Wastewater and Drinking Water Infrastructure
Program Funding Developments
Updated March 18, 2025
The condition of municipal water infrastructure and the challenges some communities face in ensuring
adequate wastewater and drinking water services continue to generate interest for Congress and for some
stakeholders. State estimates of wastewater infrastructure and drinking water infrastructure needs—
collected and reported by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)—have reinforced this
interest.
The 117
th
Congress altered the federal framework that provides funding for municipal water infrastructure
in states and territories. The 117
th
Congress restarted providing grant funding for specific projects through
community project funding/congressionally directed spending (CPF/CDS), which some call earmarks.
CPF/CDS was approved for the two primary federal assistance programs for water infrastructure: the
Clean Water State Revolving Fund (CWSRF) and the Drinking Water State Revolving Fund (DWSRF).
The 118
th
Congress continued this practice in P.L. 118-42 for FY2024, as well as in House-passed H.R.
8998 and the Senate-reported S. 4802, each of which would have provided FY2025 funding for EPA.
Through the Continuing Appropriations Act, 2025 (Division A of P.L. 118-83) and the Further Continuing
Appropriations Act, 2025 (Division A of P.L. 118-158), the 118
th
Congress continued FY2024 funding
levels, including CPF/CDS, through March 14, 2025.
On March 11, 2025, the House passed H.R. 1968 to provide federal agency funding for FY2025,
including for EPA, and the Senate passed H.R. 1968 on March 14, 2025. Section 1101(a)(7) of H.R. 1968
provides funding for EPA for FY2025 at FY2024 levels, with certain exceptions. Section 1801(8) of H.R.
1968 does not include CPF/CDS items provided in FY2024 from CWSRF and DWSRF appropriations.
As such, funding levels for the CWSRF and DWSRF programs are effectively increased for FY2025.
State Revolving Fund (SRFs) and Earmarks
The SRFs are the principal federal programs that help support wastewater and drinking water
infrastructure. The CWSRF provides financial assistance for wastewater (e.g., sewer and stormwater)
infrastructure projects to publicly owned treatment works (i.e., sewage treatment plants) and other eligible
recipients. The DWSRF provides assistance to public water systems, which may be publicly or privately
owned. In both programs, EPA makes grants to states to capitalize a revolving loan fund. States provide a
