Drinking Water State Revolving Fund

Department of Health and Environmental Facilities Corporation

July 9, 2008

Re: Drinking Water State Revolving Fund Draft Intended Use Plan

Funding Period October 1, 2008 to September 30, 2009

The New York State Department of Health (DOH) and the New York State Environmental Facilities Corporation (EFC) have prepared a draft Intended Use Plan (IUP) for the Drinking Water State Revolving Fund (DWSRF) program for public review and comment. This draft IUP includes drinking water supply projects, for both municipally owned and privately owned public water supply systems, eligible for financing between October 1, 2008 and September 30, 2009. Drinking water supply projects eligible for DWSRF financing include, but are not limited to: the construction of new and/or the rehabilitation of treatment plants, transmission and distribution mains, storage facilities, pump stations, interconnections, and drinking water sources; consolidation of water supplies; upgrades to existing systems; and capital investments made to improve the security of water systems. Most other improvements that enhance the drinking water quality and quantity of public water supplies are also eligible.

Projects must be included in the IUP to receive DWSRF financing. The IUP includes prioritized lists of eligible projects being considered for financing from the DWSRF. Projects will be financed to the extent that sufficient funds are available for the effective period of the IUP. Projects that are below the Project Readiness List funding line and not reachable through project by-passing for DWSRF subsidized financing may utilize the low-interest non-subsidized long-term Bond Guarantee Program or Short-Term Market-Rate Financing for their project financing needs.

To be considered for long-term or short-term financing during this IUP period, an applicant must submit a pre-application and an engineering report to the DOH by August 22, 2008 and a completed application by the due date listed in the IUP. Pre-applications for new projects will be accepted by the DOH on a continuous basis; however, any pre-applications submitted after August 22, 2008 (the close of the comment period on the draft IUP) will be considered for financing in a future IUP period.

The draft IUP also contains information on the loan program and interest rates, the project ranking system, project scoring criteria and selection, sources and distribution of funds, the loan leveraging policy, a description of the use of set-aside funds, the affordability (hardship) criteria, and funds available for the current IUP financing period.

A public meeting and hearing will be held to review the draft IUP. The date, time and location of the public meeting and hearing are provided below.

Date City/County Time Location
Tuesday
August 12, 2008		 Colonie
Albany County		 1:00 p.m.
William K. Sanford Town Library
Stedman Room
629 Albany Shaker Road
(Exit 4 off I-87-1/4 mile east on Albany Shaker Road)
Albany, New York
(518) 458-9274

Individuals/organizations wishing to present their views on the draft IUP at the hearing may pre-register by calling 1-800-458-1158 (within NYS only) or (518) 402-7650. Persons who have pre-registered will be called upon to speak first. Others will be called in the order in which they register the day of the hearing. Testimony may be limited to five minutes to provide all speakers with an opportunity to participate. Speakers are asked to bring a copy of their testimony to submit as part of the official record. Accommodations will be provided for disabled persons if requested in advance.

Written statements or comments on the draft IUP can be filed prior to the hearing, at the hearing or after the hearing until the close of the comment period on August 22, 2008. Written and oral statements will be made part of the official record and a Response to Comments will be included in the final IUP. Written statements or comments on the draft IUP should be filed with:

Mr. Victor E. Pisani
Director, Bureau of Water Supply Protection
New York State Department of Health
547 River Street, Flanigan Square, Room 400
Troy, New York 12180

A CD containing the draft DWSRF IUP will be mailed to the person listed as the system contact on the DWSRF pre-application form and to other interested parties who request it. Copies of the draft IUP will be available at New York State Documents Depository Libraries, the New York State DOH web page and the EFC web page.

Free Water and Sewer Infrastructure Co-Funding Workshops and Individual Project Consultations will be held in three locations around the State during October 2008. These full-day workshops will present detailed information on available government funding assistance for water and wastewater projects, and application processes and procedures. For more information refer to New York State's Water and Sewer Infrastructure Co-Funding website.

If you need additional information on the public hearing or the DWSRF program please call the DOH at 1-800-458-1158 (within NYS only) or (518) 402-7650 or call EFC at 1-800-882-9721 (within NYS) or 518-402-6924.

Sincerely,

Nancy K. Kim, Ph.D.
Center for Environmental Health
New York State Department of Health

Matthew J. Millea
Acting President
Environmental Facilities Corporation