Tester Secures More Than $6 Million for Rural Water and Waste Disposal Infrastructure

$1,498,000 in grant funding and $4,788,000 in loans to improve water systems in Cascade, Stillwater, and Yellowstone Counties

U.S. Senator Jon Tester secured funding for much-needed improvements to water and wastewater infrastructure to help create, restore, and clean lagoons, as well as ensure clean, accessible drinking water and wastewater removal across rural Montana.

Tester helped secure more than $6 million—$1.498 million in grant funding and $4.788 in loans—from the United States Department of Agriculture’s Water and Waste Disposal Loan and Grant Program to improve water systems in Simms, Absarokee, and Broadview, Montana.

“Whether it’s used to grow our crops or sustain our families, clean water and waste disposal are critical to Montana’s frontier communities,” Tester said. “These investments will help Simms, Absarokee, and Broadview upgrade their water infrastructure, improving conditions for small business owners, farmers, and families who depend on clean, reliable drinking water in their homes.”

The funding will go to support projects, some already underway, in the following communities:

Simms

$100,000 in loans and $374,000 in grants to support the second phase of infrastructure development, focusing on removing lagoon sludge, distributing cleaned lagoon water to nearby agricultural lands, lining lagoons to prevent leakage, and creating better interpond control structures.

Absarokee

$4.1 million in loans and $408,000 in grants to improve the wastewater system in Absarokee, which will be used to create a new lagoon and upgrade the efficiency of the current treatment system to safeguard water quality.

Broadview

$588,000 in loans and $916,000 in grants for Broadview to upgrade their existing drinking water storage tank to one with a larger capacity and connect transmission lines from the existing system to the new tank.

Ensuring all Montanans have access to clean water for their homes and crops is a top priority for Tester. This year he has already secured more than $2 million to upgrade Geraldine’s outdated water and wastewater infrastructure, and in 2018 secured over $20 million for rural water infrastructure improvements. In 2018, he also helped to pass the bipartisan Water Resources Development Act to upgrade water systems, expanding access and ensuring quality.