Who is a member?
Our members are the local governments of Massachusetts and their elected and appointed leadership.
The Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection and the Massachusetts Clean Water Trust have released final intended use plans for the Drinking Water State Revolving Fund and Clean Water State Revolving Fund.
The MassDEP and the Clean Water Trust jointly manage the two federal-state financing programs. The drinking water fund provides subsidized loans and grants to protect drinking water quality, while the clean water fund provides subsidized loans and grants to protect water quality and public health.
The federal Clean Water Act requires the state to prepare intended use plans (IUPs) each year, following a public review and comment period, to identify how funds will be used. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency is required to receive the final intended use plans before awarding the annual capitalization grant to the fund.
The MassDEP and the Clean Water Trust released the Massachusetts IUPs on April 1. Under the plans:
• The Drinking Water State Revolving Fund will offer approximately $434 million of financial assistance for wastewater projects across the Commonwealth. Sixteen new construction projects will receive $167 million, and 13 previously approved multi-year projects will receive $148 million, among other awards. (View the 2026 Drinking Water Intended Use Plan)
• The Clean Water State Revolving Fund will offer $728 million to support wastewater projects. Thirty new construction projects will be offered $432 million, and 12 previously awarded multi-year projects will receive $270 million. (View the 2026 Clean Water Intended Use Plan)
Program updates
MassDEP oversees the administration of the state revolving funds program, with financing and fiscal administration managed by the Clean Water Trust.
In developing the intended use plans, some programmatic changes are incorporated from year to year. This is typically reflected in the review and administration of that year’s awards or for applications in future years.
In the IUPs for 2026, MassDEP and the Clean Water Trust acknowledged several headwinds impacting the programs. The years of unprecedented federal investment in state revolving funds under the 2021 Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act are coming to an end, with funding set to expire in 2026. Coupled with decreased federal base grants, the implications for Massachusetts are reflected in less state capacity to fund new projects in future IUPs.
In addition to federal changes, MassDEP and the Clean Water Trust noted that the cost, size and scope of an average project in recent years is stressing available financial resources. The SRFs continue to prioritize using funds efficiently and in a timely manner, as well as maximizing the number of projects the fund is able to support.
One programmatic change announced through the 2026 IUPs was the inability of SRFs to continue to offer interest-free loans for eligible PFAS projects (more on PFAS here). The PFAS Remediation Loan Program began as a pilot in 2020 to meet new PFAS drinking water regulation standards. The program remains available, but will not offer 0% interest for any 2026 IUP PFAS project loans, including for carry-over projects.
MassDEP and the Clean Water Trust indicated their intent to use other available funds for loan forgiveness and to provide financing savings to municipalities and applicants.
Visit the SRF Intended Use Plans website for more information.