EFC Announces Draft Eligibility Guidelines to Advance Environmental Bond Act Investments
EFC Announces Draft Eligibility Guidelines to Advance Environmental Bond Act Investments
Public Comments Accepted Until April 14
EFC has announced proposed eligibility guidelines for programs being designed to implement the historic $4.2 billion Clean Water, Clean Air, and Green Jobs Environmental Bond Act of 2022. The draft criteria for clean water infrastructure projects will assist municipalities in applying for funding for crucial projects that will improve water quality, strengthen resiliency, and combat the impacts of climate change.
"EFC is excited to work with DEC and DOH to start the process of making Environmental Bond Act funding for water infrastructure available through EFC’s popular grant programs," EFC President and CEO Maureen A. Coleman said. "EFC encourages small, rural, and Disadvantaged Communities to reach out to our Community Assistance Teams so we can help ensure the funding is awarded to the communities that need it most.”
VIEW THE DRAFT ELIGIBILITY GUIDELINES
HOW THE PROPOSED GUIDELINES WERE DEVELOPED
An inter-agency working group comprised of multiple state agencies is currently identifying needs for environmental funding across the state and developing program logistics, including additional eligibility guidelines for how projects will be selected and delivered, through a transparent and collaborative process. The first outcome of these efforts is the draft eligibility guidelines to help administer water infrastructure funding supported by both the Environmental Bond Act and the Water Infrastructure Improvement (WIIA) and Intermunicipal Grants (IMG) programs. The Environmental Bond Act specifically named WIIA and IMG programs as tools to help leverage a portion of up to $650 million in water quality improvement and resilient infrastructure funding.
SUMMARY OF THE PROPOSED GUIDELINES
The eligibility guidelines released for public comment expand the WIIA/IMG grant programs’ legacy of modernizing aging systems and protecting drinking water by also incorporating the Bond Act priority of climate change mitigation to help strengthen communities’ ability to withstand severe weather. Eligible projects include those that address combined and/or sanitary sewer overflow impacts from extreme weather events, and those that combine green infrastructure and nature-based features to ensure climate resilient infrastructure. Disadvantaged Communities will receive at least 35 percent of the benefits of the combined WIIA/IMG and Environmental Bond Act funding. Additional eligibility guidelines to advance Bond Act investments will be released for public comment this year.
As part of the ongoing statewide effort to confront perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) pollution and help communities on the frontlines of PFAS contamination, the criteria continue to prioritize grant awards for drinking water projects that address emerging contaminants exceeding the State-determined Maximum Contaminant Level (MCL). The State's goal is to provide grants to communities that need help in their efforts to tackle emerging contaminants in their drinking water. To date, more than $400 million in state water grants has been awarded to projects that treat PFAS above the MCL.
The full eligibility guidelines are available on the Environmental Notice Bulletin or this page on EFC's website. Public comments will be accepted until 5 p.m. on Friday, April 14. Submit written comments to Máire Cunningham at NYSWaterGrants@efc.ny.gov or 625 Broadway, Albany, NY 12207.
For more information about the Environmental Bond Act, go to https://ny.gov/bondact, and for information about WIIA and IMG, go to https://efc.ny.gov/wiia.