Notice of Intent To Grant a Buy America Waiver to the North Carolina Department of Transportation To Use Certain Non-Domestic Components of a Fire Alarm System, 22114-22115 [2018-10042]
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22114
Federal Register / Vol. 83, No. 92 / Friday, May 11, 2018 / Notices
DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION
Federal Railroad Administration
[Docket No. FRA–2012–0033]
Notice of Intent To Grant a Buy
America Waiver to the North Carolina
Department of Transportation To Use
Certain Non-Domestic Components of
a Fire Alarm System
Federal Railroad
Administration (FRA), United States
Department of Transportation (DOT).
ACTION: Notice of intent to grant Buy
America waiver.
AGENCY:
FRA is issuing this notice to
advise the public it intends to grant the
North Carolina Department of
Transportation (NCDOT) a waiver from
FRA’s Buy America requirement to use
certain non-domestic components of a
fire alarm system that Lake Electric, Inc.
will provide for the Locomotive and
Railcar Maintenance Facility project in
Charlotte, NC. Lake Electric, Inc. is an
electrical contractor for the Locomotive
and Railcar Maintenance Facility
project.
SUMMARY:
Written comments on FRA’s
determination to grant a Buy America
waiver to NCDOT should be provided to
the FRA on or before May 18, 2018.
ADDRESSES: Please submit your
comments by one of the following
means, identifying your submissions by
docket number FRA–2012–0033. All
electronic submissions must be made to
the U.S. Government electronic site at
https://www.regulations.gov.
Commenters should follow the
instructions below for mailed and handdelivered comments:
(1) Website: https://
www.regulations.gov. Follow the
instructions for submitting comments
on the U.S. Government electronic
docket site;
(2) Fax: (202) 493–2251;
(3) Mail: U.S. Department of
Transportation, 1200 New Jersey
Avenue SE, Docket Operations, M–30,
Room W12–140, Washington, DC
20590–0001; or
(4) Hand Delivery: Room W12–140 on
the first floor of the West Building, 1200
New Jersey Avenue SE, Washington,
DC, 20590, between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m.,
Monday through Friday, except Federal
holidays.
Instructions: All submissions must
reference the ‘‘Federal Railroad
Administration’’ and include docket
number FRA–2012–0033. Due to
security procedures in effect since
October 2001, mail received through the
U.S. Postal Service may be subject to
sradovich on DSK3GMQ082PROD with NOTICES
DATES:
VerDate Sep<11>2014
19:21 May 10, 2018
Jkt 244001
delays. Parties submitting responses to
this notice should consider using an
express mail firm to ensure the prompt
filing of any submissions not filed
electronically or by hand. Note that all
submissions received, including any
personal information therein, will be
posted without change or alteration to
https://www.regulations.gov. For more
information, you may review DOT’s
complete Privacy Act Statement in the
Federal Register published on April 11,
2000 (65 FR 19477), or visit https://
www.regulations.gov.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Mr.
John Johnson, Attorney-Advisor, FRA
Office of Chief Counsel, 1200 New
Jersey Avenue SE, Washington, DC
20590, (202) 493–0078, John.Johnson@
dot.gov.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: FRA
provided information on its reasons for
granting this waiver in a letter to
NCDOT, quoted below:
NCDOT Rail Division
1553 Mail Service Center
1 South Wilmington Street
Raleigh, NC 27699–1553
Re: Request for Waiver of Buy America
Requirement
Dear Mr. Allan Paul:
On April 4, 2017, Lake Electric, Inc.
requested a waiver from the Federal Railroad
Administration’s (FRA) Buy America
requirement (49 U.S.C. 24405(a)) to use
certain components of a fire alarm system,
which cannot be sourced in the United
States, in the Locomotive and Railcar
Maintenance Facility project in Charlotte, NC
(Project). The Project is for the construction
of a railcar and maintenance facility in
Charlotte, North Carolina. The North
Carolina Department of Transportation
(NCDOT), through its contractor, awarded
Lake Electric, Inc. the electrical construction
sub-contract for the Project. The $23.25
million project is funded by an American
Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 grant
to NCDOT.
The Project is subject to 49 U.S.C.
24405(a)(l). Section 24405(a)(l) requires the
steel, iron, and manufactured goods used in
a project to be produced in the United States.
FRA may waive the Buy America
requirements if FRA finds that: (1) applying
the requirements would be inconsistent with
the public interest; (2) the steel, iron, and
goods manufactured in the United States are
not produced in sufficient and reasonably
available amounts or are not of a satisfactory
quality; (3) rolling stock or power train
equipment cannot be bought or delivered to
the United States within a reasonable time;
or (4) including domestic material will
increase the cost of the overall project by
more than 25 percent.
For the reasons stated in this letter, FRA
grants a ‘‘non-availability’’ Buy America
waiver. FRA is providing its decision on the
waiver to NCDOT as the FRA grant recipient
for this Project, and this waiver applies only
to this Project.
PO 00000
Frm 00118
Fmt 4703
Sfmt 4703
Lake Electric seeks a waiver for the
following components (Components) for use
in the Project:
Description
252 Point Fire Alarm Control
Panel .........................................
Digital
Alarm
Communicator
Transmitter ................................
Remote Annunciators ...................
RS–485 Interface Modules ...........
12V7ah SIA Batteries ...................
Dual Action Manual pull stations ..
Photoelectric Smoke Detectors ....
Relay Modules ..............................
Red Wall Mount Horn/Strobes .....
Red Wall Mount Strobes ..............
Multi-Criteria Fire Detectors .........
Monitor Modules ...........................
Dual Input Monitor Modules .........
Quantity
1
1
1
1
4
7
22
4
18
14
5
5
1
The total cost of the fire alarm system is
less than $6,000, and the total cost of the
non-U.S. manufactured components is less
than $4,000.
Lake Electric asserts the following facts in
support of the waiver request:
Lake Electric sought bids from fourteen
qualified suppliers and received two bids for
the fire alarm system from suppliers
Southern Sound and Lefler Electronics.
Although these suppliers source many fire
alarm system components from U.S.
manufacturers, neither of the suppliers
offered a one hundred percent Buy Americacompliant system. All fire alarm system
suppliers use a mix of foreign and US-made
components; and
The foreign components used by suppliers
vary. However, due to programming,
interoperability, and certification issues, the
components are not interchangeable among
systems. Therefore, suppliers cannot swap
out components to meet Buy America.
FRA independently verified these
assertions with its Monitoring and Technical
Assistance Contractor (MTAC), TranSystems.
An electrical engineer from FRA’s MTAC
explained that large international suppliers
source or manufacture pieces of the fire
alarm system in different countries. Further,
many portions of the system are addressable
(individually programmable), which means
the software and hardware must be
compatible and tested. In addition, fire alarm
components and systems are UL® listed. UL®
is a third-party, independent company that
certifies safety compliance of many systems
and their components, including fire alarm
systems. Attempting to swap pieces of a fire
alarm system would jeopardize its UL®
listing and could cause product warranty and
liability issues.
FRA concludes a waiver is appropriate
under 49 U.S.C. 24405(a)(2)(B) for the
Components because domestically-produced
Components are not currently ‘‘produced in
sufficient and reasonably available amounts.’’
49 U.S.C. 24405(a)(2)(B). FRA bases this
determination on the following:
For competitively bid, commercial
products for buildings, such as fire alarm
systems, FRA views receiving no Buy
America-compliant bids as presumptive
evidence the conditions exist to grant a nonavailability waiver;
E:\FR\FM\11MYN1.SGM
11MYN1
Federal Register / Vol. 83, No. 92 / Friday, May 11, 2018 / Notices
On September 28, 2017, FRA provided
public notice of this waiver request and a 15day opportunity for comment on its website.
FRA also emailed notice to over 6,000
recipients that requested Buy America
notices through ‘‘GovDelivery.’’ FRA
received one comment. However, the
commenter did not provide any information
about a domestic source for a fully Buy
America-compliant fire alarm system; and
FRA’s MTAC concurred with Lake Electric
that due to programming, interoperability,
and certification issues, components are not
interchangeable among systems. Therefore,
fire alarm system suppliers cannot swap out
components to meet Buy America.
This waiver applies only to this Project for
these specific components.
Under 49 U.S.C. 24405(a)(4), FRA will
publish this letter granting the Buy America
waiver to the City in the Federal Register and
provide notice of such finding and an
opportunity for public comment after which
this waiver will become effective.
Questions about this letter can be directed
to, John Johnson, Attorney-Advisor, at
John.Johnson@dot.gov or (202) 493–0078.
Sincerely,
Ronald L. Batory,
Administrator
cc: Lake Electric Co.
Brett Andrew Jortland,
Acting Deputy Chief Counsel.
[FR Doc. 2018–10042 Filed 5–10–18; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4910–06–P
DEPARTMENT OF THE TREASURY
Community Development Financial
Institutions Fund
Notice of Allocation Availability
(NOAA) Inviting Applications for the
Calendar Year (CY) 2018 Allocation
Round of the New Markets Tax Credit
(NMTC) Program
Notice of
Allocation Availability (NOAA) Inviting
Applications for the Calendar Year (CY)
2018 Allocation Round of the New
Markets Tax Credit (NMTC) Program.
ANNOUNCEMENT TYPE: Announcement of
allocation availability.
DATES: Electronic applications must be
received by 5:00 p.m. ET on June 28,
2018. Applications sent by mail,
facsimile, or other form will not be
accepted. Please note the Community
Development Financial Institutions
Fund (CDFI Fund) will only accept
applications and attachments (e.g., the
Controlling Entity’s representative
signature page, investor letters, and
organizational charts) in electronic form
(see Section IV.C of this NOAA for more
details). Applications must meet all
eligibility and other requirements and
deadlines, as applicable, set forth in this
NOAA. Any Applicant that is not yet
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FUNDING OPPORTUNITY TITLE:
VerDate Sep<11>2014
19:21 May 10, 2018
Jkt 244001
certified as a Community Development
Entity (CDE) must submit an application
for CDE certification through the CDFI
Fund’s Awards Management
Information System (AMIS) on or before
5:00 p.m. ET on May 24, 2018 (see
Section III.A.1 of this NOAA for more
details on CDE certification).
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY: This NOAA is
issued in connection with the CY 2018
allocation round (Allocation Round) of
the New Markets Tax Credit Program
(NMTC Program), as authorized by Title
I, subtitle C, section 121 of the
Community Renewal Tax Relief Act of
2000 (Pub. L. 106–554) and amended by
section 221 of the American Jobs
Creation Act of 2004 (Pub. L. 108–357),
section 101 of the Gulf Opportunity
Zone Act of 2005 (Pub. L. 108–357),
Division A, section 102 of the Tax Relief
and Health Care Act of 2006 (Pub. L.
109–432), section 733 of the Tax Relief,
Unemployment Insurance
Reauthorization and Job Creation Act of
2010 (Pub. L. 111–312), section 305 of
the American Taxpayer Relief Act of
2012 (Pub. L. 112–240), section 115 of
the Tax Increase Prevention Act of 2014
(Pub. L. 113–295), and section 141 of
the Protecting Americans from Tax
Hikes Act (PATH) of 2015. Through the
NMTC Program, the CDFI Fund
provides authority to CDEs to offer an
incentive to investors in the form of tax
credits over seven years, which is
expected to stimulate the provision of
private investment capital that, in turn,
will facilitate economic and community
development in Low-Income
Communities. Through this NOAA, the
CDFI Fund announces the availability of
$3.5 billion of NMTC allocation
authority in this Allocation Round.
In this NOAA, the CDFI Fund
specifically addresses how a CDE may
apply to receive an allocation of
NMTCs, the competitive procedure
through which NMTC allocations will
be made, and the actions that will be
taken to ensure that proper allocations
are made to appropriate entities.
I. Allocation Availability Description
A. Programmatic changes from the CY
2017 allocation round:
1. Prior QEI Issuance Requirements:
Qualified Equity Investment (QEI)
issuance threshold with respect to its
prior-year allocation. These thresholds
and deadlines have been revised in
comparison to the CY 2017 NOAA. In
this Round, the CDFI Fund is not
requiring a minimum threshold of
Qualified Equity Investments (QEIs) be
issued as a condition of eligibility.
During Phase 2, the CDFI Fund will
consider prior Round Allocatees’ QEI
issuance recorded in the CDFI Fund’s
PO 00000
Frm 00119
Fmt 4703
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22115
online systems as of September 24,
2018. See Section V.C of this NOAA for
additional details on Phase 2 reviews.
B. Program guidance and regulations:
This NOAA describes application and
allocation requirements for this
Allocation Round of the NMTC Program
and should be read in conjunction with:
(i) Guidance published by the CDFI
Fund on how an entity may apply to
become certified as a CDE (66 Federal
Register 65806, December 20, 2001); (ii)
the final regulations issued by the
Internal Revenue Service (the IRS) (26
CFR 1.45D–1, published on December
28, 2004), as amended and related
guidance, notices and other
publications; and (iii) the application
and related materials for this Allocation
Round. All such materials may be found
on the CDFI Fund’s website at https://
www.cdfifund.gov. The CDFI Fund
requires Applicants to review these
documents. Capitalized terms used, but
not defined, in this NOAA have the
respective meanings assigned to them in
the NMTC Program Allocation
application, IRC § 45D or the IRS
regulations. In the event of any
inconsistency between this NOAA, the
allocation application, and guidance
issued by the CDFI Fund thereto, IRC
§ 45D or the IRS regulations, the
provisions of IRC § 45D and the IRS
regulations shall govern.
II. Allocation Information
A. Allocation amounts: Pursuant to
the PATH Act of 2015, the CDFI Fund
expects that it may allocate to CDEs the
authority to issue to their investors the
aggregate amount of $3.5 billion in
equity as to which NMTCs may be
claimed, as permitted under IRC
§ 45D(f)(1)(D). Pursuant to this NOAA,
the CDFI Fund anticipates that it will
issue up to $100 million in tax credit
investment authority per Allocatee. The
CDFI Fund, in its sole discretion,
reserves the right to allocate amounts in
excess of or less than the anticipated
maximum allocation amount should the
CDFI Fund deem it appropriate. In order
to receive an allocation in excess of the
$100 million cap, an Applicant, at a
minimum, must demonstrate that: (i) No
part of its strategy can be successfully
implemented without an allocation in
excess of the applicable cap; and/or (ii)
its strategy will produce extraordinary
community outcomes. The CDFI Fund
reserves the right to allocate NMTC
authority to any, all, or none of the
entities that submit applications in
response to this NOAA, and in any
amounts it deems appropriate.
B. Type of award: NMTC Program
awards are made in the form of
E:\FR\FM\11MYN1.SGM
11MYN1
Agencies
[Federal Register Volume 83, Number 92 (Friday, May 11, 2018)]
[Notices]
[Pages 22114-22115]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2018-10042]
[[Page 22114]]
=======================================================================
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION
Federal Railroad Administration
[Docket No. FRA-2012-0033]
Notice of Intent To Grant a Buy America Waiver to the North
Carolina Department of Transportation To Use Certain Non-Domestic
Components of a Fire Alarm System
AGENCY: Federal Railroad Administration (FRA), United States Department
of Transportation (DOT).
ACTION: Notice of intent to grant Buy America waiver.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
SUMMARY: FRA is issuing this notice to advise the public it intends to
grant the North Carolina Department of Transportation (NCDOT) a waiver
from FRA's Buy America requirement to use certain non-domestic
components of a fire alarm system that Lake Electric, Inc. will provide
for the Locomotive and Railcar Maintenance Facility project in
Charlotte, NC. Lake Electric, Inc. is an electrical contractor for the
Locomotive and Railcar Maintenance Facility project.
DATES: Written comments on FRA's determination to grant a Buy America
waiver to NCDOT should be provided to the FRA on or before May 18,
2018.
ADDRESSES: Please submit your comments by one of the following means,
identifying your submissions by docket number FRA-2012-0033. All
electronic submissions must be made to the U.S. Government electronic
site at https://www.regulations.gov. Commenters should follow the
instructions below for mailed and hand-delivered comments:
(1) Website: https://www.regulations.gov. Follow the instructions
for submitting comments on the U.S. Government electronic docket site;
(2) Fax: (202) 493-2251;
(3) Mail: U.S. Department of Transportation, 1200 New Jersey Avenue
SE, Docket Operations, M-30, Room W12-140, Washington, DC 20590-0001;
or
(4) Hand Delivery: Room W12-140 on the first floor of the West
Building, 1200 New Jersey Avenue SE, Washington, DC, 20590, between 9
a.m. and 5 p.m., Monday through Friday, except Federal holidays.
Instructions: All submissions must reference the ``Federal Railroad
Administration'' and include docket number FRA-2012-0033. Due to
security procedures in effect since October 2001, mail received through
the U.S. Postal Service may be subject to delays. Parties submitting
responses to this notice should consider using an express mail firm to
ensure the prompt filing of any submissions not filed electronically or
by hand. Note that all submissions received, including any personal
information therein, will be posted without change or alteration to
https://www.regulations.gov. For more information, you may review DOT's
complete Privacy Act Statement in the Federal Register published on
April 11, 2000 (65 FR 19477), or visit https://www.regulations.gov.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Mr. John Johnson, Attorney-Advisor,
FRA Office of Chief Counsel, 1200 New Jersey Avenue SE, Washington, DC
20590, (202) 493-0078, [email protected].
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: FRA provided information on its reasons for
granting this waiver in a letter to NCDOT, quoted below:
NCDOT Rail Division
1553 Mail Service Center
1 South Wilmington Street
Raleigh, NC 27699-1553
Re: Request for Waiver of Buy America Requirement
Dear Mr. Allan Paul:
On April 4, 2017, Lake Electric, Inc. requested a waiver from
the Federal Railroad Administration's (FRA) Buy America requirement
(49 U.S.C. 24405(a)) to use certain components of a fire alarm
system, which cannot be sourced in the United States, in the
Locomotive and Railcar Maintenance Facility project in Charlotte, NC
(Project). The Project is for the construction of a railcar and
maintenance facility in Charlotte, North Carolina. The North
Carolina Department of Transportation (NCDOT), through its
contractor, awarded Lake Electric, Inc. the electrical construction
sub-contract for the Project. The $23.25 million project is funded
by an American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 grant to NCDOT.
The Project is subject to 49 U.S.C. 24405(a)(l). Section
24405(a)(l) requires the steel, iron, and manufactured goods used in
a project to be produced in the United States. FRA may waive the Buy
America requirements if FRA finds that: (1) applying the
requirements would be inconsistent with the public interest; (2) the
steel, iron, and goods manufactured in the United States are not
produced in sufficient and reasonably available amounts or are not
of a satisfactory quality; (3) rolling stock or power train
equipment cannot be bought or delivered to the United States within
a reasonable time; or (4) including domestic material will increase
the cost of the overall project by more than 25 percent.
For the reasons stated in this letter, FRA grants a ``non-
availability'' Buy America waiver. FRA is providing its decision on
the waiver to NCDOT as the FRA grant recipient for this Project, and
this waiver applies only to this Project.
Lake Electric seeks a waiver for the following components
(Components) for use in the Project:
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Description Quantity
------------------------------------------------------------------------
252 Point Fire Alarm Control Panel........................... 1
Digital Alarm Communicator Transmitter....................... 1
Remote Annunciators.......................................... 1
RS-485 Interface Modules..................................... 1
12V7ah SIA Batteries......................................... 4
Dual Action Manual pull stations............................. 7
Photoelectric Smoke Detectors................................ 22
Relay Modules................................................ 4
Red Wall Mount Horn/Strobes.................................. 18
Red Wall Mount Strobes....................................... 14
Multi-Criteria Fire Detectors................................ 5
Monitor Modules.............................................. 5
Dual Input Monitor Modules................................... 1
------------------------------------------------------------------------
The total cost of the fire alarm system is less than $6,000, and
the total cost of the non-U.S. manufactured components is less than
$4,000.
Lake Electric asserts the following facts in support of the
waiver request:
Lake Electric sought bids from fourteen qualified suppliers and
received two bids for the fire alarm system from suppliers Southern
Sound and Lefler Electronics. Although these suppliers source many
fire alarm system components from U.S. manufacturers, neither of the
suppliers offered a one hundred percent Buy America-compliant
system. All fire alarm system suppliers use a mix of foreign and US-
made components; and
The foreign components used by suppliers vary. However, due to
programming, interoperability, and certification issues, the
components are not interchangeable among systems. Therefore,
suppliers cannot swap out components to meet Buy America.
FRA independently verified these assertions with its Monitoring
and Technical Assistance Contractor (MTAC), TranSystems. An
electrical engineer from FRA's MTAC explained that large
international suppliers source or manufacture pieces of the fire
alarm system in different countries. Further, many portions of the
system are addressable (individually programmable), which means the
software and hardware must be compatible and tested. In addition,
fire alarm components and systems are UL[supreg] listed. UL[supreg]
is a third-party, independent company that certifies safety
compliance of many systems and their components, including fire
alarm systems. Attempting to swap pieces of a fire alarm system
would jeopardize its UL[supreg] listing and could cause product
warranty and liability issues.
FRA concludes a waiver is appropriate under 49 U.S.C.
24405(a)(2)(B) for the Components because domestically-produced
Components are not currently ``produced in sufficient and reasonably
available amounts.'' 49 U.S.C. 24405(a)(2)(B). FRA bases this
determination on the following:
For competitively bid, commercial products for buildings, such
as fire alarm systems, FRA views receiving no Buy America-compliant
bids as presumptive evidence the conditions exist to grant a non-
availability waiver;
[[Page 22115]]
On September 28, 2017, FRA provided public notice of this waiver
request and a 15-day opportunity for comment on its website. FRA
also emailed notice to over 6,000 recipients that requested Buy
America notices through ``GovDelivery.'' FRA received one comment.
However, the commenter did not provide any information about a
domestic source for a fully Buy America-compliant fire alarm system;
and
FRA's MTAC concurred with Lake Electric that due to programming,
interoperability, and certification issues, components are not
interchangeable among systems. Therefore, fire alarm system
suppliers cannot swap out components to meet Buy America.
This waiver applies only to this Project for these specific
components.
Under 49 U.S.C. 24405(a)(4), FRA will publish this letter
granting the Buy America waiver to the City in the Federal Register
and provide notice of such finding and an opportunity for public
comment after which this waiver will become effective.
Questions about this letter can be directed to, John Johnson,
Attorney-Advisor, at [email protected] or (202) 493-0078.
Sincerely,
Ronald L. Batory,
Administrator
cc: Lake Electric Co.
Brett Andrew Jortland,
Acting Deputy Chief Counsel.
[FR Doc. 2018-10042 Filed 5-10-18; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4910-06-P