TITLE 31.NATURAL RESOURCES AND CONSERVATION

Part 10. TEXAS WATER DEVELOPMENT BOARD

Chapter 371. DRINKING WATER STATE REVOLVING FUND

Subchapter D. BOARD ACTION ON APPLICATION

31 TAC §371.52

The Texas Water Development Board (the board) adopts amendments to 31 TAC §371.52 concerning lending rates under the Drinking Water State Revolving Fund program without changes to the proposed text as published in the March 8, 2002 issue of the Texas Register (27 TexReg 1662) and will not be republished. The amendments will set interest rates for loans from the board to private and other entities for which the interest on the bonds are subject to the federal income tax (taxable entities). The current method for setting interest rates for taxable entities is to subtract 185 basis points from the prime lending rate. The prime lending rate is a base rate for corporate loans made by commercial banks and it does not follow the conventional indices and scales normally utilized by the board for establishing interest rates.

The board proposes by this amendment to establish the interest for loans to these private and other taxable entities to be 140% of the rate charged on loans by the board to entities the interest on whose bonds is not subject to the federal income tax (tax exempt entities). This percentage is the average percentage between the rates published by Bloomberg Taxable Index for BBB rated bonds and the rates for tax-exempt, general obligation, 20 year maturity, mixed quality bonds published by Bond Buyer Index tax-exempt for the period of March 1999 through November 2001. Concurrently with these amendments, the board has proposed amendments to chapter 375 of the board's rules. Taken together, these amendments will establish a uniform method by which interest rates are calculated for private and taxable applicants, in each respective program.

There were no comments received on the proposed amendments.

The amendments are adopted under the authority of the Texas Water Code §6.101 and §15.605 which provide the Texas Water Development Board with the authority to adopt rules necessary to carry out the powers and duties in the Water Code and other laws of the State.

This agency hereby certifies that the adoption has been reviewed by legal counsel and found to be a valid exercise of the agency's legal authority.

Filed with the Office of the Secretary of State on April 18, 2002.

TRD-200202417

Suzanne Schwartz

General Counsel

Texas Water Development Board

Effective date: May 8, 2002

Proposal publication date: March 8, 2002

For further information, please call: (512) 463-7981


Chapter 375. CLEAN WATER STATE REVOLVING FUND

Subchapter C. NONPOINT SOURCE POLLUTION LOAN AND ESTUARY MANAGEMENT PROGRAM

31 TAC §375.306

The Texas Water Development Board (the board) adopts new 31 TAC §375.306 concerning lending rates under the Nonpoint Source Pollution Loan and Estuary Management Program of the Clean Water State Revolving Fund without changes to the proposed text as published in the March 8, 2002 issue of the Texas Register (27 TexReg 1663) and will not be republished. The new section will provide for a methodology to calculate interest rates for applicants utilizing the Nonpoint Source Pollution Loan and Estuary Management Program. There is currently no rule detailing the method, but rather a guideline on setting rates that requires staff to evaluate a market equivalent rate. There have been only limited circumstances in the past where this method needed to be applied because water supply corporations, the primary TWDB taxable borrowers, are not eligible applicants in the Clean Water State Revolving Fund. The possibility for taxable borrowers in the Clean Water State Revolving Fund increased in September 2001 when rules were adopted authorizing the board to make loans to "persons" for nonpoint source pollution control.

The new section will set interest rates for persons at 140% of the rate for tax exempt applicants. This percentage is the average ratio between the rates published by Bloomberg Taxable Index for BBB rated bonds and the rates for tax-exempt, general obligation, 20 year maturity, mixed quality bonds published by Bond Buyer Index tax-exempt for the period of March 1999 through November 2001. Concurrently, the board has proposed amendment to Chapter 371 of the board's rules. Taken together, these amendments will establish a uniform method by which interest rates are calculated for private and taxable applicants, in each respective program.

There were no comments received on the proposed new section.

The new section is adopted under the authority of the Texas Water Code §6.101 and §15.605 which provide the Texas Water Development Board with the authority to adopt rules necessary to carry out the powers and duties in the Water Code and other laws of the State.

This agency hereby certifies that the adoption has been reviewed by legal counsel and found to be a valid exercise of the agency's legal authority.

Filed with the Office of the Secretary of State on April 18, 2002.

TRD-200202416

Suzanne Schwartz

General Counsel

Texas Water Development Board

Effective date: May 8, 2002

Proposal publication date: March 8, 2002

For further information, please call: (512) 463-7981