Evers, DNR announce $484 million for wastewater infrastructure for state communities

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Wisconsin will replace aging wastewater and stormwater equipment with a round of funding for small communities and municipalities across the state.

Gov. Tony Evers and the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources on Thursday announced more than $484 million will go to 82 municipalities to improve wastewater and stormwater infrastructure. The round of financial assistance was released through the Clean Water Fund Program, a loan program operated by DNR.

The funding will help municipalities, particularly small and disadvantaged communities, construct needed infrastructure projects, including projects to reduce phosphorus discharges and address aging equipment, the governor’s office said in a news release.

The city of Portage will receive more than $55.48 million in funding, which will be used to upgrade its wastewater treatment plant for compliance with future and more stringent phosphorus limits, to replace aging equipment and add a biosolids drying system to create Class A biosolids, officials said. $2.1 million of the funding is principal forgiveness and the rest will be provided to the city as a loan with a subsidized interest rate.

The Akransaw Sanitary District, which serves Waterville in Pepin County, will receive more than $3.3 million to build a new lift station and force main to direct wastewater to a plant in Durand, officials said. The Brockway Sanitary District will receive $511,570 to replace a 50-year-old force main under Lincoln Street in the town of Brockway.

“Ensuring every Wisconsinite has access to safe, clean drinking water has been a priority of mine since Day One, and thanks to programs like the Clean Water Fund, we’re able to support Wisconsin municipalities in their work to ensure our water infrastructure meets the needs of our kids, families, and neighborhoods,” Evers said in a statement.

In June, the Legislature’s Joint Finance Committee approved increasing borrowing power for the Environmental Improvement Fund by $732.3 million, which Evers signed in his 2025-27 budget. The fund supplies the Clean Water Fund and Safe Drinking Water Loan Program.

Through this round of funding, the DNR is allocating $438 million in subsidized loans and $46 million in principal forgiveness funding to support wastewater projects, officials said. The water fund subsidizes municipalities to buy down the market rate on program loans. The state compares funding to a grant because municipalities won’t have to repay those funds.

Wisconsin municipalities have received $6.5 billion in financial assistance from DNR and the Wisconsin Department of Administration since the program began in 1991, officials added.