Build America, Buy America
Act (BABAA) Domestic Sourcing Requirements Waiver - United States
Department of Education BABAA Waiver Request Form
New
collection (Request for a new OMB Control Number)
No
Emergency
09/30/2022
09/19/2022
Requested
Previously Approved
6 Months From Approved
470
0
4,700
0
0
0
In accordance with section 70914 of
the Build America Buy America Act (Pub. L. No. 117-58 §§
70901-70953) (BABAA), grantees funded under Department of Education
(the Department) programs that allow funds to be used for
infrastructure projects (infrastructure programs), i.e.,
construction and broadband infrastructure, may not use their grant
funds for these infrastructure projects or activities unless they
comply with the following BABAA sourcing requirements: 1) All iron
and steel used in the infrastructure project or activity are
produced in the United States, 2) All manufactured products used in
the infrastructure project or activity are produced in the United
States, and 3) All construction materials are manufactured in the
United States. The Department may, in accordance with sections
70914(b) and (d), 70921(b), 70935, and 70937 of BABAA, and the
Office of Management and Budget Memorandum M 22-11, Initial
Implementation Guidance on Application of Buy America Preference in
Federal Financial Assistance Programs for Infrastructure, approve
waivers to BABAA sourcing requirements submitted by grantees under
programs it has identified as infrastructure programs when it
determines that exceptions to these requirements apply. The
Department may approve, subject to notice and comment requirements
and the Office of Management and Budget Made in America Office
(MIAO) review, the types of waivers listed below when one or more
of the following conditions are met: 1) Public Interest Waiver -
Applying the BABAA sourcing requirement would be inconsistent with
the public interest, 2) Non-availability Waiver - The types of
iron, steel, manufactured products, or construction materials are
not produced in the United States in sufficient and reasonably
available quantities or of a satisfactory quality, and 3)
Unreasonable Cost Waiver - The inclusion of iron, steel,
manufactured products, or construction materials produced in the
United States will increase the cost of the overall project by more
than 25 percent. This is a new information collection and it
includes the following two documents: 1) the Build America, Buy
America Act (BABAA) Domestic Sourcing Requirements Waiver - United
States Department of Education BABAA Waiver Request Form (BABAA
Waiver Request Form); and 2) a document listing the BABAA Waiver
Request Form data elements.
Pursuant to the Office
of Management and Budget (OMB) procedures established at 5 CFR
1320, the U.S. Department of Education (the Department) requests
that the following collection of information, Build America, Buy
America Act (BABAA) Domestic Sourcing Requirements Waiver - United
States Department of Education BABAA Waiver Request Form (BABAA
Waiver Request Form), be processed in accordance with section
1320.13 Emergency Processing. This this information is essential to
the Department’s ability to effectively approve waiver requests for
Department grantees as required in accordance with section 70914 of
the Build America Buy America Act (Pub. L. No. 117-58 §§
70901-70953) (BABAA) and OMB Memorandum M 22-11, Initial
Implementation Guidance on Application of Buy America Preference in
Federal Financial Assistance Programs for Infrastructure. If normal
processing were to be followed, ED would not be able to implement
the BABAA Waiver Request Form on October 1, 2022, which is the date
that it must implement BABAA requirements under its currently OMB
approved adjustment period waiver. Delays in implementing resulting
from normal processing would likely result in overall delays to
critically important project goals and objectives and would inhibit
grant infrastructure projects and activities from moving
forward.
This is a new information
collection; therefore, all burden is new. This results in a program
change due to new statute with an increase in burden and responses
of 470 responses and 4,700 hours respectively.
$0
No
No
No
No
No
No
No
Pedro Romero 202 453-7886
pedro.romero@ed.gov
No
On behalf of this Federal agency, I certify that
the collection of information encompassed by this request complies
with 5 CFR 1320.9 and the related provisions of 5 CFR
1320.8(b)(3).
The following is a summary of the topics, regarding
the proposed collection of information, that the certification
covers:
(i) Why the information is being collected;
(ii) Use of information;
(iii) Burden estimate;
(iv) Nature of response (voluntary, required for a
benefit, or mandatory);
(v) Nature and extent of confidentiality; and
(vi) Need to display currently valid OMB control
number;
If you are unable to certify compliance with any of
these provisions, identify the item by leaving the box unchecked
and explain the reason in the Supporting Statement.