H.R. 6229 — Water Infrastructure Finance and Innovation Act Amendments of 2025

This section amends the Water Infrastructure Finance and Innovation Act of 2014 (WIFIA)—which authorizes the EPA Administrator to provide long-term, low-interest loans and loan guarantees for water infrastructure projects—to clarify eligibility for small communities and rural water projects. Specifically, it (1) adds definitions of "rural water project" (including projects authorized under the Reclamation Rural Water Supply Act of 2006, specified tribal projects under the Omnibus Public Land Management Act of 2009, and certain projects under the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2021, or other federal laws) and "small community" (a city, town, or unincorporated area with a population of not more than 25,000 inhabitants); (2) lowers the minimum eligible project cost threshold for small communities to $1 million (from $5 million); (3) authorizes the Administrator to provide technical assistance—including engineering and financial planning—to small communities for developing WIFIA project proposals; (4) makes conforming changes to exclude such technical assistance from certain funding limitations and to explicitly authorize its funding; and (5) requires the Administrator, in consultation with relevant federal agencies, to develop and implement within 180 days of enactment an outreach plan promoting WIFIA assistance to small communities.

This section expands the discretionary-eligible projects that the Secretary of the Army or EPA Administrator may fund under the Water Infrastructure Finance and Innovation Act of 2014 (WIFIA)—which provides federal loans and loan guarantees for large-scale water infrastructure projects—to include, in addition to projects under paragraphs (8) and (10) of section 3905, (1) state-led storage projects (as defined in section 4007(a) of the Water Infrastructure Improvements for the Nation Act), (2) transferred works (as defined in section 9601 of the Omnibus Public Land Management Act of 2009), and (3) congressionally authorized water resources development projects owned or operated by non-Federal entities. It makes conforming changes to section 3905(10).

This section amends the eligibility requirements under the Water Infrastructure Finance and Innovation Act of 2014 (WIFIA)—which provides federal loans and loan guarantees for water infrastructure projects—to authorize the Secretary of the Army or EPA Administrator to select WIFIA-assisted projects for delivery using collaborative project delivery methods (consistent with applicable state and local law), including construction management at-risk and design-build methods, and defines those terms. It further directs the EPA Administrator, in coordination with EPA Regional Administrators and the Secretary of the Army acting through the Chief of Engineers, to complete and publicize a study within 180 days of enactment evaluating the use of, barriers to, potential benefits of, and staff training needs for such methods in WIFIA projects.

This section revises the maturity date limits for secured loans under the Water Infrastructure Finance and Innovation Act of 2014 (WIFIA)—which provides federal credit assistance for water, wastewater, stormwater, and related infrastructure projects—by (1) inserting a new subparagraph (B) allowing a final maturity date of not later than the earlier of 55 years after substantial completion or the project's useful life (if less than 55 years) for projects with a useful life exceeding 35 years (notwithstanding the general 35-year limit in subparagraph (A)); (2) redesignating former subparagraph (B) as subparagraph (C); and (3) amending new subparagraph (C) to apply notwithstanding subparagraphs (A) and (B). (Thus, longer loan terms are available for long-lived projects such as dams or advanced treatment facilities.)

This section revises the authorization of appropriations for the Water Infrastructure Finance and Innovation (WIFIA) program—which provides federal loans and loan guarantees for water, wastewater, and stormwater infrastructure projects—by replacing the prior $50 million annual authorization to the EPA Administrator for FY2022 through FY2026 with (1) $68 million annually to the Administrator and $15 million annually to the Army Corps of Engineers Secretary for FY2025 through FY2029, to remain available until expended; and (2) extending the administrative cost allowance of up to $5 million annually for FY2022 through FY2026 to both the Secretary and Administrator, as applicable (previously, Administrator only).

This section establishes budgetary treatment under the Federal Credit Reform Act of 1990 for certain financial assistance provided under the Water Infrastructure Finance and Innovation Act of 2014 (WIFIA)—a program authorizing the Environmental Protection Agency and Army Corps of Engineers to issue loans and loan guarantees for water and wastewater infrastructure projects. Specifically, if the recipient is a non-federal entity and dedicated repayment sources are non-federal revenues, such assistance is deemed non-federal and treated as a direct loan or loan guarantee (as defined in that Act). (Thus, it is excluded from federal credit subsidy calculations.)

This section requires (1) the EPA Administrator to submit to Congress, not later than one year after enactment, a report on the implementation of section 4301 of America's Water Infrastructure Act of 2018 (33 U.S.C. 3909 note) and any related agreement under section 5030(g) of the Water Infrastructure Finance and Innovation Act of 2014 (WIFIA); and (2) the Secretary of the Army, acting through the Chief of Engineers, to submit a report within the same timeframe on implementation of the Corps Water Infrastructure Financing Program under WIFIA (33 U.S.C. 3901 et seq.), including issues pertaining to levees and congressionally authorized projects under WIFIA section 5026(1). This section also amends WIFIA section 5034(b) (33 U.S.C. 3913(b)) to (1) revise the GAO report due date to not later than four years after enactment of the Water Infrastructure Finance and Innovation Act Amendments of 2025 (from three years after enactment of the Water Resources Development Act of 2018); (2) add a requirement for the GAO report to evaluate implementation of the relevant WIFIA subtitle by the Secretary of the Army; and (3) update cross-references to include the new evaluation.

This section makes technical and conforming amendments to the Water Resources Reform and Development Act of 2014, including (1) in the table of contents (section 1(b)), removing "Pilot" from the subtitle C of title V heading item and "pilot" from the section 5034 item, and inserting items for new sections 5036 (Outreach plan to small communities) and 5037 (Budgetary treatment of certain amounts of financial assistance); (2) striking "Pilot" from the heading for subtitle C of title V; and (3) in section 5022(12), striking "et." and inserting "et".