There are two parallel programs. The Clean Water SRF (CWSRF), created by the 1987 Clean Water Act amendments (33 U.S.C. § 1383), covers wastewater, stormwater, and nonpoint-source projects. The Drinking Water SRF (DWSRF) covers public water systems. EPA provides capitalization grants to all 50 states plus Puerto Rico. For base capitalization grants, states generally contribute a 20% match. Each state administers its own program, so eligibility, interest rates, and project-ranking criteria vary even though the federal framework is shared. American Iron and Steel (AIS) domestic-content rules apply broadly to covered SRF-funded public water system and treatment works projects. BABA applies to SRF equivalency projects. When BABA and AIS both cover iron-and-steel products, AIS compliance satisfies BABA's iron-and-steel requirement. BABA separately extends domestic-content requirements to manufactured products and construction materials. Covered SRF construction also generally carries Davis-Bacon prevailing-wage requirements. Under current EPA guidance, applicable good-faith procurement efforts toward DBE, MBE, and WBE participation remain relevant. Fair-share-objective negotiation and certain reporting and enforcement provisions are suspended under RAIN-2025-G02. Knowing a project is SRF-funded early tells a contractor or supplier which requirements to verify before the specification book confirms them.
SRF funding signals a group of related requirements worth checking together. Nonlinear surfaces funding-source indicators during project qualification alongside scope and quantities, so a company does not discover AIS, BABA, or prevailing-wage requirements only after committing estimating hours to a bid.
Sources
- Clean Water Act §§ 601–609, 33 U.S.C. § 1381 et seq.; U.S. EPA, About the Clean Water State Revolving Fund.
- U.S. EPA, Build America, Buy America Act (BABA), Drinking Water State Revolving Fund guidance, confirming AIS compliance satisfies BABA's iron-and-steel requirement.
- U.S. EPA, RAIN-2025-G02: Class Exception from Requirements under 40 CFR Part 33 (April 7, 2025).
