The American Rescue Plan and Local Infrastructure State Revolving Fund and the Drinking Water State Revolving Fund—primarily rely on zero-interest loans to our municipalities, rather than grants. Even with those constraints, the programs are meeting less than half of the demand. In the latest round of semi-annual funding, 25 of 64 project requests, or 39%, were approved. On a monetary basis, $149 million of loans and grants were approved, while $600 million was requested, or 24.9% of the total funding requests. For fiscal years 2017 and 2018, utility users funded 93% of drinking water in North Carolina, with only 7% picked up by grants. For wastewater, those numbers are 92% and 8%. The N.C. General Assembly has proposed putting $1 billion in federal American Rescue Plan dollars of the roughly $5 billion that came to the state in water, sewer, and stormwater projects. But as of this writing, the state budget containing those funding proposals has not been approved. Like the direct allocations to cities and towns, the amounts moving through state coffers are significant and promise to bring about noticeable results. And yet, it does not come close to matching the need of our communities. PLANNING FOR THE FUTURE From a perspective of investment and sustainable long-term growth, the League is encouraging municipalities to spend American Rescue Plan funds on projects that meet a few criteria: it should be a one-time expense; it should impact an area of significant need; and it should pay dividends for your community for decades to come. With those criteria in mind, the League encourages municipalities to consider investment into water and wastewater infrastructure. By the Numbers $26 8 92 541 89 BILLION Total needed to adequately upgrade water and sewer systems in North Carolina over 20 years, according to a 2017 state study. PERCENT Local water and sewer needs met through outside funding (state grants, other programs, etc). PERCENT Local water and sewer needs met (or deferred) by utility provider. Number of local government-run water systems in North Carolina. PERCENT State population served by those 541 local government systems. continued from page 29 SOUTHERN CITY QUARTER 4 2021 30
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