) Major construction, extension, or alteration means those structural changes that affect the source of supply, treatment processes, or transmission of water to service areas but does not include the extension of service mains within established service areas;

(6) Operator means the individual or individuals responsible for the continued performance of the water supply system or any part of such system during assigned duty hours;

(7) Owner means any person owning or operating a public water system;

(8) Person means any individual, corporation, firm, partnership, limited liability company, association, company, trust, estate, public or private institution, group, agency, political subdivision, or other entity or any legal successor, representative, agent, or agency of any of such entities;

(9) Water supply system means all sources of water and their surroundings under the control of one owner and includes all structures, conduits, and appurtenances by means of which such water is collected, treated, stored, or delivered except service pipes between street mains and buildings and the plumbing within or in connection with the buildings served;

(10)(a) Public water system means a system for providing the public with water for human consumption through pipes or other constructed conveyances, if such system has at least fifteen service connections or regularly serves an average of at least twenty-five individuals daily at least sixty days per year. Public water system includes (i) any collection, treatment, storage, and distribution facilities under control of the operator of such system and used primarily in connection with such system and (ii) any collection or pretreatment storage facilities not under such control which are used primarily in connection with such system. Public water system does not include a special irrigation district. A public water system is either a community water system or a noncommunity water system.

(b) Service connection does not include a connection to a system that delivers water by a constructed conveyance other than a pipe if (i) the water is used exclusively for purposes other than residential uses, consisting of drinking, bathing, cooking, and other similar uses, (ii) the department determines that alternative water to achieve the equivalent level of public health protection provided by the Nebraska Safe Drinking Water Act and rules and regulations under the act is provided for residential or similar uses for drinking and cooking, or (iii) the department determines that the water provided for residential or similar uses for drinking, cooking, and bathing is centrally treated or treated at the point of entry by the provider, a pass-through entity, or the user to achieve the equivalent level of protection provided by the Nebraska Safe Drinking Water Act and the rules and regulations under the act.

(c) Special irrigation district means an irrigation district in existence prior to May 18, 1994, that provides primarily agricultural service through a piped water system with only incidental residential or similar use if the system or the residential or similar users of the system comply with exclusion provisions of subdivision (b)(ii) or (iii) of this subdivision;

(11) Drinking water standards means rules and regulations adopted and promulgated pursuant to section 71-5302 which (a) establish maximum levels for harmful materials which, in the judgment of the director, may have an adverse effect on the health of persons and (b) apply only to public water systems;

(12) Lead free means (a) not containing more than two-tenths percent lead when used with respect to solder and flux and (b) not containing more than a weighted average of twenty-five hundredths percent lead when used with respect to the wetted surfaces of pipes, pipe fittings, plumbing fittings, and fixtures;

(13) Community water system means a public water system that (a) serves at least fifteen service connections used by year-round residents of the area served by the system or (b) regularly serves at least twenty-five year-round residents;

(14) Noncommunity water system means a public water system that is not a community water system;

(15) Nontransient noncommunity water system means a public water system that is not a community water system and that regularly serves at least twenty-five of the same individuals over six months per year; and

(16) Federal Safe Drinking Water Act means the federal Safe Drinking Water Act, 42 U.S.C. § 300f et seq., as the act existed on January 1, 2021.