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Weatherford board authorizes application for federal lead service‑line replacement funds
Summary
The board voted to authorize an application to the Texas Water Development Board for an IIJA‑funded lead service line replacement program that could cover roughly half of replacement costs; staff warned identification of all services will take about a year without additional funding.
The Weatherford Municipal Utility Board voted June 27 to authorize staff to apply for the Texas Water Development Board’s Drinking Water State Revolving Fund (SRF) lead service line replacement program and adopt resolution R2024‑14 to enable the application.
Rick Schafer, water utilities, briefed the board on the program and federal funding tied to the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act. Schafer said the TWDB program offers substantial federal support — about 51% loan forgiveness or grant — for eligible replacements, with the remainder financed by a loan or bond. He said the city has about 14,000 service connections, has identified roughly 100 galvanized lines so far, and still must identify about 5,500 service lines; the city previously submitted a project information form and was invited to apply.
Schafer explained options for covering private‑side replacements: customers could pay upfront, the city could pay and recover costs via a surcharge on customers’ utility bills, or the city could accept SRF funds, in which case the city would be responsible for the customer side cost but would have grant support to reduce net cost. He said staff estimates about $3,000 per service on average for public‑side replacement and about $3,000 for customer‑side work, and that the previously submitted program budget was roughly $15 million to cover inventory, replacements, engineering contingency and sample/testing requirements.
Board members asked how the city will complete the required inventory. Schafer said city crews and a contract with Yellow Rose Mapping are working on identification, but without grant funding it would take roughly a year for city staff to finish the remaining 5,500 services; if awarded, the grant would help accelerate both identification and replacement work. He also cautioned that national demand for plumbers and contractors could raise costs and affect scheduling.
Vote and next steps: the board moved and seconded the staff recommendation and voted to authorize the application; if the city receives an award it will have a later acceptance step to consider the grant and loan terms, fees and any required commitments. Schafer said the board will have the opportunity to review final grant terms before acceptance.
Representative quotes: “If a water provider does accept federal funding under this program, then the water provider is responsible for the cost on the private side,” Schafer said, noting the grant structure changes cost allocation. “The federal government has made funding available through the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act.”
Context: EPA rules now push providers to identify and remove all lead service lines and galvanized lines; accepting SRF funds creates a municipal obligation to carry customer‑side replacements but substantially reduces net cost to customers.
