Senate advances infrastructure loan program for small towns; SB92 passes after debate

The Senate advanced Senate Bill 92, a measure establishing a revolving fund for water and wastewater infrastructure loans that prioritizes smaller communities. The bill passed on a roll call vote after floor debate and questions from committee members. The clerk recorded 19 ayes and 5 nays and the bill was declared to advance.

Senator Brent Bullard, the bill’s author, described the measure as a one‑time appropriation into a revolving account managed to loan funds to municipalities and counties for wastewater and water projects. The account would recycle principal and interest back into the fund for future loans. Bullard said the subcommittee is working with the Oklahoma Water Resources Board (OWRB) to set loan administration fees and proposed an interactive map so the public could track where funds are invested.

Senators pressed the author on program design and allocation percentages. Senator Hicks asked about the program’s long‑term scope and whether it was intended to be ongoing; Bullard answered the fund is intended to be ongoing, with monies returned and re‑loaned along with interest. Hicks and others questioned an intended percentage split that would direct roughly 50 percent of the program to the smallest communities (those under the bill’s population thresholds) and smaller shares to mid‑sized and larger municipalities. Bullard said OWRB identified the highest needs in smaller towns that lack sales tax base and other local revenue sources to finance major projects.

Members also probed local matching requirements and whether larger municipalities might be disadvantaged by the bill’s population caps. Bullard said OWRB typically assesses local financial capacity and sets match amounts according to city financials and that a rigid statewide match could put projects out of reach for small communities.

On final passage, the roll call shows multiple senators voting in favor; the clerk’s tally read “19 ayes, 5 nays,” and the presiding officer declared the bill advanced.

Senator Bullard urged colleagues to support the bill as an investment that “continuously recycles itself” for statewide water and wastewater needs. The author did not present a final dollar appropriation at the hearing; he said the amount would be determined as the budget process proceeds and that transparency around the amount and distribution would follow.

Votes at the committee and on the floor indicate the measure moved forward; further details — including the final appropriation amount, any administrative fee schedule developed with OWRB, and the map of funded projects — will be determined as the bill proceeds and as implementing language is negotiated.