October 19, 2023
BOISE — The Idaho Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ) today announced the award of a $1,588,500 low-interest drinking water construction loan to Panorama Hills Water Company in Bonneville County, Idaho.
The funding will be used to improve underground piping and the facility’s well house.
DEQ is authorized by state law to make loans to assist in the construction of public drinking water or systems. Since the annual cost of drinking water service for residential customers exceeds one and one-half percent of the median household income, Panorama Hills Water Company qualifies for a disadvantaged loan, which carries favorable repayment terms.
The loan from DEQ’s State Revolving Loan Fund, which is capitalized annually by grants from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, carries a simple 1.75% interest rate, is payable over 30 years, and has $888,500 in principal forgiveness. This represents $1,829,182 in savings to the community when compared to average costs for municipal general obligation debt issuances.