Skip to main content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Here’s how you know

Dot gov

Official websites use .gov
A .gov website belongs to an official government organization in the United States.

HTTPS

Secure .gov websites use HTTPS
A lock (LockA locked padlock) or https:// means you’ve safely connected to the .gov website. Share sensitive information only on official, secure websites.

    • Environmental Topics
    • Air
    • Bed Bugs
    • Cancer
    • Chemicals, Toxics, and Pesticide
    • Emergency Response
    • Environmental Information by Location
    • Health
    • Land, Waste, and Cleanup
    • Lead
    • Mold
    • Radon
    • Research
    • Science Topics
    • Water Topics
    • A-Z Topic Index
    • Laws & Regulations
    • By Business Sector
    • By Topic
    • Compliance
    • Enforcement
    • Laws and Executive Orders
    • Regulations
    • Report a Violation
    • Environmental Violations
    • Fraud, Waste or Abuse
    • About EPA
    • Our Mission and What We Do
    • Headquarters Offices
    • Regional Offices
    • Labs and Research Centers
    • Planning, Budget, and Results
    • Organization Chart
    • EPA History

Breadcrumb

  1. Home
  2. Section 404 of the Clean Water Act

Implementing Financial Assurance for Mitigation Project Success

Financial assurance for mitigation project success, also known as short-term financial assurances, can be defined generally as a mechanism that ensures that a sufficient amount of money will be available for use to complete or replace a mitigation provider’s obligations to implement a required mitigation project and meet specified ecological performance standards in the event that the mitigation provider proves unable or unwilling to meet those obligations.

This report reviews key design and implementation issues and considerations relating to the use of financial assurances for mitigation project success, and describes and compares key features of alternative assurance instruments, including letters of credit, performance bonds, cash-in-escrow, casualty insurance, legislative appropriations, or other appropriate instruments.

  • Implementing Financial Assurance for Mitigation Project Success - Guide (pdf) (2.16 MB, March 2016)
  • Financial Assurances Fact Sheet (pdf) (376.18 KB, March 2016)

Section 404 of the Clean Water Act

  • Laws and Regulations
    • Policy and Guidance
    • Scientific Documents
    • Issue Resolution
    • Veto Authority
  • Section 404 Permit Program
  • Compensatory Mitigation
  • Section 404 Enforcement
  • EPA Regional Contacts
  • Army Corps of Engineers
Contact Us About Section 404 of the Clean Water Act
Contact Us to ask a question, provide feedback, or report a problem.
Last updated on January 7, 2025
  • Assistance
  • Spanish
  • Arabic
  • Chinese (simplified)
  • Chinese (traditional)
  • French
  • Haitian Creole
  • Korean
  • Portuguese
  • Russian
  • Tagalog
  • Vietnamese
United States Environmental Protection Agency

Discover.

  • Accessibility Statement
  • Budget & Performance
  • Contracting
  • EPA www Web Snapshot
  • Grants
  • No FEAR Act Data
  • Plain Writing
  • Privacy
  • Privacy and Security Notice

Connect.

  • Data
  • Inspector General
  • Jobs
  • Newsroom
  • Regulations.gov
  • Subscribe
  • USA.gov
  • White House

Ask.

  • Contact EPA
  • EPA Disclaimers
  • Hotlines
  • FOIA Requests
  • Frequent Questions
  • Site Feedback

Follow.