Water Facilities Funding
 

SRF programs provide financial savings for projects that benefit the environment, including protection of public health and conservation of local watersheds.  Federal and state contributions fund loans for a wide variety of water quality projects including all types of stormwater, watershed protection or restoration, and estuary management projects, as well as more traditional municipal wastewater treatment projects including water reuse and conservation projects.

It allows states to provide funding for their highest-priority water quality needs. Funds to establish or capitalize the Clean Water State Revolving Fund (CWSRF) programs are provided through federal government grants and state matching funds that are equal to 20 percent of federal government grants.  CWSRF monies are loaned to communities at lower than market rate interest-rates, and loan repayments are recycled back into the program to fund additional water quality protection projects. The revolving nature of these programs provides for an ongoing funding source that will last far into the future. 

SRF in Florida

Funding for wastewater construction began in 1957 with the Federal construction grants program and accelerated dramatically with the passage of the Clean Water Act in 1972. During the next 16 years Florida received an average of $125 million grant dollars per year. Amendments to the Clean Water Act in 1987 called for the replacement of the long-standing federal Construction Grants program with the innovative CWSRF program.

The first loans from the Clean Water SRF were made in 1989 to the City of Tampa for $17,928,000. On March 7, 2011, the program exceeded $3 billion in loans. The Safe Drinking Water Act of 1996 established a Drinking Water SRF program to protect the safety of drinking water. The Drinking Water SRF made its first grant in August 1998 to Lloyd Water Works, and its first loan to Tradewinds Utilities in October 1998.

The Safe Drinking Water Act also required the development of Operator Certification guidelines, specifying the minimum standards for certification of the operators public water systems. Click here to learn more about Florida's Drinking Water and Domestic Wastewater Operator Certification Program.

Today, the SRF program is by far DEP's largest funding program and makes $200-300 million or more available, primarily to local governments, each year. Florida and Rhode Island lead the nation in disbursing these funds to eligible projects quickly and efficiently.

Florida’s State Revolving Fund Protects Apalachicola Bay

 This video is also available at www.ProtectingOurWater.org.

(Running time 5:30 minutes)
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