On April 3, the Council of Infrastructure Financing Authorities launched the Save the SRFs initiative, noting that Clean Water and Drinking Water State Revolving Funds (SRFs) are the nation’s most effective, efficient, and responsive programs for providing affordable financing for water infrastructure that protects public health. ECOS has signed onto the pledge, along with state water agencies and other national water associations. The pledge urges Congress to fund the SRFs at congressionally authorized levels of $3.25B each for federal FY25.
The SRFs offer subsidized loans to build clean water and drinking water infrastructure, offering interest rates significantly below the municipal bond market and private lenders that can save as much as 75% in interest payments for communities. In 2022, the average SRF interest rate was 1.25%, compared to market rates that exceeded 3%.
SRF loan repayments create a permanent, recurring source of funding for new water infrastructure projects every year. Over the last 30 years, the SRFs have turned $79B in federal funding into more than $215B in total funding for over 64,000 projects.
