Environmental Loans August 2024 Newsletter
The Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources (DNR)’s Environmental Loans programs provide affordable financial assistance to Wisconsin communities for water infrastructure projects that protect and improve public health and water quality for current and future generations.
Upcoming Deadlines And Events
The notices of intent to apply, applications and loan closing deadlines are set in the corresponding program's annual intended use plan and are available on the DNR's Project Lists and Intended Use Plans webpage.
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Sept. 25: Final loan closing date for the state fiscal year 2024 Safe Drinking Water Loan Program projects.
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Sept. 30: Application deadline if competing for principal forgiveness for the state fiscal year 2025 Clean Water Fund Program funding cycle. The DNR recommends that all applicants (including those not competing for principal forgiveness) submit an application by the Sept. 30 deadline due to potential limitations on loan capacity. See the Loan Capacity webpage for more information. Note the following reminders:
- Submit the plans and specifications to the DNR Bureau of Water Quality and with the Clean Water Fund Program application.
- Priority score reevaluation requests are due within 30 days of the Clean Water Fund Program application deadline date.
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Sept. 30: Last recommended date for submitting rate applications to the Public Service Commission of Wisconsin for the state fiscal year 2025 Safe Drinking Water Loan Program projects.
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September 2024: The DNR intends to publish the state fiscal year 2025 Safe Drinking Water Loan Program draft funding list.
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Oct. 31: Notice of intent to apply deadline for the state fiscal year 2026 Clean Water Fund Program and Safe Drinking Water Loan Program funding cycles.
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November 2024: The DNR intends to publish the state fiscal year 2025 Safe Drinking Water Loan Program final funding list.
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December 2024: The DNR intends to publish the state fiscal year 2025 Clean Water Fund Program funding list.
*If a deadline falls on a weekend or legal holiday, that deadline is extended to the next business day, per s. 990.001(4), Wis. Stats.
Loan Capacity Updates
Due to the continued high demand for financial assistance, loan capacity limitations may impact the state fiscal year 2025 Clean Water Fund Program and Safe Drinking Water Loan Program applications.
State Fiscal Year 2025 Updates
The DNR and the Department of Administration have recently completed an evaluation of loan capacity for the state fiscal year 2025 funding cycles.
The loan capacity for the Safe Drinking Water Loan Program is currently estimated at $124 million for the state fiscal year 2025 funding cycle. This is consistent with the loan capacity estimate that was included in the Safe Drinking Water Loan Program intended use plan.
- The Safe Drinking Water Loan Program lead service line replacement projects receive funding from the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law and do not impact the above loan capacity amounts.
The loan capacity for the Clean Water Fund Program is currently estimated at $364 million for the state fiscal year 2025 funding cycle. This amount has been updated and is an increase over the amount included in the Clean Water Fund Program intended use plan.
The principal forgiveness amounts are in addition to the amounts provided above. As such, the amount of funding allocated on each program’s funding list will be the sum of available loan and principal forgiveness dollars and will be greater than the amounts shown above.
Additional information is available on the DNR’s Loan Capacity webpage.
Direct questions about loan capacity to the Department of Administration Capital Finance Office staff at DOAEIF@wisconsin.gov.
Direct questions about funding to the appropriate program coordinator:
State Fiscal Year 2026 ITA/PERF Online System Available
The online system for submitting a notice of intent to apply (ITA) with priority evaluation and ranking formula (PERF) information is now available.
Oct. 31, 2024, is the state fiscal year 2026 ITA/PERF submittal deadline for the Clean Water Fund Program and the Safe Drinking Water Loan Program.
Some questions require supporting documentation to be submitted with the ITA/PERF to receive the priority points. If relevant documentation is not uploaded at the time of submittal, points will not be given for that question. Note that the DNR shall assign negative points to a Safe Drinking Water Loan Program project based on an applicant’s lack of required technical, financial, and managerial capacity for the existing public water system for criteria listed under s. NR 166.23(5), Wis. Adm. Code.
The procedures for determining and updating project priority scores is detailed in s. NR 162.51, Wis. Adm. Code, for the Clean Water Fund Program and s. NR 166.24, Wis. Adm. Code, for the Safe Drinking Water Loan Program. The DNR includes additional or modifies existing scoring criteria in the corresponding program’s annual intended use plan.
Guidance for ITA/PERF submittals is available on the ITA/PERF webpage, in the intended use plans and in the following publications:
Oct. 18, 2024, is the final date to submit the Online Submittal Authorization Certificate (Form 8700-377) before the state fiscal year 2026 ITA/PERF deadline. We recommend that the municipality or its designated representatives request access to the online systems at least two weeks prior to the ITA/PERF deadline. Requests received within 48 hours of the ITA/PERF deadline cannot be accommodated. Access instructions and links to the online application systems are available on the Online Systems webpage.
Reminder To Submit Photo Of Installed BIL Sign By Second Disbursement Request
The Bipartisan Infrastructure Law (BIL) signage requirement applies to the following projects:
To document the use of BIL signage, the municipality or its designated consultant should upload a photo of the installed sign to the DNR’s online application/document upload system prior to submitting the second request for disbursement after the loan closes. The assigned DNR loan project manager will check whether a photo is uploaded when a second disbursement request is submitted.
For more information about the requirement, including how to comply and guidance on how to design the sign, visit the DNR’s BIL Signage Requirement webpage and read the “What Is The BIL Signage Requirement?” article in the Environmental Loans March 2024 Newsletter.
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Launches Interactive Map Of State Revolving Fund Projects
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) recently updated its State Revolving Fund, or SRF, Public Portal with an interactive map of Drinking Water and Clean Water SRF projects across the country. The portal was created to present SRF data in a user-friendly, accessible format for states, utilities, and anyone interested in where water infrastructure investments are being made. The SRF Public Portal allows users to access data and create downloadable reports. The data is drawn from the database used by state revolving fund programs to report data to the EPA. Access the State Revolving Fund Public Portal on the EPA's website.
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