Ditchmen • NUCA of Florida Ditchmen • July 2017 | Page 10

WIFIA Project
Funding Marks
Major Advoacy
Victory
Will Brown, Director of
Government Affairs
On July 19, 2017, the EPA
announced more than $2
billion in water infrastructure
project loans through the
newly stood-up WIFIA
(Water Infrastructure
Financing Innovation Act)
program, culminating more
than four years of NUCA’s
advocacy efforts.
The EPA has approved
12 entities from 9 states
to apply for WIFIA funds.
This year’s WIFIA project
selections will provide $2.3
billion in WIFIA financing
for a total of $5.1 billion in
total project financing. Of
those 9 states, 5 have NUCA
chapters whose members
will directly benefit from
the new projects. Those
projects - and their sizes -
are listed below for a total
of $899 million in new
10
DITCHMEN • JULY 2017
project financing for NUCA
members.
1. King County, Washington-
$129 million
2. City of Omaha, Nebraska-
$55 million
3. Indiana Finance Authority-
$436 million
4. City of Baltimore,
Maryland- $200 million
5.Miami-Dade County,
Florida- $79 million.
The complete list of WIFIA
funded projects and
summaries can be found
here.
NUCA began advocating
for WIFIA in 2013 as an
additional financing tool for
water infrastructure projects.
Since then, NUCA has
sent more than 750 letters
advocating for WIFIA, held
more than 200 meetings
with lawmakers and staff,
joined active coalitions
of stakeholders, and has
repeatedly included WIFIA
as one of our main priorities
at the Washington Summit.
NUCA advocated for and
won passage of legislation
creating the WIFIA program
in the 2014 WRDA (Water
Resources Development
Act), an amendment
allowing greater flexibility
and applicability of WIFIA
funds in the 2015 FAST
(Fixing America’s Surface
Transportation) Act, and
program appropriations of
$25 million (increased from
$20 million proposed) in the
FY 2017 budget.
For NUCA members across
the country, this news is
evidence of the benefits of,
and need for, substantial
advocacy efforts both to
members and to the greater
utility and excavation
construction industry.
• • •