Nationwide Categorical Waivers Under Section 1605 (Buy American) of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (Recovery Act), 30146-30147 [2011-12719]
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30146
Federal Register / Vol. 76, No. 100 / Tuesday, May 24, 2011 / Notices
(RHTL) (under the name Eagle Pass Post
Office). RTHLs are at least 50 years old
and judged worthy of preservation for
both architectural and historical
significance. Buildings with this
designation display an official Texas
historical marker.
It is regulated that RTHLs retain their
basic historical integrity and property
owners are required to notify the Texas
Historic Commission (THC) at least 60
days before beginning a project that will
affect the exterior of a RTHL.
Notification includes a cover letter
describing the scope of work, current
overall photographs and close-up
photographs of the areas requiring
repair; drawings, specifications, and a
proposal from a contractor may also be
required. Staff responds within 30 days,
either allowing work to proceed if it
complies with the Standards for
Rehabilitation or recommending other
alternatives to consider.
Compliance with the Texas Secretary
of the Interior’s Standards for
Rehabilitation (Texas Government Code,
Chapter 442, Section 442.006(f)),
requires that deteriorated or damaged
historic building components be
replaced in-kind, that is with matching
materials. In the case of the Eagle Pass
Post Office/Library, the clay tile roof is
a character-defining feature and
replacement with matching clay tile is
the only material that complies with the
Standards. As a result of these
Standards the tile on the roof of the
Eagle Pass Library must be replaced
with like tile. This tile is available from
Piedras Negras, Mexico for $1.31 per
piece, and the project requires 6300
tiles. The prices quoted from domestic
manufacturers who could produce the
equivalent red clay tiles; in part because
they would have to produce molds from
scratch for the tiles, and would have to
ship substantially greater distances;
were between $18 and $24 per tile. All
of the prices listed above are per tile and
are the total cost including shipping and
development of the mold where
applicable.
The roof replacement was bid out
separately from other projects which
include Recovery Act funds, and is the
only work being done on this public
building. Therefore, it fits the definition
of a ‘‘project’’ and the total cost of the
roof replacement is equal to the total
project cost.
2 CFR 176.110, titled ‘‘Evaluating
proposals of foreign iron, steel, and/or
manufactured goods’’, states that if ‘‘the
award official receives a request for an
exception based on the cost of certain
domestic iron, steel, and/or
manufactured goods being
unreasonable, in accordance with
VerDate Mar<15>2010
16:47 May 23, 2011
Jkt 223001
§ 176.80, then the award official shall
apply evaluation factors to the proposal
to use such foreign iron, steel, and/or
manufactured goods’’ Per that section,
the total evaluated cost = project cost
estimate + (.25 × project cost estimate).
The total cost of the project with the
tiles from Piedras Negras is $71,040.
The total evaluated cost is $71,400 +
(.25 × $71,400) or $92,625.
The minimum cost for the project
with US tiles is $176,187, a cost
increase of 148%. Thus, the Spanish
Red Clay Tiles needed for this project
that are domestically manufactured will
increase the cost of the overall project
by more than 25 percent.
Having established a proper
justification based on unreasonable cost,
EERE hereby provides notice that on
April 15, 2011, a project-specific waiver
of section 1605 of the Recovery Act was
issued as detailed supra. This notice
constitutes the detailed written
justification required by Section 1605(c)
for waivers based on a finding under
subsection (b).
This waiver determination is pursuant
to the delegation of authority by the
Secretary of Energy to the Acting
Assistant Secretary for EERE with
respect to expenditures within the
purview of his responsibility.
Consequently, this waiver applies only
to EERE projects carried out under the
Recovery Act; and only to this project
specifically, waiver requests, even for
the same or similar items, will be
handled individually, because
individual factors apply to each project.
Authority: Pub. L. 111–5, section 1605.
Issued in Washington, DC, on April 15,
2011.
Henry Kelly,
Acting Assistant Secretary, Energy Efficiency
and Renewable Energy, U.S. Department of
Energy.
[FR Doc. 2011–12717 Filed 5–23–11; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6450–01–P
DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY
Office of Energy Efficiency and
Renewable Energy
Nationwide Categorical Waivers Under
Section 1605 (Buy American) of the
American Recovery and Reinvestment
Act of 2009 (Recovery Act)
Office of Energy Efficiency and
Renewable Energy, U.S. Department of
Energy (DOE).
ACTION: Notice of Limited Waivers.
AGENCY:
The U.S. Department of
Energy (DOE) is hereby granting a
nationwide limited waiver of the Buy
SUMMARY:
PO 00000
Frm 00059
Fmt 4703
Sfmt 4703
American requirements of section 1605
of the Recovery Act under the authority
of Section 1605(b)(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),
with respect to: (1) 400 to 750 watt
micro hydro-turbines meeting the
specifications detailed below; (2) Oil
fired direct vent space heaters for use in
buildings that do not have ducts or
piping for boiler heating systems; (3)
ENERGY STAR rated electric heat pump
water heaters and ENERGY STAR rated
through-the-wall air conditioners; (4)
Grid tied solar inverters of 800W or less,
for applications where the panels
generate 139VDC or less (not including
micro-inverters); (5) 50 hp TEFC
inverter duty motors for use in an
existing Marley cooling tower; (6)
Geothermal heat pumps for
demonstration scale waste heat
geothermal systems that allow the direct
use of untreated wastewater to heat and
cool commercial buildings; (7) Point to
point/point to multi-point electronic
broadband microwave radio systems
with alignment tone and IE browser
interface; (8) LED luminaires for
roadway illumination with customized
filter application to meet specific
lighting requirements of Mauna Kea
observatory; (9) Compressed Natural Gas
(CNG) compressors, able to provide
3600 psi (248 bar) temperature
compensated CNG supply to fast fill
storage and fueling dispensers, efficient
and adaptable to a small fleet
(approximately 5 vehicles), as well as
the wireless remote shut down controls
(transmitters and receivers) for those
CNG systems; (10) 8000W solar
inverters for use with U.S.
manufactured 315W panels; (11)
Electronically commutated motor (ECM)
type inline pumps; and (12) Inverters
that permit optimal output of four (4) or
more types of modules per array
connected to inverter that will be used
on eligible EERE-Recovery Act funded
projects.
DATES: Effective April 15, 2011.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
Benjamin Goldstein, Energy Technology
Program Specialist, Office of Energy
Efficiency and Renewable Energy
(EERE), (202) 287–1553, Department of
Energy, 1000 Independence Avenue,
SW., Mailstop EE–2K, Washington, DC
20585.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Under the
authority of the Recovery Act, Public
Law 111–5, section 1605(b)(2), the head
of a federal department or agency may
issue a ‘‘determination of
inapplicability’’ (a waiver of the Buy
E:\FR\FM\24MYN1.SGM
24MYN1
jlentini on DSK4TPTVN1PROD with NOTICES
Federal Register / Vol. 76, No. 100 / Tuesday, May 24, 2011 / Notices
American provision) if the iron, steel, or
relevant manufactured good is not
produced or manufactured in the United
States in sufficient and reasonably
available quantities and of a satisfactory
quality (‘‘nonavailability’’). On
September 17, 2010, the authority of the
Secretary of Energy to make all
inapplicability determinations was redelegated to the Assistant Secretary for
Energy Efficiency and Renewable
Energy (EERE), for EERE projects under
the Recovery Act. Pursuant to this
delegation the Assistant Secretary,
EERE, has concluded that: (1) 400 to 750
watt micro hydro-turbines meeting the
specifications detailed below; (2) Oil
fired direct vent space heaters for use in
buildings that do not have ducts or
piping for boiler heating systems; (3)
ENERGY STAR rated electric heat pump
water heaters and ENERGY STAR rated
through-the-wall air conditioners; (4)
Grid tied solar inverters of 800W or less,
for applications where the panels
generate 139VDC or less (not including
micro-inverters); (5) 50 hp TEFC
inverter duty motors for use in an
existing Marley cooling tower; (6)
Geothermal heat pumps for
demonstration scale waste heat
geothermal systems that allow the direct
use of untreated wastewater to heat and
cool commercial buildings; (7) Point to
point/point to multi-point electronic
broadband microwave radio systems
with alignment tone and IE browser
interface; (8) LED luminaires for
roadway illumination with customized
filter application to meet specific
lighting requirements of Mauna Kea
observatory; (9) Compressed Natural Gas
(CNG) compressors, able to provide
3600 psi (248 bar) temperature
compensated CNG supply to fast fill
storage and fueling dispensers, efficient
and adaptable to a small fleet
(approximately 5 vehicles), as well as
the wireless remote shut down controls
(transmitters and receivers) for those
CNG systems; (10) 8000W solar
inverters for use with U.S.
manufactured 315W panels; (11)
Electronically commutated motor (ECM)
type inline pumps; and (12) Inverters
that permit optimal output of four (4) or
more types of modules per array
connected to inverter that will be used
on eligible EERE-Recovery Act funded
projects qualify for the ‘‘nonavailability’’
waiver determination.
EERE has developed a rigorous
process to ascertain in a systematic and
expedient manner whether or not there
is domestic manufacturing capacity for
the items submitted for a waiver of the
Recovery Act Buy American provision.
This process involves a close
VerDate Mar<15>2010
16:47 May 23, 2011
Jkt 223001
collaboration with the United States
Department of Commerce National
Institute of Standards and Technology
(NIST) Manufacturing Extension
Partnership (MEP), in order to scour the
domestic manufacturing landscape in
search of producers before making any
nonavailability determination.
The MEP has 59 regional centers with
substantial knowledge of, and
connections to, the domestic
manufacturing sector. MEP uses their
regional centers to ‘‘scout’’ for current or
potential manufacturers of the
product(s) submitted in a waiver
request. In the course of this interagency
collaboration, MEP has been able to find
exact or partial matches for
manufactured goods that EERE grantees
had been unable to locate. As a result,
in those cases, EERE was able to work
with the grantees to procure Americanmade products rather than granting a
waiver.
Upon receipt of completed waiver
requests for the twelve products in the
current waiver, EERE reviewed the
information provided and submitted the
relevant technical information to the
NIST MEP. The MEP then used their
network of nationwide centers to scout
for domestic manufacturers. The MEP
reported that their scouting process did
not locate any domestic manufacturers
for the exact items needed to meet the
product specifications required by the
EERE grant recipient.
In addition to the MEP collaboration
outlined above, the EERE Buy American
Coordinator worked with labor unions,
trade associations and other
manufacturing stakeholders to scout for
domestic manufacturing capacity or an
equivalent product for each item
contained in this waiver. EERE also
conducted significant amounts of
independent research to supplement
MEP’s scouting efforts, including
utilizing technology experts employed
by the Department of Energy or the
Department of Energy’s National
Renewable Energy Laboratory. EERE’s
research efforts confirmed the MEP
findings that the goods included in this
waiver are not produced in the United
States in sufficient and reasonably
available quantities and of a satisfactory
quality.
The nonavailability determination is
also informed by the numerous
inquiries to EERE from recipients of
EERE Recovery Act funds, and from
suppliers, distributors, retailers and
trade associations—all stating that their
individual efforts to locate domestic
manufacturers have been unsuccessful.
Having established a proper
justification based on domestic
nonavailability, EERE hereby provides
PO 00000
Frm 00060
Fmt 4703
Sfmt 4703
30147
notice that on March 21, 2011, twelve
nationwide categorical waivers of
section 1605 of the Recovery Act were
issued as detailed supra. This notice
constitutes the detailed written
justification required by Section 1605(c)
for waivers based on a finding under
subsection (b).
This waiver determination is pursuant
to the delegation of authority by the
Secretary of Energy to the Assistant
Secretary for Energy Efficiency and
Renewable Energy with respect to
expenditures within the purview of her
responsibility. Consequently, this
waiver applies to all EERE projects
carried out under the Recovery Act.
Authority: Pub. L. 111–5, section 1605.
Issued in Washington, DC, on April 15,
2011.
Henry Kelly,
Acting Assistant Secretary, Energy Efficiency
and Renewable Energy, U.S. Department of
Energy.
[FR Doc. 2011–12719 Filed 5–23–11; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6450–01–P
DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY
Western Area Power Administration
Application of the Energy Planning and
Management Program Power
Marketing Initiative to the Boulder
Canyon Project
Western Area Power
Administration, Department of Energy.
ACTION: Notice of Extension of Decision
Effective Date and Comment Period.
AGENCY:
The Western Area Power
Administration (Western), a Federal
power marketing agency of the
Department of Energy (DOE), is
extending the effective date of decisions
it announced and the comment period
on proposals made in a notice published
in the Federal Register on April 27,
2011.
DATES: The effective date of the
decisions announced in Western’s April
27, 2011, Federal Register notice (FRN)
has been extended from May 27, 2011,
to December 31, 2011. The deadline for
the submission of comments on the
proposals described in Western’s April
27, 2011 FRN has been extended from
June 16, 2011, to September 1, 2011.
Western will hold a public
information forum and a public
comment forum regarding the proposals
described in its April 27, 2011 FRN. The
public information forum will be held
on July 13, 2011, 10 a.m., MST, in
Phoenix, Arizona. The public comment
forum will be held on August 17, 2011,
10 a.m., MST, in Phoenix, Arizona.
SUMMARY:
E:\FR\FM\24MYN1.SGM
24MYN1
]]>Agencies
[Federal Register Volume 76, Number 100 (Tuesday, May 24, 2011)]
[Notices]
[Pages 30146-30147]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2011-12719]
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY
Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy
Nationwide Categorical Waivers Under Section 1605 (Buy American)
of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (Recovery Act)
AGENCY: Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy, U.S.
Department of Energy (DOE).
ACTION: Notice of Limited Waivers.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
SUMMARY: The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) is hereby granting a
nationwide limited waiver of the Buy American requirements of section
1605 of the Recovery Act under the authority of Section 1605(b)(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), with respect to: (1) 400 to 750 watt micro
hydro-turbines meeting the specifications detailed below; (2) Oil fired
direct vent space heaters for use in buildings that do not have ducts
or piping for boiler heating systems; (3) ENERGY STAR rated electric
heat pump water heaters and ENERGY STAR rated through-the-wall air
conditioners; (4) Grid tied solar inverters of 800W or less, for
applications where the panels generate 139VDC or less (not including
micro-inverters); (5) 50 hp TEFC inverter duty motors for use in an
existing Marley cooling tower; (6) Geothermal heat pumps for
demonstration scale waste heat geothermal systems that allow the direct
use of untreated wastewater to heat and cool commercial buildings; (7)
Point to point/point to multi-point electronic broadband microwave
radio systems with alignment tone and IE browser interface; (8) LED
luminaires for roadway illumination with customized filter application
to meet specific lighting requirements of Mauna Kea observatory; (9)
Compressed Natural Gas (CNG) compressors, able to provide 3600 psi (248
bar) temperature compensated CNG supply to fast fill storage and
fueling dispensers, efficient and adaptable to a small fleet
(approximately 5 vehicles), as well as the wireless remote shut down
controls (transmitters and receivers) for those CNG systems; (10) 8000W
solar inverters for use with U.S. manufactured 315W panels; (11)
Electronically commutated motor (ECM) type inline pumps; and (12)
Inverters that permit optimal output of four (4) or more types of
modules per array connected to inverter that will be used on eligible
EERE-Recovery Act funded projects.
DATES: Effective April 15, 2011.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Benjamin Goldstein, Energy Technology
Program Specialist, Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy
(EERE), (202) 287-1553, Department of Energy, 1000 Independence Avenue,
SW., Mailstop EE-2K, Washington, DC 20585.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Under the authority of the Recovery Act,
Public Law 111-5, section 1605(b)(2), the head of a federal department
or agency may issue a ``determination of inapplicability'' (a waiver of
the Buy
[[Page 30147]]
American provision) if the iron, steel, or relevant manufactured good
is not produced or manufactured in the United States in sufficient and
reasonably available quantities and of a satisfactory quality
(``nonavailability''). On September 17, 2010, the authority of the
Secretary of Energy to make all inapplicability determinations was re-
delegated to the Assistant Secretary for Energy Efficiency and
Renewable Energy (EERE), for EERE projects under the Recovery Act.
Pursuant to this delegation the Assistant Secretary, EERE, has
concluded that: (1) 400 to 750 watt micro hydro-turbines meeting the
specifications detailed below; (2) Oil fired direct vent space heaters
for use in buildings that do not have ducts or piping for boiler
heating systems; (3) ENERGY STAR rated electric heat pump water heaters
and ENERGY STAR rated through-the-wall air conditioners; (4) Grid tied
solar inverters of 800W or less, for applications where the panels
generate 139VDC or less (not including micro-inverters); (5) 50 hp TEFC
inverter duty motors for use in an existing Marley cooling tower; (6)
Geothermal heat pumps for demonstration scale waste heat geothermal
systems that allow the direct use of untreated wastewater to heat and
cool commercial buildings; (7) Point to point/point to multi-point
electronic broadband microwave radio systems with alignment tone and IE
browser interface; (8) LED luminaires for roadway illumination with
customized filter application to meet specific lighting requirements of
Mauna Kea observatory; (9) Compressed Natural Gas (CNG) compressors,
able to provide 3600 psi (248 bar) temperature compensated CNG supply
to fast fill storage and fueling dispensers, efficient and adaptable to
a small fleet (approximately 5 vehicles), as well as the wireless
remote shut down controls (transmitters and receivers) for those CNG
systems; (10) 8000W solar inverters for use with U.S. manufactured 315W
panels; (11) Electronically commutated motor (ECM) type inline pumps;
and (12) Inverters that permit optimal output of four (4) or more types
of modules per array connected to inverter that will be used on
eligible EERE-Recovery Act funded projects qualify for the
``nonavailability'' waiver determination.
EERE has developed a rigorous process to ascertain in a systematic
and expedient manner whether or not there is domestic manufacturing
capacity for the items submitted for a waiver of the Recovery Act Buy
American provision. This process involves a close collaboration with
the United States Department of Commerce National Institute of
Standards and Technology (NIST) Manufacturing Extension Partnership
(MEP), in order to scour the domestic manufacturing landscape in search
of producers before making any nonavailability determination.
The MEP has 59 regional centers with substantial knowledge of, and
connections to, the domestic manufacturing sector. MEP uses their
regional centers to ``scout'' for current or potential manufacturers of
the product(s) submitted in a waiver request. In the course of this
interagency collaboration, MEP has been able to find exact or partial
matches for manufactured goods that EERE grantees had been unable to
locate. As a result, in those cases, EERE was able to work with the
grantees to procure American-made products rather than granting a
waiver.
Upon receipt of completed waiver requests for the twelve products
in the current waiver, EERE reviewed the information provided and
submitted the relevant technical information to the NIST MEP. The MEP
then used their network of nationwide centers to scout for domestic
manufacturers. The MEP reported that their scouting process did not
locate any domestic manufacturers for the exact items needed to meet
the product specifications required by the EERE grant recipient.
In addition to the MEP collaboration outlined above, the EERE Buy
American Coordinator worked with labor unions, trade associations and
other manufacturing stakeholders to scout for domestic manufacturing
capacity or an equivalent product for each item contained in this
waiver. EERE also conducted significant amounts of independent research
to supplement MEP's scouting efforts, including utilizing technology
experts employed by the Department of Energy or the Department of
Energy's National Renewable Energy Laboratory. EERE's research efforts
confirmed the MEP findings that the goods included in this waiver are
not produced in the United States in sufficient and reasonably
available quantities and of a satisfactory quality.
The nonavailability determination is also informed by the numerous
inquiries to EERE from recipients of EERE Recovery Act funds, and from
suppliers, distributors, retailers and trade associations--all stating
that their individual efforts to locate domestic manufacturers have
been unsuccessful.
Having established a proper justification based on domestic
nonavailability, EERE hereby provides notice that on March 21, 2011,
twelve nationwide categorical waivers of section 1605 of the Recovery
Act were issued as detailed supra. This notice constitutes the detailed
written justification required by Section 1605(c) for waivers based on
a finding under subsection (b).
This waiver determination is pursuant to the delegation of
authority by the Secretary of Energy to the Assistant Secretary for
Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy with respect to expenditures
within the purview of her responsibility. Consequently, this waiver
applies to all EERE projects carried out under the Recovery Act.
Authority: Pub. L. 111-5, section 1605.
Issued in Washington, DC, on April 15, 2011.
Henry Kelly,
Acting Assistant Secretary, Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy,
U.S. Department of Energy.
[FR Doc. 2011-12719 Filed 5-23-11; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6450-01-P
