Cape Fear Public Utility Authority thanks the N.C. General Assembly, particularly members of New Hanover County’s legislative delegation, for including funding in the State Budget to support our community’s critical water and wastewater infrastructure.
Gov. Roy Cooper signed North Carolina’s 2021-2023 Budget into law Thursday. The budget allocates money from the State Fiscal Recovery Fund to the N.C. Department of Environmental Quality to fund water and sewer projects across North Carolina.
Among the allocations is a $30 million construction grant to CFPUA. Funding comes from the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 (ARPA), which is being administered by the U.S. Department of the Treasury.
CFPUA staff are researching how the $30 million may be used, with recommendations to be presented to the CFPUA Board for consideration at a future meeting.
“We are deeply grateful for the efforts of our local delegation to get this funding included in the State Budget, with special thanks to Senator Michael Lee who introduced and championed the funding request. We also express our sincere appreciation to leaders from New Hanover County and the City of Wilmington, who have advocated for State support of critical CFPUA projects,” CFPUA Executive Director Kenneth Waldroup said. “As an Authority, CFPUA did not receive direct allocation of federal funds from either the CARES Act or the American Recovery Plan Act, and our community leaders have moved to resolve that. Water and wastewater infrastructure is essential to our community, and support such as this helps CFPUA to improve our systems while keeping rates low for our customers.”