Nonavailability Waiver applicable to Domestically Assembled Solar Photovoltaics (PV) Panels Referred to as “Solar Modules” Under Build America, Buy America Manufactured Product Provisions as Applied to Recipients of Department of Housing and Urban Development Federal Financial Assistance, 105068-105073 [2024-30692]
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violations of, or for enforcing or
implementing, a statute, rule,
regulation, order, or license, where HUD
determines that the information would
assist in the enforcement of civil or
criminal laws. To third parties during a
law enforcement investigation, to the
extent necessary to obtain information
pertinent to the investigation, provided
the disclosure of such information is
appropriate to the proper performance
of the official duties of the officer
making the disclosure.
(J) To a court, magistrate,
administrative tribunal, or arbitrator
while presenting evidence, including
disclosures to opposing counsel or
witnesses during civil discovery,
litigation, mediation, or settlement
negotiations; or in connection with
criminal law proceedings; or in
response to a subpoena or to a
prosecution request when such records
to be released are specifically approved
by a court provided order.
(K) To appropriate Federal, State,
local, Tribal, or governmental agencies
or multilateral governmental
organizations responsible for
investigating or prosecuting the
violations of, or for enforcing or
implementing, a statute, rule,
regulation, order, or license, where HUD
determines that the information would
assist in the enforcement of civil or
criminal laws.
(L) To third parties during a law
enforcement investigation to the extent
necessary to obtain information
pertinent to the investigation, provided
disclosure is appropriate to the proper
performance of the official duties of the
officer making the disclosure.
(M) To another agency or to an
instrumentality of any governmental
jurisdiction within or under the control
of the United States for a civil or
criminal law enforcement activity if the
activity is authorized by law, and if the
head of the agency or instrumentality
has made a written request to the agency
that maintains the record, specifying the
portion desired and the law
enforcement activity for which the
record is sought.
(N) To any component of the
Department of Justice or other Federal
agency conducting litigation or in
proceedings before any court,
adjudicative, or administrative body,
when HUD determines that the use of
such records is relevant and necessary
to the litigation and when any of the
following is a party to the litigation or
have an interest in such litigation: (1)
HUD, or any component thereof; or (2)
any HUD employee in his or her official
capacity; or (3) any HUD employee in
his or her individual capacity where the
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Department of Justice or agency
conducting the litigation has agreed to
represent the employee; or (4) the
United States, or any agency thereof,
where HUD determines that litigation is
likely to affect HUD or any of its
components.
POLICIES AND PRACTICES FOR STORAGE OF
RECORDS:
Records are maintained in paper and
electronic storage media.
POLICIES AND PRACTICES FOR RETRIEVAL OF
RECORDS:
NOTIFICATION PROCEDURES:
Individuals requesting notification of
records of themselves should address
written inquiries to the Department of
Housing Urban Development, 451 7th
Street SW, Washington, DC 20410–0001.
For verification purposes, individuals
should provide their full name, office or
organization where assigned, if
applicable, and current address and
telephone number. In addition, the
requester must provide either a
notarized statement or an unsworn
declaration made under 24 CFR 16.4.
Records are retrieved by Name, Date
of Birth, and/or SSN.
EXEMPTIONS PROMULGATED FOR THE SYSTEM:
POLICIES AND PRACTICES FOR RETENTION AND
DISPOSAL OF RECORDS:
HISTORY:
Destroy one year after System of
Records is placed on inactive list.
ADMINISTRATIVE, TECHNICAL, AND PHYSICAL
SAFEGUARDS:
EIV Physical controls include, key
cards, security guards and Identification
badges. HUD will secure downloaded
reports on HUD secure SharePoint site.
Public Housing Agencies, Multifamily
Housing Owners/Agents, and Contract
Administrators must secure
downloaded data to a secure/locked
space and/or cabinet. Computer
terminals are secured in controlled areas
which are locked when unoccupied.
Access to automated records is limited
to authorized personnel who must use
a password to gain access to the system.
Administrative controls include
methods to ensure only authorized
personnel access to PII. Each EIV user
must first have access to HUD’ Web
Access Secure Systems. Each EIV User
must be re-certified to use the EIV
System every April and October of the
calendar year. EIV Technical controls
include, Encryption of Data at Rest,
Firewall, Role-based Access Controls,
VPN, Encryption of Data in Transit,
User ID and Password, and PIV Card.
RECORD ACCESS PROCEDURES:
Individuals requesting records of
themselves should address written
inquiries to the Department of Housing
Urban and Development 451 7th Street
SW, Washington, DC 20410–0001. For
verification, individuals should provide
their full name, current address, and
telephone number. In addition, the
requester must provide either a
notarized statement or an unsworn
declaration made under 24 CFR 16.4.
CONTESTING RECORD PROCEDURES:
The HUD rule for contesting the
content of any record pertaining to the
individual by the individual concerned
is published in 24 CFR 16.8 or may be
obtained from the system manager.
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None.
87 FR 50635, August 17, 2022.
LaDonne White,
Chief Privacy Officer, Office of
Administration.
[FR Doc. 2024–30645 Filed 12–23–24; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4210–67–P
DEPARTMENT OF HOUSING AND
URBAN DEVELOPMENT
[Docket No. FR–6506–N–01]
Nonavailability Waiver applicable to
Domestically Assembled Solar
Photovoltaics (PV) Panels Referred to
as ‘‘Solar Modules’’ Under Build
America, Buy America Manufactured
Product Provisions as Applied to
Recipients of Department of Housing
and Urban Development Federal
Financial Assistance
Office of the Secretary, U.S.
Department of Housing and Urban
Development (HUD).
ACTION: Notice and request for public
comment.
AGENCY:
In accordance with the Build
America, Buy America Act (BABA), this
notice advises that HUD is proposing to
issue a temporary, limited nonavailability partial waiver of the
manufactured product requirements in
BABA included in the Infrastructure
Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA) for
domestically assembled solar modules
used in Federal financial assistance
(FFA) awarded for infrastructure
projects. This waiver covers multiple
projects that HUD anticipates will
involve the installation of solar modules
with the intent of addressing multiple
project specific non-availability waivers
into one document to reduce paperwork
and support administrative efficiency.
The narrowly tailored BABA waiver
proposed in this notice would support
the establishment of a domestic solar
supply chain, increase benefits for
SUMMARY:
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domestic solar manufacturing, and help
reduce risks for vulnerable populations.
HUD is seeking public comments on
this proposed waiver.
DATES: HUD published this proposed
waiver for public comment on its
website on December 13, 2024. Pursuant
to section 70914(c)(2) of BABA, HUD is
soliciting comments from the public on
this proposed waiver for a period of
fifteen days from the date published on
HUD’s web page in this instance.
Comments on the proposed waiver set
out in this document are due on or
before December 28, 2024. HUD will
consider comments received in response
to this Notice and announce its
determination with respect to the
adoption of this notice, including any
changes that may be made in response
to comments through a subsequent
Notice. The proposed duration of the
waiver would be from the effective date
(‘‘Effective Date’’) of the proposed
waiver until December 31, 2025. The
waiver applies to solar modules with
Final Assembly in the United States (as
defined below in the ‘‘Proposed
Waiver’’ section).
ADDRESSES: Interested persons are
invited to submit comments on this
notice. Copies of all comments
submitted are available for inspection
and downloading at
www.regulations.gov.
To receive consideration as public
comments, comments must be
submitted through one of the two
methods specified below. All
submissions must refer to the above
docket number and title. Commenters
are encouraged to identify the number
of the specific question or questions to
which they are responding. Responses
should include the name(s) of the
person(s) or organization(s) filing the
comment; however, because any
responses received by HUD will be
publicly available, responses should not
include any personally identifiable
information or confidential commercial
information. Business confidential
information can be submitted to
BuildAmericaBuyAmerica@hud.gov.
1. Electronic Submission of
Comments. Interested persons may
submit comments electronically through
the Federal eRulemaking Portal at
www.regulations.gov. HUD strongly
encourages commenters to submit
comments electronically. Electronic
submission of comments allows the
commenter maximum time to prepare
and submit a comment, ensures timely
receipt by HUD, and enables HUD to
make them immediately available to the
public. Comments submitted
electronically through the
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www.regulations.gov website can be
viewed by other commenters and
interested members of the public.
Commenters should follow the
instructions provided on that site to
submit comments electronically.
2. Submission of Comments by Mail.
Comments may be submitted by mail to
the Regulations Division, Office of
General Counsel, Department of
Housing and Urban Development, 451
7th Street SW, Room 10276,
Washington, DC 20410–0500.
No Facsimile Comments. Facsimile
(FAX) comments will not be accepted.
Public Inspection of Comments. All
comments and communications
properly submitted to HUD will be
available for public inspection and
copying between 8 a.m. and 5 p.m.
weekdays at the above address. Due to
security measures at the HUD
Headquarters building, an advance
appointment to review the public
comments must be scheduled by calling
the Regulations Division at (202) 708–
3055 (this is not a toll-free number).
HUD welcomes and is prepared to
receive calls from individuals who are
deaf or hard of hearing, as well as
individuals with speech or
communication disabilities. To learn
more about how to make an accessible
telephone call, please visit: https://
www.fcc.gov/consumers/guides/
telecommunications-relay-service-trs.
Copies of all comments submitted are
available for inspection and
downloading at https://
www.regulations.gov.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
Faith Rogers, Department of Housing
and Urban Development, 451 Seventh
Street SW, Room 10126, Washington,
DC 20410–5000, at (202) 402–7082 (this
is not a toll-free number). HUD
welcomes and is prepared to receive
calls from individuals who are deaf or
hard of hearing, as well as individuals
with speech and communication
disabilities. To learn more about how to
make an accessible telephone call,
please visit https://www.fcc.gov/
consumers/guides/telecommunicationsrelay-service-trs. HUD encourages
submission of questions about this
document be sent to
BuildAmericaBuyAmerica@hud.gov.
I. Build America, Buy America
The Build America, Buy America Act
(‘‘BABA’’ or ‘‘the Act’’) was enacted on
November 15, 2021, as part of the
Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act
(‘‘IIJA’’) (Pub. L. 117–58). The Act
establishes a domestic content
procurement preference, the BAP, for
Federal infrastructure programs. Section
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105069
70914(a) of the Act establishes that no
later than 180 days after the date of
enactment, HUD must ensure that none
of the funds made available for
infrastructure projects may be obligated
by the Department unless it has taken
steps to ensure that the iron, steel,
manufactured products, and
construction materials used in a project
are produced in the United States. In
section 70912, the Act further defines a
project to include ‘‘the construction,
alteration, maintenance, or repair of
infrastructure in the United States’’ and
includes within the definition of
infrastructure those items traditionally
included along with buildings and real
property. Thus, starting May 14, 2022,
new awards of HUD FFA, and any of
those funds newly obligated by HUD
then obligated by the grantee for
infrastructure projects, are covered
under BABA provisions of the Act, 41
U.S.C. 8301 note, unless covered by a
waiver.
Solar modules are manufactured
products. Per sections 70912(6)(A) and
(B) of the Act, manufactured products
are considered to be produced in the
United States if (i) the manufactured
product was manufactured in the
United States; and (ii) the cost of the
components of the manufactured
product that are mined, produced, or
manufactured in the United States is
greater than 55 percent of the total cost
of all components of the manufactured
product, unless another standard for
determining the minimum amount of
domestic content of the manufactured
product has been established under
applicable law or regulation.
II. HUD’s Progress in Implementation of
the Act Generally
The IIJA and the Inflation Reduction
Act (Pub. L. 117–169, Aug. 16, 2022)
provided historic investments for
federal infrastructure, including $1
billion in funding for green retrofits.
These developments in addition to
HUD’s base funding, provide an
opportunity for significant expansion of
domestic manufacturing capacity for
products. Since the enactment of the
Act, HUD has worked diligently to
develop a plan to fully implement the
BAP across its FFA programs. HUD
understands that advancing Made in
America objectives is a continuous
effort and believes setting forth a
transparent schedule of future
implementation for FFA programs
provides recipients, stakeholders, and
industry partners with the time and
notice necessary to efficiently and
effectively implement the BAP. HUD
continues its efforts to implement the
Act in HUD’s FFA programs consistent
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with the guidance and requirements of
the Made in America Office of the Office
of Management and Budget, including
guidance concerning compliance with
the BAP.
In order to ensure orderly
implementation of the BAP across
HUD’s FFA programs, HUD has
provided public interest, general
applicability waivers in order to
implement the BAP in phases in
connection with the application of the
BAP in such programs and announced
a corresponding implementation plan.
As part of those efforts, HUD has
published two general applicability,
public interest waivers covering Exigent
Circumstances and De Minimis and
Small Grants; a general applicability,
public interest waiver applied to Pacific
Island Territory Recipients of HUD FFA;
and waivers that remain applicable to
funds obligated by HUD during the
relevant periods of applicability, all of
which can be found at https://
www.hud.gov/program_offices/general_
counsel/build_america_buy_america/
waiver.
III. Waivers
Under section 70914(b), HUD and
other Federal agencies have authority to
waive the application of a domestic
content procurement preference when
(1) application of the preference would
be contrary to the public interest, (2) the
materials and products subject to the
preference are not produced in the
United States at a sufficient and
reasonably available quantity or
satisfactory quality, or (3) inclusion of
domestically produced materials and
products would increase the cost of the
overall project by more than 25 percent.
All waivers must have a written
explanation for the proposed
determination; provide a period of not
less than fifteen (15) calendar days for
public comment on the proposed
waiver; and submit the proposed waiver
to the OMB Made in America Office for
review to determine if the waiver is
consistent with policy.
Section 70914(c) provides that a
waiver under section 70914(b) must be
published by the agency with a detailed
written explanation for the proposed
determination and provide a public
comment period of not less than 15
days. Pursuant to section 70914(d)(2),
when seeking to extend a waiver of
general applicability, HUD is required to
provide for a public comment period of
not less than 30 days on the continued
need such waiver.
IV. Proposed Waiver
HUD is proposing to issue a
temporary, limited non-availability
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partial waiver of the manufactured
product requirements of Section
70914(a) of the Build America, Buy
America Act (‘‘BABA’’) included in the
Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act
(IIJA) (Pub. L. 117–58) for domestically
assembled solar modules used in federal
financial assistance awarded for
infrastructure projects. This waiver
covers multiple projects that HUD
anticipates will involve the installation
of solar modules with the intent of
addressing multiple project specific
non-availability waivers into one
document to reduce paperwork and
support administrative efficiency.
HUD’s proposed waiver requires
domestic assembly versus a waiver of
the full manufactured product
requirements, which would allow
assembly to occur outside the United
States. This waiver is intended to
provide time needed for domestic solar
module manufacturing capability to
meet demand for BABA-compliant solar
modules by supporting and encouraging
continued investments while bringing
the benefits of solar to the HUD’s
financial assistance recipients.
This proposed waiver would apply on
or after the Effective Date of this notice
until December 31, 2025 for all new
solar modules with Final Assembly in
the United States. Solar modules where
final assembly occurred outside the
United States are not eligible for
coverage under this waiver. ‘‘Final
Assembly’’ means all operations
involved in the transformation of
individual solar cells and all other
module components into a fully
functional encapsulated module,
including deposition of electrically
active PV absorber material (e.g,
cadmium telluride on glass) etc. For
recipient expenditures to be covered by
this waiver, the solar modules will need
to be installed by June 30, 2026.
‘‘Installed by’’ means modules being
permanently fastened to an outdoor
support structure at the project site.
HUD proposes to apply this waiver, if
approved, to all Federal Financial
Assistance. For Awards and
amendments that otherwise meet the
criteria of the waiver but were obligated
prior to the Effective Date, the waiver
will apply to eligible expenditures
incurred on or after the Effective Date of
the final waiver for the period that the
waiver is active.
In accordance with Section 70914(c)
of the BABA, HUD is providing notice
that it is seeking a limited, partial
general applicability nonavailability
waiver of the BABA manufactured
product requirements for domestically
assembled solar modules used in federal
financial assistance awards for
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infrastructure projects due to the
determination that compliant solar
modules are not available in sufficient
quality or quantity for use in HUDfunded infrastructure projects. The
Department of Energy conducted market
research to determine availability of
BABA compliant solar modules which
included subject matter expert analysis
of domestic solar production based on
announcements and non-public
manufacturing plans disclosed by
manufacturers. Based on this market
research, HUD proposes to find that
BABA-compliant solar modules are not
produced in the United States in
sufficient and reasonably available
quantities for use in HUD-assisted solar
projects, and will not become available
in sufficient and reasonably available
quantities until December 2025 or later.
This proposed waiver, if finalized, will
ensure recipients can effectively carry
out the activities of their award in a
timely manner while promoting
domestic solar module manufacturing.
HUD seeks to issue this waiver on the
basis of nonavailability in accordance
with Section 70914(b)(2) of the BABA.
V. Waiver Justification
HUD is proposing a temporary,
limited partial nonavailability waiver of
BABA manufactured product
requirements for solar modules to apply
to the use of domestically assembled
modules that may incorporate foreign
components. The United States is the
second largest market for solar
hardware, representing about 10%–15%
of global solar demand. Developing and
enhancing United States solar
manufacturing will mitigate global
supply chain challenges and meet
decarbonization goals as well as benefit
United States’ workers, employers, and
the economy. To reestablish domestic
solar manufacturing in the United
States, entities that produce and sell
solar components will require a holistic
industrial strategy to offset the 30–40%
higher cost of domestic solar production
relative to imported components. A
narrowly tailored BABA waiver will
meet immediate solar demands while
the domestic solar industry expands
supply.
Domestically, the United States
currently has 10,600 MWdc/year
nameplate production capacity for CdTe
modules and 47,000 MWdc/yr
nameplate production capacity for c-Si
modules. Market research indicates c-Si
module production capacity was
historically underutilized for a variety
of reasons including foreign
competition, workforce shortages, and
obsolete production equipment, with
about 3,700 MWdc actually produced
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and sold in 2023 compared to a
nameplate capacity of 15,000 MWdc/yr
at the end of 2023. Capacity for c-Si
modules has continued growing
significantly in 2024 and as production
is ramping, utilization rates are
expected to grow. As of November 2024,
domestic c-Si cell production in the
United States has just restarted and
production is also anticipated to grow.
HUD has a portfolio of approximately
4.5 million public and assisted housing
units. The HUD portfolio consumes an
estimated 49,000 Gigawatt-hours of
energy per year at a cost of $5.5 billion
in annual utilities. Electricity makes up
approximately 59% of all energy usage
and 78% of the utility cost, creating
significant demand and incentive to
deploy solar on HUD’s portfolio. This
demand is anticipated to increase with
the rise of extreme heat across the
country and growing need to providing
cooling for homes.
There are a significant number of
grant programs funded by HUD that
could be used to pay for solar
installations subject to BABA. Even
where the funding was obligated by
HUD prior to being subject to BABA any
new funding source added to a project
that becomes subject to BABA might
make the entire project subject to BABA,
for example in the Public Housing
Capital Fund. However, more
importantly, the demand for solar
modules for projects funded by HUD
subject to BABA will derive from
projects funded not only by HUD itself,
but also by projects where HUD funding
is part of the ‘‘Capital Stack’’ of a project
that may or may not be subject to BABA.
Two significant examples of such
programs are the Clean Energy Tax
Credits and Solar for All.
A significant driver of demand for
solar modules stems from the
Investment Tax Credit (ITC). Projects
that are funded with the ITC that also
qualify for additional bonus credits will
often be located on or directly benefit
HUD-assisted housing. Under the Clean
Electricity Low-Income Communities
Bonus Credit under section 48E(h) of
the Internal Revenue Code, HUDassisted properties are categorically
eligible for the highest bonus credit
available under the allocation of for
eligible property that is part of a
qualified low-income residential
building project also known as Category
3 facility. It is highly likely, therefore,
that such projects will further spur
demand for solar modules purchased
with HUD Federal Financial Assistance
that is subject to BABA. Furthermore,
100% of the 7-billion-dollar Solar for
All program funded by the
Environmental Protection Agency must
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be spent in low and disadvantaged
communities, which are often the same
communities that receive some form of
HUD funding subject to BABA and will
likely be combined with such funding.
In addition to current production
capacity, future domestic manufacturing
indicates growth will result in
substantially more BABA-compliant
module supply. As of November 2024
over $20 billion in planned solar
investments have been announced at
over 148 new and expanded
manufacturing plants for modules,
module parts and other hardware. U.S.
Department of Energy subject matter
experts performed a probabilistic
analysis of these announcements to
identify a date when full BABA
compliance may be achievable. Subject
matter expert review identified
technical delays from announced dates
due to site readiness as well as
likelihood of project success and
considered the time required to ramp to
full production capacities. Overall
analysis concludes that domestic
manufactures will likely be capable of
producing fully BABA-compliant
modules in sufficient quantities for all
Federal financial assistance recipients
no sooner than December 31, 2025.
Thus, HUD proposes to find that BABAcompliant solar modules are not
produced in the United States in
sufficient and reasonably available
quantities for use in HUD-assisted solar
projects and will not become available
in sufficient and reasonably available
quantities until December 2025.
To support BABA compliance
verification, HUD is considering stepcertification, which is a type of
certification process under which each
handler (supplier, fabricator,
manufacturer, processor, etc.) of the
subject products and materials certifies
that their step in the process was
domestically performed. Each time a
step in the manufacturing process takes
place, the manufacturer delivers its
work along with a certification of its
origin. This process is common practice
for verifying Buy America requirements
for iron and steel. A solar step process
may include manufacture of the wafers,
cells, as well as modules in the United
States, or equivalent processes for other
solar manufacturing technologies.
VI. Impact Absent the Waiver
Without a waiver, HUD anticipates
most recipients with solar projects
subject to BABA will develop,
implement, and submit unavailability
waiver packages for solar modules. This
conclusion is based upon known wellestablished domestic sourcing
challenges for BABA-compliant solar
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modules. The corresponding
administrative burden will impact the
cost and schedule of recipients, and in
some cases diminish the use of solar
projects, or, in extreme cases, deter
overall participation. For those that
participate and propose solar projects,
recipient resources will be required to
perform market research and submit
unavailability packages. Project
schedules will need to be extended to
account for waiver development and
waiver processing though final
approval. These anticipated delays
adversely impact numerous agency
goals of these projects, including
climate action and energy justice.
The absence of a narrowly tailored
BABA waiver will result in missed
strategic opportunities to advance goals
such as those within E.O. 14017
American’s Strategy to Secure the
Supply Chain for a Robust Clean Energy
Transition and E.O. 14057 Catalyzing
Clean Energy Industries and Jobs
Through Federal Sustainability, in
addition to the goals of E.O. 14005. A
narrowly tailored BABA waiver will
support the establishment of a domestic
solar supply chain. Fundamentally, the
domestic content provisions in the IRA
clean energy production and investment
tax credits, including relating to Internal
Revenue Code sections 45, 45X, 45Y, 48,
and 48E, including the domestic content
bonus credit, constitute the significant
driver for increasing the overall demand
for domestic solar modules. Requiring
full BABA compliance for federal
financial assistance projects, as opposed
to the narrowly tailored BABA
compliance proposed in this waiver,
would produce limited benefits for
domestic solar manufacturing while
potentially placing projects targeting
vulnerable populations at risk.
VII. Assessment of Cost Advantage of a
Foreign-Sourced Product
Under OMB Memorandum M–24–02,
agencies are expected to assess
‘‘whether a significant portion of any
cost advantage of a foreign-sourced
product is the result of the use of
dumped steel, iron, or manufactured
products or the use of injuriously
subsidized steel, iron, or manufactured
products’’ as appropriate before granting
a waiver. HUD’s analysis has concluded
that this assessment is not applicable to
this waiver, because this waiver is not
based on cost advantage of foreign
sourced products.
VIII. Duration of Waiver
This proposed waiver, if finalized,
applies to expenditures on solar panels
after the Effective Date and by December
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31, 2025, so long as those panels are
installed by June 30, 2026.
IX. Solicitation of Comments
As required under section 70914 of
the Act, HUD is soliciting comment
from the public on the proposed waiver
described in this Notice for a period of
15 days from the date of publication on
HUD’s web page. HUD seeks public
comment from all interested parties.
Input is sought from the public;
specifically, stakeholders, including, but
not limited to, FFA applicants and
recipients, manufacturers, installers and
other stakeholders across sectors and
geographies. In particular, HUD seeks
comment regarding the scope of this
waiver and the following:
• Proposed dates of applicability,
including effective date of the waiver
and installed by date.
• Recommendations and comments
regarding certification for BABA
compliant solar modules. HUD is
considering step-certification, a type of
certification process under which each
handler (supplier, fabricator,
manufacturer, processor, etc.) of the
subject products and materials certifies
that their step in the process was
domestically performed. Each time a
step in the manufacturing process takes
place, the manufacturer delivers its
work along with a certification of its
origin.
Relevant information and comments
will help HUD to understand
completely the facts surrounding the
waiver request and the agency’s
proposed finding of nonavailability. If
issued, this waiver will be applicable to
FFA that HUD obligates on or after the
effective date of the final waiver and in
connection with the expenditure of
FFA, which had been previously
obligated by HUD, throughout the
applicable waiver period.
Adrianne R. Todman,
Deputy Secretary Performing the Duties of
the Secretary of HUD.
Appendix
HUD GREEN AND RESILIENT RETROFIT PROGRAM (GRRP) AWARDEES
ddrumheller on DSK120RN23PROD with NOTICES1
Property name
1 ...........
2 ...........
3 ...........
4 ...........
5 ...........
6 ...........
7 ...........
8 ...........
9 ...........
10 .........
11 .........
12 .........
13 .........
14 .........
15 .........
16 .........
17 .........
18 .........
19 .........
20 .........
21 .........
22 .........
23 .........
24 .........
25 .........
26 .........
27 .........
28 .........
29 .........
30 .........
31 .........
32 .........
33 .........
34 .........
35 .........
36 .........
37 .........
38 .........
39 .........
40 .........
41 .........
42 .........
43 .........
44 .........
45 .........
46 .........
47 .........
48 .........
49 .........
50 .........
Owner entity name
Huntsville Summit ............................................................................
Kings Road Apartments ..................................................................
Pullman Point ..................................................................................
Liggins Tower ..................................................................................
Lincoln Terrace ................................................................................
Ainakea Elderly Housing Project .....................................................
Scotland Yards I ..............................................................................
Country Acres Apartments ..............................................................
Edwardsville Court ..........................................................................
Bayou Galion ...................................................................................
Sharlo Terrace II .............................................................................
St. John Berchman’s Manor ............................................................
St. Bernard III dba Rouquette IV ....................................................
Mei Wah Village ..............................................................................
St. Botolph Terrace .........................................................................
Autumn Woods Apartments ............................................................
Vista Village .....................................................................................
East Columbia Apartments .............................................................
Traceway Villas ...............................................................................
Turner Memorial Retirement Center ...............................................
Centennial Park ...............................................................................
Harbor View Plaza ..........................................................................
Seven Greens Apartments ..............................................................
Admiral Apartments .........................................................................
Powell Boulevard Apartments, Inc ..................................................
Cobbs Creek NSA ...........................................................................
St. George Athenagoras .................................................................
Las Americas Housing ....................................................................
Los Flamboyanes Apartments ........................................................
Pheasant Valley Courtyard .............................................................
River View Towers ..........................................................................
Countryside Village Apartments ......................................................
Pioneer Court ..................................................................................
Wildwood Court Apartments ...........................................................
Prairie Estates .................................................................................
Bay Bridge Housing ........................................................................
Aspen Court ....................................................................................
Lamont House .................................................................................
Rouquette Lodge III .........................................................................
Lord Stirling Senior Housing ...........................................................
Inglis Gardens at Germantown .......................................................
Savannah Gardens Senior Residences ..........................................
Jackson Towers ..............................................................................
Forest Hills Village Apartments .......................................................
St. Charles Villas .............................................................................
Hacienda Del Rio ............................................................................
Providence Gardens ........................................................................
Marina Towers Annex .....................................................................
Ocean View Gardens ......................................................................
Playa Del Alameda Apartments ......................................................
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Meridian Commons Ltd.
Los Angeles County Development Authority.
Carlson Boulevard, L.P.
Liggins Tower, LLLP.
Housing Authority of the City of Wray, Colorado.
Ainakea Partners LP.
Avanath Scotland Yard, LLC.
KCG Development LLC.
The Green Dols, LLC.
Bayou Galion Limited Partnership.
Sharlo II Terrace Apartments, LP.
St. John Berchman’s Apartments, LLC.
St. Bernard III.
Mei Wah Village, Inc.
Madison Botolph II Limited Partnership.
Autumn Woods LP.
TWV Limited Partnership, a MN Limited Partnership.
Columbia Development Program, Inc.
Mississippi Methodist Senior Services, Inc.
Greene County Retirement Systems, Inc.
Centennial Park Preservation LLC.
Harbor View Plaza Ventures LLC.
Seven Greens Apartments LLC.
Wheeldon Admiral, LLC.
Powell Boulevard Apartments, Inc.
South 54th Street Limited Partnership.
St. George Senior Housing Corporation.
Anamar Developers Inc.
Los Flamboyanes Apartments Limited Partnership.
Pheasant Valley Courtyard, LLC.
River View Housing Associates LP.
NHDC Countryside Village, LLC.
Pioneer Court Housing.
Wild Garden Housing LLC.
Valentine Good Samaritan Housing, Inc.
Bay Bridge Corporation.
Aspen Drive Housing, Inc.
Lamont House Inc.
Rouquette III.
TCB Lord Stirling Urban Renewal L.P.
Germantown Section 811 Housing Corporation.
Savannah Gardens Senior Residences, Inc.
Lake Metropolitan Housing Authority.
Forest Hills Partners II, LLLP.
St. Charles Villas, LP.
Hacienda Senior Housing, L.P.
Providence Gardens Apartments, LP.
Marina Annex Housing Partners, LP.
OAHS Ocean View LP.
OAHS Playa Del Alameda LP.
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Federal Register / Vol. 89, No. 247 / Thursday, December 26, 2024 / Notices
105073
HUD GREEN AND RESILIENT RETROFIT PROGRAM (GRRP) AWARDEES—Continued
Property name
ddrumheller on DSK120RN23PROD with NOTICES1
51
52
53
54
55
56
57
58
59
Owner entity name
.........
.........
.........
.........
.........
.........
.........
.........
.........
Second St. Andrews Apartments ....................................................
Gateway Village Apartments ...........................................................
Gateway Terrace Apartments .........................................................
Hillsborough County VOA Living Center Inc ...................................
Riverside Park Apartments .............................................................
Jack Hall Waipahu ..........................................................................
Van Buren Place .............................................................................
Forest Apartments ...........................................................................
Madison Avenue Apartments ..........................................................
60 .........
61 .........
62 .........
63 .........
64 .........
65 .........
66 .........
67 .........
68 .........
69 .........
70 .........
71 .........
72 .........
73 .........
74 .........
75 .........
76 .........
77 .........
78 .........
79 .........
80 .........
81 .........
82 .........
83 .........
84 .........
85 .........
86 .........
87 .........
88 .........
89 .........
90 .........
91 .........
92 .........
93 .........
94 .........
95 .........
96 .........
97 .........
98 .........
99 .........
100 .......
101 .......
102 .......
103 .......
West Byron Place ............................................................................
Westminster Tower .........................................................................
Hickory Townhouses .......................................................................
Elmtree Apartments .........................................................................
Harlem Gateway NSA Site 2 ..........................................................
Georgetown Village .........................................................................
Victory One HDFC ..........................................................................
Burlwood Apartments ......................................................................
Norgate Plaza ..................................................................................
Paul Robeson Houses ....................................................................
Lima Towers ....................................................................................
Delmont Plaza .................................................................................
Rock Ridge ......................................................................................
City View Towers ............................................................................
Fountain Heights .............................................................................
Luther Terrace .................................................................................
Oakhaven Village Apartments .........................................................
Forest Cove Apts I ..........................................................................
Forest Cove Apts II .........................................................................
Coeur d’Alene Plaza .......................................................................
Lake Forest II ..................................................................................
Talbot Bernard Senior Housing .......................................................
PRC Westchester Avenue ..............................................................
Carson Square ................................................................................
The Heights at West Rock ..............................................................
125th & Aurora Senior Housing ......................................................
Bon Secours New Shiloh I Apartments ..........................................
Parcel 9 Phase I—4% .....................................................................
Parcel 9 Phase I—9% .....................................................................
Courtview Towers ............................................................................
Pleasant View Apartments ..............................................................
North Hill Farms 2 ...........................................................................
Woodlen Place Apartments .............................................................
Northgate II ......................................................................................
Crafton Towers ................................................................................
Gulfway Manor ................................................................................
Summit at Lexington Square Apartments .......................................
Round Barn Apartments ..................................................................
Mid-Columbia Manor .......................................................................
Parkside ...........................................................................................
Garfield Hills Apartments ................................................................
Riverside Apartments ......................................................................
Summit at Prince Hall Village Apartments ......................................
Clement Kern Gardens ...................................................................
104
105
106
107
108
109
Chelsea Plaza .................................................................................
Stonehedge Place Apartments .......................................................
Fairweather Apartments—Beverly, Danvers, & Peabody ...............
Southern Heights .............................................................................
Russel Erskine ................................................................................
Travis Park Apartments ...................................................................
.......
.......
.......
.......
.......
.......
Second St Andrews Preservation Limited Partnership.
Gateway Village Apartments LLLP.
Gateway Terrace II LP.
Hillsborough Co VOA Living Center, Inc.
Riverside Park Apartments LLLP.
JHW Kuhualua Partners LP.
Urban Van Buren, LP.
Standard Forest Owner LLC.
Madison Avenue Associates LLLP (via Purchase Agreement w/
SOCAYR Inc).
Urban West Byron, LP.
Westminster Tower LP.
Hickory Revitalization LLC.
2020 Elmhurst Detroit LLC.
Hargate JV Owners LLC.
GV Preservation LLC.
Victory One HDFC.
Hampstead Burlwood Limited Partnership.
Norgate Development Associates, L.P.
1990 ACP Jr. Blvd., LLC.
Lima Towers Acquisition, L.P.
Delmont Plaza 2024 L.L.C.
Rock Ridge, LP.
Linden Camilla, LLC.
B’nai B’rith New Haven LLC.
Luther Terrace Inc.
Housing for the Elderly of Adamsville, Inc.
Standard Forest Cove I Venture LP.
Standard Forest Cove II Venture LP.
CDA Plaza, LP.
WHPC-Lake Forest II, LLC.
Codman Square Neighborhood Development Corporation.
PRC Westchester Avenue LLC.
Carson Square Preservation LP.
The Glendower Group.
Low Income Housing Institute LIHI.
Bon Secours New Shiloh I Limited Partnership.
Parcel 9 Phase I–4 LLC.
Parcel 9 Phase I–9 LLC.
Courtview Towers Housing LLC.
Pleasant View 2024 Limited Partnership.
NHF 2021 Limited Dividend Housing Association L.L.C.
Woodlen Place Associates, L.P.
Fair Share Northgatte II Associates, LP.
Crafton Towers-AHI, Inc.
Gulfway Housing Partners, LP.
TXLS, LP.
Round Barn Housing Limited Partnership.
Mid-Columbia Manor.
Parkside Apartments Preservation Limited Partnership.
Garfield Hills Preservation Associates Limited Partnership.
Riverside 2023 L.L.C.
TXPHV, LP.
CK–2003 Limited Dividend Housing Association Limited Partnership.
Chelsea Plaza 2023 L.L.C.
Stonehedge Apartments LLC.
Fairweather Preservation Associates Limited Partnership.
Southern Heights Limited Partnership.
Russel Erskine, LP.
Travis Park Preservation LLC.
[FR Doc. 2024–30692 Filed 12–23–24; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4210–67–P
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]]>Agencies
[Federal Register Volume 89, Number 247 (Thursday, December 26, 2024)]
[Notices]
[Pages 105068-105073]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2024-30692]
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
DEPARTMENT OF HOUSING AND URBAN DEVELOPMENT
[Docket No. FR-6506-N-01]
Nonavailability Waiver applicable to Domestically Assembled Solar
Photovoltaics (PV) Panels Referred to as ``Solar Modules'' Under Build
America, Buy America Manufactured Product Provisions as Applied to
Recipients of Department of Housing and Urban Development Federal
Financial Assistance
AGENCY: Office of the Secretary, U.S. Department of Housing and Urban
Development (HUD).
ACTION: Notice and request for public comment.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
SUMMARY: In accordance with the Build America, Buy America Act (BABA),
this notice advises that HUD is proposing to issue a temporary, limited
non-availability partial waiver of the manufactured product
requirements in BABA included in the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs
Act (IIJA) for domestically assembled solar modules used in Federal
financial assistance (FFA) awarded for infrastructure projects. This
waiver covers multiple projects that HUD anticipates will involve the
installation of solar modules with the intent of addressing multiple
project specific non-availability waivers into one document to reduce
paperwork and support administrative efficiency. The narrowly tailored
BABA waiver proposed in this notice would support the establishment of
a domestic solar supply chain, increase benefits for
[[Page 105069]]
domestic solar manufacturing, and help reduce risks for vulnerable
populations. HUD is seeking public comments on this proposed waiver.
DATES: HUD published this proposed waiver for public comment on its
website on December 13, 2024. Pursuant to section 70914(c)(2) of BABA,
HUD is soliciting comments from the public on this proposed waiver for
a period of fifteen days from the date published on HUD's web page in
this instance. Comments on the proposed waiver set out in this document
are due on or before December 28, 2024. HUD will consider comments
received in response to this Notice and announce its determination with
respect to the adoption of this notice, including any changes that may
be made in response to comments through a subsequent Notice. The
proposed duration of the waiver would be from the effective date
(``Effective Date'') of the proposed waiver until December 31, 2025.
The waiver applies to solar modules with Final Assembly in the United
States (as defined below in the ``Proposed Waiver'' section).
ADDRESSES: Interested persons are invited to submit comments on this
notice. Copies of all comments submitted are available for inspection
and downloading at www.regulations.gov.
To receive consideration as public comments, comments must be
submitted through one of the two methods specified below. All
submissions must refer to the above docket number and title. Commenters
are encouraged to identify the number of the specific question or
questions to which they are responding. Responses should include the
name(s) of the person(s) or organization(s) filing the comment;
however, because any responses received by HUD will be publicly
available, responses should not include any personally identifiable
information or confidential commercial information. Business
confidential information can be submitted to
[email protected].
1. Electronic Submission of Comments. Interested persons may submit
comments electronically through the Federal eRulemaking Portal at
www.regulations.gov. HUD strongly encourages commenters to submit
comments electronically. Electronic submission of comments allows the
commenter maximum time to prepare and submit a comment, ensures timely
receipt by HUD, and enables HUD to make them immediately available to
the public. Comments submitted electronically through the
www.regulations.gov website can be viewed by other commenters and
interested members of the public. Commenters should follow the
instructions provided on that site to submit comments electronically.
2. Submission of Comments by Mail. Comments may be submitted by
mail to the Regulations Division, Office of General Counsel, Department
of Housing and Urban Development, 451 7th Street SW, Room 10276,
Washington, DC 20410-0500.
No Facsimile Comments. Facsimile (FAX) comments will not be
accepted.
Public Inspection of Comments. All comments and communications
properly submitted to HUD will be available for public inspection and
copying between 8 a.m. and 5 p.m. weekdays at the above address. Due to
security measures at the HUD Headquarters building, an advance
appointment to review the public comments must be scheduled by calling
the Regulations Division at (202) 708-3055 (this is not a toll-free
number). HUD welcomes and is prepared to receive calls from individuals
who are deaf or hard of hearing, as well as individuals with speech or
communication disabilities. To learn more about how to make an
accessible telephone call, please visit: https://www.fcc.gov/consumers/guides/telecommunications-relay-service-trs. Copies of all comments
submitted are available for inspection and downloading at https://www.regulations.gov.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Faith Rogers, Department of Housing
and Urban Development, 451 Seventh Street SW, Room 10126, Washington,
DC 20410-5000, at (202) 402-7082 (this is not a toll-free number). HUD
welcomes and is prepared to receive calls from individuals who are deaf
or hard of hearing, as well as individuals with speech and
communication disabilities. To learn more about how to make an
accessible telephone call, please visit https://www.fcc.gov/consumers/guides/telecommunications-relay-service-trs. HUD encourages submission
of questions about this document be sent to
[email protected].
I. Build America, Buy America
The Build America, Buy America Act (``BABA'' or ``the Act'') was
enacted on November 15, 2021, as part of the Infrastructure Investment
and Jobs Act (``IIJA'') (Pub. L. 117-58). The Act establishes a
domestic content procurement preference, the BAP, for Federal
infrastructure programs. Section 70914(a) of the Act establishes that
no later than 180 days after the date of enactment, HUD must ensure
that none of the funds made available for infrastructure projects may
be obligated by the Department unless it has taken steps to ensure that
the iron, steel, manufactured products, and construction materials used
in a project are produced in the United States. In section 70912, the
Act further defines a project to include ``the construction,
alteration, maintenance, or repair of infrastructure in the United
States'' and includes within the definition of infrastructure those
items traditionally included along with buildings and real property.
Thus, starting May 14, 2022, new awards of HUD FFA, and any of those
funds newly obligated by HUD then obligated by the grantee for
infrastructure projects, are covered under BABA provisions of the Act,
41 U.S.C. 8301 note, unless covered by a waiver.
Solar modules are manufactured products. Per sections 70912(6)(A)
and (B) of the Act, manufactured products are considered to be produced
in the United States if (i) the manufactured product was manufactured
in the United States; and (ii) the cost of the components of the
manufactured product that are mined, produced, or manufactured in the
United States is greater than 55 percent of the total cost of all
components of the manufactured product, unless another standard for
determining the minimum amount of domestic content of the manufactured
product has been established under applicable law or regulation.
II. HUD's Progress in Implementation of the Act Generally
The IIJA and the Inflation Reduction Act (Pub. L. 117-169, Aug. 16,
2022) provided historic investments for federal infrastructure,
including $1 billion in funding for green retrofits. These developments
in addition to HUD's base funding, provide an opportunity for
significant expansion of domestic manufacturing capacity for products.
Since the enactment of the Act, HUD has worked diligently to develop a
plan to fully implement the BAP across its FFA programs. HUD
understands that advancing Made in America objectives is a continuous
effort and believes setting forth a transparent schedule of future
implementation for FFA programs provides recipients, stakeholders, and
industry partners with the time and notice necessary to efficiently and
effectively implement the BAP. HUD continues its efforts to implement
the Act in HUD's FFA programs consistent
[[Page 105070]]
with the guidance and requirements of the Made in America Office of the
Office of Management and Budget, including guidance concerning
compliance with the BAP.
In order to ensure orderly implementation of the BAP across HUD's
FFA programs, HUD has provided public interest, general applicability
waivers in order to implement the BAP in phases in connection with the
application of the BAP in such programs and announced a corresponding
implementation plan. As part of those efforts, HUD has published two
general applicability, public interest waivers covering Exigent
Circumstances and De Minimis and Small Grants; a general applicability,
public interest waiver applied to Pacific Island Territory Recipients
of HUD FFA; and waivers that remain applicable to funds obligated by
HUD during the relevant periods of applicability, all of which can be
found at https://www.hud.gov/program_offices/general_counsel/build_america_buy_america/waiver.
III. Waivers
Under section 70914(b), HUD and other Federal agencies have
authority to waive the application of a domestic content procurement
preference when (1) application of the preference would be contrary to
the public interest, (2) the materials and products subject to the
preference are not produced in the United States at a sufficient and
reasonably available quantity or satisfactory quality, or (3) inclusion
of domestically produced materials and products would increase the cost
of the overall project by more than 25 percent. All waivers must have a
written explanation for the proposed determination; provide a period of
not less than fifteen (15) calendar days for public comment on the
proposed waiver; and submit the proposed waiver to the OMB Made in
America Office for review to determine if the waiver is consistent with
policy.
Section 70914(c) provides that a waiver under section 70914(b) must
be published by the agency with a detailed written explanation for the
proposed determination and provide a public comment period of not less
than 15 days. Pursuant to section 70914(d)(2), when seeking to extend a
waiver of general applicability, HUD is required to provide for a
public comment period of not less than 30 days on the continued need
such waiver.
IV. Proposed Waiver
HUD is proposing to issue a temporary, limited non-availability
partial waiver of the manufactured product requirements of Section
70914(a) of the Build America, Buy America Act (``BABA'') included in
the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA) (Pub. L. 117-58) for
domestically assembled solar modules used in federal financial
assistance awarded for infrastructure projects. This waiver covers
multiple projects that HUD anticipates will involve the installation of
solar modules with the intent of addressing multiple project specific
non-availability waivers into one document to reduce paperwork and
support administrative efficiency.
HUD's proposed waiver requires domestic assembly versus a waiver of
the full manufactured product requirements, which would allow assembly
to occur outside the United States. This waiver is intended to provide
time needed for domestic solar module manufacturing capability to meet
demand for BABA-compliant solar modules by supporting and encouraging
continued investments while bringing the benefits of solar to the HUD's
financial assistance recipients.
This proposed waiver would apply on or after the Effective Date of
this notice until December 31, 2025 for all new solar modules with
Final Assembly in the United States. Solar modules where final assembly
occurred outside the United States are not eligible for coverage under
this waiver. ``Final Assembly'' means all operations involved in the
transformation of individual solar cells and all other module
components into a fully functional encapsulated module, including
deposition of electrically active PV absorber material (e.g, cadmium
telluride on glass) etc. For recipient expenditures to be covered by
this waiver, the solar modules will need to be installed by June 30,
2026. ``Installed by'' means modules being permanently fastened to an
outdoor support structure at the project site. HUD proposes to apply
this waiver, if approved, to all Federal Financial Assistance. For
Awards and amendments that otherwise meet the criteria of the waiver
but were obligated prior to the Effective Date, the waiver will apply
to eligible expenditures incurred on or after the Effective Date of the
final waiver for the period that the waiver is active.
In accordance with Section 70914(c) of the BABA, HUD is providing
notice that it is seeking a limited, partial general applicability
nonavailability waiver of the BABA manufactured product requirements
for domestically assembled solar modules used in federal financial
assistance awards for infrastructure projects due to the determination
that compliant solar modules are not available in sufficient quality or
quantity for use in HUD-funded infrastructure projects. The Department
of Energy conducted market research to determine availability of BABA
compliant solar modules which included subject matter expert analysis
of domestic solar production based on announcements and non-public
manufacturing plans disclosed by manufacturers. Based on this market
research, HUD proposes to find that BABA-compliant solar modules are
not produced in the United States in sufficient and reasonably
available quantities for use in HUD-assisted solar projects, and will
not become available in sufficient and reasonably available quantities
until December 2025 or later. This proposed waiver, if finalized, will
ensure recipients can effectively carry out the activities of their
award in a timely manner while promoting domestic solar module
manufacturing. HUD seeks to issue this waiver on the basis of
nonavailability in accordance with Section 70914(b)(2) of the BABA.
V. Waiver Justification
HUD is proposing a temporary, limited partial nonavailability
waiver of BABA manufactured product requirements for solar modules to
apply to the use of domestically assembled modules that may incorporate
foreign components. The United States is the second largest market for
solar hardware, representing about 10%-15% of global solar demand.
Developing and enhancing United States solar manufacturing will
mitigate global supply chain challenges and meet decarbonization goals
as well as benefit United States' workers, employers, and the economy.
To reestablish domestic solar manufacturing in the United States,
entities that produce and sell solar components will require a holistic
industrial strategy to offset the 30-40% higher cost of domestic solar
production relative to imported components. A narrowly tailored BABA
waiver will meet immediate solar demands while the domestic solar
industry expands supply.
Domestically, the United States currently has 10,600 MWdc/year
nameplate production capacity for CdTe modules and 47,000 MWdc/yr
nameplate production capacity for c-Si modules. Market research
indicates c-Si module production capacity was historically
underutilized for a variety of reasons including foreign competition,
workforce shortages, and obsolete production equipment, with about
3,700 MWdc actually produced
[[Page 105071]]
and sold in 2023 compared to a nameplate capacity of 15,000 MWdc/yr at
the end of 2023. Capacity for c-Si modules has continued growing
significantly in 2024 and as production is ramping, utilization rates
are expected to grow. As of November 2024, domestic c-Si cell
production in the United States has just restarted and production is
also anticipated to grow. HUD has a portfolio of approximately 4.5
million public and assisted housing units. The HUD portfolio consumes
an estimated 49,000 Gigawatt-hours of energy per year at a cost of $5.5
billion in annual utilities. Electricity makes up approximately 59% of
all energy usage and 78% of the utility cost, creating significant
demand and incentive to deploy solar on HUD's portfolio. This demand is
anticipated to increase with the rise of extreme heat across the
country and growing need to providing cooling for homes.
There are a significant number of grant programs funded by HUD that
could be used to pay for solar installations subject to BABA. Even
where the funding was obligated by HUD prior to being subject to BABA
any new funding source added to a project that becomes subject to BABA
might make the entire project subject to BABA, for example in the
Public Housing Capital Fund. However, more importantly, the demand for
solar modules for projects funded by HUD subject to BABA will derive
from projects funded not only by HUD itself, but also by projects where
HUD funding is part of the ``Capital Stack'' of a project that may or
may not be subject to BABA. Two significant examples of such programs
are the Clean Energy Tax Credits and Solar for All.
A significant driver of demand for solar modules stems from the
Investment Tax Credit (ITC). Projects that are funded with the ITC that
also qualify for additional bonus credits will often be located on or
directly benefit HUD-assisted housing. Under the Clean Electricity Low-
Income Communities Bonus Credit under section 48E(h) of the Internal
Revenue Code, HUD-assisted properties are categorically eligible for
the highest bonus credit available under the allocation of for eligible
property that is part of a qualified low-income residential building
project also known as Category 3 facility. It is highly likely,
therefore, that such projects will further spur demand for solar
modules purchased with HUD Federal Financial Assistance that is subject
to BABA. Furthermore, 100% of the 7-billion-dollar Solar for All
program funded by the Environmental Protection Agency must be spent in
low and disadvantaged communities, which are often the same communities
that receive some form of HUD funding subject to BABA and will likely
be combined with such funding.
In addition to current production capacity, future domestic
manufacturing indicates growth will result in substantially more BABA-
compliant module supply. As of November 2024 over $20 billion in
planned solar investments have been announced at over 148 new and
expanded manufacturing plants for modules, module parts and other
hardware. U.S. Department of Energy subject matter experts performed a
probabilistic analysis of these announcements to identify a date when
full BABA compliance may be achievable. Subject matter expert review
identified technical delays from announced dates due to site readiness
as well as likelihood of project success and considered the time
required to ramp to full production capacities. Overall analysis
concludes that domestic manufactures will likely be capable of
producing fully BABA-compliant modules in sufficient quantities for all
Federal financial assistance recipients no sooner than December 31,
2025. Thus, HUD proposes to find that BABA-compliant solar modules are
not produced in the United States in sufficient and reasonably
available quantities for use in HUD-assisted solar projects and will
not become available in sufficient and reasonably available quantities
until December 2025.
To support BABA compliance verification, HUD is considering step-
certification, which is a type of certification process under which
each handler (supplier, fabricator, manufacturer, processor, etc.) of
the subject products and materials certifies that their step in the
process was domestically performed. Each time a step in the
manufacturing process takes place, the manufacturer delivers its work
along with a certification of its origin. This process is common
practice for verifying Buy America requirements for iron and steel. A
solar step process may include manufacture of the wafers, cells, as
well as modules in the United States, or equivalent processes for other
solar manufacturing technologies.
VI. Impact Absent the Waiver
Without a waiver, HUD anticipates most recipients with solar
projects subject to BABA will develop, implement, and submit
unavailability waiver packages for solar modules. This conclusion is
based upon known well-established domestic sourcing challenges for
BABA-compliant solar modules. The corresponding administrative burden
will impact the cost and schedule of recipients, and in some cases
diminish the use of solar projects, or, in extreme cases, deter overall
participation. For those that participate and propose solar projects,
recipient resources will be required to perform market research and
submit unavailability packages. Project schedules will need to be
extended to account for waiver development and waiver processing though
final approval. These anticipated delays adversely impact numerous
agency goals of these projects, including climate action and energy
justice.
The absence of a narrowly tailored BABA waiver will result in
missed strategic opportunities to advance goals such as those within
E.O. 14017 American's Strategy to Secure the Supply Chain for a Robust
Clean Energy Transition and E.O. 14057 Catalyzing Clean Energy
Industries and Jobs Through Federal Sustainability, in addition to the
goals of E.O. 14005. A narrowly tailored BABA waiver will support the
establishment of a domestic solar supply chain. Fundamentally, the
domestic content provisions in the IRA clean energy production and
investment tax credits, including relating to Internal Revenue Code
sections 45, 45X, 45Y, 48, and 48E, including the domestic content
bonus credit, constitute the significant driver for increasing the
overall demand for domestic solar modules. Requiring full BABA
compliance for federal financial assistance projects, as opposed to the
narrowly tailored BABA compliance proposed in this waiver, would
produce limited benefits for domestic solar manufacturing while
potentially placing projects targeting vulnerable populations at risk.
VII. Assessment of Cost Advantage of a Foreign-Sourced Product
Under OMB Memorandum M-24-02, agencies are expected to assess
``whether a significant portion of any cost advantage of a foreign-
sourced product is the result of the use of dumped steel, iron, or
manufactured products or the use of injuriously subsidized steel, iron,
or manufactured products'' as appropriate before granting a waiver.
HUD's analysis has concluded that this assessment is not applicable to
this waiver, because this waiver is not based on cost advantage of
foreign sourced products.
VIII. Duration of Waiver
This proposed waiver, if finalized, applies to expenditures on
solar panels after the Effective Date and by December
[[Page 105072]]
31, 2025, so long as those panels are installed by June 30, 2026.
IX. Solicitation of Comments
As required under section 70914 of the Act, HUD is soliciting
comment from the public on the proposed waiver described in this Notice
for a period of 15 days from the date of publication on HUD's web page.
HUD seeks public comment from all interested parties. Input is sought
from the public; specifically, stakeholders, including, but not limited
to, FFA applicants and recipients, manufacturers, installers and other
stakeholders across sectors and geographies. In particular, HUD seeks
comment regarding the scope of this waiver and the following:
Proposed dates of applicability, including effective date
of the waiver and installed by date.
Recommendations and comments regarding certification for
BABA compliant solar modules. HUD is considering step-certification, a
type of certification process under which each handler (supplier,
fabricator, manufacturer, processor, etc.) of the subject products and
materials certifies that their step in the process was domestically
performed. Each time a step in the manufacturing process takes place,
the manufacturer delivers its work along with a certification of its
origin.
Relevant information and comments will help HUD to understand
completely the facts surrounding the waiver request and the agency's
proposed finding of nonavailability. If issued, this waiver will be
applicable to FFA that HUD obligates on or after the effective date of
the final waiver and in connection with the expenditure of FFA, which
had been previously obligated by HUD, throughout the applicable waiver
period.
Adrianne R. Todman,
Deputy Secretary Performing the Duties of the Secretary of HUD.
Appendix
HUD Green and Resilient Retrofit Program (GRRP) Awardees
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Property name Owner entity name
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
1........................... Huntsville Summit....................... Meridian Commons Ltd.
2........................... Kings Road Apartments................... Los Angeles County Development
Authority.
3........................... Pullman Point........................... Carlson Boulevard, L.P.
4........................... Liggins Tower........................... Liggins Tower, LLLP.
5........................... Lincoln Terrace......................... Housing Authority of the City of Wray,
Colorado.
6........................... Ainakea Elderly Housing Project......... Ainakea Partners LP.
7........................... Scotland Yards I........................ Avanath Scotland Yard, LLC.
8........................... Country Acres Apartments................ KCG Development LLC.
9........................... Edwardsville Court...................... The Green Dols, LLC.
10.......................... Bayou Galion............................ Bayou Galion Limited Partnership.
11.......................... Sharlo Terrace II....................... Sharlo II Terrace Apartments, LP.
12.......................... St. John Berchman's Manor............... St. John Berchman's Apartments, LLC.
13.......................... St. Bernard III dba Rouquette IV........ St. Bernard III.
14.......................... Mei Wah Village......................... Mei Wah Village, Inc.
15.......................... St. Botolph Terrace..................... Madison Botolph II Limited Partnership.
16.......................... Autumn Woods Apartments................. Autumn Woods LP.
17.......................... Vista Village........................... TWV Limited Partnership, a MN Limited
Partnership.
18.......................... East Columbia Apartments................ Columbia Development Program, Inc.
19.......................... Traceway Villas......................... Mississippi Methodist Senior Services,
Inc.
20.......................... Turner Memorial Retirement Center....... Greene County Retirement Systems, Inc.
21.......................... Centennial Park......................... Centennial Park Preservation LLC.
22.......................... Harbor View Plaza....................... Harbor View Plaza Ventures LLC.
23.......................... Seven Greens Apartments................. Seven Greens Apartments LLC.
24.......................... Admiral Apartments...................... Wheeldon Admiral, LLC.
25.......................... Powell Boulevard Apartments, Inc........ Powell Boulevard Apartments, Inc.
26.......................... Cobbs Creek NSA......................... South 54th Street Limited Partnership.
27.......................... St. George Athenagoras.................. St. George Senior Housing Corporation.
28.......................... Las Americas Housing.................... Anamar Developers Inc.
29.......................... Los Flamboyanes Apartments.............. Los Flamboyanes Apartments Limited
Partnership.
30.......................... Pheasant Valley Courtyard............... Pheasant Valley Courtyard, LLC.
31.......................... River View Towers....................... River View Housing Associates LP.
32.......................... Countryside Village Apartments.......... NHDC Countryside Village, LLC.
33.......................... Pioneer Court........................... Pioneer Court Housing.
34.......................... Wildwood Court Apartments............... Wild Garden Housing LLC.
35.......................... Prairie Estates......................... Valentine Good Samaritan Housing, Inc.
36.......................... Bay Bridge Housing...................... Bay Bridge Corporation.
37.......................... Aspen Court............................. Aspen Drive Housing, Inc.
38.......................... Lamont House............................ Lamont House Inc.
39.......................... Rouquette Lodge III..................... Rouquette III.
40.......................... Lord Stirling Senior Housing............ TCB Lord Stirling Urban Renewal L.P.
41.......................... Inglis Gardens at Germantown............ Germantown Section 811 Housing
Corporation.
42.......................... Savannah Gardens Senior Residences...... Savannah Gardens Senior Residences, Inc.
43.......................... Jackson Towers.......................... Lake Metropolitan Housing Authority.
44.......................... Forest Hills Village Apartments......... Forest Hills Partners II, LLLP.
45.......................... St. Charles Villas...................... St. Charles Villas, LP.
46.......................... Hacienda Del Rio........................ Hacienda Senior Housing, L.P.
47.......................... Providence Gardens...................... Providence Gardens Apartments, LP.
48.......................... Marina Towers Annex..................... Marina Annex Housing Partners, LP.
49.......................... Ocean View Gardens...................... OAHS Ocean View LP.
50.......................... Playa Del Alameda Apartments............ OAHS Playa Del Alameda LP.
[[Page 105073]]
51.......................... Second St. Andrews Apartments........... Second St Andrews Preservation Limited
Partnership.
52.......................... Gateway Village Apartments.............. Gateway Village Apartments LLLP.
53.......................... Gateway Terrace Apartments.............. Gateway Terrace II LP.
54.......................... Hillsborough County VOA Living Center Hillsborough Co VOA Living Center, Inc.
Inc.
55.......................... Riverside Park Apartments............... Riverside Park Apartments LLLP.
56.......................... Jack Hall Waipahu....................... JHW Kuhualua Partners LP.
57.......................... Van Buren Place......................... Urban Van Buren, LP.
58.......................... Forest Apartments....................... Standard Forest Owner LLC.
59.......................... Madison Avenue Apartments............... Madison Avenue Associates LLLP (via
Purchase Agreement w/SOCAYR Inc).
60.......................... West Byron Place........................ Urban West Byron, LP.
61.......................... Westminster Tower....................... Westminster Tower LP.
62.......................... Hickory Townhouses...................... Hickory Revitalization LLC.
63.......................... Elmtree Apartments...................... 2020 Elmhurst Detroit LLC.
64.......................... Harlem Gateway NSA Site 2............... Hargate JV Owners LLC.
65.......................... Georgetown Village...................... GV Preservation LLC.
66.......................... Victory One HDFC........................ Victory One HDFC.
67.......................... Burlwood Apartments..................... Hampstead Burlwood Limited Partnership.
68.......................... Norgate Plaza........................... Norgate Development Associates, L.P.
69.......................... Paul Robeson Houses..................... 1990 ACP Jr. Blvd., LLC.
70.......................... Lima Towers............................. Lima Towers Acquisition, L.P.
71.......................... Delmont Plaza........................... Delmont Plaza 2024 L.L.C.
72.......................... Rock Ridge.............................. Rock Ridge, LP.
73.......................... City View Towers........................ Linden Camilla, LLC.
74.......................... Fountain Heights........................ B'nai B'rith New Haven LLC.
75.......................... Luther Terrace.......................... Luther Terrace Inc.
76.......................... Oakhaven Village Apartments............. Housing for the Elderly of Adamsville,
Inc.
77.......................... Forest Cove Apts I...................... Standard Forest Cove I Venture LP.
78.......................... Forest Cove Apts II..................... Standard Forest Cove II Venture LP.
79.......................... Coeur d'Alene Plaza..................... CDA Plaza, LP.
80.......................... Lake Forest II.......................... WHPC-Lake Forest II, LLC.
81.......................... Talbot Bernard Senior Housing........... Codman Square Neighborhood Development
Corporation.
82.......................... PRC Westchester Avenue.................. PRC Westchester Avenue LLC.
83.......................... Carson Square........................... Carson Square Preservation LP.
84.......................... The Heights at West Rock................ The Glendower Group.
85.......................... 125th & Aurora Senior Housing........... Low Income Housing Institute LIHI.
86.......................... Bon Secours New Shiloh I Apartments..... Bon Secours New Shiloh I Limited
Partnership.
87.......................... Parcel 9 Phase I--4%.................... Parcel 9 Phase I-4 LLC.
88.......................... Parcel 9 Phase I--9%.................... Parcel 9 Phase I-9 LLC.
89.......................... Courtview Towers........................ Courtview Towers Housing LLC.
90.......................... Pleasant View Apartments................ Pleasant View 2024 Limited Partnership.
91.......................... North Hill Farms 2...................... NHF 2021 Limited Dividend Housing
Association L.L.C.
92.......................... Woodlen Place Apartments................ Woodlen Place Associates, L.P.
93.......................... Northgate II............................ Fair Share Northgatte II Associates, LP.
94.......................... Crafton Towers.......................... Crafton Towers-AHI, Inc.
95.......................... Gulfway Manor........................... Gulfway Housing Partners, LP.
96.......................... Summit at Lexington Square Apartments... TXLS, LP.
97.......................... Round Barn Apartments................... Round Barn Housing Limited Partnership.
98.......................... Mid-Columbia Manor...................... Mid-Columbia Manor.
99.......................... Parkside................................ Parkside Apartments Preservation Limited
Partnership.
100......................... Garfield Hills Apartments............... Garfield Hills Preservation Associates
Limited Partnership.
101......................... Riverside Apartments.................... Riverside 2023 L.L.C.
102......................... Summit at Prince Hall Village Apartments TXPHV, LP.
103......................... Clement Kern Gardens.................... CK-2003 Limited Dividend Housing
Association Limited Partnership.
104......................... Chelsea Plaza........................... Chelsea Plaza 2023 L.L.C.
105......................... Stonehedge Place Apartments............. Stonehedge Apartments LLC.
106......................... Fairweather Apartments--Beverly, Fairweather Preservation Associates
Danvers, & Peabody. Limited Partnership.
107......................... Southern Heights........................ Southern Heights Limited Partnership.
108......................... Russel Erskine.......................... Russel Erskine, LP.
109......................... Travis Park Apartments.................. Travis Park Preservation LLC.
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[FR Doc. 2024-30692 Filed 12-23-24; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4210-67-P
