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The Department of Transportation (DOT) seeks to maximize the use of American-made products and materials in all federally funded projects as part of the Biden-Harris Administration’s implementation of the Build America, Buy America Act (the Act), which was included in the historic Bipartisan Infrastructure Law (BIL). The implementation of this law will transform DOT’s approach to domestic procurement requirements and is designed to drive significant investment in domestic manufacturing, spur job creation and grow the economy.
The department is taking three concurrent actions: (1) DOT is not extending its temporary waiver for construction materials, making that requirement applicable effective November 10, 2022; (2) in a separate notice, DOT is proposing a narrow waiver for de minimis costs, small grants, and minor components; and (3) in this notice, DOT is proposing to take two actions to help transition to the new construction materials standard.
First, for DOT awards obligated on or after the effective date of the final waiver, DOT is proposing to waive the construction materials requirements for any contracts entered into before November 10, 2022. Second, DOT is proposing to waive the construction materials requirements for any contracts entered into before March 10, 2023, that result from solicitations published before May 14, 2022.
Comments must be received by November 20, 2022. Late-filed comments will be considered to the extent practicable. Please submit your comments to the Federal eRulemaking Portal at http://www.regulations.gov/, Docket: DOT-OST-2022-0123. Note: All submissions must contain the agency name and the docket number. All submissions received, including any personal information therein, will be posted without change or alteration to http://www.regulations.gov.
For more information, you may review DOT’s complete Privacy Act Statement published in the Federal Register on April 11, 2000 (65 FR 19477). For questions about this notice, please contact Darren Timothy, DOT Office of the Assistant Secretary for Transportation Policy, at darren.timothy@dot.gov or at 202-366-4051. You can read the release here.