FTA committed to “Buy America” regulation; launches new website

Federal Transit Administrator Peter Rogoff reiterated the FTA's commitment to the "Buy America" provisions of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act by saying that the administration would not consider any public interest waiver of the regulation for ARRA projects and revealed a new website, www.dot.gov/buyamerica, to promote possible business opportunities surrounding the regulation.

The full text of Administrator Rogoff’s "Dear Colleague" letter is as follows:

Dear Colleague:

Through
the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (Recovery Act), Congress and
the Obama Administration have provided transit agencies with
unprecedented opportunities to replace and expand vehicle fleets,
restore and modernize aging infrastructure, reduce emissions and
greenhouse gasses, and engage in procurements that had been deferred or
cancelled due to the current economic situation. I am writing to remind
you of the importance of ensuring that your purchases carry out the
intent of the first goal of the Recovery Act-to "preserve and create
jobs and promote economic recovery."

Congress and the Obama
Administration asked Americans to provide $787 billion to help avoid an
economic catastrophe and restore and modernize America’s infrastructure.
In return, the Federal Government asks recipients of Recovery Act
funds to be held accountable to the American public by using these
resources to maximize opportunities to put Americans back to work and to
support our domestic manufacturing industry.

In order to support
this goal, the Federal Transit Administration (FTA) will not consider
any requests for a public interest waiver of FTA’s Buy America
regulation for Recovery Act projects. If issued, such waivers would
allow recipients of Recovery Act funds to procure steel, iron, or
manufactured products, including rolling stock, that are not produced or
manufactured in the United States. I will not waive Buy America for
Recovery Act projects because such action would undermine the very
purpose and intent of the Recovery Act-to preserve and create jobs in
America. In addition, FTA will continue to carefully scrutinize
requests for waivers based on non-availability to determine whether
suitable American-made alternatives exist, and if none do, whether the
funds can be used in an alternative manner that fulfills the goals of
the Recovery Act. Similarly, FTA will examine requests for
cost-differential waivers to determine whether the cost savings
justifies the loss of American jobs, especially in critical
manufacturing sectors. By necessity, FTA will extend existing, standing
waivers-for products exempted by the Federal Acquisition Regulation,
microprocessors and microcomputers, and small purchases-to Recovery
Act-funded procurements, although
I encourage recipients to use their
best efforts to carry out the intent of Congress and the Obama
Administration by carefully stewarding their Recovery Act funds in a
manner that supports a healthy and robust domestic manufacturing base.

In
addition to the above guidance, please note that this heightened
standard is not exclusive to the Recovery Act. FTA has raised the bar
for all Buy America waiver requests. All requests will be scrutinized.
Most requests will result in FTA offering technical assistance to
develop a solution that will not necessitate a waiver. Please be
cautious about leading your projects down a path where a Buy America
waiver will be needed, as it is unlikely to be granted.

Thanks
to your diligent reporting, I am proud to inform you that FTA’s
Recovery Act formula programs have created or retained over 12,500 jobs
between July 1 and September 30, 2010, with the transit capital
assistance program reporting the 11th highest number of jobs among more
than
200 Recovery Act programs. This impressive start shows that
public transportation agencies can follow through on fulfilling the
employment goals of the Recovery Act and showing that public
transportation can be an effective job generator within the American
economy. It is this demonstration that will serve us well in the coming
surface transportation authorization and in other important
transportation funding debates.

On behalf of President Obama
and Secretary LaHood, thank you for the work that you have done, and
will do, in meeting the Recovery Act’s goal of putting your fellow
Americans back to work.

Finally, I’m pleased to announce the U.S.
Department of Transportation’s new Buy America website at
http://www.dot.gov/buyamerica. The Buy America website improves access
to business opportunities by posting links to all waiver requests in one
central location. This will help American companies easily determine
whether they can fill a particular Buy America need. Also, you can
subscribe to alerts when new Buy America information is posted.

Sincerely yours,
Peter Rogoff