Gov. Evers, DNR Announce $282 Million to Improve Drinking Water Quality for Wisconsinites in 74 Municipalities

MADISON — Gov. Tony Evers, together with the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources (DNR), today announced more than $282 million has been allocated for financial assistance through the Safe Drinking Water Loan Program to 74 municipalities across the state to improve drinking water quality for Wisconsinites. The funding will help municipalities construct needed water infrastructure projects, including those that address contaminants such as per- and poly-fluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) and nitrates, with a special focus on small and disadvantaged communities.

“Over the last six years, my administration and I have worked to ensure every Wisconsinite has access to clean, safe drinking water that is free of lead, PFAS, and other contaminants that have long been known to harm our kids and families, farmers and industries, and communities across our state,” said Gov. Evers. “Today’s announcement is thanks in part to the bipartisan, pro-kid 2025-27 Biennial Budget I signed earlier this year, in which we were able to increase borrowing for the Environmental Improvement Fund by over $730 million to help meet statewide demand for low-interest financing for clean water and safe drinking water loans. While there is still more work to do, I am incredibly proud of our work to fight PFAS, help private well owners replace their contaminated wells, and replace lead service lines statewide, and these funds bring us one step closer to meeting our goal of ensuring every Wisconsinite has access to clean, safe water.”

The Safe Drinking Water Loan Program provides affordable financial assistance to municipalities throughout Wisconsin for drinking water infrastructure projects that protect and improve public health for current and future generations. Since the program began in 1998, the DNR and the Wisconsin Department of Administration have provided nearly $1.5 billion in financial assistance to Wisconsin municipalities. Additional information about the Safe Drinking Water Loan Program can be found online here.

Examples of preliminarily approved projects include:

Fairchild | Nearly $2 million
The village of Fairchild in Eau Claire County has been allocated $1,944,670 in Safe Drinking Water Loan Program funding, of which $1,264,036 will be offered through principal forgiveness, and the remaining $680,634 will be available at a subsidized interest rate. The funding will be used to address nitrate contamination in Well #1. A new well and wellhouse will be constructed that will allow the village to abandon the existing contaminated well.

Hales Corners | Nearly $5 million
The village of Hales Corners in Milwaukee County has been allocated $4,991,028 in Safe Drinking Water Loan Program funding, of which $2,495,514 will be offered through principal forgiveness, and the remaining $2,495,514 will be available at a subsidized interest rate. The funding will be used to address PFAS contamination within Hales Corners. Programmatic funds will be used to connect impacted residents to the Milwaukee Water System.

Suring | Nearly $1.3 million
The village of Suring in Oconto County has been allocated $1,299,829 in Safe Drinking Water Loan Program funding, of which $779,898 will be offered through principal forgiveness, and the remaining $519,931 will be available at a subsidized interest rate. The funding will be used to construct a second water main river crossing to connect Wells #1 and #3 to the village, which will offer redundancy and increase the reliability of the water system.

The funding will be awarded to municipalities over the next year and disbursed as eligible costs are incurred. A portion of the funding comes from federal capitalization grants, including:

• Base Drinking Water State Revolving Fund: $18,674,000;
• Supplemental Drinking Water Bipartisan Infrastructure Law (BIL) funding: $42,633,000; and
• Emerging Contaminants (PFAS) Safe Drinking Water BIL funding: $13,082,000.

The 2026 Safe Drinking Water Loan Program funding list will be finalized following a 30-day window for municipalities to request a reevaluation of their priority score. The Safe Drinking Water Loan Program draft funding list is available here.

Gov. Evers also maintains that replacing lead service lines and ensuring Wisconsinites have access to clean and safe water is essential. Earlier this year, Gov. Evers announced the Wisconsin Department of Health Services finalized a new rule, making permanent an emergency rule that the governor approved in January, to combat lead poisoning statewide by lowering the lead poisoning threshold to 3.5 µg/dL. By lowering the lead poisoning threshold, more kids and families will be eligible for lead poisoning and intervention resources, including education programming, screening, care coordination or follow-up services for kids not covered by a third-party payer, and other activities related to poisoning or exposure.

The Lead Service Line Replacement funding list will be made available at a later date. Additional information on Lead Service Line Replacement funding is available here.

ADDITIONAL EVERS ADMINISTRATION EFFORTS TO ENSURE WISCONSINITES HAVE ACCESS TO CLEAN, SAFE DRINKING WATER

Gov. Evers declared 2019 the Year of Clean Drinking Water, and for the past six years, the governor has prioritized efforts to invest in clean water infrastructure and ensure Wisconsinites have access to safe, clean water statewide. Earlier this year, Gov. Evers declared 2025 the Year of the Kid in Wisconsin and announced several new efforts to address childhood lead poisoning and ensure clean drinking water for all, many of which were included in the 2025-27 bipartisan, pro-kid budget that the governor signed earlier this year.

To continue building upon the governor’s work to ensure Wisconsin’s kids and families have clean, safe drinking water, the 2025-27 Biennial Budget increases borrowing for the state’s Environmental Improvement Fund by $731.6 million to secure federal clean water and safe drinking water capitalization grants over the next four years. This will help meet the increasing demand from local communities who need support to upgrade local water systems and infrastructure to ensure every Wisconsin kid, family, and community has clean, safe drinking water.

In addition, the 2025-27 Biennial Budget provides:

• $2 million for the development of a remedial action plan for the remediation of arsenic-contaminated sediment in the Kewaunee Marsh;
• $4 million to be used for remedial action at the Amcast Superfund site;
• $6 million in bonding to be used for the Kenosha Dunes restoration project;
• $7.5 million for contaminated sediment removal from sites in the Great Lakes or its tributaries that are on Wisconsin’s impaired waters list to continue protecting this resource;
• $4 million for Urban Nonpoint Source cost-sharing and the Municipal Flood Control Program;
• $6.5 million to counties for capital projects that implement land and water resource management plans under the Targeted Runoff Management Program;
• $7 million for grants to counties for implementation of land and water resource management plans, including cost-share grants to landowners that install conservation practices on their land, such as erosion prevention strategies, through the Soil and Water Resource Management Program;
• $4 million for the repair, reconstruction, and removal of dams;
• Over $1.8 million over the biennium to update the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources’ systems and improve customer service for Wisconsinites; and
• More than $12 million to support county conservation staff around the state.

Additionally, Gov. Evers has been clear that his top priority in the 2025-27 Biennial Budget would be to pass a pro-kid budget that makes meaningful investments in Wisconsin’s kids at every stage and every age, from early childhood to K-12 to our higher education institutions, as well as ensuring kids and families have access to safe, clean drinking water. More information about the bipartisan pro-kid budget signed by Gov. Evers is available here.

NOTE: This press release was submitted to Urban Milwaukee and was not written by an Urban Milwaukee writer. While it is believed to be reliable, Urban Milwaukee does not guarantee its accuracy or completeness.