New Hampshire § 485-H-3 - Section 485-H:3 Implementation of Drinking Water Protection Program.

§ 485-H-3. Section 485-H:3 Implementation of Drinking Water Protection Program.

I. The department shall provide low-interest loans and grants for the purpose of addressing exceedances of PFAS drinking water standards to: (a) Municipalities for municipal use; (b) Municipalities for use in assisting private well users including funds necessary to address the reasonable administrative costs of the municipality; (c) Community water systems for use on an existing system or to expand a system to assist additional water users; and (d) Non-profit, non-transient non-community water systems. Such loans and grants shall be provided for the projects described below begun after September 30, 2019. II. The department shall provide the loans and grants described in paragraph I for projects needed to meet a PFAS drinking water standard if the applicant demonstrates, and the department agrees, that the project is the most cost-effective way to meet PFAS drinking water standards and if the project meets the other provisions of this chapter and department rules adopted pursuant to this chapter. II-a. The department may establish rebate programs to assist impacted private well users with water treatment or connection to public water systems. III. The department shall adopt rules, and include conditions in loan and grant documents, to ensure that the applicant has made and will make reasonable efforts to obtain and use funds from any liable or potentially liable third party prior to and after taking a loan from the PFAS response fund or receiving a grant, and that any money received from a liable or potentially liable third party after the loan is provided is applied to early repayment of such loan to the extent reasonable. In addition, the department shall adopt rules establishing criteria to ensure that an applicant shall not be eligible for loans or grants for any project or portion of a project to the extent the negligence of the applicant caused the contamination that resulted in the exceedance of a PFAS drinking water standard. IV. If the department forgives any part of a loan or provides a grant related to costs for a project for which a third party might otherwise be liable, the right to recover payment from such third party shall be subrogated to the department to the extent of such forgiveness or grant. Any money recovered by the department from such third party shall be deposited in the PFAS response fund. V. Loans may be made for up to the total cost of the project minus any contribution from a liable or potentially liable third party or any other portion deemed ineligible under this chapter and department rules. VI. Municipalities may assist private well users impacted by PFAS contamination in a manner consistent with this chapter, may accept and expend grants and loans provided by the department pursuant to subparagraphs I(a) and (b), and may apply for and receive funds from the department necessary to cover reasonable administrative costs related to implementation of subparagraph I(b).