II 

112TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION S. 3626 

To provide financing assistance for qualified water infrastructure projects, 

and for other purposes. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

NOVEMBER 13, 2012 

Mr. MERKLEY introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred 

to the Committee on Environment and Public Works 

A BILL 

To provide financing assistance for qualified water 

infrastructure projects, and for other purposes. 

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

4 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Water Infrastructure 

5 Finance and Innovation Act of 2012’’. 

6 SEC. 2. FINDINGS. 

7 Congress finds that— 

8 (1) it is in the national interest to encourage 

9 the timely and cost-effective rehabilitation and re10 placement of aging water and sewer infrastructure 


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1 and to support investments in innovative, cost-effec2 tive, and sustainable infrastructure approaches to 

3 protect public health and clean water; 

4 (2) the Environmental Protection Agency re5 ports that, in the 20-year period following the date 

6 of enactment of this Act— 

7 (A) $334,800,000,000 is needed to invest 

8 in infrastructure improvements to ensure the 

9 provision of safe water; and 

10 (B) $298,100,000,000 is needed for pub11 licly owned wastewater systems-related infra12 structure; 

13 (3) customer rates and local charges are and 

14 will remain the primary means of paying for water 

15 service and infrastructure in the United States; 

16 (4) the municipal bond market and State re17 volving fund programs are the primary long-term 

18 means for financing water infrastructure projects, 

19 but upfront investment needs are too high to be met 

20 with those traditional means alone; 

21 (5) financing constraints make it particularly 

22 difficult for State revolving funds to support large 

23 water infrastructure projects of regional and na24 tional significance; 


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1 (6) the growing funding gap demonstrates the 

2 need to invest in innovative and cost-effective ap3 proaches such as green infrastructure, water effi4 ciency, and source water protection to obtain the 

5 greatest environmental and public health benefits 

6 per dollar invested; 

7 (7) this Act will substantially benefit the drink8 ing water and wastewater systems of the United 

9 States by— 

10 (A) addressing the gap in funding for 

11 large, regionally and nationally significant 

12 projects by making available direct loans and 

13 loan guarantees to reduce borrowing costs and 

14 accelerate water infrastructure investment; 

15 (B) enhancing the capacity of State revolv16 ing fund programs to assist other projects; and 

17 (C) promoting clean and safe water 

18 through compliance with the Federal Water 

19 Pollution Control Act (33 U.S.C. 1251 et seq.) 

20 and the Safe Drinking Water Act (42 U.S.C. 

21 300f et seq.); 

22 (8) since the historical default rate on water 

23 and sewer bonds is 0.04 percent, the risk of default 

24 on Federal assistance provided under this Act is 

25 minimal; 


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1 (9) keeping the risk of default on water and 

2 sewer bonds low requires the alignment of infra3 structure investment with environmental sustain4 ability; and 

5 (10) because loans, loan guarantees, and other 

6 credit instruments only incur long-term costs if sub7 sidized or in the event of default, this Act can help 

8 to meet the water infrastructure needs of the United 

9 States at minimal long-term cost to the Federal 

10 Government. 

11 SEC. 3. DEFINITIONS. 

12 In this Act: 

13 (1) ADMINISTRATOR.—The term ‘‘Adminis14 trator’’ means the Administrator of the Environ15 mental Protection Agency. 

16 (2) BORROWER.—The term ‘‘borrower’’ means 

17 an eligible entity that owes payments of interest or 

18 principal on a credit instrument. 

19 (3) COMMUNITY WATER SYSTEM.—The term 

20 ‘‘community water system’’ has the meaning given 

21 the term in section 1401 of the Safe Drinking Water 

22 Act (42 U.S.C. 300f). 

23 (4) COST OF A DIRECT LOAN; COST OF A LOAN

24 GUARANTEE.—The terms ‘‘cost of a direct loan’’ and 

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1 rect loan’’ and ‘‘cost of a loan guarantee’’, respec2 tively, as those terms are used in section 502 of the 

3 Federal Credit Reform Act of 1990 (2 U.S.C. 661a). 

4 (5) CREDIT INSTRUMENT.—The term ‘‘credit 

5 instrument’’ means— 

6 (A) a direct loan made under this Act; or 

7 (B) a loan or other debt obligation that is 

8 subject to a loan guarantee under this Act. 

9 (6) DIRECT LOAN.— 

10 (A) IN GENERAL.—The term ‘‘direct loan’’ 

11 has the meaning given the term in section 502 

12 of the Federal Credit Reform Act of 1990 (2 

13 U.S.C. 661a). 

14 (B) INCLUSIONS.—The term ‘‘direct loan’’ 

15 includes the purchase of a bond by the Federal 

16 Government. 

17 (7) ELIGIBLE ENTITY.— 

18 (A) IN GENERAL.—The term ‘‘eligible enti19 ty’’ means— 

20 (i) an entity (other than a State or 

21 local agency with jurisdiction over high22 ways or roads) that owns or operates a 

23 treatment works that serves the general 

24 public, including a municipal or regional 


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1 separate storm sewer system management 

2 agency; 

3 (ii) an entity that owns or operates a 

4 community water system; 

5 (iii) 1 or more entities described in 

6 clauses (i) and (ii) that are cooperating on 

7 an eligible project; 

8 (iv) for an eligible project described in 

9 paragraph (8)(B), a State infrastructure 

10 financing authority; 

11 (v) any entity eligible to receive a loan 

12 or loan guarantee under a State water pol13 lution control revolving fund established 

14 under title VI of the Federal Water Pollu15 tion Control Act (33 U.S.C. 1381 et seq.); 

16 and 

17 (vi) any entity eligible to receive a 

18 loan or loan guarantee under a State 

19 drinking water revolving loan fund estab20 lished under section 1452 of the Safe 

21 Drinking Water Act (42 U.S.C. 300j–12). 

22 (B) INCLUSIONS.—The term ‘‘eligible enti23 ty’’ includes a public-private partnership, except 

24 that only the public entity-owned or investor25 owned utility shall receive assistance under this 


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1 Act, not the private financing or development 

2 partner. 

3 (8) ELIGIBLE PROJECT.—The term ‘‘eligible 

4 project’’ means— 

5 (A) a capital project— 

6 (i) to construct, replace, or rehabili7 tate a treatment works or a community 

8 water system; 

9 (ii) to reduce the energy consumption 

10 needs of a treatment works or a commu11 nity water system, including the implemen12 tation of energy efficient or renewable gen13 eration technologies; 

14 (iii) to increase water efficiency, re15 duce the demand for water, or reduce the 

16 demand for treatment works or community 

17 water system capacity; 

18 (iv) to manage or control stormwater; 

19 (v) to reuse municipal wastewater or 

20 stormwater; 

21 (vi) for the consolidation of 2 or more 

22 treatment works or community water sys23 tems; 


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1 (vii) to increase drinking water source 

2 protection for surface and groundwater 

3 sources; 

4 (viii) for construction activities involv5 ing— 

6 (I) the repair, replacement, or 

7 upgrading of a treatment works or 

8 sewage collection system in a commu9 nity that exists on the date of enact10 ment of this Act to address an ad11 verse environmental condition existing 

12 on that date of enactment; 

13 (II) the construction of an ad14 vanced decentralized wastewater treat15 ment system, including planning, de16 sign, associated preconstruction plan17 ning activities (as defined in section 

18 212 of the Federal Water Pollution 

19 Control Act (33 U.S.C. 1292)); and 

20 (III) implementation measures to 

21 control, manage, reduce, treat, infil22 trate, or reuse municipal stormwater, 

23 the primary purpose of which is the 

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1 lic purposes (including decentralized 

2 or distributed stormwater controls, 

3 low-impact development technologies 

4 and nonstructural approaches, stream 

5 buffers, and wetlands restoration and 

6 enhancement, the procurement and 

7 use of equipment to support minimum 

8 measures, such as street sweeping and 

9 storm drain system cleaning, and ac10 quisition of other land and interests in 

11 land to meet the needs of existing de12 velopment that are necessary for those 

13 activities and measures); 

14 (ix) to implement a management pro15 gram established under section 319 of the 

16 Federal Water Pollution Control Act (33 

17 U.S.C. 1329); 

18 (x) to develop and implement a con19 servation and management plan under sec20 tion 320 of the Federal Water Pollution 

21 Control Act (33 U.S.C. 1330); 

22 (xi) to increase the security of waste23 water treatment works or a community 

24 water system (excluding any expenditure 

25 for operations or maintenance); 


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1 (xii) to carry out water conservation 

2 or efficiency projects, the primary purpose 

3 of which is the protection, preservation, or 

4 enhancement of water quality to support 

5 public purposes; 

6 (xiii) to implement measures to inte7 grate water resource management planning 

8 and implementation; 

9 (xiv) to carry out water, rainwater, 

10 and wastewater reuse, reclamation, recy11 cling, and rainwater harvesting projects, 

12 the primary purpose of which is the protec13 tion, preservation, or enhancement of 

14 water quality to support public purposes; 

15 and 

16 (xv) for capital costs associated with 

17 monitoring equipment for combined or san18 itary sewer overflows; 

19 (B) a non-capital project that is— 

20 (i) associated with a capital project; 

21 and 

22 (ii) the aim of which is to promote the 

23 use of environmentally sustainable proj24 ects, including utility-backed stormwater 

25 and water efficiency retrofit programs; and 


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1 (C) 2 or more projects described in sub2 paragraph (A) that are combined to receive a 

3 single direct loan or loan guarantee. 

4 (9) LOAN GUARANTEE.—The term ‘‘loan guar5 antee’’ has the meaning given the term in section 

6 502 of the Federal Credit Reform Act of 1990 (2 

7 U.S.C. 661a). 

8 (10) STATE INFRASTRUCTURE FINANCING AU9 THORITY.—The term ‘‘State infrastructure financing 

10 authority’’ means the State entity established or des11 ignated by the Governor of a State to receive a cap12 italization grant provided under, or to otherwise 

13 carry out the requirements of, title VI of the Federal 

14 Water Pollution Control Act (33 U.S.C. 1381 et 

15 seq.) or section 1452 of the Safe Drinking Water 

16 Act (42 U.S.C. 300j–12). 

17 (11) TREATMENT WORKS.—The term ‘‘treat18 ment works’’ has the meaning given the term in sec19 tion 212 of Federal Water Pollution Control Act (33 

20 U.S.C. 1292). 

21 SEC. 4. ESTABLISHMENT. 

22 The Administrator may make a direct loan, including 

23 a subordinated loan, or a loan guarantee to an eligible en24 tity to carry out activities for an eligible project in accord25 ance with this Act. 


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1 SEC. 5. APPLICATIONS. 

2 (a) IN GENERAL.—As a condition of receiving assist3 ance under this Act, an eligible entity shall submit to the 

4 Administrator an application at such time, in such man5 ner, and containing such information as the Administrator 

6 may require. 

7 (b) COMBINED PROJECTS.—In the case of an eligible 

8 project described in section 3(8)(C), the Administrator 

9 shall require from the eligible entity a single application 

10 for the group of projects. 

11 SEC. 6. USE OF ASSISTANCE. 

12 An eligible entity shall only use amounts received 

13 under this Act for eligible projects— 

14 (1) to carry out— 

15 (A) development phase activities, including 

16 planning, feasibility analysis, revenue fore17 casting, environmental review, permitting, and 

18 other preconstruction engineering and design 

19 work; 

20 (B) construction, reconstruction, rehabili21 tation, and replacement activities necessary for 

22 the project; and 

23 (C) environmental mitigation and construc24 tion contingencies; 

25 (2) to acquire real property (including interests 

26 in real property) and equipment; 


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1 (3) to provide for any funding mechanisms nec2 essary to meet market or affordability requirements, 

3 reasonably required reserve funds, capitalized inter4 est issuance expenses, and other carrying costs dur5 ing construction of the project; and 

6 (4) to refinance interim construction financing, 

7 long-term project obligations, or direct loans or loan 

8 guarantees made under this Act. 

9 SEC. 7. SELECTION AMONG ELIGIBLE PROJECTS. 

10 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Administrator shall select eli11 gible projects to receive assistance under this Act based 

12 on— 

13 (1) the significance of the infrastructure needs 

14 addressed by the project, including the economic, en15 vironmental, and public health benefits of the 

16 project; 

17 (2) the creditworthiness of the project under 

18 consideration, including the terms, conditions, finan19 cial structure, and security features making up the 

20 proposed financing, and the financial assumptions 

21 upon which the project is based; 

22 (3) the need for Federal assistance, including 

23 the likelihood that the provision of assistance by the 

24 Administrator under this Act will cause the project 

25 to proceed more promptly and with lower costs for 


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1 financing than would be the case without the assist2 ance; 

3 (4) the degree to which the project financing 

4 plan includes public or private financing in addition 

5 to assistance under this Act; 

6 (5) the cost of the direct loan or loan guarantee 

7 to the Federal Government for the project; 

8 (6) the extent to which the project is nationally 

9 or regionally significant; 

10 (7) whether the project, to the maximum extent 

11 practicable, incorporates environmentally sustainable 

12 approaches, including conservation, efficiency, reuse, 

13 source water protection, energy efficiency, green in14 frastructure, and other innovative techniques; 

15 (8) whether the project is consistent with— 

16 (A) the State priority system established 

17 pursuant to section 603(g) of the Federal 

18 Water Pollution Control Act (33 U.S.C. 

19 1383(g)); and 

20 (B) the types of projects described in sec21 tion 1452(b)(3) of the Safe Drinking Water Act 

22 (42 U.S.C. 300j–12(b)(3)); and 

23 (9) the priority system established under sub24 section (b). 


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1 (b) PRIORITY SYSTEM.—The Administrator shall es2 tablish a priority system that gives greater weight to an 

3 application for an eligible project that includes— 

4 (1) an inventory of the assets of the treatment 

5 works or community water system, including a de6 scription of the condition of those assets; 

7 (2) a schedule for replacement of the assets of 

8 the treatment works or community water system; 

9 (3) a financing plan that factors in all lifecycle 

10 costs and describes the sources of revenue from rate11 payers, grants, bonds, loans, and other sources des12 ignated to meet those lifecycle costs; 

13 (4) a description of any options for restruc14 turing the treatment works or community water sys15 tem; 

16 (5) any new models or techniques, other than a 

17 traditional wastewater model, to treat or minimize 

18 sewage or urban stormwater discharges using— 

19 (A) decentralized or distributed stormwater 

20 controls; 

21 (B) advanced decentralized wastewater 

22 treatment; 

23 (C) low-impact development technologies 

24 and nonstructural approaches; 

25 (D) stream buffers; 


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1 (E) wetland restoration and enhancement; 

2 (F) actions to minimize the quantity of 

3 and direct connections to impervious surfaces; 

4 (G) soil and vegetation or other permeable 

5 materials; or 

6 (H) actions that increase efficient water 

7 use, water conservation, or water or wastewater 

8 reuse, including rainwater harvesting; 

9 (6) to the maximum extent practicable, the use 

10 of water efficiency and conservation techniques to 

11 generate cost-effective sources of new water supply; 

12 and 

13 (7) a demonstration of consistency with State, 

14 regional, and municipal watershed plans, water con15 servation and efficiency plans, or integrated water 

16 resource management plans. 

17 (c) SPECIAL RULE FOR COMBINED PROJECTS.—For 

18 an eligible project described in section 3(8)(C), the Admin19 istrator shall consider only the criteria described in para20 graphs (1), (2), (3), and (5) of subsection (a). 

21 (d) REASONABLE ASSURANCE OF PAYMENT.—The 

22 Administrator may select an eligible project for assistance 

23 only if the Administrator finds that there is a reasonable 

24 assurance that all payments will be made on the credit 

25 instrument. 


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1 SEC. 8. CREDIT EVALUATION. 

2 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Administrator shall develop 

3 and implement a credit evaluation process before pro4 viding any assistance under this Act. 

5 (b) PRELIMINARY RATING OPINION LETTER.—For 

6 purposes of determining creditworthiness under section 

7 7(a)(2), the Administrator may— 

8 (1) require an eligible entity to provide a pre9 liminary rating opinion letter from at least 1 rating 

10 agency; or 

11 (2) use an alternative (including an internal) 

12 credit rating process. 

13 (c) RULE FOR CERTAIN COMBINED PROJECTS.—For 

14 an eligible project described in section 3(8)(C) for which 

15 a State infrastructure financing authority is the eligible 

16 entity, in addition to the creditworthiness consideration 

17 under section 7(a)(2), the Administrator shall evaluate the 

18 creditworthiness of each entity represented by the State 

19 infrastructure financing authority that will be carrying out 

20 any eligible project described in section 3(8)(A) that will 

21 be a part of the eligible project. 

22 SEC. 9. TERMS AND CONDITIONS. 

23 (a) IN GENERAL.—Each direct loan and loan guar24 antee made under this Act shall be on such terms and 

25 conditions and contain such covenants, representations, 


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1 warranties, and requirements (including requirements for 

2 audits) as the Administrator may prescribe. 

3 (b) INTEREST RATE.— 

4 (1) IN GENERAL.—The interest rate applicable 

5 to a direct loan shall be the rate that is set by ref6 erence to a benchmark interest rate on marketable 

7 Treasury securities with a similar maturity to that 

8 direct loan, as of the date of issuance of the direct 

9 loan. 

10 (2) HIGHER INTEREST RATES.—The Adminis11 trator may charge a higher interest rate on a direct 

12 loan if the Administrator determines that the risk 

13 profile of the eligible project indicates a higher inter14 est rate is necessary to protect the interests of the 

15 United States. 

16 (c) TERM OF LOAN.—The Administrator may provide 

17 assistance under this Act only with respect to a credit in18 strument the final maturity date of which is not later than 

19 35 years after the date on which funds are disbursed. 

20 (d) SECURITY FEATURES.—The Administrator shall 

21 require a borrower receiving assistance under this Act to 

22 use a rate covenant, coverage requirement, or similar secu23 rity feature supporting the project obligations to ensure 

24 repayment. 

25 (e) DIRECT LOAN REPAYMENTS.— 


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1 (1) SCHEDULE.—The Administrator shall es2 tablish a repayment schedule for each direct loan 

3 under this Act based on the projected cash flow from 

4 project repayment sources. 

5 (2) COMMENCEMENT.—Scheduled repayments 

6 of principal or interest on a direct loan made under 

7 this Act shall commence not later than 5 years after 

8 the date of substantial completion of the project, as 

9 determined by the Administrator in a manner set 

10 forth at the time the direct loan is made. 

11 (3) DEFERRAL OF PAYMENTS.— 

12 (A) IN GENERAL.—If the Administrator 

13 determines that a borrower lacks the resources 

14 to make scheduled payments on a direct loan 

15 made under this Act based on circumstances 

16 not foreseeable at the time the direct loan is 

17 made, the Administrator may allow for the de18 ferral of the payments. 

19 (B) INTERESTS.—Any payment deferred 

20 under subparagraph (A) shall— 

21 (i) continue to accrue interest until 

22 fully repaid; and 

23 (ii) be scheduled to be amortized over 

24 the remaining term of the direct loan. 


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1 (C) CRITERIA.—Any payment deferral 

2 under subparagraph (A) shall be contingent on 

3 the project meeting criteria established by the 

4 Administrator, which shall include standards 

5 for reasonable assurance of repayment. 

6 (4) PREPAYMENT.—Payments on the direct 

7 loan may be made in advance with no penalty. 

8 (f) SPECIAL RULES FOR LOAN GUARANTEES.— 

9 (1) TERMS.—The terms of a credit instrument 

10 that is the subject of a loan guarantee under this 

11 Act shall be consistent with the terms set forth in 

12 this Act for a direct loan, except that the interest 

13 rate and any prepayment features on the credit in14 strument shall be negotiated between the borrower 

15 and the lender, with the approval of the Adminis16 trator. 

17 (2) INTEREST RATE.—The Administrator may 

18 make a loan guarantee under this Act only if the 

19 Administrator determines that the interest rate on 

20 the credit instrument that is subject to the loan 

21 guarantee is appropriate, taking into account the 

22 prevailing rate of interest in the private sector for 

23 similar obligations. 

24 (3) ELIGIBLE LENDER.—The Administrator 

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1 less the lender of the loan or purchaser of the debt 

2 security that will be the subject of the loan guar3 antee is a non-Federal, qualified institutional buyer 

4 (as defined in section 230.144A(a) of title 17, Code 

5 of Federal Regulations (or successor regulation)), in6 cluding— 

7 (A) a qualified retirement plan (as defined 

8 in section 4974(c) of the Internal Revenue Code 

9 of 1986) that is a non-Federal qualified institu10 tional buyer; and 

11 (B) a governmental plan (as defined in 

12 section 414(d) of the Internal Revenue Code of 

13 1986) that is a non-Federal qualified institu14 tional buyer. 

15 (4) ADEQUATE SERVICING PROVISIONS RE16 QUIRED.—No loan guarantee may be made under 

17 this Act for a loan unless the Administrator deter18 mines that the lender with respect to the loan is re19 sponsible and that adequate servicing provisions 

20 have been made for the loan that is the subject of 

21 the loan guarantee that are reasonable and protect 

22 the financial interest of the United States. 


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1 SEC. 10. PROGRAM ADMINISTRATION. 

2 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Administrator shall establish 

3 a uniform system to service each direct loan and loan 

4 guarantee made under this Act. 

5 (b) ASSISTANCE FROM EXPERT FIRMS.—The Ad6 ministrator may retain the services of expert firms, includ7 ing counsel, in the field of municipal and project finance 

8 to assist in the underwriting and servicing of a direct loan 

9 or loan guarantee made under this Act. 

10 (c) FEES FOR ADMINISTRATIVE EXPENSES.— 

11 (1) IN GENERAL.—In providing assistance 

12 under this Act, the Administrator may— 

13 (A) collect fees for administrative expenses, 

14 including premiums for loan guarantees, at a 

15 level that is sufficient to cover the costs of serv16 ices of expert firms and all or a portion of the 

17 costs to the Federal Government of servicing 

18 the direct loans and loan guarantees made 

19 under this Act; and 

20 (B) as provided in advance in appropria21 tions acts, use the amounts described in sub22 paragraph (A) to cover the expenses described 

23 in that subparagraph. 

24 (2) LEVEL OF FEES.—The Administrator shall 

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1 ment and maximize the assistance that can be pro2 vided under this Act, while providing competitive 

3 credit terms to eligible projects, in order to reduce 

4 borrowing costs and accelerate water infrastructure 

5 investment. 

6 SEC. 11. TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE. 

7 The Administrator may use amounts made available 

8 to carry out this Act to provide technical assistance to ap9 plicants and prospective applicants in creating financing 

10 packages that leverage a mix of public and private funding 

11 sources. 

12 SEC. 12. RESTRICTIONS. 

13 (a) ASSISTANCE THRESHOLD.—The Administrator 

14 may provide assistance under this Act only with respect 

15 to a credit instrument in an amount of not less than 

16 $20,000,000. 

17 (b) REFINANCING.—The Administrator shall make 

18 available to eligible entities for refinancing activities de19 scribed in section 6(4) not more than 15 percent of the 

20 total amounts made available to carry out this Act. 

21 SEC. 13. PREVAILING WAGES. 

22 (a) IN GENERAL.—Notwithstanding any other provi23 sion of law and in a manner consistent with other provi24 sions in this Act, all laborers and mechanics employed by 

25 contractors and subcontractors on projects funded directly 


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1 by, or assisted in whole or in part by and through, the 

2 Federal Government pursuant to this Act shall be paid 

3 wages at rates not less than those prevailing on projects 

4 of a character similar in the locality as determined by the 

5 Secretary of Labor in accordance with subchapter IV of 

6 chapter 31 of title 40, United States Code. 

7 (b) ADMINISTRATION.—With respect to the labor 

8 standards specified in this section, the Secretary of Labor 

9 shall have the authority and functions set forth in Reorga10 nization Plan Numbered 14 of 1950 (64 Stat. 1267; 5 

11 U.S.C. App.) and section 3145 of title 40, United States 

12 Code. 

13 SEC. 14. USE OF AMERICAN IRON, STEEL, AND MANUFAC14 TURED GOODS. 

15 (a) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in subsection 

16 (b), none of the amounts made available under this Act 

17 may be used for a project for the construction, alteration, 

18 maintenance, or repair of a public building or public work 

19 unless all of the iron, steel, and manufactured goods used 

20 in the project are produced in the United States. 

21 (b) EXCEPTION.—Subsection (a) shall not apply in 

22 any case or category of cases in which the head of the 

23 Federal department or agency involved finds that— 

24 (1) applying subsection (a) would be incon25 sistent with the public interest; 


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1 (2) iron, steel, and the relevant manufactured 

2 goods are not produced in the United States in suffi3 cient and reasonably available quantities and of a 

4 satisfactory quality; or 

5 (3) inclusion of iron, steel, and manufactured 

6 goods produced in the United States will increase 

7 the cost of the overall project by more than 25 per8 cent. 

9 (c) PUBLIC NOTICE.—If the head of a Federal de10 partment or agency determines that it is necessary to 

11 waive the application of subsection (a) based on a finding 

12 under subsection (b), the head of the department or agen13 cy shall publish in the Federal Register a detailed written 

14 justification as to why the provision is being waived. 

15 (d) INTERNATIONAL AGREEMENTS.—This section 

16 shall be applied in a manner consistent with United States 

17 obligations under international agreements. 

18 SEC. 15. FUNDING. 

19 (a) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.— 

20 (1) DIRECT LOANS AND LOAN GUARANTEES.— 

21 There is authorized to be appropriated for the cost 

22 of providing direct loans and loan guarantees under 

23 this Act such sums as are necessary. 

24 (2) ADMINISTRATIVE EXPENSES.— 


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1 (A) IN GENERAL.—There is authorized to 

2 be appropriated for administrative expenses 

3 under this Act an amount equal to the amount 

4 of fees collected under section 10(c). 

5 (B) ADDITIONAL AUTHORIZATION OF AP6 PROPRIATIONS.—In addition to amounts au7 thorized to be appropriated under subparagraph 

8 (A), there are authorized to be appropriated for 

9 administrative expenses under this Act such 

10 sums as are necessary. 

11 (b) PAYMENT OF SUBSIDY COST.—A borrower may 

12 pay for the cost of a direct loan or loan guarantee under 

13 this Act, along with the appropriate amount of related ad14 ministrative expenses, with payment the Administrator 

15 may use, as provided in advance in appropriations Acts, 

16 instead of using amounts authorized under subsection (a), 

17 to make a direct loan or loan guarantee to the borrower. 

Æ 


PWALKER on DSK7TPTVN1PROD with BILLS