EPA has released a guidance document designed to help water utilities understand some of the Buy American provisions of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009. The guidance deals primarily with the waiver process used when American goods are not available or would raise the cost of a project.
The Buy American clause requires that all iron, steel and manufactured goods used in a project funded by stimulus money be made in America.
The guide discusses requirements for seeking waivers for the Buy American provisions. It includes step-by-step process requirements for SRF applicants along with worksheets for such waivers, and foreign and domestic construction materials price comparisons.
The guidance also includes an explanation of how EPA will issue national waivers in certain situations and sample Buy American contract language.
On April 23, the Office of Management & Budget published guidance for several aspects of the Recovery Act, including the Buy American provisions. According to reports, any product assembled at a factory in the United States would qualify as American made, even if all the individual parts of that product were sourced from outside the country.
EPA is reportedly working on a Q&A document to help shed light on the most commonly asked questions about the Stimulus funding.
Download EPA "Buy American" guidance document