On August 16, The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced it has received 62 letters of interest (LOIs) collectively requesting $9.1 billion in loans from a wide range of prospective borrowers in response to the Water Infrastructure Finance and Innovation Act (WIFIA) program’s 2018 Notice of Funding Availability. This is the program's second selection round.
“The more than $9 billion in WIFIA loans requested is nearly double our lending capacity for 2018, demonstrating the critical need for investment in our nation’s water infrastructure and strong support for EPA’s Water Infrastructure Finance and Innovation Act program,” said EPA Office of Water Assistant Administrator David Ross. “EPA looks forward to reviewing the letters of interest we received as we advance the President’s infrastructure agenda and help communities better protect public health and water quality.”
The WIFIA program was established by the Water Infrastructure Finance and Innovation Act of 2014 is a federal loan and guarantee program at EPA that aims to accelerate investment in the nation’s water infrastructure by providing long-term, low-cost supplemental credit assistance for regionally and nationally significant projects. WEF was an early advocate before Congress for the creation of the WIFIA program, and is currently advocating for reauthorization of it in 2019.
