Restoring WIFIA Eligibility Act of 2025
The Restoring WIFIA Eligibility Act of 2025 seeks to change how certain Water Infrastructure Finance and Innovation Act (WIFIA) loans and other financial assistance are treated in federal budget accounting. Specifically, for projects funded through WIFIA where the recipient is a non-Federal eligible entity and the repayment comes from non-Federal revenue sources, the bill would designate the financial assistance as non-Federal for budget purposes under the Federal Credit Reform Act (FCRA). It would also require treating that assistance as a direct loan or loan guarantee as defined by the FCRA. In short, the bill aims to alter budget scoring of certain WIFIA-financed projects, potentially reducing the federal subsidy costs that appear in the federal budget for those arrangements. The bill was introduced in the Senate on May 14, 2025, sponsored by Senators Curtis and Kelly, and referred to the Senate Budget Committee. It adds a new section (Sec. 5037) to the existing WIFIA statute.
Key Points
- 1Adds a new Sec. 5037 to the Water Infrastructure Finance and Innovation Act of 2014, establishing budgetary rules for certain WIFIA-financed transactions.
- 2Applies only when the project recipient is an eligible entity other than a Federal entity, agency, or instrumentality, and when repayment is financed from non-Federal revenue sources.
- 3For budgetary treatment under the Federal Credit Reform Act, the financial assistance shall be deemed non-Federal.
- 4The financial assistance shall be treated as a direct loan or loan guarantee under the FCRe Act.
- 5The change is strictly about budgetary accounting and does not modify the underlying terms of the loan or loan guarantee or the fundamental nature of the WIFIA assistance itself.