Grants & Loans

The Illinois EPA provides financial assistance for certain air, land, water, and energy related projects. Those programs include:

Driving a Cleaner Illinois - Driving a Cleaner Illinois is the Illinois EPA’s grant program developed to distribute funding for various types of diesel emission reduction projects involving on-road vehicles, off-road equipment, and electric charging.  The Driving a Cleaner Illinois Program receives funding from a variety of sources, including the Volkswagen Environmental Mitigation Trust, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s Diesel Emission Reduction Act (DERA) Program, and Federal Highway Administration’s Congestion Mitigation and Air Quality Improvement (CMAQ) Program. 

Brownfields Financial Help – Illinois EPA offers financial help for brownfield site investigations and cleanups.

Solid Waste Planning Grants - Illinois EPA provides financial support to assist counties and other units of local government in implementing their solid waste planning obligations under the SWPRA. 

Residential Sharps Collection Program - The Illinois EPA provides funding to units of local government that operate a sharps collection station, as defined in Section 3.158 of the Illinois Environmental Protection Act, for expenses incurred in collection, storing, and disposing of used sharps.

Underground Storage Tank Fund –The Illinois EPA provides assistance to tank owners and operators to help pay for cleaning up leaks from petroleum underground storage tanks.   

Wastewater/Stormwater and Drinking Water Loans – The Illinois EPA provides low interest loans through the State Revolving Fund (SRF), which includes two loan programs:

• The Water Pollution Control Loan Program for wastewater and stormwater projects; and
• The Public Water Supply Loan Program for drinking water projects.

Lead Service Line Replacement (LSLR) Loans - A new administrative rule, 35 Illinois Administrative Code Part 663, was adopted which will govern the procedures for issuing loans for Lead Service Line Replacement activities from the Public Water Supply Loan Program (PWSLP).

Lead Service Line Inventory Grants - The Illinois EPA offers a grant program to assist communities in meeting the inventory requirements outlined in the Lead Service Line Replacement and Notification Act (LSLRNA).

Unsewered Communities Grants - The Illinois EPA offers two grant programs to assist communities with inadequate or nonexistent wastewater collection and treatment facilities.

Water Quality Grants – The Illinois EPA manages several programs that offer grants to help implement local water projects.

No Cost Public Water Infrastructure Energy Assessments - The Illinois EPA partners with the Smart Energy Design Assistance Center and Illinois Sustainable Technology Center to offer no cost energy efficiency assessment at wastewater treamtent and public water supply facilities. 

Energy Efficiency and Conservation Block Grant (EECBG) Program - The Illinois EPA Office of Energy has opened 3 application opportunities for eligible local governments to develop energy plans and/or implements energy audits and energy efficiency building upgrades. Application period is currently closed.  

Public Water Supply (PWS) Energy Efficiency (EE) Grant Program - The Illinois EPA Office of Energy will award funding to energy efficiency upgrades at public water supply facilities. Awards range from $20,000 to $500,000. Match is required. Application period currently closed.

Energy Efficiency Assessment Grant Program - The Illinois EPA offers grants to public housing authorities, units of local governments or non-profit organizations for energy efficiency assessments at single family or duplex properties.  Awards range from $5,000 to $25,000.

Energy Efficiency Trust Fund Program - The Illinois EPA offers grants from the Energy Efficiency Trust Fund to benefit energy efficiency improvements to single family or duplex properties managed by public housing authorities, units of local government, or nonprofit organizations. 

ENVIRONMENTAL JUSTICE RELATED FUNDING

Illinois EPA has compiled information related to federal funding opportunities related to Environmental Justice. Illinois EPA encourages all eligible entities to apply. See our Environmental Justice Funding and Grant Opportunities page for details and information about open opportunities, eligibility, and application deadlines for various grants. To receive e-mailed updates on resources, grant opportunities, and webinars related to EJ in Illinois, please sign up for the Illinois EPA, Office of EJ, EJ Listserv here.

OTHER FUNDING OPPORTUNITIES

Illinois Clean Energy Community Foundation

• Net Zero Energy Wastewater Treatment Program - Awards grants to wastewater treatment plants (WWTP) committed to achieving site net zero energy (NZE) performance, or better.

Illinois Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity

• Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) Program - Assists Illinois communities that do not receive a HUD direct entitlement allocation with meeting their greatest economic and community development needs.