Federal Register / Vol. 77, No. 62 / Friday, March 30, 2012 / Notices 19411 

waiver. In response to this commenter, 

it is noted that the FAR is not applicable 

to authorizations under the Federal-aid 

highway program and FHWA must 

comply with the applicable Buy 

America provisions in 23 U.S.C. 313 

and FHWA’s implementing regulations 

in 23 CFR 635.410. Five of the 

commenters expressed partial or full 

support for the proposed waiver based 

on the belief that there are no domestic 

manufacturers that are able to provide a 

vehicle with 100 percent domestic steel 

and iron content. Several commenters 

questioned the need for this specific 

type of vehicle; however, Merced 

County’s representative explained that 

this vehicle is necessary to meet their 

needs in accessing road and bridge 

construction sites during inclement 

weather while meeting the vehicle 

emission requirements of the CMAQ 

program. 

During the 15-day comment period, 

the FHWA conducted additional review 

but was unable to locate a domestic 

manufacturer that could meet a 100 

percent domestic steel and iron content 

requirement. Based on all the 

information available to the agency, the 

FHWA concludes that there are no 

domestic manufacturers that could meet 

a 100 percent domestic steel and iron 

content for the 2012 Ford Escape hybrid 

four-wheel drive vehicle. 

The FHWA has considered Merced 

County’s assertion that its needs for this 

project require a hybrid four-wheel 

drive vehicle and that no vehicle on the 

market currently satisfies a 100 percent 

domestic iron and steel content 

requirement. The FHWA has also 

considered the comments stating that 

Federal funds should be used to 

purchase a vehicle that is made in the 

United States. In considering these 

comments, the FHWA has reevaluated 

the applicability of the Buy America 

requirement as it may apply to the 

purchase of the vehicles. The FHWA’s 

Buy America requirement was initially 

established in 1983 when the 

acquisition of vehicles was not eligible 

for assistance under the Federal-aid 

Highway Program. As such, the FHWA’s 

Buy America requirements were tailored 

to the types of products that are 

typically used in highway construction, 

which generally meet a 100 percent 

domestic steel and iron content 

requirement. 

Vehicles, however, are not the types 

of products that were initially 

envisioned as being purchased with 

Federal-aid highway funds when Buy 

America was first enacted. In today’s 

global industry, vehicles are assembled 

with components that are made all over 

the world. The FHWA is not aware of 

any vehicle on the market that can claim 

to incorporate 100 percent domestic 

steel and iron content. For instance, the 

Chevy Volt, which was identified by 

many commenters in a November 21, 

2011, Federal Register Notice as being a 

car that is made in the United States, 

comprises only 40 percent United States 

and Canada content according to the 

window sticker http:// 

www.cheersandgears.com/uploads/ 

1298005091/ 

med_gallery_51_113_449569.png. There 

is no indication of how much of this 40 

percent United States/Canadian content 

is United States-made content. Thus, the 

FHWA does not believe that application 

of a domestic content standard should 

be applied to the purchase of vehicles. 

However, the FHWA believes that the 

vehicles should be assembled in the 

United States. Whenever a person 

discusses the manufacture of vehicles, 

the discussion typically refers to where 

the final assembly takes place. For 

instance, under a previous proposed 

waiver notification and comment 

process, several commenters urged that 

the waiver be denied because the Chevy 

Volt is made in the United States. The 

FHWA interprets these comments as 

referring to the assembly of the vehicle 

in Detroit since the Volt window sticker 

says that the United States/Canada parts 

content of the vehicle is only 40 

percent. While the manufacture of steel 

and iron products that are typically 

used in highway construction (such as 

pipe, rebar, struts, and beams) generally 

refers to the various processes that go 

into actually making the entire product, 

the manufacture of vehicles typically 

refers to where the vehicle is assembled. 

Thus, given the inherent differences in 

the type of products that are typically 

used in highway construction and 

vehicles, we feel that simply waiving 

the Buy America requirement, which is 

based on the domestic content of the 

product, without any regard to where 

the vehicle is assembled would 

diminish the purpose of the Buy 

America requirement. Moreover, in 

today’s economic environment with the 

National unemployment rate over 8 

percent, the Buy America requirement is 

especially significant in that it will 

ensure that Federal Highway Trust Fund 

(HTF) dollars are used to support and 

create jobs in the United States. 

Therefore, while the FHWA has not 

located a vehicle that meets a 100 

percent domestic iron and steel content 

requirement, the FHWA does not find 

that a complete waiver based on nonavailability pursuant to 23 U.S.C. 

313(b)(2) is appropriate. However, the 

FHWA also recognizes that at least a 

partial waiver is necessary in order to 

permit Merced County to proceed with 

its project. The FHWA believes that a 

partial waiver that allows the County to 

purchase vehicles so long as the final 

assembly of the vehicle as the end 

product occurs in the United States is 

appropriate. This approach is similar to 

the partial waiver given to Alameda 

County, CA, for the purchase of 79 

electric sedans and electric vans in the 

November 21, 2011, Federal Register. 

In conclusion, and in light of the 

above, pursuant to 23 U.S.C. 313(b)(1), 

the FHWA finds that it is in the public 

interest to grant a partial waiver from 

the general 100 percent domestic 

content requirement that applies to 

Federal-aid highway projects under Buy 

America. Under this partial waiver, 

however, the final assembly of any 

vehicles purchased with HTF funds 

must occur in the United States. Thus, 

so long as the final assembly of the 2012 

Ford Escape hybrid four-wheel drive 

vehicles occurs in the United States, 

Merced County may proceed to 

purchase these vehicles consistent with 

the Buy America requirement. 

In accordance with the provisions of 

section 117 of the SAFETEA–LU 

Technical Corrections Act of 2008 (Pub. 

L. 110–244, 122 Stat. 1572), the FHWA 

is providing this notice as its finding 

that a waiver of Buy America 

requirements is appropriate. The FHWA 

invites public comment on this finding 

for an additional 15 days following the 

effective date of the finding. Comments 

may be submitted to the FHWA’s Web 

site via the link provided to the Merced 

County waiver page noted above. 

Authority: 23 U.S.C. 313; Pub. L. 110–161, 

23 CFR 635.410. 

Issued on: March 21, 2012. 

Victor M. Mendez, 

Federal Highway Administrator. 

[FR Doc. 2012–7731 Filed 3–29–12; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 4910–22–P 

DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION 

Federal Railroad Administration 

[Docket Number FRA–2012–0017] 

Petition for Waiver of Compliance 

In accordance with Part 211 of Title 

49 of the Code of Federal Regulations 

(CFR), this document provides the 

public notice that by a document dated 

February 7, 2012, the Savage Bingham 

and Garfield Railroad (SBG) has 

petitioned the Federal Railroad 

Administration (FRA) for a waiver of 

compliance from certain provisions of 

the Federal railroad safety regulations 

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19412 Federal Register / Vol. 77, No. 62 / Friday, March 30, 2012 / Notices 

contained at 49 CFR Section 229.23 

(which requires a periodic inspection 

every 92 days) and 49 CFR Section 

229.25 (which requires specific tests to 

be done at every periodic inspection). 

The SBG is asking for this testing 

interval to be extended to 184 days. SBG 

conducts rail switching operations for 

customers in the Midvale, UT, area. For 

this operation, SBG runs two 

locomotives for fewer hours than 

normal Class I railroads. This relief will 

help SBG to lower costs and thereby be 

able to pass those savings on to its 

customers. FRA assigned the petition 

Docket Number FRA–2012–0017. 

A copy of the petition, as well as any 

written communications concerning the 

petition, is available for review online at 

www.regulations.gov and in person at 

the U.S. Department of Transportation’s 

(DOT) Docket Operations Facility, 1200 

New Jersey Avenue SE., W12–140, 

Washington, DC 20590. The Docket 

Operations Facility is open from 9 a.m. 

to 5 p.m., Monday through Friday, 

except Federal Holidays. 

Interested parties are invited to 

participate in these proceedings by 

submitting written views, data, or 

comments. FRA does not anticipate 

scheduling a public hearing in 

connection with these proceedings since 

the facts do not appear to warrant a 

hearing. If any interested party desires 

an opportunity for oral comment, they 

should notify FRA, in writing, before 

the end of the comment period and 

specify the basis for their request. 

All communications concerning these 

proceedings should identify the 

appropriate docket number and may be 

submitted by any of the following 

methods: 

• Web site: http:// 

www.regulations.gov. Follow the online 

instructions for submitting comments. 

• Fax: 202–493–2251. 

• Mail: Docket Operations Facility, 

U.S. Department of Transportation, 1200 

New Jersey Avenue SE., W12–140, 

Washington, DC 20590. 

• Hand Delivery: 1200 New Jersey 

Avenue SE., Room W12–140, 

Washington, DC 20590, between 9 a.m. 

and 5 p.m., Monday through Friday, 

except Federal Holidays. 

Communications received by May 14, 

2012 will be considered by FRA before 

final action is taken. Comments received 

after that date will be considered as far 

as practicable. 

Anyone is able to search the 

electronic form of any written 

communications and comments 

received into any of our dockets by the 

name of the individual submitting the 

comment (or signing the comment, if 

submitted on behalf of an association, 

business, labor union, etc.). You may 

review DOT’s complete Privacy Act 

Statement in the Federal Register 

published on April 11, 2000 (Volume 

65, Number 70; Pages 19477–78) or 

online at http://www.dot.gov/ 

privacy.html. 

Issued in Washington, DC, on March 26, 

2012. 

Ron Hynes, 

Acting Deputy Associate Administrator for 

Regulatory and Legislative Operations. 

[FR Doc. 2012–7617 Filed 3–29–12; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 4910–06–P 

DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION 

Federal Railroad Administration 

[Docket Number FRA–2012–0011] 

Petition for Waiver of Compliance 

In accordance with part 211 of Title 

49 Code of Federal Regulations (CFR), 

notice is hereby given that the Federal 

Railroad Administration (FRA) has 

received a request for a waiver of 

compliance from certain requirements 

of its safety standards. The individual 

petition is described below, including 

the party seeking relief, the regulatory 

provisions involved, the nature of the 

relief being requested, and the 

petitioner’s arguments in favor of relief. 

The petition has been assigned Docket 

Number FRA–2012–0011. 

Farmrail System Inc. (Farmrail), 

located in Clinton, OK, hereby petitions 

FRA for a waiver from 49 CFR 

213.4(e)(3) to allow more than five cars 

required to be placarded by the 

Hazardous Materials Regulations (49 

CFR part 172) to operate in a single-unit 

train consist. Farmrail proposes that 

FRA grant Farmrail a waiver of 

compliance that will permit more than 

five tank cars carrying any quantity of 

crude oil moving from the Anadarko 

Basin to operate over designated 

‘‘excepted track’’ segments. The basin is 

located between Clinton and Sayre, OK. 

The 17-mile segment between Elk City 

and Sayre is the former Rock Island 

Railroad main track and currently 

designated as excepted track. Under this 

proposal, outbound loads would be 

metered in maximum blocks of 10 cars, 

while up to 20 inbound empties could 

be moved as they arrive (without 

unnecessary delay and loss of velocity); 

thereby relieving severe track 

congestion at Elk City. Farmrail claims 

the relief would not only improve the 

increasing volume of outbound traffic, 

but also eliminate bunching of inbound 

empties at the Elk City bottleneck 

between Class 2 and excepted track, 

where longer strings must now be split 

into five-car blocks for delivery to the 

different logistics customers. 

Additionally, Farmrail states that a 

rail shipper in Sayre receives inbound 

loaded tank cars of methanol at a rate of 

approximately one or two cars per 

month. Methanol is a hazardous 

material. Under this proposal, a loaded 

car of methanol would displace one 

empty car of crude oil, and an empty 

tank car of methanol would displace 

one loaded car of crude oil. A train 

leaving Elk City for Sayre would be 

permitted to have up to 19 empty crude 

oil cars and one loaded methanol car. 

Similarly, a train leaving Sayre for Elk 

City could have 9 loaded crude oil cars 

and one empty methanol car. 

Farmrail states that they have 

experienced no line-haul derailments 

between Elk City and Sayre on the 100- 

pound former mainline rail at 10 mph. 

Farmrail has installed new ties where 

there is curvature, so the safety risk for 

empty tank cars in this extremely rural 

environment is minimal. Public benefits 

from issuance of the requested 

regulatory waiver would include a 

potential 50-percent reduction in the 

number of train movements required to 

move available traffic and associated 

grade crossing accident exposure. 

Farmrail train crews have had 

emergency response and hazmat 

training, and their operating practices 

are randomly monitored by a field 

compliance supervisor. Farmrail 

proposes to conduct twice-weekly hirail inspections of the subject track 

segment until it can be reclassified. 

Additionally, Farmrail states that they 

are the recipients of the Transportation 

Investment Generating Economic 

Recovery or TIGER III grant funds for 

the rehabilitation of 49 miles of rail line 

in western Oklahoma to sound Class 2 

safety standards. The Clinton-to-Sayre 

segment is critical to the origination of 

rapidly growing volumes of crude oil 

produced from the Anadarko Basin oil 

and gas reserves. The $8.4 million-track 

project, sponsored by the Oklahoma 

Department of Transportation (ODOT), 

includes 20 percent in local matching 

funds and an indicated benefit-cost 

factor of 56.8, as posted by ODOT on its 

Web site www.odot.gov. 

Interested parties are invited to 

participate in these proceedings by 

submitting written views, data, or 

comments. FRA does not anticipate 

scheduling a public hearing in 

connection with these proceedings since 

the facts do not appear to warrant a 

hearing. If any interested party desires 

an opportunity for oral comment, they 

should notify FRA, in writing, before 

the end of the comment period and 

specify the basis for their request. 

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