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Board of Water Resources approves funding commitments for six water projects, including $66 million for Washington County reuse phase
Summary
The Utah Board of Water Resources unanimously approved funding commitments for six projects on Feb. 2, 2026, ranging from small irrigation canal piping projects to a $66.1 million commitment for Washington County's Phase 1A reuse system; terms include 0% loans for many small systems and long-term low-interest bonds for the large reuse project.
The Utah Board of Water Resources on Feb. 2 voted unanimously to commit funds to six projects the division had presented earlier in the day, approving loans and bond commitments intended to reduce system losses, improve drinking-water reliability and expand reuse infrastructure.
In votes taken after staff presentations, the board authorized support for RE502 Farm Creek Irrigation Company (Duchesne County), RE503 Alberta Water Company, RE475 Hiram Blacksmith Fork Irrigation Company, RE494 Washington County Regional Reuse Phase 1A, RE500 Smithfield Irrigation Company and RM117 Lehi City secondary metering. Most smaller applicants will receive 0% loans from the Revolving Construction Fund; the board approved bonded financing for the Washington County reuse work.
The largest commitment is for Washington County’s regional reuse system. Staff recommended and the board committed 68.5% of Phase 1A up to $66,133,000, to be returned via bonded indebtedness at 0.5% interest over 40 years with annual payments the staff estimated at roughly $1.88 million including reserves. Staff told the board that Phase 1A subprojects total approximately $97 million and represent the portion of the reuse program moving forward in the current bond.
Smaller approvals included a staff recommendation adopted for RE502 Farm Creek Irrigation Company to authorize 8.7% of the project cost up to $435,000 and a 0% loan over 20 years (annual payments of about $21,750); RE503 Alberta Water Company received an 85% cost share up to $98,000 as a 0% loan over 15 years (approx. $6,500/year); RE475 Hiram Blacksmith Fork Irrigation Company was committed at 49.6% up to $228,000 as a 0% loan over 15 years (approx. $15,200/year); RE500 Smithfield Irrigation Company was committed at 30.7% up to $952,000 as a 0% loan over 25 years (approx. $38,100/year); and RM117 Lehi City was approved for 29.75% up to $1,690,000 as a loan returned at 1% interest over 15 years (approx. $131,000/year).
Board members asked applicants and staff about the impacts of funding on customer rates and project sequencing. Bill Ford of Alberta Water Company explained the utility’s customer base is largely agricultural — “It’s all farmland,” he said — and that planned rate increases (not yet final) would cover the debt service. For the Washington County reuse project, an applicant representative said the reuse system will provide over half of the county’s water supply for the next 20 years, a point staff emphasized when recommending the large commitment.
All funding motions passed by unanimous roll-call vote as recorded in the meeting minutes. The board and staff said they intend to continue facilitating site visits for large projects and to provide additional data on program performance where available, such as metering outcomes for cities that have completed large secondary-meter rollouts.
The board’s actions reflect an emphasis on conservation, system reliability and support for both small, mutually owned domestic/irrigation systems and very large regional infrastructure.
