1. (a) Rating Criteria. For the Act's §212 projects involving the construction or improvements to publically owned treatment works the following factors will be considered:

   1. (1) Impacts to water quality--Projects that protect stream segments and groundwater from pollution.
   2. (2) Unserved areas--Projects that will bring individual systems into a centralized system or projects that address on-site systems.
   3. (3) Regionalization of treatment works--Projects that will consolidate and eliminate systems.
   4. (4) Reduction or prevention of sewer system overflows and inflow and infiltration.
   5. (5) Emergency relief--Projects which are affected by disaster.
   6. (6) Affordability--A Project located in a disadvantaged community shall have an affordability rating factor as defined within the IUP.
   7. (7) Additional factors as designated within the applicable IUP and determined by the executive administrator.
2. (b) Previously funded projects. Planning, acquisition, or design phase projects, completed within three years from loan closing will receive a priority for construction funding if there are no significant changes that affect the original project rating and the project is ready to proceed.

3. (c) Nonpoint source and estuary management projects will be rated as described in the IUP and based on the following:

   1. (1) Public health--Ability to improve conditions that a public health official has determined are a nuisance and are dangerous to public health and safety and that may result from water supply and sanitation problems in the area to be served by the proposed project.
   2. (2) Groundwater--Minimization of impact of pollutants to an aquifer or groundwater.
   3. (3) Impaired water body--Ability to improve conditions in any water body that does not meet applicable water quality standards or is threatened for one or more designated uses by one or more pollutants.

4. (d) Subsequent to adoption of an IUP, certain changes to a ranked project may be allowed without requiring re-ranking in the following circumstances:

   1. (1) the Applicant for a proposed project may change;
   2. (2) the number of participants in a regional project may change provided that the change does not affect the total rating points assigned to the project; and
   3. (3) the total cost of a proposed project may not increase in an amount more than 10% of the amount listed in the adopted IUP.

Source Note:The provisions of this §375.31 adopted to be effective September 8, 2010, 35 TexReg 8126.