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Water Trust approves state revolving fund loan to verify lead service lines for 5,000 sites
Summary
The Oklahoma City Water Utilities Trust approved a resolution to accept Drinking Water State Revolving Fund loans to finance verification of service-line materials at about 5,000 properties as part of a multi-phase lead service line replacement program.
The Oklahoma City Water Utilities Trust on Jan. 28 approved a resolution authorizing acceptance of one or more Drinking Water State Revolving Fund loans from the Oklahoma City Water Resources Board with aggregate principal “not to exceed $2,500,000,000,” the board record shows.
The vote advances a second phase of the utility’s lead service line verification work, which Trust staff said will fund field verification of service-line materials at roughly 5,000 sites by having contractors excavate on both sides of the meter to determine whether lead is present.
Trust staff explained that the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency mandated a national lead service line replacement program and required utilities to identify potential lead service lines on both private (meter to building) and public (main to meter) sides. To comply, the utility conducted a records “tabletop” study that identified about 37,000 potential private-side service lines and about 12,000 potential public-side service lines. Staff said the utility previously secured funding to field-verify 42,150 sites and that this loan will pay for the next 5,000-site verification effort.
A utility staff member said the financial structure of the loan is favorable: “a million and a quarter is forgiven, and the remaining 1,000,000 and a quarter is interest free,” and that the loan will enable the city to proceed with phase 2. Staff also reported that the initial verification round found 173 lead lines on the public side and none confirmed on the private side to date.
The Trust’s resolution did not list vote tallies in the meeting record; the board chair moved for approval and the motion passed by voice vote.
Why it matters: field verification narrows uncertainty about where lead service lines remain and is a precursor to replacement decisions and notification to property owners. The approved loan provides immediate funding to verify conditions at a defined number of sites and includes a partial forgiveness element described by staff.
Next steps: staff said the utility will proceed with the contracted field verification under phase 2 after the Trust’s approval and return to the Trust with further implementation details as required.
