10 V.S.A. § 1628 Priorities
1628. Priorities
The Department shall make grant awards under this chapter to eligible municipal water pollution abatement and control projects on the basis of need as determined according to a system of priorities adopted by rule by the Department and to the extent appropriate funds are available. The system of priorities shall require consideration of criteria, including:
(1) whether a project is grant or loan eligible;
(2) the condition of the waters affected by the project and whether the waters are:
(A) not in compliance with the Vermont Water Quality Standards; or
(B) have a total maximum daily load (TMDL);
(3) whether the project will address water quality issues identified in a basin plan;
(4) whether the project will abate or control pollution that is causing or may cause a threat to public health;
(5) whether the project will address an emergency situation affecting or constituting a threat to the environment or the public health, safety, or welfare;
(6) if the project repairs or replaces existing infrastructure, the condition and integrity of such infrastructure;
(7) whether the project incorporates principles of environmental resiliency or sustainability, including energy efficiency, which reduce the environmental impacts of the project or a water pollution abatement and control facility;
(8) the fiscal integrity and sustainability of the project, including whether the project is a cost-effective alternative, when compared to other alternatives;
(9) whether the project serves a designated center;
(10) affordability factors for the municipality or municipalities in which the project is located, including:
(A) median household income;
(B) unemployment rate; and
(C) population trends; and
(11) if the project removes a pollutant for which the water or waters affected by the project are impaired, the cost-effectiveness of the project at removing that pollutant.
Added 1971, No. 97, § 3, eff. April 22, 1971; amended 1981, No. 222 (Adj. Sess.), § 35; 1989, No. 276 (Adj. Sess.), § 33, eff. June 20, 1990; 2013, No. 147 (Adj. Sess.), § 11, eff. June 1, 2014; 2015, No. 103 (Adj. Sess.), § 21, eff. May 12, 2016.