Section NR 166.10 - Financial assistance requirements Before executing a financial assistance agreement for any project under this chapter, the department shall determine that all of the applicable requirements of s. NR 166.08 are met and that all of the following are satisfied:
(1) All of the following documentation, if applicable to the scored project, is submitted to the department: (a) Certification for force account as required by s. NR 166.11 (5).(b) A certification or legal opinion regarding land ownership and acquisition of easements and rights-of-way necessary for the project. The certification or legal opinion shall be in accordance with s. NR 166.09. Section NR 166.09 (3) applies to this paragraph.(c) Items related to bids for each prime contract including all of the following: 1. The proposal of the successful bidder.2. An engineer's evaluation of the bids, including bid tabulation, and an award recommendation.3. If an applicant awards a construction or equipment contract to a contractor other than the lowest bidder, any of the following:a. Written documentation of the reasons why the lowest bidder is considered nonresponsive or not responsible.b. A legal opinion stating that the award to a contractor other than the lowest responsive, responsible bidder meets the requirements of municipal bidding law.4. Solicitation and utilization information regarding DBEs.5. Evidence of bid advertisement, including a copy of the affidavit of publication and a copy of the newspaper advertisement, which should include appropriate language regarding DBEs submitting bid proposals, American-made product requirements, and wage rates, when applicable.6. A copy of the bid bond and the performance bond.7. Evidence of award of the construction contract by the municipality, which may be a notice of award, a municipal resolution, or minutes from the municipal meeting at which the determination of award was made.8. A complete copy of the executed construction contract with up-to-date copies of all addenda, attachments, appendices, appropriate Davis-Bacon or other wage rate information, and all other applicable documentation that makes the contract complete. If available, the contract submittal should be a copy of the conformed contract.9. Documentation of the construction start date and estimated substantial and final completion dates. Note: A notice of award and a notice to proceed are preferred but not required for this documentation.
10. All negotiated pending change orders and all executed change orders.(d) A request for disbursement and required supporting invoices, payoff statements for interim debt, and other applicable documentation of expenditures, including a copy of the title or deed for land purchased for the project if the applicant is requesting financial assistance for land purchase costs, and complete copies of any contract change orders for which costs are included in the request for disbursement, along with a copy of the department construction management engineer's change order approval.(e) Evidence that a bond counsel is drafting legal documents related to the authorization and issuance of bonds for action at a municipal meeting prior to the scheduled loan closing.(f) Completed federal forms, if applicable, and any other required documentation of compliance with federal requirements, which may include certification of compliance with Davis-Bacon wage rate requirements, certification of use of American-made products in the project, and the cost, effectiveness, energy efficiency, and water efficiency of the selected design.(g) A final list described under s. NR 166.08 (4) (i), if 2 or more municipalities utilize shared or interconnected water systems and the project serves more than one of the municipalities.(h) A copy of each executed construction management or other professional services contract associated with the project if funds are requested for services included in the contract.(i) A completed design life calculation worksheet with any backup documentation required by the department if, after the application submittal, the applicant requested a loan term greater than 20 years. All of the following apply to applicants requesting a loan term greater than 20 years:1. The applicant shall submit the design life calculation worksheet at least 9 weeks prior to loan closing.2. The applicant shall pledge system revenues to secure the SDWLP loan.3. A loan term greater than 20 years is not available for projects for which the applicant pledges general obligation bonds to secure the loan. Note: The design life calculation worksheet is an excel spreadsheet that is available on the department's website at https://dnr.wisconsin.gov/aid/documents/EIF/Forms/forms.html#sdwform. The department strongly encourages applicants to submit the design life calculation worksheet with the rest of its application submittal in order to allow enough review and response time for the worksheet contents. Later submittal of the design life calculation worksheet may delay a loan closing.
(2) The department has done all of the following, if applicable to the scored project: (a) Complied with the Wisconsin environmental policy act requirements pursuant to the procedures in ch. NR 150.(b) Reviewed and approved the plans and specifications if approval is required under ch. NR 108 or 811,(c) Reviewed and concurred with the design life calculation for the scored project if the applicant is requesting a loan term greater than 20 years.(3) The scored project is entitled to priority in accordance with ss. NR 166.23 to 166.25.(4) The applicant has the legal, institutional, managerial, technical, and financial capability to ensure adequate construction, operations, and maintenance of the water system throughout the applicant's jurisdiction.(5) DOA finds that the municipality is likely to be able to meet the terms and conditions for receiving financial assistance under ch. Adm 35 and s. 281.59, Stats.(6) The applicant has received or applied for permits required by the department for the scored project, including those under chs. 30 and 283, Stats.(7) If a public water system is regulated by the public service commission, the applicant has filed the appropriate applications to increase water rates with the public service commission, if necessary for the scored project, and the public service commission has issued the corresponding order authorizing the water rates and operating rules.(8) If a public water system is not regulated by the public service commission, the applicant has, to the satisfaction of the department and DOA, developed and adopted water rates and operating rules.Wis. Admin. Code Department of Natural Resources NR 166.10
CR 06-023: cr. Register May 2007 No. 617, eff. 6-1-07.Amended by, CR 14-044: cr. Register June 2015 No. 714, eff.7/1/2015.Adopted by, CR 22-068: cr. Register October 2023 No. 814, eff. 11/1/2023 All forms necessary for financial assistance under this chapter may be acquired at no charge from the Bureau of Community Financial Assistance, Department of Natural Resources, 101 S. Webster St., P.O. Box 7921, Madison, Wisconsin 53707-7921.