[Federal Register Volume 77, Number 69 (Tuesday, April 10, 2012)]
[Notices]
[Pages 21620-21621]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2012-8633]


-----------------------------------------------------------------------

DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION

Federal Railroad Administration

[Docket No. FRA-2012-0033]


Notice of the Buy America Waiver Request for Vossloh 101-LV 
Concrete Ties

AGENCY: Federal Railroad Administration (FRA), United States Department 
of Transportation (DOT).

ACTION: Notice of Buy America waiver request and request for comment.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------

SUMMARY: FRA is issuing this notice to advise the public that the 
Burlington Northern Santa Fe Railway Co. (``BNSF'') has submitted to 
FRA through or with the support of the Washington Department of 
Transportation (``WSDOT''), the Illinois Department of Transportation 
(``IDOT''), the Texas Department of Transportation (``TxDOT''), and the 
California Department of Transportation (``Caltrans'') a waiver request 
from FRA's Buy America Act requirements for the purchase of Vossloh 
101-LV concrete ties, which contain certain components not manufactured 
in the United States. In furtherance of four FRA High-Speed Intercity 
Passenger Rail (``HSIPR'') grants, BNSF, as the railroad infrastructure 
owner, will construct certain rail project elements that consist of the 
installation of Vossloh 101-LV concrete ties. FRA has received this 
request from the four States for the following projects: (a) The 
Pacific Northwest Rail Corridor Program (b) the Amtrak Quad Cities to 
Chicago Service Initiation Project, (c) the Tower 55 At-Grade 
Improvement Project, and (d) the LA to Fullerton Triple Track--Segment 
7 Project.

[[Page 21621]]


DATES: Written comments should be provided on or before April 25, 2012.

ADDRESSES: Comments: Comments related to Docket No. FRA-2012-0033 may 
be submitted by any of the following methods:
    (1) Web Site: http://www.regulations.gov. Follow the instructions 
for submitting comments on the U.S. Government electronic docket site;
    (2) Fax: (202) 493-2251;
    (3) Mail: U.S. Department of Transportation, 1200 New Jersey Avenue 
SE., Docket Operations, M-30, Room W12-140, Washington, DC 20590-0001; 
or
    (4) Hand Delivery: Room W12-140 on the first floor of the West 
Building, 1200 New Jersey Avenue SE., Washington, DC 20590, between 9 
a.m. and 5 p.m., Monday through Friday, except Federal holidays.
    Instructions: All submissions must make reference to the ``Federal 
Railroad Administration'' and include docket number FRA-2012-0033. Note 
that 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 in the Federal Register published on 
April 11, 2000 (65 FR 19477), or you may visit http://www.dot.gov/privacy.html.
    Docket: For access to the docket to read comments received, go to 
http://www.regulations.gov at anytime, or to the Docket Management 
Facility, U.S. Department of Transportation, West Building Ground 
Floor, Room W12-140, 1200 New Jersey Avenue SE., Washington, DC, 
between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m. ET, Monday through Friday, except Federal 
holidays. Follow the online instructions for accessing the dockets.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: For questions about this notice, 
please contact Ms. Linda Martin, Attorney-Advisor, FRA Office of Chief 
Counsel, Mail Stop 10, West Building 3rd Floor, Room W31-304, 1200 New 
Jersey Avenue SE., Washington, DC 20590 (telephone 202-493-6062) or via 
email at [email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: FRA projects funded through the American 
Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 and the Transportation, Housing 
and Urban Development and Related Agencies Appropriations Act for 2010 
(Div. A of the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2010 (Pub. L. 111-117) 
(``FY 2010 DOT Appropriations Act''), must comply with the Passenger 
Rail Investment and Improvement Act of 2008 (``PRIIA'') Buy America 
provisions (49 U.S.C. 24405(a)). Section 24405(a)(1) authorizes the 
Secretary of Transportation (``Secretary'') to obligate grant funds 
only if the steel, iron, and manufactured goods used in the project are 
produced in the United States. However, sec. 24405(a)(2) also permits 
the Secretary to waive the Buy America requirements if he finds that: 
(A) Applying paragraph (1) would be inconsistent with the public 
interest; (B) the steel, iron, and goods manufactured in the United 
States are not produced in sufficient and reasonably available amount 
or are not of a satisfactory quality; (C) rolling stock or power train 
equipment cannot be bought or delivered to the United States within a 
reasonable time; or (D) including domestic material will increase the 
cost of the overall project by more than 25 percent.
    Before determining whether it is appropriate to waive the Buy 
America provision, sec. 24405(a)(4) requires that the Secretary first 
provide the public with an opportunity to comment. If after receiving 
public comment, the Secretary decides to grant the waiver, a detailed 
written justification for the decision must be published in the Federal 
Register. The purpose of this notice is to inform the public that FRA 
has received a waiver request for the Vossloh 101-LV concrete tie 
system, which contains certain components not manufactured in the 
United States, and to solicit public comments on the request. BNSF as 
the owner of the infrastructure that will be improved by the HSIPR 
grants proposes to install approximately 171,000 Vossloh 101-LV 
concrete ties for the following projects: (a) The Pacific Northwest 
Rail Corridor Program (b) the Amtrak Quad Cities to Chicago Service 
Initiation Project, (c) the Tower 55 At-Grade Improvement Project, and 
(d) the LA to Fullerton Triple Track--Segment 7 Project. Transmittals 
in furtherance of this request have been submitted to FRA by WSDOT, 
IDOT, TxDOT, and Caltrans.
    The foreign components of the concrete tie are limited to the dowel 
inserts and SKL-30 tension clamps. The function of the dowel insert is 
to provide housing for the lag screw that fastens the SKL-30 tension 
clamps to the tie. The SKL-30 tension clamps hold the rail to the tie 
and prevent lateral and longitudinal movement of the rail. BNSF and the 
identified States seek the waiver pursuant to sec. 24405(a)(2)(B) 
because they believe that for the reasons set forth in the request, 
that suitable materials are not reasonably available in the United 
States and therefore a waiver from FRA's Buy America requirement is 
appropriate.
    The request in its entirety is available on FRA's Web site at 
http://www.fra.dot.gov/Pages/251.shtml. In order to completely 
understand the facts surrounding the request, FRA seeks comment from 
all interested parties regarding the availability of suitable 
domestically manufactured products, any public interest concerns, or 
the potential Buy America waiver.

    Issued in Washington, DC on April 4, 2012.
Corey Hill,
Director, Rail Project Development and Delivery, Federal Railroad 
Administration.
[FR Doc. 2012-8633 Filed 4-9-12; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4910-06-P