Notice2025-21447
Notice of Funding Availability for Credit Assistance Under the State Infrastructure Financing Authority Water Infrastructure Finance and Innovation Act (SWIFIA) Program
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Published
November 28, 2025
Issuing agencies
Environmental Protection Agency
Abstract
The purpose of this notice of funding availability (NOFA) is to solicit letters of interest (LOIs) from prospective state infrastructure financing authority borrowers seeking credit assistance from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) under the State Infrastructure Financing Authority Water Infrastructure Finance and Innovation Act (SWIFIA) program. EPA's SWIFIA program is managed by the WIFIA division and operates under the authority of the WIFIA statute. EPA estimates that it may lend approximately $550 million to help finance over $1 billion in water infrastructure investment to state infrastructure financing authority borrowers.
Full Text
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<title>Federal Register, Volume 90 Issue 227 (Friday, November 28, 2025)</title>
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[Federal Register Volume 90, Number 227 (Friday, November 28, 2025)]
[Notices]
[Pages 54675-54678]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [<a href="http://www.gpo.gov">www.gpo.gov</a>]
[FR Doc No: 2025-21447]
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ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY
[FRL 12914-01-OW]
Notice of Funding Availability for Credit Assistance Under the
State Infrastructure Financing Authority Water Infrastructure Finance
and Innovation Act (SWIFIA) Program
AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).
ACTION: Notice of funding availability.
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SUMMARY: The purpose of this notice of funding availability (NOFA) is
to solicit letters of interest (LOIs) from prospective state
infrastructure financing authority borrowers seeking credit assistance
from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) under the State
Infrastructure Financing Authority Water Infrastructure Finance and
Innovation Act (SWIFIA) program. EPA's SWIFIA program is managed by the
WIFIA division and operates under the authority of the WIFIA statute.
EPA estimates that it may lend approximately $550 million to help
finance over $1 billion in water infrastructure investment to state
infrastructure financing authority borrowers.
DATES: LOIs submitted on or after December 29, 2025 will be reviewed
using the scoring criteria outlined in this NOFA.
ADDRESSES: Prospective borrowers should submit all LOIs electronically
via EPA's SharePoint site. To be granted access to the SharePoint site,
prospective borrowers should contact <a href="/cdn-cgi/l/email-protection#5a2d333c333b1a3f2a3b743d352c"><span class="__cf_email__" data-cfemail="a0d7c9c6c9c1e0c5d0c18ec7cfd6">[email protected]</span></a> and request a link
to the SharePoint site, where they can securely upload their LOIs and
then email <a href="/cdn-cgi/l/email-protection#e4938d828d85a4819485ca838b92"><span class="__cf_email__" data-cfemail="abdcc2cdc2caebcedbca85ccc4dd">[email protected]</span></a> once the complete LOI package has been
uploaded to the SharePoint site. EPA will notify prospective borrowers
that their LOI has been received via a confirmation email.
Prospective borrowers can access additional information, including
the SWIFIA program handbook and application materials, on the WIFIA
website: <a href="https://www.epa.gov/wifia/wifia-state-revolving-fund-borrowers">https://www.epa.gov/wifia/wifia-state-revolving-fund-borrowers</a>.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Dallas Shattuck, Office of Water,
Environmental Protection Agency; telephone number: (202) 564-0972; or
email: <a href="/cdn-cgi/l/email-protection#0e7d666f7a7a7b6d65206a6f62626f7d4e6b7e6f20696178"><span class="__cf_email__" data-cfemail="54273c35202021373f7a303538383527143124357a333b22">[email protected]</span></a> (preferred).
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Table of Contents
I. Background
II. Program Funding
III. Eligibility Requirements
IV. Budgetary Scoring Determination for Non-Federal Projects
V. Types and Amount of Credit Assistance
VI. Letters of Interest and Applications
VII. Cost
VIII. Selection Criteria
IX. Federal Requirements
X. Opportunities to Learn More About the SWIFIA Program
I. Background
Congress enacted the Water Infrastructure Finance and Innovation
Act (WIFIA) as part of the Water Resources Reform and Development Act
of 2014 (WRRDA). Codified at 33 U.S.C. 3901-3915, WIFIA authorizes a
Federal credit program for water infrastructure projects to be
administered by EPA. WIFIA authorizes EPA to provide Federal credit
assistance in the form of secured (direct) loans or loan guarantees for
eligible water infrastructure projects.
Congress amended WIFIA in America's Water Infrastructure Act of
2018 (AWIA) to authorize Federal credit assistance exclusively for
state infrastructure financing authority borrowers, commonly referred
to as the SWIFIA program.
The SWIFIA program's mission is to accelerate investment in our
nation's water, wastewater, and stormwater infrastructure by providing
long-term, low-cost, supplemental credit assistance under customized
terms to creditworthy water infrastructure projects of national and
regional significance. For this
[[Page 54676]]
SWIFIA NOFA, EPA is implementing five key priorities that align with
the WIFIA statute and EPA's ``Powering the Great American Comeback''
Initiative:
A. Providing Safe Drinking Water and Improving Water Quality
To further EPA's mission, projects should protect human health and/
or the environment. Project types are wide-ranging and include, but are
not limited to, projects that: improve water quality, support
compliance with drinking water standards and wastewater permit
requirements, reduce stormwater runoff, modernize aging water
infrastructure, address PFAS and other emerging contaminants, and
remove lead service lines. This priority aligns with the WIFIA statute
at 33 U.S.C. 3907(b)(2)(F)(ii) (Selection Criterion (v)--``Helps
maintain or protect the environment''), and EPA's ``Powering the Great
American Comeback'' Initiative--Pillar 1: Clean Air, Land, and Water
for Every American.
B. Pursuing Energy Independence, Exploration, Development, or
Production
EPA encourages the submission of projects that serve populations in
regions impacted by significant energy exploration, development, or
production. These projects can help communities pursue energy
independence and lower energy costs for communities. This priority
aligns with the WIFIA statute at 33 U.S.C. 3907(b)(2)(G) (Selection
Criterion (vi)--``Energy exploration, development, or production
areas'') and EPA's ``Powering the Great American Comeback''
Initiative--Pillar 2: Restore American Energy Dominance.
C. Advancing Local, Regional, and State Water Priorities
Localities, regions, and states understand their specific water
challenges and priorities. EPA will partner with localities, regions,
and states across the country to advance durable water infrastructure
projects that address the critical needs of all communities, especially
for small and rural communities. This priority aligns with the WIFIA
statute at 33 U.S.C. 3907(b)(2)(I) (Selection Criterion (viii)--
``Identified municipal, state, or regional priorities'') and EPA's
``Powering the Great American Comeback'' Initiative--Pillar 3:
Permitting Reform, Cooperative Federalism, and Cross-Agency
Partnership.
D. Supporting Water Sector Innovation
EPA is prioritizing projects that incorporate new or innovative
technology, which can play a significant role in helping states,
tribes, and communities ensure the provision of clean, safe, and
reliable water supplies. In particular, water reuse technology solves a
variety of water challenges, such as expanding water resources to
support economic development (e.g., artificial intelligence data
centers) and alleviating the effects of drought. Other examples of new
or innovative technology include, but are not limited to, desalination
and cybersecurity enhancements. This priority aligns with the WIFIA
statute at 33 U.S.C. 3907(b)(2)(D) (Selection Criterion (iii)--``New or
innovative approaches'') and EPA's ``Powering the Great American
Comeback'' Initiative--Pillar 4: Make the United States the Artificial
Intelligence Capital of the World.
E. Promoting Economic Growth for American Industries
Reliable water infrastructure not only benefits residents, but also
companies that depend on water resources to maintain and expand
operations. Without durable water supplies, American industries,
including the automotive, electronic, mining, and artificial
intelligence sectors, cannot thrive. EPA encourages prospective
borrowers to demonstrate how projects will support international
commerce, increase domestic manufacturing, or accelerate economic
growth. This priority aligns with EPA's ``Powering the Great American
Comeback'' Initiative--Pillar 5: Protecting and Bringing Back American
Auto Jobs.
II. Program Funding
A. SWIFIA Program Appropriation
Congress appropriated $5 million in funding to cover the subsidy
cost of providing SWIFIA credit assistance. EPA estimates this
appropriation will allow the Agency to provide approximately $550
million \1\ in long-term, low-cost financing to water infrastructure
projects and accelerate over $1 billion in infrastructure investment
around the country.
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\1\ This estimated loan volume is provided for reference only.
Consistent with the Federal Credit Reform Act of 1990 and the
requirements of the Office of Management and Budget, the actual
subsidy cost of providing credit assistance is based on individual
project characteristics and calculated on a project-by-project
basis. Thus, actual lending capacity may vary.
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B. Funding Availability Period
LOIs may be submitted by prospective borrowers and will be received
by EPA on a rolling basis. LOIs shall be submitted using the SWIFIA LOI
form found at <a href="https://www.epa.gov/wifia/wifia-state-revolving-fund-borrowers">https://www.epa.gov/wifia/wifia-state-revolving-fund-borrowers</a>. Under the rolling process, LOIs will continually be reviewed
and selected based on available funds. The publication of this NOFA
does not impact LOIs previously submitted to EPA, which continue to be
reviewed based on the applicable requirements at the time of
submission.
LOIs received on or after December 29, 2025, will be evaluated
using the scoring criteria outlined in this NOFA. This NOFA provides
guidance on all SWIFIA funding authority available, including funding
from previous years. Any funding authority not obligated in the fiscal
year for which it is authorized remains available for obligation in
subsequent years.
III. Eligibility Requirements
The WIFIA statute and implementing rules set forth eligibility
requirements for prospective borrowers, projects, and project costs.
The requirements outlined below are described in greater detail in the
SWIFIA program handbook found at <a href="https://www.epa.gov/wifia/wifia-state-revolving-fund-borrowers">https://www.epa.gov/wifia/wifia-state-revolving-fund-borrowers</a>.
A. Eligible Applicants
Prospective borrowers must be a state infrastructure financing
authority to be eligible for SWIFIA credit assistance. EPA defines
state infrastructure financing authority as the state entity
established or designated by the governor of a state to receive a
capitalization grant provided by, or otherwise carry out the
requirements of, title VI of the Federal Water Pollution Control Act
(33 U.S.C. 1381 et. seq.) or section 1452 of the Safe Drinking Water
Act (42 U.S.C. 300j-12).
B. Eligible Projects
To be eligible for SWIFIA credit assistance, the SWIFIA project
must be a combination of projects, each of which is eligible for
assistance under section 603(c) of the Federal Water Pollution Control
Act (33 U.S.C. 1383(c)) or section 1452(a)(2) of the Safe Drinking
Water Act (42 U.S.C. 300j-12(a)(2)), for which a state infrastructure
financing authority submits to the Administrator a single application.
C. Eligible Costs
Eligible project costs are costs associated with the following
activities:
(i) Development-phase activities, including planning, feasibility
analysis (including any related analysis necessary to carry out an
eligible project), revenue forecasting, environmental review,
permitting, preliminary engineering and design
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work, and other preconstruction activities;
(ii) Construction, reconstruction, rehabilitation, and replacement
activities;
(iii) The acquisition of real property or an interest in real
property (including water rights, land relating to the project, and
improvements to land), environmental mitigation (including acquisitions
pursuant to 33 U.S.C. 3905(8)), construction contingencies, and
acquisition of equipment; and
(iv) Capitalized interest necessary to meet market requirements,
reasonably required reserve funds, capital issuance expenses, and other
carrying costs during construction. Capitalized interest on SWIFIA
credit assistance may not be included as an eligible project cost.
IV. Budgetary Scoring Determination for Non-Federal Projects
To comply with Public Law 116-260, a project selected for SWIFIA
financing will be assessed using two initial screening questions and
sixteen scoring factors. These questions will help the Office of
Management and Budget (OMB) determine compliance with budgetary scoring
rules, a process that will be conducted in parallel to EPA's LOI
evaluation process outlined in this NOFA. The questions may be found in
the Federal Register publication titled ``Water Infrastructure Finance
and Innovation Act Program (WIFIA) Criteria Pursuant to the Further
Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2020'' (85 FR 39189, June 30, 2020).
EPA encourages project applicants to review the scoring criteria and
provide sufficient information in the LOI or as an attachment to the
LOI to facilitate EPA and OMB review of the prospective project
considering the scoring criteria.
V. Types and Amount of Credit Assistance
Under the SWIFIA program, EPA is offering senior loans, on parity
with a state infrastructure financing authority's other senior capital
market debt of the same credit quality, to help the state
infrastructure financing authority lend to multiple projects throughout
the state.
A. Minimum Project Costs
A SWIFIA project must have eligible project costs that are
reasonably anticipated to equal or exceed $20 million.
B. Maximum Amount of SWIFIA Credit Assistance
The maximum amount of SWIFIA credit assistance to a state
infrastructure financing authority is 49 percent of estimated eligible
total costs of the eligible projects that are included in the SWIFIA
project.
C. SWIFIA Loan Structures
Prospective SWIFIA borrowers may request one the following loan
structures:
(i) EPA accepts the state infrastructure financing authority's
existing capital market debt indenture (to the extent the terms are
permissible under Federal law and regulation and WIFIA division
policies); or
(ii) The state infrastructure financing authority accepts EPA's
standard terms. More information on EPA's standard terms is available
at <a href="http://www.epa.gov/wifia">www.epa.gov/wifia</a>.
VI. Letters of Interest and Applications
Each prospective borrower will be required to submit an LOI and, if
invited, an application to EPA to be considered for approval. This
section describes the LOI submission and application submission.
A. Letter of Interest (LOI)
Prospective borrowers seeking a SWIFIA loan must submit an LOI
describing the SWIFIA project fundamentals and addressing the SWIFIA
selection criteria.
The primary purpose of the LOI is to provide adequate information
to EPA to validate the eligibility and creditworthiness of the
prospective borrower and the prospective SWIFIA project and determine
the extent to which the SWIFIA project meets the statutory selection
criteria. Based on its review of the information provided in the LOI,
EPA will invite prospective borrowers to submit applications for their
projects.
Prospective borrowers should utilize the LOI form on the WIFIA
website and ensure that sufficient detail about the project is provided
for EPA's review. EPA will notify a prospective borrower if its SWIFIA
project is deemed ineligible as described in section III of this
document or if additional information is needed to assess the LOI
package.
B. Application
After EPA concludes its evaluation of a complete LOI package, a
selection committee will invite the prospective borrower to apply based
on satisfaction of the eligibility requirements. So long as budget
authority remains available, EPA expects that all eligible state
infrastructure financing authority prospective borrowers will be
invited to apply for a SWIFIA loan.
An invitation to apply for SWIFIA credit assistance does not
guarantee EPA's approval, which remains subject to a project's
continued eligibility, including creditworthiness, the successful
negotiation of terms acceptable to EPA, and the availability of funds
at the time at which all necessary recommendations and evaluations have
been completed. However, the purpose of EPA's LOI review is to pre-
screen prospective borrowers to the extent practicable. It is expected
that EPA will only invite prospective borrowers to apply if it
anticipates that those prospective borrowers are able to obtain SWIFIA
credit assistance. Detailed information needs for the application are
listed in the application form and described in the SWIFIA program
handbook: <a href="https://www.epa.gov/wifia/wifia-state-revolving-fund-borrowers">https://www.epa.gov/wifia/wifia-state-revolving-fund-borrowers</a>.
VII. Cost
There is no cost to submit an LOI. For information about
application, closing, and post-closing costs, please refer to the
SWIFIA program handbook: <a href="https://www.epa.gov/wifia/wifia-state-revolving-fund-borrowers">https://www.epa.gov/wifia/wifia-state-revolving-fund-borrowers</a>.
VIII. Selection Criteria
This section specifies the criteria and process that EPA will use
to evaluate LOIs and award applications for SWIFIA assistance.
The selection criteria described below are the statutory selection
criteria for state infrastructure financing authority borrowers.
Following its eligibility determination, EPA will determine the extent
to which the SWIFIA project meets the statutory selection criteria. For
SWIFIA LOIs, EPA conducts a qualitative assessment and compares the
statutory selection criteria to the state infrastructure financing
authority's project prioritization process, as outlined in the state's
Intended Use Plan and other relevant documents. The selection criteria
listed in the WIFIA statute are as follows:
(i) The extent to which the project financing plan includes public
or private financing in addition to assistance under WIFIA. 33 U.S.C.
3907(b)(2)(B).
(ii) The likelihood that assistance under WIFIA would enable the
project to proceed at an earlier date than the project would otherwise
be able to proceed. 33 U.S.C. 3907(b)(2)(C).
(iii) The extent to which the project uses new or innovative
approaches. 33 U.S.C. 3907(b)(2)(D).
(iv) The amount of budget authority required to fund the Federal
credit instrument made available under WIFIA. 33 U.S.C. 3907(b)(2)(E).
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(v) The extent to which the project (1) protects against extreme
weather events, such as floods or hurricanes; or (2) helps maintain or
protect the environment. 33 U.S.C. 3907(b)(2)(F).
(vi) The extent to which the project serves regions with
significant energy exploration, development, or production areas. 33
U.S.C. 3907(b)(2)(G).
(vii) The extent to which a project serves regions with significant
water resource challenges, including the need to address: (1) water
quality concerns in areas of regional, national, or international
significance; (2) water quantity concerns related to groundwater,
surface water, or other water sources; (3) significant flood risk; (4)
water resource challenges identified in existing regional, state, or
multistate agreements; or (5) water resources with exceptional
recreational value or ecological importance. 33 U.S.C. 3907(b)(2)(H).
(viii) The extent to which the project addresses identified
municipal, state, or regional priorities. 33 U.S.C. 3907(b)(2)(I).
(ix) The readiness of the project to proceed toward development,
including a demonstration by the obligor that there is a reasonable
expectation that the contracting process for construction of the
project can commence by not later than 90 days after the date on which
a Federal credit instrument is obligated for the project under WIFIA.
33 U.S.C. 3907(b)(2)(J).
(x) The extent to which assistance under WIFIA reduces the
contribution of Federal assistance to the project. 33 U.S.C.
3907(b)(2)(K).
IX. Federal Requirements
All projects receiving SWIFIA credit assistance must comply with
applicable Federal requirements. Compliance with Federal requirements
is not required for submitting a letter of interest, being invited to
apply for a loan, or submitting an application. The WIFIA division will
review selected projects for compliance with Federal requirements once
they have submitted an application. Additional information about
Federal compliance requirements is available at <a href="https://www.epa.gov/wifia/wifia-federal-compliance-requirements">https://www.epa.gov/wifia/wifia-federal-compliance-requirements</a>.
X. Opportunities To Learn More About the SWIFIA Program
EPA hosts regular outreach events and monthly office hours to
provide further information about submitting an LOI. The outreach
schedule and registration instructions can be found on the WIFIA
website: <a href="https://www.epa.gov/wifia/connect-wifia-program">https://www.epa.gov/wifia/connect-wifia-program</a>.
Prospective borrowers with questions about the program or interest
in meeting with the WIFIA division staff may send a request to
<a href="/cdn-cgi/l/email-protection#fd8a949b949cbd988d9cd39a928b"><span class="__cf_email__" data-cfemail="f88f919e9199b89d8899d69f978e">[email protected]</span></a>. EPA will meet with all prospective borrowers interested
in discussing the program prior to submission of an LOI.
(Authority: 33 U.S.C. 3901-3915; 40 CFR part 35.)
Jessica L. Kramer,
Assistant Administrator.
[FR Doc. 2025-21447 Filed 11-26-25; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6560-50-P
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