DEQ awards $3,000,000 to Hoo Doo Harvard Water and Sewer District

BOISE, Idaho (KIFI) — The Idaho Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ) announced the award of a $3,000,000 low-interest drinking water construction loan to Hoo Doo Harvard Water and Sewer District in Latah County.

The funding will be used to complete a planning effort and environmental review in addition to installing two new wells, a well house, new water storage facilities, and replacing meters and the transmission main.

DEQ is authorized by state law to make loans to assist in the construction of public drinking water systems. Since the annual cost of drinking water service for residential customers exceeds one and one-half percent of the median household income, the Hoo Doo Harvard Water and Sewer District qualified for a disadvantaged loan that carries favorable repayment terms.

The loan from DEQ’s State Revolving Loan Fund, which is capitalized annually by grants from the United States Environmental Protection Agency, has $3,000,000 in principal forgiveness. The favorable loan terms represent a $5,016,539 savings to the community when compared to average costs for municipal general obligation debt issuances.