Public Works Board – Traditional Financing

 

Traditional Programs

The Public Works Board (Board) is authorized by state statute (RCW 43.155). Its purpose is to loan and grant money to counties, cities, and special purpose districts to repair, replace, or create infrastructure. 

Eligible Applicants

  • Cities
  • Counties
  • Special Purpose Districts
  • Quasi-Municipal Organizations

Tribes, school districts, and port districts are ineligible for this program.

Eligible Infrastructure Systems

  • Domestic Water
  • Roads/Streets
  • Bridges
  • Sanitary Sewer
  • Solid Waste/Recycling/Organics
  • Stormwater

Funding Opportunities

Construction Funding Program

The Construction Funding Program focuses on the activities that repair, replace, or create a facility. A construction project may comprise any combination of pre-construction and construction elements. The Public Works Board awarded funding for its most recent construction cycle at its September 8, 2023 meeting. View the full list of awardees and applicants in Box.

The next funding cycle opened on April 8, 2024 and will close at 11:59 p.m. on June 28, 2024. See the link “Apply for PWB Construction/Pre-construction/Emergency Funding” below to apply.

Planning and Pre-Construction Funding Program

Pre-Construction activities include but are not limited to: design engineering, bid-document preparation, environmental studies, right-of-way acquisition, value planning, permits, cultural and historic resources, and public notification. Pre-construction funding may also be used for capital facilities planning.

Pre-construction applications are open continuously, and pooled and awarded quarterly until all funds are expended.

The awards for the most recent application pooling are scheduled for the May 3, 2024 Board meeting. View the most recent list of awardees in Box.

Applications for FY25 are now open. The next pooling of applications takes place after June 28, 2024, with funding awards scheduled for the August 2, 2024 Board meeting.

  • Summer 2024: Review of applications received as of June 28, 2024 with an anticipated award date of August 2, 2024.
  • Fall 2024: Review of applications received as of September 30, 2024 with an anticipated award date of November 1, 2024.
  • Winter 2025: Review of applications received as of January 10, 2025 with an anticipated award date of February 7, 2025.
  • Spring 2025: Review of applications received as of March 31, 2025 with an anticipated award date of May 2, 2025.

Emergency Funding Program

The Emergency Construction Funding Program focuses on the activities that repair, replace, and/or reconstruct a facility that will restore essential services. Applications are accepted continuously until loan funds are expended.

Online Application for Funding

The PWB accepts applications for all funding programs through ZoomGrants. Paper copies will not be accepted.

Apply for PWB Construction/Pre-construction/Emergency Funding

If you have a ZoomGrants account, log in and follow the instructions. If you are a new user, complete the required information for a new ZoomGrants account to create a profile. Please do not use “The” as the first word in the agency name. Once the agency profile has been created, select the Public Works Board funding you wish to apply for, check the “apply” button, and start your proposal. Answers are automatically saved.

Prior to submitting an application, please download and complete the Threshold Criteria Checklist (docx). This will ensure that the submitted application is complete.

Related Materials

Interactive Hardship Map

The Traditional Programs Interactive Hardship Map highlights distressed and severely distressed counties.The PWB Hardship Methodology considers county unemployment rate for the previous three years and Median Household Income.  In non-distressed and distressed counties, the census tract levels can be viewed by scrolling or zooming in. Projects that serve distressed or severely distressed areas are eligible for reduced interest rates and grants.

Open interactive hardship map in new window.

Information and Resources

In order to protect the rich cultural heritage of Washington state, Governor Jay Inslee signed Executive Order 21-02 (GEO 21-02). Recipients of state capital funds must consult with the Department of Archaeology & Historic Preservation (DAHP) and any Federally recognized Indian tribes that may have cultural and/or historic interest or concerns in the project’s vicinity. However, if the project is subject to Section 106 of the National Historic Preservation Act  through federal involvement (such as the use of Federal funding or the need to acquire Federal permits), then the Governor’s Executive Order (GEO) 21-02 process is unnecessary.

Recipients will not move forward with any pre-construction or construction activities that will disturb soils(such as, drilling test wells, completing geo-tech work, grading, clearing, etc.), or construction activities until GEO 21-02 is completed (and/or both the SERP and 106 processes, if applicable) and the PWB has issued a final compliance letter. If ground-disturbing activities occur prior to the Recipient receiving the final compliance letter, the PWB loan funding will be jeopardized.

A government-to-government relationship must be properly adhered to for the cultural review. As such, it is the PWB’s responsibility to contact the Tribes and the DAHP. The PWB will notify the Recipient when a cultural resources survey is necessary. It is the Recipient’s responsibility to hire a qualified archaeologist to conduct the survey and submit a draft of the survey to the PWB for final approval.

Sheila Richardson is the Public Works Board’s primary contact regarding the GEO 21-02 process. Award recipients start the process by submitting an EZ1 form to the PWB Programs Director & Tribal Liaison. The PWB Programs Director & Tribal Liaison will conduct the consultation with the DAHP and the Tribes. You can email materials to sheila.richardson@commerce.wa.gov or mail to:

Sheila Richardson
Department of Commerce
Public Works Board
PO Box 42525
Olympia, WA 98504-2525

The GEO 21-02 process requires award recipients to define the construction project area for potential impact, and identify any building or structures 45-years or older that are located within the project site. For projects that plan to alter structure 45-years of age or older, an online inventory survey must be completed by the Recipient. The DAHP can issue a broad range of responses to the submittal. A common response is a “No Effect Upon Cultural/Historic Properties” letter. If you receive such a letter, you have completed the DAHP portion of the review.

If the DAHP requires more information (completion of additional forms, cultural survey, inadvertent discovery plan, etc.) you must comply with the request. It is possible that you will need to hire a professional archaeologist to address this. Only when the DAHP concurs with the additional materials provided is the DAHP portion of GEO 21-02 complete. For projects that plan to alter structures 45 years of age or older, an online inventory survey must be completed.

Tribal consultation is initiated by the PWB Program Director & Tribal Liaison sending a letter to the potential affected Federally recognized Indian tribes(s). The letter details any project information describing the location and extent of the project, along with a map of the impacted area. The Tribe(s) will be allowed at least 30-days to respond. There may be no response, or there may be a wide range of responses to the information provided. As with the DAHP, if additional materials are required, they must be provided to the Tribe(s) and they must concur with the findings.

GEO 05-05 Overview for Public Works Board Applicants (PDF)

GEO 05-05 Process Checklist for Public Works Board Applicants (PDF)

Governor’s Executive Order 21-02 (PDF)

DAHP GEO 05-05 Guidance Overview (PDF)

DAHP – GEO 21-02 Frequently Asked Questions

DAHP – Cultural Resources Reporting (PDF)

EZ-1 Form

DAHP – WISAARD: Find a Historic Place

DAHP – Inadvertent Discovery Protocol

DAHP – NHPA Section 106

Washington State Department of Archaeology and Historic Preservation (DAHP)

Governor’s Office of Indian Affairs (GOIA)

WSDOT Cultural Resources Links & Training

Facebook Instagram Linkedin Twitter

Workshop Recordings