Small communities across the United States will soon find it cheaper to apply for federal funding to fix their drinking water and wastewater systems. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency announced Monday that it is completely waiving application and processing fees for its primary water infrastructure loan program through fiscal years 2026 and 2027.
The waiver applies directly to the Water Infrastructure Finance and Innovation Act (WIFIA) program. Typically, local governments must pay a $25,000 application fee alongside a credit processing fee that averages about $156,000 per loan to reimburse the federal government for underwriting costs.
By eliminating both charges for municipalities with 25,000 or fewer residents, the EPA estimates small communities will save nearly $200,000 upfront.
While these fees were previously allowed to be rolled into the final loan as eligible project costs, the initial expense frequently acted as a barrier that deterred smaller, rural utilities from applying at all.
“Small and rural communities are the backbone of America, and it is a top priority at the Trump EPA to support access to clean, safe drinking water and wastewater services. Water infrastructure in these communities is essential to their public health, environmental protection and economic prosperity,” said EPA Assistant Administrator for Water Jess Kramer. “EPA’s WIFIA program has $11 billion in flexible financing available to support water infrastructure projects. Our goal is to reduce barriers to access these resources, especially in our nation’s small and rural communities.”
The WIFIA program can fund up to 80 percent of a project’s total cost. The EPA noted that the fee waivers for the next two fiscal years will remain subject to specific program requirements and the availability of federal administrative funds.
Established by Congress in 2014, WIFIA is a federal loan program managed by the EPA to accelerate investment in the nation’s water infrastructure. It provides long-term, low-cost supplemental credit for local and regional projects. According to the agency, the program currently maintains an active pipeline of pending applications and is actively accepting new letters of interest from qualifying communities.
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