79360 Federal Register / Vol. 89, No. 188 / Friday, September 27, 2024 / Notices 

the merits of a petition for 

inconsequentiality is determining 

whether the noncompliance itself is 

inconsequential to safety.’’ Tesla states 

this statute requires NHTSA to ‘‘base its 

decision on the petition squarely upon 

the inconsequential nature of the 

noncompliance. Any perceived benefit 

of issuing Part 577 letters via first-class 

mail to affected vehicle owners has no 

bearing on whether the noncompliance 

has an impact on motor vehicle safety 

and is not relevant to assessing the 

merits of this petition.’’ 

Tesla concludes by stating its belief 

that the subject noncompliance is 

inconsequential as it relates to motor 

vehicle safety and its petition to be 

exempted from providing notification of 

the noncompliance, as required by 49 

U.S.C. 30118, should be granted. 

NHTSA notes that the statutory 

provisions (49 U.S.C. 30118(d) and 

30120(h)) that permit manufacturers to 

file petitions for a determination of 

inconsequentiality allow NHTSA to 

exempt manufacturers only from the 

duties found in sections 30118 and 

30120, respectively, to notify owners, 

purchasers, and dealers of a defect or 

noncompliance and to remedy the 

defect or noncompliance. Therefore, any 

decision on this petition only applies to 

the subject vehicles that Tesla no longer 

controlled at the time it determined that 

the noncompliance existed. However, 

any decision on this petition does not 

relieve vehicle distributors and dealers 

of the prohibitions on the sale, offer for 

sale, or introduction or delivery for 

introduction into interstate commerce of 

the noncompliant vehicles under their 

control after Tesla notified them that the 

subject noncompliance existed. 

(Authority: 49 U.S.C. 30118, 30120; 

delegations of authority at 49 CFR 1.95 and 

501.8) 

Otto G. Matheke III, 

Director, Office of Vehicle Safety Compliance. 

[FR Doc. 2024–22181 Filed 9–26–24; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 4910–59–P 

DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION 

[Docket No. PHMSA–2024–0152] 

Pipeline Safety: Proposed ProjectSpecific Waiver of the Build America, 

Buy America Act Requirements for 

Certain Products Used by Philadelphia 

Gas Works 

AGENCY: Pipeline and Hazardous 

Materials Safety Administration 

(PHMSA), U.S. Department of 

Transportation (DOT). 

ACTION: Notice; request for comments. 

SUMMARY: The Pipeline and Hazardous 

Materials Safety Administration 

(PHMSA) is proposing to waive the 

Build America, Buy America (BABA) 

Act’s domestic preference requirements 

for certain products that Philadelphia 

Gas Works (PGW) needs for its Natural 

Gas Distribution Infrastructure Safety 

and Modernization (NGDISM) grant 

project. The proposed waiver would 

exempt the following products used in 

PGW’s project from BABA requirements 

on the basis of nonavailability: electrofusion tapping tees, anodeless risers, 

transition fittings, lockwing valves, 

magnesium anodes, service adapters, 

curb valves, caps, couplings, and 

stiffeners. In accordance with section 

70914(c) of BABA, PHMSA is seeking 

public comments on the proposed 

waiver. 

DATES: Comments must be received by 

October 15, 2024. 

ADDRESSES: Please submit your 

comments to the Federal eRulemaking 

Portal at http://www.regulations.gov, 

Docket No. PHMSA–2024–0152, and 

follow the online instructions for 

submitting comments. 

Instructions: You must include the 

agency name and docket number at the 

beginning of your comments. Except as 

described below under the heading 

‘‘Confidential Business Information,’’ all 

submissions received, including any 

personal information provided, will be 

posted without change or alteration to 

http://www.regulations.gov. For more 

information, you may review the U.S. 

Department of Transportation’s 

complete Privacy Act Statement 

published in the Federal Register on 

April 11, 2000 (65 FR 19477). 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: For 

questions about this notice, please 

contact Mr. Brandon Hollingshead, 

PHMSA Office of the Chief Counsel, 

202–366–4400, or via email at 

brandon.hollingshead@dot.gov. Office 

hours for PHMSA are from 8:30 a.m. to 

5:00 p.m., E.T., Monday through Friday, 

except Federal holidays. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

Electronic Access and Filing 

A copy of this Notice, all comments 

received on this Notice, and all 

background material may be viewed 

online at http://www.regulations.gov 

using the docket number listed above. 

Electronic retrieval help and guidelines 

are also available at http://

www.regulations.gov. An electronic 

copy of this document also may be 

downloaded from the Office of the 

Federal Register’s website at: 

www.FederalRegister.gov and the 

Government Publishing Office’s website 

at: www.GovInfo.gov. 

Confidential Business Information 

Confidential Business Information 

(CBI) is commercial or financial 

information that is both customarily and 

actually treated as private by its owner. 

Under the Freedom of Information Act 

(FOIA) (5 U.S.C. 552), CBI is exempt 

from public disclosure. If your 

comments responsive to this notice 

contain commercial or financial 

information that is customarily treated 

as private, that you actually treat as 

private, and that is relevant or 

responsive to this notice, it is important 

that you clearly designate the submitted 

comments as CBI. You may ask PHMSA 

to give confidential treatment to 

information you give to the agency by 

taking the following steps: (1) mark each 

page of the original document 

submission containing CBI as 

‘‘Confidential’’; (2) send PHMSA, along 

with the original document, a second 

copy of the original document with the 

CBI deleted; and (3) explain why the 

information you are submitting is CBI. 

Unless you are notified otherwise, 

PHMSA will treat such marked 

submissions as confidential under the 

FOIA, and they will not be placed in the 

public docket of this Notice. 

Submissions containing CBI should be 

sent to: Mr. Brandon Hollingshead, 

PHMSA, 1200 New Jersey Avenue SE, 

E26–316, Washington, DC 20590. Any 

comment submissions that PHMSA 

receives that are not specifically 

designated as CBI will be placed in the 

public docket for this matter. 

Background 

The NGDISM program was authorized 

by the Infrastructure Investment and 

Jobs Act (IIJA) (Pub. L. 117–58). The 

program provides Federal funding to 

municipal- or community-owned 

natural gas utilities (not including forprofit entities) to repair, rehabilitate, or 

replace their natural gas distribution 

pipeline systems or portions thereof, or 

to acquire equipment to (1) reduce 

incidents and fatalities and (2) avoid 

economic losses. The IIJA appropriates 

$200 million per year for each of Fiscal 

Years (FY) 2022 through 2026 for the 

NGDISM program ($1 billion in total). 

The IIJA provides that 2 percent of this 

amount shall be used to pay the 

administrative expenses of the NGDISM 

program. Accordingly, the total amount 

expected to be awarded as grant funding 

over the five-year period is 

$980,000,000. In FY2022, PHMSA 

awarded approximately $196 million to 

37 municipal- and community-owned 

natural gas utilities across the nation to 


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fund pipeline replacement projects and 

the purchase of leak-detection 

equipment. 

Congress also enacted the Build 

America, Buy America Act (BABA), 

providing that ‘‘none of the funds made 

available for a Federal financial 

assistance program for infrastructure 

. . . may be obligated for a project 

unless all of the iron, steel, 

manufactured products, and 

construction materials used in the 

project are produced in the United 

States.’’ IIJA, Public Law 117–58, 

section 70914(a). Under IIJA section 

70914(b), PHMSA has authority to 

waive the requirements of BABA (1) if 

a domestic product is unavailable, (2) if 

using a domestic product would present 

an unreasonable cost, or (3) if 

application of BABA would not be in 

the public interest. 

In FY2022, PGW was awarded $10 

million in NGDISM grant funding to 

help fund the replacement of ‘‘at-risk’’ 

cast iron natural gas main in historically 

disadvantaged census tracts within the 

City of Philadelphia as part of its 

‘‘Citywide Neighborhood Safety and 

Modernization’’ project. The project, 

which will be located entirely within 

Philadelphia’s historically 

disadvantaged census tracts, will 

replace approximately 6 miles of aging 

cast iron, ductile iron, and unprotected 

steel pipelines with modern 

polyethylene plastic pipe that is less 

susceptible to breakage due to earth 

movement—the biggest threat to PGW’s 

existing cast iron pipelines, especially 

during the winter months. 

Justification for Waiver 

PGW seeks a waiver of BABA 

requirements for certain products on the 

basis of nonavailability. The specific 

essential products PGW seeks a waiver 

for are listed below: 

• Electro-fusion tapping tees: Electrofusion tapping tees are rigid sections of 

polyethylene pipe that are fused to the 

top of an existing polyethylene pipeline. 

They are used to provide a branch outlet 

from a gas main to a service line. 

(NAICS: 326122) 

• Anodeless risers: Anodeless risers 

are sections of pipe that provide a 90- 

degree connection between 

underground gas service lines and 

aboveground meter assemblies. Risers 

are typically made of steel but may also 

include polyethylene components and 

may include a protective sleeve over the 

polyethylene components. Anodeless 

risers are manufactured in a variety of 

sizes and may be rigid or flexible. 

(NAICS: 33296) 

• Transition fittings: Transition 

fittings are adapters that facilitate 

below-grade transition from 

polyethylene pipe to steel pipe before it 

exits the ground. The steel section of the 

fitting is epoxy-coated for corrosion 

resistance. Transition fittings 

incorporate both steel and polyethylene 

components. (NAICS: 332919) 

• Lockwing valves: Lockwing valves 

are installed at the ‘‘head’’ of a service 

line, upstream of a meter assembly, and 

are used to stop or start the flow of gas. 

They are lockable to resist tampering or 

accidental opening of the valve. They 

are typically made of brass. (NAICS: 

332919) 

• Magnesium anodes: Magnesium 

anodes are blocks of magnesium that are 

attached to steel pipe in order to protect 

against corrosion damage. (NAICS: 

335999) 

• Service adapters: Service adapters 

are threaded fittings used on a meter set 

assembly above ground. They are 

typically made of steel and are used to 

connect two pieces of steel pipe in a 

meter assembly. (NAICS: 332919) 

• Curb valves: Curb valves are shutoff valves installed in a readilyaccessible outside location (such as in 

the footway). They are used to control 

the gas upstream of a gas meter, but 

downstream of the main service tee in 

the street. Curb valves can be made of 

either polyethylene or steel. PGW 

requires the use of polyethylene curb 

valves in its system. Accordingly, 

PHMSA proposes to waive BABA 

requirements for polyethylene curb 

valves. (NAICS: 326122) 

• Caps: Caps are added to a pipeline 

in order to close off sections of the 

pipeline or to cap off dead-end lines. 

Caps can be made of either polyethylene 

or steel, depending on the material of 

the pipe capped off. PGW is not able to 

find a BABA-compliant source for steel 

caps. Accordingly, PHMSA proposes to 

waive BABA requirements for steel 

caps. (NAICS: 332919) 

• Couplings: Couplings can be used 

to connect two sections of pipe made 

from either polyethylene, steel, ductile 

iron, or cast iron. PGW requires the use 

of steel couplings on its distribution 

system. Accordingly, PHMSA proposes 

to waive BABA requirements for 

couplings made of steel. (NAICS: 

332919) 

• Stiffeners: Stiffeners are inserted 

into plastic pipe alongside couplings to 

support the pipe, mitigate stress, and 

provide a long-lasting seal. (NAICS: 

326122) 

To conduct market research, PGW 

initially engaged with its normal 

suppliers of gas distribution pipeline 

parts. Eight of PGW’s normal suppliers 

indicated that they could provide 

BABA-compliant products but were not 

willing to certify to BABA compliance. 

One of PGW’s alternate suppliers 

indicated it could provide BABAcompliant caps, couplings, and 

stiffeners, albeit at an increased cost and 

a long lead time which would cause an 

estimated 36-week delay in PGW’s 

construction schedule, which is 

untenable for PGW’s project. PGW also 

reached out to neighboring gas utilities 

to inquire about their sources but was 

likewise unable to locate a domestic 

source for these products that way. 

On April 10, 2024, in an effort to 

locate additional alternative suppliers, 

PGW issued a Request for Quotation 

(RFQ) titled ‘‘One Time Purchase of 

BABA Compliant Alternatives.’’ The 

RFQ was publicly posted to PGW’s 

Procureware website, and was open 

from April 10, 2024 until April 29, 

2024. PGW invited 80 suppliers and 

manufacturers to submit bids. As a 

result of the RFQ, PGW identified 

BABA-compliant alternatives for 8 types 

of products for which PGW was not 

previously able to find domestic 

sources. However, PGW still was not 

able to find suitable or readily available 

alternatives for the 10 products 

proposed to be waived herein. 

On these bases, PHMSA has 

preliminarily determined that these 

products are not manufactured in the 

United States in sufficient and 

reasonably available quantities or of a 

satisfactory quality. 

Proposed Waiver and Request for 

Comments 

PHMSA proposes to waive the 

requirements of BABA for the above 

listed products for PGW’s ‘‘Citywide 

Neighborhood Safety and 

Modernization’’ project funded by 

NGDISM grant funds. The waiver would 

be applicable only to PGW’s project; it 

would not be applicable to any other 

NGDISM grant recipient’s projects. The 

proposed waiver would be effective 

from the effective date of the final 

waiver through the period of 

performance and closeout of PHMSA’s 

financial assistance for the project, 

which is estimated to be June 30, 2029. 

If the sources of Federal financial 

assistance applied to the project are 

changed, PHMSA will consider whether 

the waiver continues to be warranted, 

taking into account the project’s 

development status at that time and any 

changes in market conditions for the 

products subject to the waiver. 

PGW was awarded $10 million in 

NGDISM grant funding in FY2022. 

However, labor costs, rather than 

materials costs, typically make up the 

majority of costs in pipeline 

replacement projects. PGW estimates 


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79362 Federal Register / Vol. 89, No. 188 / Friday, September 27, 2024 / Notices 

that only $856,941 of the total project 

budget will be spent on materials. Out 

of this amount, PGW anticipates that 

only about $140,201 would be spent on 

the products proposed to be waived 

herein—or 16 percent of PGW’s 

materials costs. This $140,201 is further 

split across ten different products. 

By contrast, the proposed waiver 

would have a significant impact on 

PGW’s ability to successfully complete 

its NGDISM projects. Absent the 

proposed waiver, PGW will not be able 

to comply with BABA requirements for 

the above listed products, either because 

PGW’s market research was not able to 

identify any domestic sources, or it is 

not feasible for PGW to utilize the 

domestic source it did identify due to 

the extreme construction delays that 

would result. 

While PGW did find a domestic 

source for caps, couplings, and 

stiffeners, the manufacturer indicated 

that it would need a lead time of 14- to 

16-weeks from the date of order before 

it could supply BABA-compliant 

versions of these products to PGW. To 

ensure the safety of the public, PGW 

would first need to order a sample of the 

new products to conduct quality control 

testing, which PGW indicated could 

take up to 4 weeks. If the new products 

pass quality control testing, PGW would 

then need to place a full order for the 

new products, resulting in another 14- 

to 16-week lead time to receive them. 

The entire process, from initial ordering 

of sample products to receipt and 

acceptance of the full order, could result 

in a construction delay of up to 36 

weeks. Distribution gas construction 

cannot proceed without these primary 

components and the alternative 

extended lead time prolongs the time of 

exposure to potential leaks and threats 

to life and property. A delayed 

construction schedule could result in 

safety impacts for PGW’s customers, 

especially those located in five USDOTdesignated historically disadvantaged 

neighborhoods within the project area. 

PGW estimates that such a delay would 

push its projected FY2025 project 

completion to the summer of FY2026, 

subjecting these customers to an 

additional winter season with sag 

service by cast iron pipes—a time when 

gas leaks are more likely to occur due 

to frost heave and other winter ground 

movement. Combined with the age of 

PGW’s cast iron pipelines in these 

neighborhoods, this would create an 

appreciably increased risk to residents 

in these neighborhoods. 

Under OMB Memorandum M–24–02, 

agencies are expected to assess 

‘‘whether a significant portion of any 

cost advantage of a foreign-sourced 

product is the result of the use of 

dumped steel, iron, or manufactured 

products or the use of injuriously 

subsidized steel, iron, or manufactured 

products’’ as appropriate before granting 

a public interest waiver. PHMSA’s 

analysis has concluded that this 

assessment is not applicable to this 

waiver, as it is being proposed on the 

basis of nonavailability, rather than 

public interest or unreasonable cost. 

PHMSA will consider all comments 

received in the initial 15-day comment 

period during our consideration of the 

proposed waiver, as required by section 

70914(c)(2) of the IIJA. Comments 

received after this period, but before 

notice of our finding is published in the 

Federal Register, will be considered to 

the extent practicable. 

Issued in Washington, DC, on September 

23, 2024, under authority delegated in 49 

CFR 1.97. 

Tristan H. Brown, 

Deputy Administrator. 

[FR Doc. 2024–22120 Filed 9–26–24; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 4910–60–P 

DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION 

Pipeline and Hazardous Materials 

Safety Administration 

[Docket No. PHMSA–2024–0151] 

Pipeline Safety: Proposed ProjectSpecific Waiver of the Build America, 

Buy America Act Requirements for 

City Utilities of Springfield, Missouri 

for Certain Products 

AGENCY: Pipeline and Hazardous 

Materials Safety Administration 

(PHMSA), Department of Transportation 

(DOT). 

ACTION: Notice; request for comments. 

SUMMARY: The Pipeline and Hazardous 

Materials Safety Administration 

(PHMSA) proposes to waive the Build 

America, Buy America (BABA) Act’s 

domestic preference requirements for 

certain products that City Utilities of 

Springfield (City Utilities) will use in its 

Natural Gas Distribution Infrastructure 

Safety and Modernization (NGDISM) 

grant project. The proposed waiver 

would exempt the following products 

used in City Utilities’ project from 

BABA requirements on the basis of 

nonavailability: locator markers; meter 

stops with insulated unions; magnesium 

anodes; 1A meter swivels, nuts, and 

washers; and direct bury lugs. In 

accordance with section 70914(c) of 

BABA, PHMSA is seeking public 

comments on the proposed waiver. 

DATES: Comments must be received by 

October 15, 2024. 

ADDRESSES: Please submit your 

comments to the Federal eRulemaking 

Portal at http://www.regulations.gov, 

Docket No. PHMSA–2024–0151, and 

follow the online instructions for 

submitting comments. 

Instructions: You must include the 

agency name and docket number at the 

beginning of your comments. Except as 

described below under the heading 

‘‘Confidential Business Information,’’ all 

submissions received, including any 

personal information provided, will be 

posted without change or alteration to 

http://www.regulations.gov. For more 

information, you may review the U.S. 

Department of Transportation’s 

complete Privacy Act Statement 

published in the Federal Register on 

April 11, 2000, (65 FR 19477). 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: For 

questions about this notice, please 

contact Mr. Brandon Hollingshead, 

PHMSA Office of the Chief Counsel, 

202–366–4400, or via email at 

brandon.hollingshead@dot.gov. Office 

hours for PHMSA are from 8:30 a.m. to 

5 p.m., E.T., Monday through Friday, 

except Federal holidays. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

Electronic Access and Filing 

A copy of this Notice, all comments 

received on this Notice, and all 

background material may be viewed 

online at http://www.regulations.gov 

using the docket number listed above. 

Electronic retrieval help and guidelines 

are also available at http://

www.regulations.gov. An electronic 

copy of this document also may be 

downloaded from the Office of the 

Federal Register’s website at: 

www.FederalRegister.gov and the 

Government Publishing Office’s website 

at: www.GovInfo.gov. 

Confidential Business Information 

Confidential Business Information 

(CBI) is commercial or financial 

information that is both customarily and 

actually treated as private by its owner. 

Under the Freedom of Information Act 

(FOIA) (5 U.S.C. 552), CBI is exempt 

from public disclosure. If your 

comments responsive to this notice 

contain commercial or financial 

information that is customarily treated 

as private, that you actually treat as 

private, and that is relevant or 

responsive to this notice, it is important 

that you clearly designate the submitted 

comments as CBI. You may ask PHMSA 

to give confidential treatment to 

information you give to the agency by 

taking the following steps: (1) mark each 

page of the original document 

submission containing CBI as 


lotter on DSK11XQN23PROD with NOTICES1