Proposed 2026 Financial Capability Assessment for Clean Water Act Obligations

EPA invites written feedback on its Clean Water Act (CWA) Financial Capability Assessment (FCA) Guidance. The FCA Guidance provides information on how to assess a community’s financial capability as part of negotiating implementation schedules under both permits and enforcement agreements. In addition, the FCA Guidance identifies specific methodologies that can be used to consider economic impacts to public entities when determining water quality standards (WQS) variances and antidegradation reviews. In appropriate cases, these methodologies also inform decisions about revisions to designated uses. As part of the agency’s commitment to implementing CWA objectives in an effective manner, EPA continues to enhance understanding of the issues surrounding FCAs for communities and seeks ways to improve the guidance. The agency will use this input to determine whether updates to the guidance are necessary to provide clear recommendations that accurately identify a community’s financial capability.