Notice of a Regional Project Waiver of Section 1605 (Buy American) of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (ARRA) to Hernando County Utilities Department, (HCUD), Hernando County, FL, 6786-6787 [2011-2773]
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Federal Register / Vol. 76, No. 26 / Tuesday, February 8, 2011 / Notices
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
Frances Eargle, the Designated Federal
Officer for the Local Government
Advisory Committee (LGAC) at (202)
564–3115 or e-mail at
eargle.frances@epa.gov.
INFORMATION ON SERVICES FOR THOSE
WITH DISABILITIES: For information on
access or services for individuals with
disabilities, please contact Frances
Eargle at (202) 564–3115 or
eargle.frances@epa.gov. To request
accommodation of a disability, please
request it 10 days prior to the meeting,
to give EPA as much time as possible to
process your request.
Dated: February 1, 2011.
Jack Bowles,
Acting Designated Federal Officer, Local
Government Advisory Committee.
[FR Doc. 2011–2783 Filed 2–7–11; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6560–50–P
ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION
AGENCY
[FRL–9263–5]
Notice of a Regional Project Waiver of
Section 1605 (Buy American) of the
American Recovery and Reinvestment
Act of 2009 (ARRA) to Hernando
County Utilities Department, (HCUD),
Hernando County, FL
Environmental Protection
Agency (EPA).
ACTION: Notice.
AGENCY:
The EPA is hereby granting a
project waiver of the Buy American
requirements of ARRA Section 1605
under the authority of Section 1605(b)
(2) [manufactured goods are not
produced in the United States in
sufficient and reasonably available
quantities and of a satisfactory quality]
to the Hernando County Utilities
Department, (HCUD), Hernando County,
Florida for the purchase of four Chinese
manufactured wafer swing check valves.
The wafer swing check valves will be
used for the filter feed pumps as part of
the Glen Water Reclamation Facility
Expansion. The pumps are low-head
axial flow pumps which discharge into
an open channel and require this
specific wafer check valve which has a
low head loss and does not require a full
pipe downstream to operate properly.
The valves are manufactured by 3D
Valve, a Chinese company with a U.S.
branch operated for sales and
distribution only. The County stated
that there are no apparent domestic
manufactured wafer swing check valves
with an outside lever and weight in the
12 inch and 16 inch sizes and design as
srobinson on DSKHWCL6B1PROD with NOTICES
SUMMARY:
VerDate Mar<15>2010
18:16 Feb 07, 2011
Jkt 223001
required for this project. This is a
project specific waiver and only applies
to the use of the specified product for
the ARRA project being proposed. Any
other ARRA recipient that wishes to use
the same product must apply for a
separate waiver based on project
specific circumstances. Based on the
review of the information provided,
EPA has concluded that a waiver of the
Buy American provisions is justified.
The Regional Administrator is making
this determination based on the review
and recommendation of the EPA Region
4, Water Protection Division, Grants and
Infrastructure Branch. The Assistant
Administrator of the Office of
Administration and Resources
Management has concurred on this
decision to make an exception to
Section 1605 of ARRA. This action
permits the County to purchase wafer
swing check valves manufactured by 3D
Valve, for the proposed project being
implemented by Hernando County
Florida.
DATES: Effective Date: December 20,
2010.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
Cynthia Y. Edwards, Project Officer,
Grants and SRF Section, Water
Protection Division (WPD), (404) 562–
9340, USEPA Region 4, 61 Forsyth St.,
SW., Atlanta, GA 30303.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: In
accordance with ARRA Section 1605(c),
the EPA hereby provides notice that it
is granting a project waiver of the
requirements of Sections 1605(a) of
Public Law 111–5, Buy American
requirements, to Hernando County
Utilities Department, Hernando County,
Florida, for the purchase of wafer swing
check valves, manufactured by 3D Valve
of China.
Section 1605 of the ARRA requires
that none of the appropriated funds may
be used for the construction, alteration,
maintenance, or repair of a public
building or public work unless all of the
iron, steel, and manufactured goods
used in the project are produced in the
United States, or unless a waiver is
provided to the recipient by the head of
the appropriate agency, here the EPA. A
waiver may be provided if EPA
determines that (1) applying these
requirements would be inconsistent
with the public interest; (2) iron, steel,
and the relevant manufactured goods
are not produced in the United States in
sufficient and reasonably available
quantities and of a satisfactory quality;
or (3) inclusion of iron, steel, and the
relevant manufactured goods produced
in the United States will increase the
cost of the overall project by more than
25 percent.
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Frm 00031
Fmt 4703
Sfmt 4703
The County has requested a waiver
from the Buy American Provision for
the purchase of four wafer style swing
check valves with outside lever and
weight in the 12 inch and 16 inch sizes
as part of the Glen Water Reclamation
Facility Expansion project. The wafer
swing check valves will prevent
backflow into the filter feed pumps at
the Glen Water Reclamation Facility in
Florida. EPA has determined that the
County’s waiver request may be treated
as timely even though the request was
made after the construction contract was
signed. Consistent with the direction of
the OMB Guidance at 2 CFR 176.120,
EPA has evaluated the County’s request
to determine if the request constitutes a
late request. EPA will generally regard
waiver requests with respect to
components that were specified in the
bid solicitation or in a general/primary
construction contract as ‘‘late’’ if
submitted after the contract date.
However, in this case EPA has
determined that the County’s request,
though made after the date that the
contract was signed, can be evaluated as
timely because the need for a waiver
was not reasonably foreseeable.
The original project specifications
incorrectly included the standard check
valves for the project, which have a high
head loss and are designed for full pipe
systems with some back pressure. The
correct design specification is for the
wafer check valves, which are low-head
axial flow pumps discharging into an
open channel. The engineering firm
discovered the error during the
submittal review process. When
submitted to the supplier, the contractor
was informed that only two
manufacturers, both non-U.S., could
provide the valves specified and
therefore, did not meet the Buy
American requirements.
The requirements for the check valves
(Type 770-steel Wafer Single-disc Check
Valves, Class 125 and Class 150) include
(1) conformance to a pressure rating of
Class 150 per ASME b16.5, and to the
ANSI Flange class of 125/150; (2)
diameters of 12 inch and 16 inch; (3)
equipped with spring mechanism for
non-slam closure without backflow
which allows the mechanism to close
without depending on gravity or
backflow to close; (4) carbon steel body,
stainless steel disc, disc arm, and shaft;
(5) single-disc configuration.
EPA provided the County with the
names of U.S. manufacturers that could
potentially provide the specified
product. Hernando County researched
and communicated with these valve
manufacturers, Cla-Val and Titon Flow
Control, and neither manufacturer is
able to meet the project specifications.
E:\FR\FM\08FEN1.SGM
08FEN1
srobinson on DSKHWCL6B1PROD with NOTICES
Federal Register / Vol. 76, No. 26 / Tuesday, February 8, 2011 / Notices
The County’s submission clearly has
provided sufficient documentation that
the relevant manufactured goods are not
produced in the United States in
sufficient and reasonably available
quantity and of a satisfactory quality to
meet its technical specifications.
The April 28, 2009 EPA Headquarters
Memorandum, ‘‘Implementation of Buy
American provisions of Public Law
111–5, the American Recovery and
Reinvestment Act of 2009,’’ defines
‘‘satisfactory quality’’ as ‘‘the quality of
steel, iron or manufactured goods
specified in the project plans and
designs.’’
EPA’s national contractor prepared a
technical assessment report dated July
14, 2010 based on the submitted waiver
request. The report determined that the
waiver request submittal was complete,
that adequate technical information was
provided, but did not agree with the
County that there were no available U.S.
manufacturers that produced the wafer
check valves. Subsequently, on
September 30, 2010, the EPA contractor
prepared an amended technical
assessment report based on
supplemental information provided by
Hernando County and determined a
waiver was supported by the available
evidence. The purpose of the ARRA
provisions was to stimulate economic
recovery by funding current
infrastructure construction, not to delay
projects that are already shovel ready by
requiring entities, like the County, to
revise their design and potentially
choose a more costly and less efficient
project. The imposition of ARRA Buy
American requirements on such projects
would result in unreasonable delay and
thus displace the ‘‘shovel ready’’ status
for this project. To further delay
construction is in direct conflict with
the most fundamental economic
purposes of ARRA: To create or retain
jobs.
The Region 4 Grants and
Infrastructure Branch has reviewed this
waiver request and has determined that
the supporting documentation provided
by the County is sufficient to meet the
criteria listed under ARRA Section
1605(b), OMB’s regulation at 2 CFR
176.100 and the aforementioned EPA
Headquarters Memorandum of April 28,
2009. ARRA Section 1605(b)(2) permits
a waiver if ‘‘iron, steel, and
manufactured goods are not produced in
the United States in sufficient and
reasonably available quantities and of a
satisfactory quality.’’ This waiver
request meets this criterion and is
justified.
The March 31, 2009, Delegation of
Authority Memorandum provided
Regional Administrators with the
VerDate Mar<15>2010
18:16 Feb 07, 2011
Jkt 223001
authority to issue exceptions to Section
1605 of ARRA within the geographic
boundaries of their respective regions
and with respect to requests by
individual grant recipients.
Having established both a proper
basis to specify the particular good
required for this project and that
application of the Buy American
requirements would be inconsistent
with the public interest, the County is
hereby granted a waiver from the Buy
American requirements. Having
established both a proper basis to
specify the particular good required for
this project, and that this manufactured
good was not available from a producer
in the United States, Hernando County
Utilities Department is granted a waiver
from the Buy American requirements of
Section 1605(a) of Public Law 111–5 for
the purchase of four wafer swing check
valves as specified in the County’s
request of July 02, 2010, with
supplemental information provided on
September 7, 2010. This supplementary
information constitutes the detailed
written justification required by Section
1605(c) for waivers ‘‘based on a finding
under subsection 9b.’’ requirements of
Section 1605(a) of Public Law 111–5.
Authority: Pub. L. 111–5, section 1605.
Dated: December 20, 2010.
A. Stanley Meiburg,
Acting Regional Administrator, Region 4.
[FR Doc. 2011–2773 Filed 2–7–11; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6560–50–P
EXPORT-IMPORT BANK OF THE U.S.
[Public Notice 2011–0015]
Agency Information Collection
Activities: Final Collection; Comment
Request
Export-Import Bank of the U.S.
ACTION: Submission for OMB Review
and Comments Request.
6787
application will also improve Ex-Im
Bank’ s compliance with the Open
Government initiative by providing
transparency into specific information
used to determine if an applicant is
qualified to use our loan guarantee
programs. Export-Import Bank potential
finance providers will be able to submit
this form on paper. In the future, we
will consider allowing the submission
of this information electronically.
This application can be viewed at
https://www.exim.gov/pub/pending/
EIB10_06.pfd.
DATES: Comments should be received on
or before March 10, 2011 to be assured
of consideration.
ADRESSES: Comments may be submitted
electronically on www.regulations.gov
or by mail to Office of Information and
Regulatory Affairs, 725 17th Street, NW
Washington, DC 20038 attn: OMB 3048–
NEW.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Titles and Form Number: EIB 10–06
Application for Approved Finance
Provider.
OMB Number: 3048–xxxx.
Type of Review: New.
Need and Use: The Application for
Approved Finance Provider will be used
to determine the financial and
administrative capabilities of a financial
provider who will arrange, fund and
administer international loans.
Annual Number of Respondents: 50.
Estimated Time per Respondent: 3
hours.
Government Annual Burden Hours: 8
hours.
Frequency of Reporting or Use: As
needed.
Sharon A. Whitt,
Agency Clearance Officer.
[FR Doc. 2011–2711 Filed 2–7–11; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6690–01–P
AGENCY:
Form Title: Application for Approved
Finance Provider (EIB 10–06)
SUMMARY: The Export-Import Bank of
the United States (Ex-Im Bank), as a part
of its continuing effort to reduce
paperwork and respondent burden,
invites the general public and other
Federal Agencies to comment on the
proposed information collection, as
required by the Paperwork Reduction
Act of 1995.
The Application for Approved
Finance Provider will be used to
determine if the finance provider has
the financial strength and
administrative staff to originate,
administer, collect, and if needed,
restructure international loans. This
PO 00000
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Fmt 4703
Sfmt 4703
FEDERAL COMMUNICATIONS
COMMISSION
[CC Docket No. 92–237; DA 11–179]
Next Meeting of the North American
Numbering Council
Federal Communications
Commission.
ACTION: Notice.
AGENCY:
The Commission released a
public notice announcing the meeting
and agenda of the North American
Numbering Council (NANC). The
intended effect of this action is to make
the public aware of the NANC’s next
meeting and agenda.
DATES: Wednesday, March 9, 2011, 9:30
a.m.
SUMMARY:
E:\FR\FM\08FEN1.SGM
08FEN1
]]>Agencies
[Federal Register Volume 76, Number 26 (Tuesday, February 8, 2011)]
[Notices]
[Pages 6786-6787]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2011-2773]
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY
[FRL-9263-5]
Notice of a Regional Project Waiver of Section 1605 (Buy
American) of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (ARRA)
to Hernando County Utilities Department, (HCUD), Hernando County, FL
AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).
ACTION: Notice.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
SUMMARY: The EPA is hereby granting a project waiver of the Buy
American requirements of ARRA Section 1605 under the authority of
Section 1605(b) (2) [manufactured goods are not produced in the United
States in sufficient and reasonably available quantities and of a
satisfactory quality] to the Hernando County Utilities Department,
(HCUD), Hernando County, Florida for the purchase of four Chinese
manufactured wafer swing check valves. The wafer swing check valves
will be used for the filter feed pumps as part of the Glen Water
Reclamation Facility Expansion. The pumps are low-head axial flow pumps
which discharge into an open channel and require this specific wafer
check valve which has a low head loss and does not require a full pipe
downstream to operate properly. The valves are manufactured by 3D
Valve, a Chinese company with a U.S. branch operated for sales and
distribution only. The County stated that there are no apparent
domestic manufactured wafer swing check valves with an outside lever
and weight in the 12 inch and 16 inch sizes and design as required for
this project. This is a project specific waiver and only applies to the
use of the specified product for the ARRA project being proposed. Any
other ARRA recipient that wishes to use the same product must apply for
a separate waiver based on project specific circumstances. Based on the
review of the information provided, EPA has concluded that a waiver of
the Buy American provisions is justified. The Regional Administrator is
making this determination based on the review and recommendation of the
EPA Region 4, Water Protection Division, Grants and Infrastructure
Branch. The Assistant Administrator of the Office of Administration and
Resources Management has concurred on this decision to make an
exception to Section 1605 of ARRA. This action permits the County to
purchase wafer swing check valves manufactured by 3D Valve, for the
proposed project being implemented by Hernando County Florida.
DATES: Effective Date: December 20, 2010.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Cynthia Y. Edwards, Project Officer,
Grants and SRF Section, Water Protection Division (WPD), (404) 562-
9340, USEPA Region 4, 61 Forsyth St., SW., Atlanta, GA 30303.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: In accordance with ARRA Section 1605(c), the
EPA hereby provides notice that it is granting a project waiver of the
requirements of Sections 1605(a) of Public Law 111-5, Buy American
requirements, to Hernando County Utilities Department, Hernando County,
Florida, for the purchase of wafer swing check valves, manufactured by
3D Valve of China.
Section 1605 of the ARRA requires that none of the appropriated
funds may be used for the construction, alteration, maintenance, or
repair of a public building or public work unless all of the iron,
steel, and manufactured goods used in the project are produced in the
United States, or unless a waiver is provided to the recipient by the
head of the appropriate agency, here the EPA. A waiver may be provided
if EPA determines that (1) applying these requirements would be
inconsistent with the public interest; (2) iron, steel, and the
relevant manufactured goods are not produced in the United States in
sufficient and reasonably available quantities and of a satisfactory
quality; or (3) inclusion of iron, steel, and the relevant manufactured
goods produced in the United States will increase the cost of the
overall project by more than 25 percent.
The County has requested a waiver from the Buy American Provision
for the purchase of four wafer style swing check valves with outside
lever and weight in the 12 inch and 16 inch sizes as part of the Glen
Water Reclamation Facility Expansion project. The wafer swing check
valves will prevent backflow into the filter feed pumps at the Glen
Water Reclamation Facility in Florida. EPA has determined that the
County's waiver request may be treated as timely even though the
request was made after the construction contract was signed. Consistent
with the direction of the OMB Guidance at 2 CFR 176.120, EPA has
evaluated the County's request to determine if the request constitutes
a late request. EPA will generally regard waiver requests with respect
to components that were specified in the bid solicitation or in a
general/primary construction contract as ``late'' if submitted after
the contract date. However, in this case EPA has determined that the
County's request, though made after the date that the contract was
signed, can be evaluated as timely because the need for a waiver was
not reasonably foreseeable.
The original project specifications incorrectly included the
standard check valves for the project, which have a high head loss and
are designed for full pipe systems with some back pressure. The correct
design specification is for the wafer check valves, which are low-head
axial flow pumps discharging into an open channel. The engineering firm
discovered the error during the submittal review process. When
submitted to the supplier, the contractor was informed that only two
manufacturers, both non-U.S., could provide the valves specified and
therefore, did not meet the Buy American requirements.
The requirements for the check valves (Type 770-steel Wafer Single-
disc Check Valves, Class 125 and Class 150) include (1) conformance to
a pressure rating of Class 150 per ASME b16.5, and to the ANSI Flange
class of 125/150; (2) diameters of 12 inch and 16 inch; (3) equipped
with spring mechanism for non-slam closure without backflow which
allows the mechanism to close without depending on gravity or backflow
to close; (4) carbon steel body, stainless steel disc, disc arm, and
shaft; (5) single-disc configuration.
EPA provided the County with the names of U.S. manufacturers that
could potentially provide the specified product. Hernando County
researched and communicated with these valve manufacturers, Cla-Val and
Titon Flow Control, and neither manufacturer is able to meet the
project specifications.
[[Page 6787]]
The County's submission clearly has provided sufficient documentation
that the relevant manufactured goods are not produced in the United
States in sufficient and reasonably available quantity and of a
satisfactory quality to meet its technical specifications.
The April 28, 2009 EPA Headquarters Memorandum, ``Implementation of
Buy American provisions of Public Law 111-5, the American Recovery and
Reinvestment Act of 2009,'' defines ``satisfactory quality'' as ``the
quality of steel, iron or manufactured goods specified in the project
plans and designs.''
EPA's national contractor prepared a technical assessment report
dated July 14, 2010 based on the submitted waiver request. The report
determined that the waiver request submittal was complete, that
adequate technical information was provided, but did not agree with the
County that there were no available U.S. manufacturers that produced
the wafer check valves. Subsequently, on September 30, 2010, the EPA
contractor prepared an amended technical assessment report based on
supplemental information provided by Hernando County and determined a
waiver was supported by the available evidence. The purpose of the ARRA
provisions was to stimulate economic recovery by funding current
infrastructure construction, not to delay projects that are already
shovel ready by requiring entities, like the County, to revise their
design and potentially choose a more costly and less efficient project.
The imposition of ARRA Buy American requirements on such projects would
result in unreasonable delay and thus displace the ``shovel ready''
status for this project. To further delay construction is in direct
conflict with the most fundamental economic purposes of ARRA: To create
or retain jobs.
The Region 4 Grants and Infrastructure Branch has reviewed this
waiver request and has determined that the supporting documentation
provided by the County is sufficient to meet the criteria listed under
ARRA Section 1605(b), OMB's regulation at 2 CFR 176.100 and the
aforementioned EPA Headquarters Memorandum of April 28, 2009. ARRA
Section 1605(b)(2) permits a waiver if ``iron, steel, and manufactured
goods are not produced in the United States in sufficient and
reasonably available quantities and of a satisfactory quality.'' This
waiver request meets this criterion and is justified.
The March 31, 2009, Delegation of Authority Memorandum provided
Regional Administrators with the authority to issue exceptions to
Section 1605 of ARRA within the geographic boundaries of their
respective regions and with respect to requests by individual grant
recipients.
Having established both a proper basis to specify the particular
good required for this project and that application of the Buy American
requirements would be inconsistent with the public interest, the County
is hereby granted a waiver from the Buy American requirements. Having
established both a proper basis to specify the particular good required
for this project, and that this manufactured good was not available
from a producer in the United States, Hernando County Utilities
Department is granted a waiver from the Buy American requirements of
Section 1605(a) of Public Law 111-5 for the purchase of four wafer
swing check valves as specified in the County's request of July 02,
2010, with supplemental information provided on September 7, 2010. This
supplementary information constitutes the detailed written
justification required by Section 1605(c) for waivers ``based on a
finding under subsection 9b.'' requirements of Section 1605(a) of
Public Law 111-5.
Authority: Pub. L. 111-5, section 1605.
Dated: December 20, 2010.
A. Stanley Meiburg,
Acting Regional Administrator, Region 4.
[FR Doc. 2011-2773 Filed 2-7-11; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6560-50-P
