Proposed Information Collection Request; Clean Water State Revolving Fund and Drinking Water State Revolving Fund Programs, 3409-3411 [2023-00894]

Agencies

• ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY

[Federal Register Volume 88, Number 12 (Thursday, January 19, 2023)]
[Notices]
[Pages 3409-3411]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2023-00894]


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ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY

[EPA-HQ-OW-2002-0059; FRL-10519-01-OW]


Proposed Information Collection Request; Clean Water State 
Revolving Fund and Drinking Water State Revolving Fund Programs

AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

ACTION: Notice.

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SUMMARY: The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is planning to 
submit an information collection request (ICR), ``Clean Water State 
Revolving Fund and Drinking Water State Revolving Fund Programs'' (EPA 
ICR No. 1803.09 OMB Control No. 2040-0185) to the Office of Management 
and Budget (OMB) for review and approval in accordance with the 
Paperwork Reduction Act (PRA). Before doing so, the EPA is soliciting 
public comments on specific aspects of the proposed information 
collection as described in the SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION section. This 
is a proposed renewal of the ICR, which is currently approved through 
August 31, 2023, for the Drinking Water State Revolving Fund (DWSRF). 
This ICR consolidates the DWSRF and Clean Water State Revolving Fund 
(CWSRF) ICRs (ICR No. 1803.08 and ICR NO. 1391.12, respectively) 
because they affect the same set of respondents in similar ways. 
Additional information collection requirements made necessary by the 
Bipartisan Infrastructure Law (BIL) are similar for both programs. 
Therefore, EPA is consolidating the DWSRF and CWSRF ICRs, in addition 
to updating and renewing them, to provide a more coherent picture of 
the information components of EPA's SRF program. An Agency may not 
conduct or sponsor a collection of information nor is a person required 
to respond unless it displays a currently valid OMB control number.

DATES: Comments must be submitted on or before March 20, 2023.

ADDRESSES: Submit your comments, referencing Docket ID No. EPA-HQ-OW-
2002-0059, online using www.regulations.gov (our preferred method), by 
email to [email protected], or by mail to: EPA Docket Center, 
Environmental Protection

[[Page 3410]]

Agency, Mail Code 28221T, 1200 Pennsylvania Ave. NW, Washington, DC 
20460.
    EPA's policy is that all comments received will be included in the 
public docket without change including any personal information 
provided, unless the comment includes profanity, threats, information 
claimed to be Confidential Business Information (CBI) or other 
information whose disclosure is restricted by statute.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 
    Bizzy Berg, Drinking Water Infrastructure Development Division, 
Office of Ground Water and Drinking Water, 4606M, Environmental 
Protection Agency, 1200 Pennsylvania Ave. NW, Washington, DC 20460; 
telephone number: 202-564-7558; email address: [email protected].
    Mark Mylin, Water Infrastructure Division, Office of Wastewater 
Management, 4204M, Environmental Protection Agency, 1200 Pennsylvania 
Ave. NW, Washington, DC 20460; telephone number: 202-564-0607; email 
address: [email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Supporting documents which explain in detail 
the information that the EPA will be collecting are available in the 
public docket for this ICR. The docket can be viewed online at 
www.regulations.gov or in person at the EPA Docket Center, WJC West, 
Room 3334, 1301 Constitution Ave. NW, Washington, DC. The telephone 
number for the Docket Center is 202-566-1744. For additional 
information about EPA's public docket, visit https://www.epa.gov/dockets.
    Pursuant to section 3506(c)(2)(A) of the PRA (44 U.S.C. 3501 et 
seq.), EPA is soliciting comments and information to enable it to: (i) 
evaluate whether the proposed collection of information is necessary 
for the proper performance of the functions of the Agency, including 
whether the information will have practical utility; (ii) evaluate the 
accuracy of the Agency's estimate of the burden of the proposed 
collection of information, including the validity of the methodology 
and assumptions used; (iii) enhance the quality, utility, and clarity 
of the information to be collected; and (iv) minimize the burden of the 
collection of information on those who are to respond, including 
through the use of appropriate automated electronic, mechanical, or 
other technological collection techniques or other forms of information 
technology, e.g., permitting electronic submission of responses. EPA 
will consider the comments received and amend the ICR as appropriate. 
The final ICR package will then be submitted to the Office of 
Management and Budget (OMB) for review and approval. At that time, EPA 
will issue another Federal Register notice to announce the submission 
of the ICR to OMB and the opportunity to submit additional comments to 
OMB.
    Abstract: The information collection activities will occur 
primarily at the program-level through the State Capitalization Grant 
Agreement/Intended Use Plan and Annual Report. The information on the 
Intended Use Plan (IUP) is needed annually to describe how the State 
intends to use available State Revolving Fund (SRF) funds for the year 
to meet the objectives of the Clean Water Act (CWA) or Safe Drinking 
Water Act (SDWA) and to further the goal of protecting public health. 
The Annual Report is needed to provide detailed information on how the 
State has met its goals and objectives of the previous one or two 
fiscal years as stated in the IUP and grant agreement. The CWA and SDWA 
require this information to ensure the national accountability, 
adequate public review and comment, fiscal integrity, and consistent 
management needed to achieve public health and CWA and SDWA compliance 
objectives.
    Title VI of the CWA of 1987 established the Clean Water State 
Revolving Fund (CWSRF) program, which replaced the Environmental 
Protection Agency's (EPA) Construction Grants Program. As outlined in 
40 CFR part 35, subpart K, State Water Pollution Control Revolving 
Funds, and EPA guidance, each State and Puerto Rico has its own CWSRF. 
The 1996 SDWA Amendments created the Drinking Water State Revolving 
Fund (DWSRF). Much like the CWSRF, each State and Puerto Rico has its 
own DWSRF, outlined in 40 CFR part 35, subpart L.
    A State's CWSRF and DWSRF include funds provided by Federal 
capitalization grants, repayments from prior assistance agreements, 
interest that has been repaid to the SRF, and investment income. In 
some cases, a State SRF secures additional funding though bond 
proceeds. Each State designs and operates its own revolving fund to 
provide financial assistance to eligible recipients for water pollution 
control and drinking water safety activities.
    The CWSRF and DWSRF were established as low-interest sources of 
funding for a wide range of water infrastructure projects and have the 
flexibility to use options beyond low interest loans. States have the 
authority to use the SRFs to issue and refinance loans, purchase or 
guarantee local debt, and purchase bond insurance. States may also set 
specific terms such as interest rates and repayment periods. The CWSRF 
can also issue loan guarantees, and in 2009, Congress authorized States 
to provide further financial assistance via the CWSRF program in the 
form of grants, principal forgiveness, and negative interest rate 
loans. Under the DWSRF, a State may, at its discretion, establish 
disadvantaged community criteria and offer negative interest rates, 
principal forgiveness, and/or an extended repayment term.
    Congress provides EPA annual appropriations for providing 
capitalization grants to State SRFs. EPA awards these grants to each 
State upon the State's submission of a grant application, which 
includes an IUP. While EPA provides oversight that ensures that States' 
procedures are consistent with the CWA or SDWA and accompanying 
regulations, the States have a great deal of autonomy in administering 
the program and selecting which projects receive funding. Additional 
information about the CWSRFs and DWSRFs are available at https://www.epa.gov/cwsrf/learn-about-clean-water-state-revolving-fund-cwsrf 
and https://www.epa.gov/dwsrf/how-drinking-water-state-revolving-fund-works#tab-1, respectively.
    This ICR renews the OMB Number 2040-0185 DWSRF ICR and provides 
updated estimates of the reporting burden associated with the 
information collection activities for both DWSRF ICR and CWSRF ICR.
    The individual information collections covered under this ICR are 
briefly described as follows:

(1) Capitalization Grant Agreement/Intended Use Plan

    The Capitalization Grant Agreement is the principal instrument by 
which the State commits to manage its revolving fund program in 
conformity with the requirements of the CWA or SDWA. The grant 
agreement contains or incorporates by reference the IUP, application 
materials, payment schedule, required certifications, Operating 
Agreement (if used), and other documentation required by the Regional 
Administrator. Information on how an SRF program intends to use its 
funds for the upcoming year to meet the objectives of the CWA or SDWA 
can be found in the IUP. The agreement is a general instrument to 
legally commit the State and EPA to execute their responsibilities 
under the CWA or SDWA.

(2) Annual Report

    The Annual Report indicates how the State has met its goals and 
objectives of the past fiscal year as stated in the grant

[[Page 3411]]

agreement and, more specifically, in the IUP. The Annual Report 
provides information on loan recipients, loan amounts, loan terms, 
project categories of eligible costs, and similar data on other forms 
of assistance. The Annual Report also describes the extent to which the 
existing CWSRF or DWSRF financial operating policies, alone or in 
combination with other State financial assistance programs, will 
provide for the long-term fiscal health of the SRFs and carry out other 
key provisions of the CWA or SDWA. Financial information from the 
Annual Report may be entered into the SRF Data System. The SRF Data 
System updated and consolidated the Project Benefits Reporting (PBR) 
System, CWSRF Benefits Reporting (CBR) System, Drinking Water National 
Information Management System (DWNIMS), and Clean Water National 
Information Management System (CWNIMS) into a single portal, where data 
can be collected on State SRF assistance agreements, annual State level 
SRF program activity, SRF borrower data, and State SRF program agency 
management data. Through consolidation of system, the SRF Data System 
can avoid duplication of data questions to State users, more easily 
ensure data consistency, and more easily use and share data from other 
EPA Systems.
(3) State Audit
    A State must comply with the provisions of the Single Audit Act 
Amendments of 1996. Best management practices suggest, and the EPA 
recommends that a State conduct an annual independent audit of its SRF 
programs. The State Audit must contain an opinion on the financial 
condition of the SRF programs, a report on its internal controls, and a 
report on compliance with applicable laws and the CWA or SDWA. 
Therefore, a State may voluntarily agree to conduct annual independent 
audits.
(4) Financial and Project Data
    To meet the CWA and SDWA objectives of ``promoting the efficient 
use of fund resources'' States must enter financial data, including 
project commitments and disbursements, into the SRF Data System on an 
annual basis. These data, also available to the public, are used by the 
EPA to assess compliance with the Program's mandate to use all funds in 
an ``expeditious and timely'' manner and achieve maximum environmental 
benefits from the Fund. Project level data are collected on a quarterly 
basis using the SRF Data System to ensure CWA and SDWA eligibility and 
to highlight the projected environmental and health benefits from SRF 
projects.
(5) SRF Public Awareness Requirements
    Per EPA Grants Policy Issuance (GPI) 14-02: Enhancing Public 
Awareness of EPA Assistance Agreements, SRF borrowers must publicize 
EPA's involvement in project funding only up to the funding amount in 
each year's capitalization grant. The SRFs have various options to meet 
this requirement.
    Though the CWSRF information collection activities closely mirror 
those of the DWSRF program, there are several key differences. 
Specifically, the CWA requires the CWSRFs to provide EPA with an Annual 
Report that documents program activity over the prior year. In 
addition, the DWSRF program includes several set-aside programs that 
are funded through the DWSRF capitalization grants. These set-aside 
programs cover activities that are separate from the funding provided 
by the DWSRFs for eligible water infrastructure projects. The use of 
the set-aside funds must be tracked through the various DWSRF 
information collection activities, including the IUPs and Annual 
Reports. The CWA does not provide similar set-aside programs for the 
CWSRFs.
    With the exception of the public awareness requirements, the 
respondents for the information collection activities are the State 
environmental departments, State departments of health, requirements 
should not have an impact on small entities since the SRFs have 
flexibility in determining which borrowers must comply with these 
requirements.
    Form Numbers: None.
    Respondents/affected entities: Entities affected by this action are 
States and local governments.
    Respondent's obligation to respond: Required to obtain or retain a 
benefit per the Clean Water Act title VI and the Safe Drinking Water 
Act section 1452.
    Estimated number of respondents: 2,836 State and local respondents 
(total).
    Frequency of response: Varies by requirement (i.e., quarterly, 
semi-annually, annually).
    Total estimated burden: 186,518 hours (per year). Burden is defined 
at 5 CFR 1320.03(b).
    Total estimated cost: $17,688,247.00 (per year), includes 
$6,354,600.00 annualized capital or operation & maintenance costs.
    Changes in Estimates: The passage of the BIL created five new 
appropriations for SRF funding: CWSRF General Supplemental Funding, 
CWSRF Emerging Contaminants Funding, DWSRF General Supplemental 
Funding, DWSRF Emerging Contaminants Funding, and DWSRF Lead Service 
Line Replacement Funding. For both the CWSRF and the DWSRF, the 
respondent average annual hourly burden increased, as EPA estimates 
more applications will be submitted due to this increase in funding. 
Additionally, wages increased for SRF State staff and SRF borrowers, 
which also increased the average annual costs to respondents. For the 
DWSRF, the Agency net average annual hourly and cost burden decreased 
so that the estimates were corrected and better aligned with those of 
the CWSRF. For the CWSRF, the Agency hourly burden remained the same as 
the previous CWSRF ICR, while the Agency cost burden increased to 
reflect an increase in employee wages. The total annual cost of burden 
estimate for both SRFs is higher than the previous ICR submitted since 
this ICR covers both the CWSRF and the DWSRF, while the previous ICR 
only applied to the DWSRF.

Jennifer L. McLain,
Director, Office of Ground Water and Drinking Water.
Andrew D. Sawyers,
Director, Office of Wastewater Management.
[FR Doc. 2023-00894 Filed 1-18-23; 8:45 am]
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