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 


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Federal Register / Vol. 89, No. 188 / Friday, September 27, 2024 / Notices 79363 

‘‘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 and Justification for 

Waiver 

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 

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, City Utilities was awarded 

$10 million in NGDISM grant funding to 

help fund its ‘‘Legacy Plastic Pipe 

Replacement Project,’’ which it initiated 

in 2010. City Utilities operates 

approximately 500 miles of ‘‘Aldyl A’’ 

plastic distribution pipeline within 

disadvantaged areas of Springfield, 

Missouri. Aldyl A is a type of plastic 

commonly used in gas pipelines in the 

1960s and 1970s. Aldyl A has since 

been found to be susceptible to 

premature brittle-like failures when 

subjected to stress intensification, 

presenting a high risk of leakage and 

associated safety hazards. Additionally, 

the Aldyl A pipe operated by City 

Utilities lacks continuous tracer wire, 

which is used to locate underground 

pipelines prior to excavation to avoid 

damaging the pipelines in the course of 

excavation. The $10 million awarded 

would allow City Utilities to speed up 

its Legacy Plastic Pipe Replacement 

Project by funding the replacement of 

approximately 13.7 miles of legacy 

Aldyl A pipe and approximately 1,409 

legacy plastic gas services with modern, 

industry-standard polyethylene pipe. 

City Utilities will also use the grant 

funds to install a locator system on the 

new pipeline, allowing the pipe to be 

located during subsequent excavations 

near the pipeline, thereby ensuring the 

pipe is not damaged. 

On December 13, 2023, City Utilities 

issued an Invitation for Bids (IFB) 

seeking, among other products, locator 

markers; meter stops with insulated 

union; magnesium anodes; 1A meter 

swivels, nuts, and washers; and direct 

bury lugs. A more detailed description 

of each of these products is provided 

below: 

• Locator Markers: Locator markers 

are small devices placed on buried pipe 

and valves designed to help operators 

locate the infrastructure before 

excavation to help prevent damage to 

the pipe from excavation equipment. 

(NAICS: 325211) 

• Meter Stops with Insulated Union: 

Meter Stops are valves that are installed 

above a natural gas riser upstream of the 

meter to serve as a shut-off valve to 

control the flow of gas into the meter 

and subsequently into the building’s gas 

system. They are crucial for 

maintenance, emergencies, or when the 

gas service needs to be shut off. 

Insulated Unions are fittings attached to 

the above ground portion of a natural 

gas utility riser in order to electrically 

insulate (i.e., isolate) a structure from 

the pipeline system to prevent 

corrosion. (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) 

• 1A Meter Swivels, Nuts, and 

Washers: Meter swivels, nuts, and 

washers are fasteners used to secure a 

gas meter assembly. (NAICS: 33251/ 

332722) 

• Direct Bury Lugs: Direct Bury Lugs 

are waterproof connectors used for 

splicing low-voltage wires, like those 

used in tracer wire, without cutting the 

main line wire. They simplify 

installation and increase the longevity 

of the connection with pre-filled 

silicone sealant for waterproofing. 

(NAICS: 332999) 

The IFB remained open for more than 

a month, between December 13, 2023, 

and January 15, 2024. In response to the 

IFB, City Utilities received seven 

responsive bids. However, each of the 

respondents to the IFB represented that 

they would not be able to certify 

compliance with BABA requirements 

for the above listed products. 

Additionally, prior to City Utilities 

requesting this waiver, PHMSA 

independently engaged the supplier 

scouting services of the National 

Institute of Standards and Technology 

Manufacturing Extension Partnership 

(NIST MEP) to search for domestic 

manufacturers of 1A meter swivels, 

nuts, and washers. At the conclusion of 

the process, NIST MEP identified 

several companies who stated they had 

the capability to manufacture these 

products. However, these companies 

declined to do so because it would be 

cost prohibitive for them to begin 

domestic manufacture of these products 

in the quantities that City Utilities needs 

to purchase for its NGDISM project. 

Accordingly, supplier scouting did not 

result in identification of any sources 

that could or would manufacture these 

products domestically. 

On these bases, PHMSA has 

determined that locator markers, meter 

stops with insulated unions, magnesium 

anodes, 1A meter swivels, nuts, and 

washers, and direct bury lugs 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 City Utilities’ Legacy 

Plastic Pipe Replacement Project funded 

by NGDISM grant funds. The waiver 

would be applicable only to City 

Utilities’ 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 


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79364 Federal Register / Vol. 89, No. 188 / Friday, September 27, 2024 / Notices 

the period of performance and closeout 

of PHMSA financial assistance for the 

project, estimated to be February 21, 

2028. 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. 

Although City Utilities was awarded 

$10 million in NGDISM grant funding in 

FY2022, the majority of funding in 

NGDISM projects typically goes towards 

labor costs rather than materials costs. 

City Utilities estimates that for its 

FY2022 project the total cost of the 

products proposed to be waived equals 

approximately $72,000, divided across 

five types of products. NIST MEP 

identified several companies who have 

the capability to manufacture 1A meter 

swivels, nuts, and washers, yet declined 

to do so after engagement with City 

Utilities on the grounds that it would be 

cost prohibitive to manufacture these 

products at the relatively small scale 

needed by City Utilities. 

By contrast, the proposed waiver 

would have a large impact on City 

Utilities’ ability to successfully 

complete its NGDISM project and 

deliver meaningful safety benefits to 

disadvantaged areas of Springfield, MO. 

All of the products listed herein are 

essential to the proper construction of a 

natural gas distribution pipeline. If this 

waiver is not approved, City Utilities’ 

project will not be completed 

successfully. Additionally, City Utilities 

estimates that its total materials costs for 

the project will equal approximately 

$800,000. The cost of the products 

proposed to be waived therefore equates 

to 9 percent of City Utilities’ total 

materials costs, which is above the five 

percent threshold applicable to DOT’s 

Waiver of Buy America Requirements 

for De Minimis Costs and Small Grants 

(88 FR 55817). 

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. 2024–22118 Filed 9–26–24; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 4910–60–P 

DEPARTMENT OF THE TREASURY 

Office of the Comptroller of the 

Currency 

Agency Information Collection 

Activities: Information Collection 

Renewal; Submission for OMB Review; 

Supervisory Guidance on Stress 

Testing for Banking Organizations 

With Total Consolidated Assets of 

More Than $10 Billion 

AGENCY: Office of the Comptroller of the 

Currency (OCC), Treasury. 

ACTION: Notice and request for comment. 

SUMMARY: The OCC, as part of its 

continuing effort to reduce paperwork 

and respondent burden, invites 

comment on a continuing information 

collection, as required by the Paperwork 

Reduction Act of 1995 (PRA). In 

accordance with the requirements of the 

PRA, the OCC may not conduct or 

sponsor, and the respondent is not 

required to respond to, an information 

collection unless it displays a currently 

valid Office of Management and Budget 

(OMB) control number. The OCC is 

soliciting comment concerning the 

renewal of its information collection 

titled, ‘‘Supervisory Guidance on Stress 

Testing for Banking Organizations with 

Total Consolidated Assets of More Than 

$10 Billion.’’ The OCC also is giving 

notice that it has sent the collection to 

OMB for review. 

DATES: Comments must be submitted on 

or before October 28, 2024. 

ADDRESSES: Commenters are encouraged 

to submit comments by email, if 

possible. You may submit comments by 

any of the following methods: 

• Email: prainfo@occ.treas.gov. 

• Mail: Chief Counsel’s Office, 

Attention: Comment Processing, Office 

of the Comptroller of the Currency, 

Attention: 1557–0312, 400 7th Street 

SW, Suite 3E–218, Washington, DC 

20219. 

• Hand Delivery/Courier: 400 7th 

Street SW, Suite 3E–218, Washington, 

DC 20219. 

• Fax: (571) 293–4835. 

Instructions: You must include 

‘‘OCC’’ as the agency name and ‘‘1557– 

0312’’ in your comment. In general, the 

OCC will publish comments on 

www.reginfo.gov without change, 

including any business or personal 

information provided, such as name and 

address information, email addresses, or 

phone numbers. Comments received, 

including attachments and other 

supporting materials, are part of the 

public record and subject to public 

disclosure. Do not include any 

information in your comment or 

supporting materials that you consider 

confidential or inappropriate for public 

disclosure. 

Written comments and 

recommendations for the proposed 

information collection should also be 

sent within 30 days of publication of 

this notice to www.reginfo.gov/public/ 

do/PRAMain. You can find this 

information collection by selecting 

‘‘Currently under 30-day Review—Open 

for Public Comments’’ or by using the 

search function. 

You may review comments and other 

related materials that pertain to this 

information collection following the 

close of the 30-day comment period for 

this notice by the method set forth in 

the next bullet. 

• Viewing Comments Electronically: 

Go to www.reginfo.gov. Hover over the 

‘‘Information Collection Review’’ tab 

and click on ‘‘Information Collection 

Review’’ from the drop-down menu. 

From the ‘‘Currently under Review’’ 

drop-down menu, select ‘‘Department of 

Treasury’’ and then click ‘‘submit.’’ This 

information collection can be located by 

searching by OMB control number 

‘‘1557–0312’’ or ‘‘Supervisory Guidance 

on Stress Testing for Banking 

Organizations with Total Consolidated 

Assets of More Than $10 Billion.’’ Upon 

finding the appropriate information 

collection, click on the related ‘‘ICR 

Reference Number.’’ On the next screen, 

select ‘‘View Supporting Statement and 

Other Documents’’ and then click on the 

link to any comment listed at the bottom 

of the screen. 

• For assistance in navigating 

www.reginfo.gov, please contact the 

Regulatory Information Service Center 

at (202) 482–7340. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Shaquita Merritt, Clearance Officer, 

(202) 649–5490, Chief Counsel’s Office, 

Office of the Comptroller of the 

Currency, 400 7th Street SW, 

Washington, DC 20219. If you are deaf, 

hard of hearing, or have a speech 

disability, please dial 7–1–1 to access 

telecommunications relay services. 


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