Lead Service Line Loans

The Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act of 2021 (IIJA) provides SRF programs with supplemental funding to strengthen the nation’s water infrastructure. Funding through IIJA is available to states through federal fiscal years 2022 to 2026. Through the Lead Service Line (LSL) SRF Capitalization Grant, this funding supports removing and replacing LSLs used to distribute drinking water. This includes lead and galvanized steel components used in lines that may promote leaching lead into our water supply. There is no safe level of lead exposure, as it is a toxic metal that poses serious health risks even at low concentrations. Congress aims to eliminate lead in our water supply by providing funding through IIJA to SRFs to identify and replace LSLs across Tennessee.

Who is Eligible?
The Drinking Water State Revolving Fund can provide financial assistance to publicly-owned and privately-owned community water systems, as well as non-profit non-community water systems, for drinking water infrastructure projects. Projects must either facilitate the system’s compliance with national primary drinking water regulations or significantly further the health protection objectives of the Safe Drinking Water Act (SDWA).

This funding can be used to facilitate LSLR through infrastructure replacement, corrosion control optimization, lead testing and education, as well as interim/emergency protocols. Service line identification, planning, design, and complete service line replacement are eligible DWSRF expenses, regardless of pipe material and ownership of the property on which the service line is located. The entire service line from the public water main to the point at which it connects with premise plumbing is DWSRF-eligible.