How Oklahoma’s Credit Rating Affects Your Tap Water
Filed by KOSU News in State Impact.
December 6, 2012
Logan Layden / StateImpact Oklahoma
New construction surrounds the rusting remnants of Broken Arrow's old water treatment plant.
Building new water systems is expensive, so Oklahoma has a program to help localities pay for these projects.
Here’s how it works: Cities and towns apply for a low-interest loan through the Oklahoma Water Resources Board. The state has a better credit rating than most cities do. So going through the state gets them a better deal on a loan.
The program has been around since 1985, securing more than $2 billion for water projects across the state. But there was a problem. The state only has so much credit, and a Broken Arrow’s project pushed it to the limit.
- Big Plans Need Cheap LoansWhen the state’s capacity to secure funding for local water projects ‘hit the wall,’ voters came to the rescue by passing State Question 764.Download
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