74132 Federal Register / Vol. 75, No. 229 / Tuesday, November 30, 2010 / Notices 

demand. To achieve these goals WSDOT 

applied for Federal funding through the 

High Speed Intercity Passenger Rail 

Program (HSIPR Program) administered 

by the FRA and funded by the American 

Recovery and Reinvestment Act 

(Recovery Act). WSDOT’s application 

under the Recovery Act was split into 

three Service Blocks, and identified 

incremental service benefits including 

increased service levels, improved ontime performance and schedule 

reliability, and reduced travel times. 

The FRA intends to provide funding 

under the HSIPR Program for projects 

contained in two of the three service 

blocks. 

In order to comply with the 

requirements of the HSIPR Program 

Guidance (Interim Guidance) that 

described the eligibility requirements 

and procedures for obtaining funding 

under the HSIPR Program (74 FR 29901 

(June 23, 2009)), WSDOT prepared a 

Tier-1 or ‘‘service’’ NEPA document that 

included the analysis of two 

alternatives; the ‘‘No Build’’ and the 

‘‘Corridor Service Expansion 

Alternative.’’ The Tier-1 EA was 

completed in September 2009 and was 

made available for comment between 

October 2, 2009 and October 23, 2009 

on the WSDOT Web site. Thirteen 

agencies submitted written comments. 

No individual written comments were 

received. 

Based on the analysis in the Tier-1 

EA, FRA released a draft FONSI for 

public comment on July 8, 2010 for a 

period of 30 calendar days (75 FR 39325 

(July 8, 2010)). FRA received six 

comments on the draft FONSI, 

including comments from one federal 

agency, two state agencies, and three 

local governments. In compliance with 

NEPA and the FRA’s Environmental 

Procedures, FRA has addressed all 

comments on the FONSI and has 

determined that the PNWRC corridor 

improvements will not have a 

significant impact on the quality of the 

human or natural environment. Prior to 

release of construction funding for 

individual projects, WSDOT will 

successfully complete applicable 

mitigation measures detailed in the 

FONSI and complete appropriate 

project-level NEPA evaluations, 

documentation, and required 

determinations for the individual 

project. 

Issued in Washington, DC, on November 

19, 2010. 

Joseph C. Szabo, 

Administrator. 

[FR Doc. 2010–30021 Filed 11–29–10; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 4910–06–P 

DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION 

Federal Railroad Administration 

Notice of Intent To Grant Buy America 

Waiver to Northern New England 

Passenger Rail Authority To Purchase 

3,340 AREMA Specified Carbon Steel 

Standard 11⁄8 Nominal Diameter Nuts 

AGENCY: Federal Railroad 

Administration (FRA), United States 

Department of Transportation (DOT). 

ACTION: Notice of intent to grant Buy 

America waiver. 

SUMMARY: FRA is issuing this notice to 

advise the public that it intends to grant 

the Northern New England Passenger 

Rail Authority’s (NNEPRA) waiver 

request from FRA’s Buy America 

requirement, 49 U.S.C. 24405(a), for the 

purchase and use of 3,340 AREMA 

specified carbon steel standard 11⁄8

nominal diameter nuts. FRA intends to 

grant the waiver because there are no 

domestic commercially available track 

nuts that meet the needed specifications 

and custom made fabricated track nuts 

that cannot be delivered for 10–16 

weeks are not ‘‘reasonably available’’ 

under 49 U.S.C. 24405(a)(2)(B), 

especially given NNEPRA has mobilized 

for the track construction and Maine has 

a short construction season. In addition, 

NNEPRA used a competitive bidding 

process to procure the track nuts and no 

bidders came forward at that time who 

could comply with Buy America. 

Finally, FRA published public notice of 

the NNEPRA waiver request in the 

Federal Register on August 2, 2010. 

This notice also failed to identify a 

reasonably available domestic source. 

49 U.S.C. 24405(a)(4) requires that the 

Secretary provide public notice of a 

determination that it is necessary to 

waive the Buy America requirement and 

provide a maximum fifteen day 

opportunity for public comment before 

the waiver becomes final. 

DATES: Written comments on FRA’s 

determination to grant NNEPRA’s Buy 

America waiver request should be 

provided to the FRA on or before 

December 15, 2010. 

ADDRESSES: Please submit your 

comments by one of the following 

means, identifying your submissions by 

docket number FRA–2010–0122. All 

electronic submissions must be made to 

the U.S. Government electronic site at 

http://www.regulations.gov. 

Commenters should follow the 

instructions below for mailed and handdelivered comments. 

(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–2010–0122. Due to 

security procedures in effect since 

October 2001, mail received through the 

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 on April 11, 

2000 (65 FR 19477), or visit http:// 

www.regulations.gov. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: For 

questions about this notice, please 

contact Ms. Linda Martin, AttorneyAdvisor, FRA Office of Chief Counsel, 

(202) 493–6062 or via e-mail at 

Linda.Martin@dot.gov. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: See 

waiver letter below. 

Ms. Marina Douglass, 

Manager of Budget and Administration, 

Northern New England Passenger Rail 

Authority, 

75 West Commercial Street, Suite 104, 

Portland, ME 04101–4631, 

Re: Request for Waiver of Buy America 

Requirement, 

Dear Ms. Douglass: 

This letter is in response to your July 

14, 2010, request that the Northern New 

England Passenger Rail Authority 

(NNEPRA) be granted a waiver from the 

Federal Railroad Administration’s (FRA) 

Buy America provision, at 49 U.S.C. 

24405(a), to permit NNEPRA to 

purchase 3,340 foreign-made AREMA 

specified carbon steel standard 11⁄8

nominal diameter track nuts. Section 

24405(a) authorizes the Secretary of 

Transportation to obligate certain grant 

funds only if the steel, iron, and 

manufactured goods used in the project 

are produced in the United States. The 


jdjones on DSK8KYBLC1PROD with NOTICES
Federal Register / Vol. 75, No. 229 / Tuesday, November 30, 2010 / Notices 74133 

Secretary, or his delagatee, may waive 

the Buy America requirement provided 

that he or she finds that: (A) applying 

it 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. 49 U.S.C. 

24405(a)(2)(A)–(D). The NNEPRA 

asserts that the specific required track 

nuts are not produced in the United 

States in sufficient and reasonably 

available amounts and that, therefore, a 

waiver is warranted under 49 U.S.C. 

24405(a)(2)(B). For the following 

reasons, I am granting NNEPRA’s 

request. 

In January 2010, NNEPRA was 

awarded $35 million in America 

Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) 

funds to extend Amtrak’s Downeaster 

passenger service from its existing route 

of Boston, Massachusetts to Portland, 

Maine further north to station stops in 

Freeport and Brunswick, Maine. The 

track bolts and nuts needed to be 

delivered to the project in time for the 

planned start of continuous welded rail 

installation the week of August 16, 

2010. Consequently, delivery within 30 

days of the notice of award was a 

requirement in the Invitation to Bid. 

The low bid for the nuts was $0.63 each 

with a total cost of $2,104.20, which 

includes shipping. The low bidder was 

able to meet the required delivery 

schedule. During the procurement 

process for these track bolts, all of the 

bid package holders asserted that while 

the track bolts were domestically 

produced, the standard square nuts no 

longer were and would have to be 

obtained from a foreign manufacturer. 

In late June 2010, NNEPRA informally 

notified FRA staff that it could find no 

domestic source of 3,340 AREMA 

specified carbon steel standard 11⁄8

nominal diameter track nuts, which 

were needed for the project. At that 

time, FRA asked NNEPRA to expand the 

search for a domestic source, and 

suggested they contact the Railway 

Supply Institute (RSI) and/or other 

suppliers of track equipment. The 

NNEPRA contacted many of the major 

railroad track material suppliers, 

including Harmer Steel, LB Foster, A&K 

Railroad Materials, Unitrac Railroad 

Materials, Atlantic Track & Turnout, 

Vossloh, Progress Rail, and Railroad 

Tools & Solutions. They all confirmed 

that they could not supply domestically 

produced AREMA standard square nuts 

for track bolts. The NNEPRA also 

attempted to determine if it would be 

possible to have the nuts custommanufactured in the United States. The 

NNEPRA contacted Rockford Bolts, a 

major domestic producer of AREMA 

standard track bolts, and were told they 

could not custom fabricate the standard 

square nuts. The NNEPRA also 

contacted Lewis Bolt & Nut, a major 

U.S. bolt manufacturer, and they stated 

they would not custom fabricate the 

standard square nuts and did not know 

of any other U.S. manufacturer who 

would. The FRA also independently 

contacted RSI. The RSI knew of no 

domestic source of the track nuts. At 

that time, FRA staff told NNEPRA that 

its only option was to file a formal 

waiver request. 

If FRA determines that it is necessary 

to grant a waiver, it is required to 

(before the date on which the finding 

takes effect) ‘‘(A) publish in the Federal 

Register a detailed written justification 

as to why the waiver is needed; and (B) 

provide notice of such finding and an 

opportunity for public comment on 

such finding for a reasonable period of 

time not to exceed 15 days.’’ 49 U.S.C. 

24405(a)(4). Though not required to 

publish waiver requests before a 

decision whether to grant or deny has 

been made, FRA published notice of 

NNEPRA’s waiver request in the 

Federal Register on August 2, 2010 in 

order to invite public comment on 

whether there were or were not 

domestic sources of the required track 

nuts. 

The FRA received five responses to its 

August 2, 2010 Public Notice, which are 

summarized here in no particular order. 

• Allison Symmonds, representative 

for the Alliance for American 

Manufacturing requested that the waiver 

be denied, commenting that Dyson 

Corporation and Chicago Nut & Bolt 

could provide the specified track nuts. 

• John A. Tolman, National 

Legislative Representative of the 

Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers 

and Trainmen (BLET) and James A. 

Stern, Jr., National Legislative Director 

of the United Transportation Union 

(UTU) submitted a joint comment. The 

BLET and UTU reported that the tool 

and hardware supply company Grainger 

could supply the specified track nuts 

made in the United States. They 

requested denial of the waiver, or a 

design change if the design of the track 

bolt required foreign made nuts. The 

BLET and UTU expressed a desire to 

reserve Buy America exemptions for 

legitimate reasons and categorized the 

subject waiver as ‘‘trivial’’ and a 

‘‘nuisance.’’ 

• W. Dan Pickett, President of the 

Brotherhood of Railroad Signalmen 

(BRS), opposed the waiver. The BRS 

also commented that the 10-day 

comment period was inadequate to 

submit detailed comments, and broadly 

asserted that more than one million 

domestically produced track bolts and 

nuts meeting the stated specifications 

are in service or supplier inventory and 

expressed confidence that numerous 

domestic producers can offer the 

required nuts. The BRS did not indicate 

any specific domestic producer. 

• Rick Inclima, Director of Safety for 

the Brotherhood of Maintenance of Way 

Employees Division (BMWED) of the 

Teamsters Rail Conference opposed the 

waiver as well as the 10-day comment 

period as inadequate. The BMWED 

asserted that more than one million 

domestically produced track bolts and 

nuts meeting the stated specifications 

are in service or supplier inventory and 

expressed confidence that numerous 

domestic producers can offer the 

required nuts. The BMWED did not 

indicate any domestic producer. 

• An anonymous commenter 

speculated that the quantity of nuts 

required should be sufficient for any 

American shop to become able to 

produce the order. 

Because two of the responses 

indicated that there may be domestic 

sources of the track nuts, FRA requested 

that NNEPRA contact the identified 

sources and confirm whether in fact 

they could provide the track nuts. The 

NNEPRA contacted these sources and 

found as follows: 

1. Grainger Industrial Supply 

The NNEPRA confirmed that Grainger 

could not provide domestically 

produced AREMA standard square head 

track nuts. 

2. Chicago Track Nut and Bolt 

The NNEPRA confirmed that Chicago 

Track Nut & Bolt could in 10 to 12 

weeks post-contract award custom 

fabricate standard square track nuts 

meeting the AREMA specifications for a 

cost of $59,518.80. This cost did not 

include delivery. 

3. Dyson Corp. 

The NNEPRA confirmed that Dyson 

Corp. could in 12 to 16 weeks postcontract award custom fabricate 

standard square track nuts meeting the 

AREMA specifications for a total cost of 

$16,432.80. This cost did not include 

delivery. 

The NNEPRA concluded that while 

the identified domestic custom 

fabricated track nuts could be secured in 

10 to 16 weeks at a cost of 

approximately $14,000 more than the 

lowest foreign bidder this did not mean 


jdjones on DSK8KYBLC1PROD with NOTICES
74134 Federal Register / Vol. 75, No. 229 / Tuesday, November 30, 2010 / Notices 

that domestic track nuts are ‘‘reasonably 

available’’ and the waiver should still be 

granted. 

CONCLUSION: 

For the following reason, FRA is 

granting NNEPRA’s request. The FRA 

agrees with NNEPRA in that custom 

made fabricated track nuts that cannot 

be delivered for 10–16 weeks are not 

‘‘reasonably available’’ under 49 U.S.C. 

24405(a)(2)(B), especially given that 

NNEPRA has mobilized for 

construction, prompt project 

implementation is consistent with 

ARRA’s economic recovery goals, and 

Maine has a short construction season. 

In addition, NNEPRA used a 

competitive bidding process to procure 

the track nuts. Neither Chicago Track 

Nut and Bolt nor Dyson Corp. came 

forward at that time, but instead 

NNEPRA received bids only from 

suppliers offering foreign-made track 

nuts. This waiver is granted only 

because of the specific facts of this 

project; any future requests for a waiver 

regarding this product will not be 

granted without a specific showing that 

domestic track nuts for that particular 

project also are not reasonably available 

at that time. This decision does not 

become final until fifteen (15) days after 

its publication in the Federal Register. 

Sincerely, 

Karen Rae 

Deputy Administrator 

Note: The Deputy Administrator is making 

this decision because Administrator Joseph 

C. Szabo is recused from making it. Mr. 

Szabo is a former United Transportation 

Union (UTU) employee. The UTU 

commented in opposition to granting the 

waiver request. 

Issued in Washington, DC, on November 

23, 2010. 

Mark E. Yachmetz, 

Associate Administrator for Railroad 

Development, Federal Railroad 

Administration. 

[FR Doc. 2010–30178 Filed 11–29–10; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 4910–06–P 

DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION 

Federal Transit Administration 

State of Good Repair Bus and Bus 

Facilities Discretionary Program Funds 

AGENCY: Federal Transit Administration 

(FTA), DOT. 

ACTION: State of Good Repair Bus and 

Bus Facilities program announcement of 

project selections. 

SUMMARY: The U.S. Department of 

Transportation’s (DOT) Federal Transit 

Administration (FTA) announces the 

selection of projects funded with 

Section 5309 Bus and Bus Facilities 

program funds in support of the State of 

Good Repair (SGR) Initiative, which was 

announced in the State of Good Repair 

Initiative Notice of Funding Availability 

on May 4, 2010. The SGR Initiative 

makes funds available to public transit 

providers to finance capital projects to 

replace, rehabilitate, and purchase buses 

and related equipment and to construct 

bus-related facilities, including 

programs of bus and bus-related projects 

for assistance to subrecipients that are 

public agencies, private companies 

engaged in public transportation, or 

private non-profit organizations. 

Additionally, the SGR Initiative makes 

funds available for Transit Asset 

Management systems, which is a 

systematic process of operating, 

maintaining, improving, and expanding 

physical assets effectively throughout 

their life cycles. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Successful and unsuccessful applicants 

should contact the appropriate FTA 

Regional office (Appendix) for specific 

information regarding applying for the 

funds or proposal specific questions. 

For general program information on the 

Bus and Bus Facilities program, contact 

Kimberly Sledge, Office of Program 

Management, at (202) 366–2053, e-mail: 

kimberly.sledge@dot.gov, or Henrika 

Buchanan-Smith, Office of Program 

Management, at (202) 366–2053, e-mail: 

henrika.buchanan-smith@dot.gov. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: A total of 

$776,474,305 was available for FTA’s 

SGR Initiative. A total of 422 applicants 

requested $4.06 billion, indicating 

significant demand for funds. Project 

proposals were evaluated based on the 

criteria detailed in the May 4, 2010 

Notice of Funding Availability. The 

projects selected and shown in Table 1 

will provide funds to help maintain the 

nation’s public transportation bus fleet, 

infrastructure, and equipment in a state 

of good repair. 

Grantees selected for competitive 

discretionary funding under the SGR 

Initiative should work with their FTA 

regional office (Appendix) to finalize 

the application in FTA’s Transportation 

Electronic Award Management system, 

(TEAM) so that funds can be obligated 

expeditiously. Funds must be used for 

projects detailed in the proposal and for 

the purposes specified in the project 

descriptions in the table. A 

discretionary project identification 

number has been assigned to each 

project for tracking purposes and must 

be used in the TEAM application. 

Selected projects have pre-award 

authority as of October 4, 2010. Postaward reporting requirements include 

submission of the Federal Financial 

Report (FFR) and Milestone Report in 

TEAM as appropriate (see 

FTA.C.5010.1D). 

The grantee must comply with all 

applicable Federal statutes, regulations, 

executive orders, FTA circulars, and 

other Federal administrative 

requirements in carrying out the project 

supported by the FTA grant. Funds 

allocated in this announcement must be 

obligated in a grant by September 30, 

2013. 

Issued in Washington, DC, November 23, 

2010. 

Peter Rogoff, 

Administrator. 

APPENDIX

[FTA Regional and Metropolitan Offices] 

Mary E. Mello, Regional Administrator, Region 1—Boston, Kendall 

Square, 55 Broadway, Suite 920, Cambridge, MA 02142–1093, Tel. 

617–494–2055.

Robert C. Patrick, Regional Administrator, Region 6—Ft. Worth, 819 

Taylor Street, Room 8A36, Ft. Worth, TX 76102, Tel. 817–978–0550. 

States served: Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, 

Rhode Island, and Vermont.

States served: Arkansas, Louisiana, Oklahoma, New Mexico, and 

Texas. 

Brigid Hynes-Cherin, Regional Administrator, Region 2—New York, 

One Bowling Green, Room 429, New York, NY 10004–1415, Tel. 

212–668–2170.

Mokhtee Ahmad, Regional Administrator, Region 7—Kansas City, MO, 

901 Locust Street, Room 404, Kansas City, MO 64106, Tel. 816– 

329–3920. 

States served: New Jersey, New York .................................................... States served: Iowa, Kansas, Missouri, and Nebraska. 

New York Metropolitan Office, Region 2—New York, One Bowling 

Green, Room 428, New York, NY 10004–1415, Tel. 212–668–2202.


jdjones on DSK8KYBLC1PROD with NOTICES