EPA Approves New WIFIA Loans To Strengthen Drinking Water And Wastewater Infrastructure In Oregon And Washington

Today, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is announcing its approval of three Water Infrastructure Finance and Innovation Act (WIFIA) loans totaling $240M. These loans will improve vital water infrastructure in the City of Rockwood, Oregon; the City of Medford, Oregon; and King County, Washington. EPA is committed to ensuring that every American has access to safe and reliable water services and the agency’s WIFIA program plays a key role by helping finance infrastructure upgrades while loan payments reimburse the U.S. Treasury.

“EPA’s WIFIA program is actively working to accelerate investments in water infrastructure through multiple avenues. The program is disbursing funding through existing finalized loans, processing and finalizing new loan agreements, and seeking new applicants for $7B in additional funding,” said EPA Assistant Administrator for Water Jess Kramer. “This program has only gotten stronger since its inaugural loan was issued under the first Trump administration and the agency is committed to maximizing the impact of WIFIA to strengthen essential water services that benefit households and the American economy.”

Newly Approved Loans
EPA is announcing its approval of three different loans to benefit communities, and the agency will work with the local water systems to formally close the related loan agreements:

• King County, Washington: A $65M WIFIA loan to modernize the wastewater infrastructure system. This loan will benefit around 190,000 people by replacing and building new components of the system and adding 50 years of useful life to part of the wastewater pipeline. This will be King County’s fifth WIFIA loan, supporting over $1B in wastewater infrastructure investments.
• Medford, Oregon: A $147M WIFIA loan will benefit 166,000 Americans by improving infrastructure and protecting the water quality of the nationally significant Rogue River, while creating over 900 local jobs.
• Rockwood, Oregon: A $28M WIFIA loan will support the Rockwood Water People’s Utility District in northwest Oregon. This is the district’s second loan for the Cascade Groundwater Development Project that will improve the reliability of its drinking water system for 66,000 people.

Notices of Funding Availability
In November, EPA announced the 2025 WIFIA Notice of Funding Availability, which initiates the ninth round of financing with $6.5B available. Through a separate Notice of Funding Availability, $550M is available to State infrastructure financing authorities through the State WIFIA (SWIFIA) program. EPA is currently accepting letters of interest for both WIFIA and SWIFIA financing.

For this new round of funding, EPA has identified priority areas that will advance the agency’s Powering the Great American Comeback Initiative, including:

• Ensuring safe drinking water and addressing pollution in our nation’s waterbodies;
• Unleashing American energy dominance;
• Advancing cooperative federalism by supporting local, regional, and state water priorities;
• Supporting innovation in the water sector; and
• Promoting economic growth and furthering America’s industrial resurgence.

Background
Established by the Water Infrastructure Finance and Innovation Act of 2014, the WIFIA program is a federal loan program administered by EPA. The WIFIA program aims to accelerate investment in the nation’s water infrastructure by providing long-term, low-cost supplemental credit assistance for regionally and nationally significant projects. Through its flexible financing features and competitive interest rates, WIFIA helps communities save money. By partnering the WIFIA program’s federal funding with state, local, and private investment, EPA accelerates water infrastructure investment worth billions of dollars.

The WIFIA program’s rolling selection process allows a wide variety of borrowers from across the country to access WIFIA financing. To date, EPA’s WIFIA program has announced $22B to help finance over 140 projects and create 160,000 jobs across the country.