USDA Rural Development currently lists the Water & Waste Disposal Loan Guarantees program as open. Applications from eligible lenders are accepted on a rolling basis through USDA’s OneRD Guarantee process. USDA does not publish a single national closing clock time for this rolling program.
FY2026 funding status: USDA’s current OneRD Guarantee dashboard shows $50,000,000 in Water and Waste Disposal Guaranteed Loan authority, $5,605,801 obligated, $44,394,199 remaining, and $1,009,017 in pending loan amounts.
Public health and rural infrastructure relevance
The program helps private lenders finance clean, reliable drinking water and waste disposal infrastructure in eligible rural areas. Eligible facilities include drinking water, sanitary sewer, solid waste disposal, and stormwater disposal systems. Funds may support construction and related engineering, land, legal, and environmental costs, as well as eligible equipment used to operate, maintain, or protect facilities, professional services, and qualifying debt refinancing.
Atlas Opportunity Score: 85/100. This is a strong rural public-health infrastructure financing route because safe drinking water and sanitary waste systems are foundational community-health assets. N9+ Fit Score: 0/100. The verified program scope does not establish a clinical-device, telehealth, or remote-examination equipment pathway. Dr. Miltie direct applicant/vendor fit: 0/100.
Who participates
The federal applicant is the participating lender, not the ultimate rural borrower. Eligible lenders include federally and state-chartered banks, savings and loan institutions, Farm Credit banks with direct lending authority, credit unions, and additional nonregulated lenders approved by USDA. Eligible borrowers include state and local governments, nonprofit organizations, and federally recognized Tribes. Eligible areas include cities, villages, towns, townships, and federally recognized Tribal lands with fewer than 50,000 residents.
FY2026 guarantee terms
For FY2026 Water and Waste Disposal guaranteed loans, USDA’s current annual notice establishes a 1.0% guarantee fee, no periodic guarantee retention fee, a 90% loan guarantee percentage, and a 0.50% fee when a loan note guarantee is issued prior to construction completion. The current Assistance Listing states that formula and matching requirements are not applicable.
Application mechanics
Lenders use USDA’s OneRD Guarantee process. USDA directs lenders to review the OneRD Lender Guide and submit Form 5001-1, Loan Guarantee Request, and Form 5001-2, Lender Agreement, with program-specific documentation. Regulated lenders in good standing follow the OneRD participation process; unregulated lenders must obtain USDA approval status under the separate lender-approval process. Borrowers should work through an eligible participating lender and the Rural Development office serving the proposed project.
Controls before advancement
Before applicant-specific work, verify lender eligibility and approval status, borrower eligibility, rural service-area population, facility type, project-cost allowability, collateral and credit requirements, environmental and engineering requirements, state-specific conditions, current forms, and the remaining FY2026 authority. Keep organization-specific identification and outreach within this federal workflow, using Atlas_Email_Queue as the only production customer-email path. Do not create a direct Dr. Miltie submission path for this lender-administered program.
Official sources: USDA Rural Development — Water & Waste Disposal Loan Guarantees; USDA Rural Development — OneRD Guarantee; SAM.gov Assistance Listing 10.760 — Water and Waste Disposal Systems for Rural Communities.