[Federal Register Volume 79, Number 32 (Tuesday, February 18, 2014)]
[Notices]
[Pages 9312-9313]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2014-03444]


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DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION

Federal Transit Administration

[Docket No. FTA-2014-0002]


Notice of Proposed Buy America Waiver for the Cross-Connect 
Cabinet

AGENCY: Federal Transit Administration, DOT.

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

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SUMMARY: The City of Cincinnati (Cincinnati) has requested a Buy 
America waiver based upon non-availability for a cross-connect cabinet. 
The cross-connect cabinet is needed for Cincinnati Bell's utility 
relocation work associated with the Cincinnati Streetcar Project. This 
notice is to inform the public of the waiver request and to seek public 
comment to inform the Federal Transit Administration's (FTA) decision 
whether to grant the request.

DATES: Comments must be received by March 4, 2014. Late-filed comments 
will be considered to the extent practicable.

ADDRESSES: Please submit your comments by one of the following means, 
identifying your submissions by docket number FTA-2014-0002:
    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, West Building, Ground Floor, Room W12-
140, Washington, DC 20590-0001.
    4. Hand Delivery: U.S. Department of Transportation, 1200 New 
Jersey Avenue SE., Docket Operations, M-30, West Building, Ground 
Floor, Room W12-140, Washington, DC 20590-0001 between 9 a.m. and 5 
p.m., Monday through Friday, except Federal holidays.
    Instructions: All submissions must make reference to the ``Federal 
Transit Administration'' and include docket number FTA-2014-0002. Due 
to the security procedures in effect since October 2011, mail received 
through the

[[Page 9313]]

U.S. Postal Service may be subject to delays. Parties making 
submissions responsive to this notice should consider using an express 
mail firm to ensure the prompt filing of any submissions not filed 
electronically or by hand. 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 April 11, 2000 (65 FR 19477), or you may 
visit http://www.regulations.gov.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Mary J. Lee, FTA Attorney-Advisor, at 
(202) 366-0985 or [email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The purpose of this notice is to provide 
notice and to seek comment on whether FTA should grant a non-
availability waiver for the procurement of a cross-connect cabinet that 
will be used in a utility relocation performed by Cincinnati Bell. This 
utility relocation will be performed in connection with the Cincinnati 
Streetcar Project, which is an FTA-funded project.
    With certain exceptions, FTA's Buy America requirements prevent FTA 
from obligating an amount that may be appropriated to carry out its 
program for a project unless ``the steel, iron, and manufactured goods 
used in the project are produced in the United States.'' 49 U.S.C. 
5323(j)(1). A manufactured product is considered produced in the United 
States if: (1) all of the manufacturing processes for the product take 
place in the United States; and (2) all of the components of the 
product are of U.S. origin. A component is considered of U.S. origin if 
it is manufactured in the United States, regardless of the origin of 
its subcomponents. 49 CFR 661.5(d). If, however, FTA determines that 
``the steel, iron, and goods produced in the United States are not 
produced in a sufficient and reasonably available amount or are not of 
a satisfactory quality,'' then FTA may issue a waiver (non-availability 
waiver). 49 U.S.C. 5323(j)(2)(B); 49 CFR 661.7(c).
    On September 30, 2013, the City of Cincinnati (Cincinnati) formally 
requested a non-availability waiver for the procurement of one cross-
connect cabinet.\1\ In its request, Cincinnati stated that the only 
known cross-connect cabinet that complies with Cincinnati Bell's 
network specifications and service protocols is the Tyco Electronics 
(TE) NGXC pad mount cross-connect cabinet. At this time, deviations 
from the use of this particular cross-connect cabinet would result in 
impacts that would cascade down from the installation, maintenance, and 
emergency repair aspects, to operational impacts due to hardware 
incompatibility.
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    \1\ This request was the result of several informal 
communications between FTA, Cincinnati, and Cincinnati Bell to work 
through all of the Buy America issues. The availability of a 
domestic cross-connect cabinet that meets Cincinnati Bell's 
specifications in order to conform to its telecommunications network 
is the only remaining issue.
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    On October 17, 2013, Cincinnati alerted FTA that Cincinnati Bell 
had installed the cross-connect cabinet in order to comply with its 
scheduling demands. Unfortunately, because almost all FTA employees 
were furloughed during this time due to a partial government shutdown, 
Cincinnati was unable to consult with FTA on how to proceed.
    The purpose of this notice is to publish the request and seek 
public comment from all interested parties in accordance with 49 U.S.C. 
5323(j)(3)(A). Comments will help FTA understand completely the facts 
surrounding the request, including the effects of a potential waiver 
and the merits of the request. If granted, the waiver would apply to 
one procurement and FTA would expect that Cincinnati Bell work towards 
finding a domestically manufactured cross-connect cabinet that meets 
its network specifications for future FTA-funded projects. A full copy 
of the request has been placed in docket number FTA-2014-0002.

Dana Nifosi,
Deputy Chief Counsel.
[FR Doc. 2014-03444 Filed 2-14-14; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4910-57-P