Established in accordance to Title VI of the Federal Clean Water Act and Chapter 46-12.2 of the General Laws of Rhode Island , the Agency, in cooperation with DEM and the Rhode Island Housing & Mortgage Finance Corporation (RIHMFC), successfully launched its CSSLP as part of the CWSRFin the spring of 1999. The Agency has engaged RIHMFC to be the homeowner loan administrator for the CSSLP. The Agency uses federal dollars recycled from previous CWSRF loans to provide the source of funds for the CSSLP. The CSSLP allows communities without wastewater treatment facilities to access low-interest cost SRF funds. Communities are able to access these funds after completing an On-Site Wastewater Management Plan approved by DEM. Once the plan appears on DEM’s PPL and the CA is obtained, the community will negotiate a loan with the Agency. The amount requested should be sufficient to repair or replace failing, failed or sub-standard septic systems. Once the loan is negotiated, the community may then allow residents to access the funds. The borrowing cost for the homeowner will be 2%(Note: as part of the Governor's Initiative to clean up Narragansett Bay the Agency lowered its rate to the homeowner from 4% to 2% as of February, 2004) for a term up to ten years. The community may not raise or lower the current homeowner CSSLP rate of 2% but may combine the CSSLP with other sources of money so as to provide a greater dollar amount available for loans or to provide a greater economic incentive for homeowners to repair or replace the failed septic systems. Any additional criteria applied by the local governmental unit cannot negate or otherwise overrule any federal and state laws and regulations which apply to the CSSLP. Recipients (the community) of loans must comply with all applicable state and federal laws and regulations.

The Agency anticipates that future loans addressing non-point source pollution problems, when combined with other pollution abatement loans made by the Agency, will further assist the State of Rhode Island in meeting its long-term water quality improvement goals.