La. Admin. Code tit. 33 § IX-10109

Current through Register Vol. 50, No. 9, September 20, 2024

Section IX-10109 - Application Requirements and Loan Conditions

A. Limitation on Applications. An application shall only be funded after authorization from OPH and after meeting all of the department's requirements.

B. Application Package. The contents of the application package must contain all applicable information required by the department including, but not limited to, the following.

1. System Improvement Plan. The applicant will submit, through OPH, a system improvement plan consisting of those necessary plans and studies that directly relate to construction of drinking water facilities. The system improvement plan must contain enough information to allow the department to perform an environmental review.

2. Financial Information. The applicant is required to submit to the Office of Environmental Assessment, Environmental Technology Division sufficient information to demonstrate its legal, institutional, managerial, and financial capability to ensure the construction, operation, and maintenance of the drinking water facilities and repayment of the loan, interest, and administrative fees.

3. Site Certificate. The applicant must submit to the Office of Environmental Assessment, Environmental Technology Division a certificate executed by an attorney certifying that the applicant has acquired all property sites, easements, rights-of-way, or specific use permits necessary for construction, operation, and maintenance of the project described in the approved system improvement plan.

C. Loan Conditions. Loans for projects will be made only to eligible applicants that:

1. provide a fair and equitable user charge system that generates revenues sufficient to cover the costs of O, M, and R for the system;

2. agree to own, operate, and maintain the drinking water facilities so that such drinking water facilities will function properly as long as the loan and pledge agreement is in effect;

3. agree to properly maintain financial records, have periodic audits, and make these records available to the department, OPH, EPA, or their designees upon request;

4. commit to undertake the expenditure of loan proceeds for construction or other eligible project costs within six months after entering into a binding commitment agreement or such time frame as may be required by the department, provided that failure to start the expenditure of funds within one year after entering into a binding commitment agreement may result in the withdrawal by the department of all financial assistance;

5. agree to evidence the loan by a bond, note, or other form of evidence of indebtedness prescribed or approved by the department; and

6. agree to pay administrative fees imposed by the department to defray long term administrative costs associated with the fund program.

D. Loan Period. Loans shall be made for a period of time not to exceed 20 years from the completion date of the construction of a project, except for loans for projects for disadvantaged communities as defined by OPH that may have loan periods up to 30 years with approval of the department. Interim construction financing shall not exceed two years without written approval from the department and from OPH.

E. Loan Repayment. Loan repayments of the principal, administrative fees, and interest installments will be set by the department, with the first installment due no later than one year following the project's completion date. The department will establish the loan repayment schedule in the terms of the loan and pledge agreement.

La. Admin. Code tit. 33, § IX-10109

Promulgated by the Department of Environmental Quality, Office of Water Resources, Municipal Facilities Division, LR 24:29 (January 1998), amended by the Office of Environmental Assessment, Environmental Planning Division, LR 26:2552 (November 2000).

AUTHORITY NOTE: Promulgated in accordance with R.S. 30:2011 et seq.