[Federal Register Volume 77, Number 17 (Thursday, January 26, 2012)]
[Notices]
[Pages 4029-4030]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2012-1625]


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DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY

Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy


Nationwide Categorical Waivers Under the American Recovery and 
Reinvestment Act of 2009 (Recovery Act)

AGENCY: Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy, U.S. 
Department of Energy (DOE).

ACTION: Notice of Limited Waivers.

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SUMMARY: The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) is hereby granting a 
nationwide limited waiver of the Buy American requirements of section 
1605 of the Recovery Act under the authority of Section 1605(b)(2), 
(iron, steel, and the relevant manufactured goods are not produced in 
the United States in sufficient and reasonably available quantities and 
of a satisfactory quality), with respect to Recovery Act projects 
funded by EERE for: (1) 5-25 Watt LED Candelabra Bulbs (includes Flame 
tip, bent tip, A19, S11, G16.5 or G25 clear bulb enclosure); (2) 140 
Watt LED fixtures with 10 degree beams capable of illuminating from 100 
feet, UL certified; and (3) 27 Watt round LED fixtures, producing 1 
foot-candle at 242 feet distance, UL certified. This waiver expires May 
1, 2012.

DATES: Effective Date: 1/10/2012.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Christine Platt-Patrick, Office of 
Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy (EERE), (202) 287-1553, 
Department of Energy, 1000 Independence Avenue SW., Mailstop EE-2K, 
Washington, DC 20585.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Under the authority of American Recovery and 
Reinvestment Act of 2009 (Recovery Act), Public Law 111-5, section 
1605(b)(2), the head of a Federal department or agency may issue a 
``determination of inapplicability'' (a waiver of the Buy American 
provision) if the iron, steel, or relevant manufactured good is not 
produced or manufactured in the United States in sufficient and 
reasonably available quantities and of a satisfactory quality 
(``nonavailability''). The authority of the Secretary of Energy to make 
all inapplicability determinations was re-delegated to the Assistant 
Secretary for Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy (EERE), for EERE 
projects under the Recovery Act, in Redelegation Order No. 00-002.01E, 
dated April 25, 2011. Pursuant to this delegation the Acting Assistant 
Secretary, EERE, has concluded that: (1) 5-25 Watt LED Candelabra Bulbs 
(includes Flame tip, bent tip, A19, S11, G16.5 or G25 clear bulb 
enclosure); (2) 140 Watt LED fixtures with 10 degree beams capable of 
illuminating from 100 feet, UL certified; and (3) 27 Watt round LED 
fixtures, producing 1 foot-candle at 242 feet

[[Page 4030]]

distance, UL certified, are not produced or manufactured in the United 
States in sufficient and reasonably available quantities and of a 
satisfactory quality. The above items, when used on eligible EERE 
Recovery Act-funded projects, qualify for the ``nonavailability'' 
waiver determination.
    In order to utilize this waiver, grantees must have taken 
substantial steps towards procurement of these items by May 1, 2012.
    EERE has developed a robust process to ascertain in a systematic 
and expedient manner whether or not there is domestic manufacturing 
capacity for the items submitted for a waiver of the Recovery Act Buy 
American provision. This process involves a close collaboration with 
the United States Department of Commerce National Institute of 
Standards and Technology (NIST) Manufacturing Extension Partnership 
(MEP), in order to scour the domestic manufacturing landscape in search 
of producers before making any nonavailability determinations.
    The MEP has 59 regional centers with substantial knowledge of, and 
connections to, the domestic manufacturing sector. MEP uses their 
regional centers to ``scout'' for current or potential manufacturers of 
the product(s) submitted in a waiver request. In the course of this 
interagency collaboration, MEP has been able to find exact or partial 
matches for manufactured goods that EERE grantees had been unable to 
locate. As a result, in those cases, EERE was able to work with the 
grantees to procure American-made products rather than granting a 
waiver.
    Upon receipt of completed waiver requests for the three products in 
the current waiver, EERE reviewed the information provided and 
submitted the relevant technical information to the MEP. The MEP then 
used their network of nationwide centers to scout for domestic 
manufacturers. The MEP reported that their scouting process did not 
locate any domestic manufacturers for these exact or equivalent items.
    In addition to the MEP collaboration outlined above, the EERE Buy 
American Coordinator worked with other manufacturing stakeholders to 
scout for domestic manufacturing capacity or an equivalent product for 
each item contained in this waiver. EERE also conducted significant 
amounts of independent research to supplement MEP's scouting efforts, 
including utilizing the solar experts employed by the Department of 
Energy's National Renewable Energy Laboratory. EERE's research efforts 
confirmed the MEP findings that the goods included in this waiver are 
not produced in the United States in sufficient and reasonably 
available quantities and of a satisfactory quality.
    The nonavailability determination is also informed by the inquiries 
and petitions to EERE from recipients of EERE Recovery Act funds, and 
from suppliers, distributors, retailers and trade associations--all 
stating that their individual efforts to locate domestic manufacturers 
for these items have been unsuccessful.
    Specific technical information for the manufactured goods included 
in this non-availability determination is detailed below:
    (1) 5-25 Watt LED Candelabra Bulbs (includes Flame tip, bent tip, 
A19, S11, G16.5 or G25 clear bulb enclosure.
    LED Candelabra or medium base, outdoor use, dimmable, mercury free, 
2700 and/or 3000 Kelvin Correlated Color Temperature (CCT), 80+ Color 
Rendering Index (CRI), 5-25 watt Flame tip, bent tip, A19, S11, G16.5 
or G25 clear bulb enclosure. Domestic manufacturers are working to 
enter the market in the near future, however, production cannot yet 
meet the needs of current projects. EERE is committed to assisting 
grantees to complete projects while supporting domestic manufacturing--
thus this waiver will expire May 1, 2012.
    (2&3) 140 Watt LED fixtures with 10 degree beams capable of 
illuminating from 100 feet, UL certified; and 27 Watt round LED 
fixtures, producing 1 foot-candle at 242 feet distance, UL certified.
    The new LED fixtures represent a relatively new, emerging 
technology that can provide comparable light output at substantially 
lower energy levels. As a new technology, the number of manufacturers, 
though growing, is somewhat limited. Domestic manufacturers are working 
to enter the market in the near future, however, production cannot yet 
meet the needs of current projects. EERE is committed to assisting 
grantees to complete projects while supporting domestic manufacturing--
thus this waiver will expire May 1, 2012.
    In light of the foregoing, and under the authority of section 
1605(b)(2) of Public Law 111-5 and Redelegation Order 00-002-01E, with 
respect to Recovery Act projects funded by EERE, I hereby issue a 
``determination of inapplicability'' (a waiver under the Recovery Act 
Buy American provision) for: (1) 5-25 Watt LED Candelabra Bulbs 
(includes Flame tip, bent tip, A19, S11, G16.5 or G25 clear bulb 
enclosure); (2) 140 Watt LED fixtures with 10 degree beams capable of 
illuminating from 100 feet, UL certified; and (3) 27 Watt round LED 
fixtures, producing 1 foot-candle at 242 feet distance, UL certified. 
This waiver expires May 1, 2012.
    Having established a proper justification based on domestic 
nonavailability, EERE hereby provides notice that on January 10, 2012, 
three (3) nationwide categorical waivers of section 1605 of the 
Recovery Act were issued as detailed supra. This notice constitutes the 
detailed written justification required by Section 1605(c) for waivers 
based on a finding under subsection (b).
    This waiver determination is pursuant to the delegation of 
authority by the Secretary of Energy to the Assistant Secretary for 
Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy with respect to expenditures 
within the purview of his responsibility. Consequently, this waiver 
applies to all EERE projects carried out under the Recovery Act.

    Authority: Public Law 111-5, section 1605.

    Issued in Washington, DC on January 10, 2012.
Henry C. Kelly,
Acting Assistant Secretary, Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy, 
U.S. Department of Energy.
[FR Doc. 2012-1625 Filed 1-25-12; 8:45 am]
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