Buy America Requirements; Bi-Metallic Composite Conducting Rail

Following the two recent Buy America rulemakings pursuant to the Safe, Accountable, Flexible, Efficient Transportation Equity Act: A Legacy for Users (SAFETEA-LU), the Federal Transit Administration (FTA) received a petition for reconsideration of the treatment of bi-metallic composite conducting rail as a steel product that must be manufactured in the United States. Because FTA believed adopting the petitions through a Final Rule would have altered the regulatory environment without notice-and- comment from all affected parties who may have been unaware of the petition, FTA declined to accept the petition and instead issued a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking. Through this Final Rule, FTA is amending its Buy America regulation to include bi-metallic composite conducting rail on the list of traction power equipment. As such, bi-metallic rail need only consist of 60 percent domestic content, with final assembly taking place in the United States. In addition, FTA is amending Appendix A of section 661.7 to restore the public interest waivers for small purchases which was inadvertently deleted and to update a cross reference to the list of products exempted under the Buy American Act of 1933, and amending statutory references in the compliance certifications in section 661.12