GIFA seeks $35 million to seed natural gas loan fund under new authority

Trey Bennett, executive director of the Georgia Environmental Finance Authority, told the subcommittee the governor’s amended budget recommends $35,000,000 to seed a GIFA natural gas loan fund. Bennett said the authority received new powers under Senate Bill 13 and will create an application and underwriting process for loans to natural‑gas infrastructure projects across Georgia.

"Senate bill 13 gave us the authority to to fund loans for natural gas infrastructure," Bennett said, adding that GIFA’s historic portfolio has focused on water and sewer but the statute’s language is broad enough to permit new and replacement natural gas projects. He told the committee GIFA has no specific projects identified at this time and will develop eligibility and underwriting criteria before accepting applications.

Committee members asked where projects would be located and whether GIFA could provide trend data on demand for infrastructure loans. Bennett said GIFA will follow up offline with members who requested regional trend information and noted the agency’s revolving‑fund model used for water and sewer projects as a template for loan administration.

What’s next: GIFA will return with program details and application materials as the agency finalizes the fund structure; no appropriation vote was taken in the hearing.