90824 Federal Register / Vol. 89, No. 222 / Monday, November 18, 2024 / Notices 

goal(s). Title I of the Foundations for 

Evidence-Based Policymaking Act of 

2018 (Evidence Act), (Pub. L. 115–435) 

urges Federal awarding agencies and 

Federal assistance recipients and 

subrecipients to use program evaluation 

as a critical tool to learn, to improve 

equitable delivery, and to elevate 

program service and delivery across the 

program lifecycle. Evaluation means ‘‘an 

assessment using systematic data 

collection and analysis of one or more 

programs, policies, and organizations 

intended to assess their effectiveness 

and efficiency.’’ 5 U.S.C. 311. Credible 

program evaluation activities are 

implemented with relevance and utility, 

rigor, independence and objectivity, 

transparency, and ethics (OMB Circular 

A–11, part 6 section 290). 

Reporting and Payment 

Post-award reporting requirements 

include the electronic submission of 

Federal Financial Reports and Milestone 

Progress Reports in TrAMS quarterly. 

Documentation is required for payment. 

Additional reporting may be required 

specific to the program prescribed in 

this Notice, and the recipient may be 

expected to participate in events or peer 

networks related to the goals and 

objectives of the program. The Federal 

Financial Accountability and 

Transparency Act (FFATA) requires 

data entry at the FFATA Sub Award 

Reporting System (https://

www.FSRS.gov) for all sub-awards and 

sub-contracts issued for $30,000 or 

more, as well as addressing executive 

compensation for both award recipients 

and sub-award organizations. The 

recipient will be required to disburse 

via Delphi and E-invoicing. 

The successful applicant should 

include any goals, targets, and 

indicators referenced in its application 

in the Executive Summary of the 

TrAMS application. 

As part of completing the annual 

certifications and assurances required of 

FTA grant recipients, a successful 

applicant must report on the suspension 

or debarment status of itself and its 

principals. 

If the recipient’s active grants, 

cooperative agreements, and 

procurement contracts from all Federal 

awarding agencies exceed $10,000,000 

for any period during the period of 

performance of an award made pursuant 

to this Notice, the recipient must 

comply with the Recipient Integrity and 

Performance Matters reporting 

requirements described in appendix XII 

to 2 CFR part 200. 

G. Federal Awarding Agency Contacts 

For further information concerning 

this notice, please contact the Bus 

Safety and Accessibility Research 

Program Manager, Maria Roell, in the 

FTA Office of Infrastructure, Safety and 

Asset Innovation, by email at 

maria.roell@dot.gov. A TDD is available 

for individuals who are deaf or hard of 

hearing at 800–877–8339. In addition, 

FTA will post answers to questions and 

requests for clarifications on FTA’s 

website at https://www.transit.dot.gov/ 

notices-funding/fiscal-year-2025-bussafety-and-accessibility-research-noticefunding. 

To ensure applicants receive accurate 

information about eligibility or the 

program, applicants are encouraged to 

contact FTA directly with questions 

rather than through intermediaries or 

third parties. FTA staff may also 

conduct briefings on the competitive 

applications selection and award 

process upon request. 

For issues with grants.gov, please 

contact grants.gov by phone at 1–800– 

518–4726 or by email at support@

grants.gov. 

H. Other Information 

This program is not subject to 

Executive Order 12372, 

‘‘Intergovernmental Review of Federal 

Programs.’’ There are resources 

available that may help in responding to 

this Notice, as listed below. The FTA 

website has information about FTA, 

application forms, statutory and 

administrative requirements, etc. 

Applicants are encouraged to use the 

FTA link provided and other 

information, as listed, as much as is 

needed. 

Veronica Vanterpool, 

Deputy Administrator. 

[FR Doc. 2024–26835 Filed 11–15–24; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 4910–57–P 

DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION 

Federal Transit Administration 

[Docket No. FTA–2024–0007] 

Notice of Extension of Partial Buy 

America Waiver for Vans and Minivans 

AGENCY: Federal Transit Administration 

(FTA), Department of Transportation 

(DOT). 

ACTION: Notice of extension of Buy 

America waiver. 

SUMMARY: Following consideration of 

comments, and because the Federal 

Transit Administration (FTA) has been 

unable to identify any manufacturer of 

non-Americans with Disabilities Act 

(ADA)-accessible vans and minivans 

that fully complies with Buy America, 

FTA is extending its partial, timelimited, general nonavailability waiver 

from the requirements of Buy America 

for a period of five years, or upon 

publication of a recission notice if FTA 

determines that a fully Buy Americacompliant vehicle has become available, 

whichever occurs first. The waiver 

terms are described in this notice. 

DATES: The waiver extension is 

applicable on November 18, 2024. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Jason Luebbers, FTA Attorney-Advisor, 

at (202) 366–8864 or jason.luebbers@

dot.gov. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: This 

notice grants an extension of FTA’s 

October 25, 2022, partial general 

nonavailability waiver for massproduced, unmodified vans and 

minivans (87 FR 64534). The waiver 

extension will expire after five years, or 

upon publication of a recission notice if 

FTA determines that a fully Buy 

America-compliant vehicle has become 

available, whichever occurs first. 

Background 

On November 15, 2021, President 

Biden signed into law the Build 

America, Buy America Act (BABA), 

enacted as title IX of the Infrastructure 

Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA) (Pub. L. 

117–58, div. G, sections 70901–70927). 

BABA requires Federal agencies 

periodically to review existing general 

applicability waivers of Buy America 

requirements by publishing in the 

Federal Register a notice that: (i) 

describes the justification for a general 

applicability waiver and (ii) requests 

public comments for a period of not less 

than 30 days on the continued need for 

the general applicability waiver. BABA 

section 70914(d). 

FTA is issuing this waiver extension 

following its review of comments 

received in response to its Notice of 

FTA’s Review of Its Partial Waiver of 

Buy America Requirements for Vans 

and Minivans and Request for 

Comment, published in the Federal 

Register on August 22, 2024 (89 FR 

68027). 

Partial General Buy America Waiver 

for Vans and Minivans 

Under FTA’s Buy America statute (49 

U.S.C. 5323(j)), FTA may obligate funds 

for a project to procure rolling stock 

only if the cost of components and 

subcomponents produced in the United 

States is more than 70 percent of the 

cost of all components of the rolling 

stock, and final assembly of the rolling 


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Federal Register / Vol. 89, No. 222 / Monday, November 18, 2024 / Notices 90825 

stock occurs in the United States. 49 

U.S.C. 5323(j)(2)(C). A manufacturer of 

rolling stock must submit to pre-award 

and post-delivery audits and 

independent inspections to verify its 

compliance with Buy America. 49 

U.S.C. 5323(m). 

On October 25, 2022, following 

multiple individual requests for a Buy 

America waiver for non-ADA-accessible 

vans or minivans that can be used in 

federally funded vanpool programs, 

FTA issued a partial, time-limited, 

general nonavailability waiver from the 

Buy America requirements for massproduced, unmodified, non-ADAaccessible vans and minivans with 

seating capacity for at least six adults, 

not including the driver (87 FR 64534). 

FTA issued a partial waiver to maximize 

the use of materials produced in the 

United States, consistent with Executive 

Order 14005, Ensuring the Future Is 

Made in All of America by All of 

America’s Workers (86 FR 7475). In lieu 

of applying the general Buy America 

standards for rolling stock, the 2022 

waiver required the following: 

(1) Final assembly must occur in the 

United States, as reported to the 

National Traffic Safety Administration 

(NHTSA) under the American 

Automobile Labeling Act (AALA); and 

(2) The country of origin of the engine 

or motor must be the United States, as 

reported to NHTSA under the AALA. 

See 49 U.S.C. 32304 and 49 CFR part 

583. 

FTA also limited its 2022 waiver to 

expire automatically after two years. 

In its August 22, 2024, notice, FTA 

requested comments from all interested 

parties regarding whether FTA should 

extend the waiver, modify the waiver, or 

allow it to lapse. FTA also asked six 

questions related to the waiver, and 

requested that commenters, in 

answering the questions, explain the 

likely impacts of the suggested course of 

action for FTA on administering and 

delivering FTA-funded projects and on 

supporting domestic manufacturing and 

jobs. The questions are reprinted below. 

In accordance with subsection 

70916(c) of the Build America, Buy 

America Act (BABA) (Title IX of the 

Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, 

Pub. L. 117–58), FTA consulted with the 

National Institute of Standards and 

Technology’s Hollings Manufacturing 

Extension Partnership (MEP) concerning 

a possible waiver extension, which 

determined that no domestic entity 

currently manufactures the subject vans 

and minivans in compliance with Buy 

America requirements. 

General Considerations 

FTA’s August 22, 2024, notice posed 

the following questions to the public 

concerning a possible waiver extension. 

1. Are there any unmodified nonADA-accessible vans or minivans with 

seating capacity for at least six adults, 

not including the driver, for which the 

cost of components and subcomponents 

produced in the United States is more 

than 70 percent of the cost of all 

components, and final assembly of the 

vehicle occurs in the United States? 

a. If so, which vehicles? 

b. If so, in what quantity are they 

available? 

2. Do the market conditions that led 

to FTA’s decision to issue the partial 

van and minivan waiver still exist and, 

if so, do they warrant continuing the 

waiver? 

3. What actions could FTA take, if 

any, to promote the domestic 

production of Buy America-compliant 

vans and minivans? 

4. Is there a publicly available source 

better suited than AALA reports 

(https://www.nhtsa.gov/part-583- 

american-automobile-labeling-actreports) to determine the domestic 

content and country of final assembly 

for vans and minivans? If so, please 

specify the data source and explain why 

it is preferred. 

Considerations for Modifying the Waiver 

5. If FTA were to modify the van and 

minivan waiver, what would be the 

likely impact on administering and 

delivering Federal transit projects? In 

what ways could modifications to the 

waiver promote or hinder the effective 

and efficient delivery of Federal transit 

projects across the United States? As 

examples, commenters may wish to 

consider the following modifications to 

the van and minivan waiver, specifying 

the likely impact of each and explaining 

why that impact is likely to occur: 

a. In addition to engines and motors, 

require U.S.-manufactured 

transmissions as reported to NHTSA 

under the AALA. 

b. Add a requirement that a vehicle 

contain some minimum percentage of 

‘‘Content US/Canada,’’ as defined by 

and reported to NHTSA under the 

AALA. 

6. FTA is also interested in any other 

proposals to modify the waiver not 

listed here that would meet the goals of 

promoting the efficient delivery of 

Federal transit projects and supporting 

domestic manufacturing and jobs. For 

each proposal, please explain how the 

waiver modification proposed achieves 

both goals and provide supporting 

information or documentation, where 

applicable. 

Response to Comments 

FTA received 51 comments from 56 

different commenters, including transit 

operators, associations, state 

departments of transportation, 

metropolitan planning organizations, 

and the general public. All but one 

comment supported extending the 

waiver. 

The comments in favor of an 

extension tended to be broadly 

supportive of the waiver and did not for 

the most part respond to specific 

questions FTA posed to the public. The 

supportive comments concurred that no 

known manufacturer currently meets all 

of FTA’s Buy America requirements. 

Comments described the important role 

of vanpools to combat climate change, 

lower traffic congestion, and support 

commuters and equitable service, 

including service to the elderly, persons 

with disabilities that do not require 

ADA accessible vehicles, and rural 

communities for which full-sized buses 

are inappropriate. Comments from 

vanpool operators described their efforts 

to update or expand their aging fleets, 

and said they cannot succeed without 

an extension of the waiver. The 

supportive comments affirmed the 

necessity of extending the waiver to 

allow transit operators to continue 

purchasing vans and minivans using 

FTA grant funds. 

Comment Opposed To Extending the 

Waiver 

The single comment opposed to 

extending the waiver stated: ‘‘Buy 

America can rely on used van and 

minivan parts in junkyards across 

America that are being totally ignored’’. 

The comment did not provide any 

further detail about the junkyard 

suggestion. While junk or salvage yards 

may be excellent sources for vehicle 

parts in some situations, FTA considers 

the junkyard option an impractical 

alternative for transit operators, who in 

almost all cases require new vehicles for 

their fleet purchases. 

Requests To Lengthen the Waiver Period 

When FTA approved the 2022 waiver, 

it set the waiver to expire automatically 

after two years. Twenty-eight comments 

requested extending the waiver for a 

period longer than two-years. Five 

comments suggested a five-year 

extension. One of these comments said 

five years is an appropriate length 

because the relatively small percentage 

of vans and minivans purchased using 

FTA funds means the availability of Buy 

America-compliant vans or minivans is 

unlikely to change in the foreseeable 

future, and because a five-year review 


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90826 Federal Register / Vol. 89, No. 222 / Monday, November 18, 2024 / Notices 

1While this is true of Buy America requirements, 

there are other laws that restrict vehicle purchases 

based on the country where the vehicle 

manufacturer is headquartered or has corporate 

relations. See FTA’s guidance regarding the 

National Defense Authorization Act of 2020: 

https://www.transit.dot.gov/funding/procurement/ 

frequently-asked-questions-regarding-section-7613- 

national-defense. 

period is what BABA specifies for 

general waivers. BABA § 70914(d)(1) 

(‘‘An existing general applicability 

waiver or a general applicability waiver 

. . . shall be reviewed every 5 years 

after the date on which the waiver is 

issued’’). One comment suggested that 

the waiver should be of indefinite 

duration, pending the availability of a 

Buy America-compliant product. 

FTA agrees with the comments that 

suggested a five-year extension. An 

expiration after five years accords with 

BABA’s requirement that general 

waivers be reviewed quinquennially, 

and the Made in America Office’s 

national policy that general waivers 

have expiration dates. FTA also agrees 

that the availability of Buy Americacompliant vans or minivans is unlikely 

to change in the foreseeable future. 

Therefore, a waiver of a shorter duration 

would add uncertainty and 

administrative burdens by requiring 

more frequent extensions, without 

generating any public benefit. FTA can 

rescind the waiver at any time if a Buy 

America-compliant van or minivan 

becomes available before the end of the 

five years. 

Support for Extending the Domestic 

Requirements of the 2022 Partial Waiver 

To maximize domestic content, the 

2022 waiver required U.S. manufactured 

engines and final assembly. FTA sought 

comment from the public as to whether 

it should revise these requirements in a 

waiver extension. 

Twenty-seven comments 

recommended extending the waiver 

with the same domestic manufacturing 

requirements as the 2022 waiver. 

Comments generally supported the 

current waiver as maximizing domestic 

content among van and minivan options 

while at the same time allowing transit 

operators to replace or expand their 

fleets using FTA funds. 

Three comments asserted the 

requirements of the 2022 waiver are too 

restrictive. One of these comments said 

there is a shortage of vehicles that 

comply with the 2022 waiver, and this 

has led to difficulty expanding and 

updating vanpool fleets. However, this 

comment did not recommend any 

particular change to the waiver, and did 

not provide any specific data regarding 

how the requirements of the 2022 

waiver have impaired the commenter’s 

ability to replace or add vehicles. 

One comment suggested relaxing the 

restrictions in the 2022 waiver to allow 

manufacturing and assembly anywhere 

in North America. This comment 

suggested doing so would make more 

hybrid and electric vehicles available, 

but it did not identify particular models 

to which it was referring. 

Another comment requested that FTA 

eliminate the requirement that the 

vehicle’s engine be manufactured in the 

United States. This comment stated the 

engine requirement excludes numerous 

vehicles that otherwise have high levels 

of domestic content according to the 

AALA reports. 

In response to these comments that 

requested that FTA relax the 

requirements of the 2022 waiver, FTA 

notes the following: Notwithstanding 

that relaxation of the waiver’s 

requirements would result in a greater 

selection of vehicles to purchase, none 

of the commenters said they were 

unable to comply with the 2022 

waiver’s requirements, or that they have 

been unable to obtain the type of 

vehicles they require under the 2022 

waiver. With regard to the comment that 

the engine requirement of the 2022 

waiver excludes vehicles with high 

domestic content reported under the 

AALA, the AALA reports show a value 

for combined U.S. and Canadian 

content, not U.S. content by itself. 

Absent more specific information about 

the U.S. content in these excluded 

vehicles, it is difficult for FTA to weigh 

the relative benefits to U.S. industry of 

eliminating the engine requirement, and 

so FTA declines to revise the waiver in 

response to this comment. 

FTA agrees with the majority of 

comments that request maintaining the 

requirements of the 2022 waiver. 

Other Comments 

Some comments raised issues that 

were not germane to the pending waiver 

proposal. Two comments complained in 

general terms about the cost of 

complying with Buy America. One 

comment claimed Buy America causes 

$30,000 to $40,000 of ‘‘add-ons’’ to the 

Ram ProMaster in order for the vehicle 

to achieve 70% domestic content by 

cost, and that this is pushing vehicles 

beyond affordability. These comments 

are beyond the scope of the present 

action. FTA is not proposing revisions 

to Buy America requirements generally; 

it is only considering a limited, partial 

waiver of Buy America requirements to 

allow the purchase of certain vans and 

minivans. 

Two comments complained that there 

exist vehicles with high domestic 

content, that are produced in the United 

States, but which the commenters 

cannot buy because of ‘‘foreign 

ownership’’ or ‘‘because they are 

Japanese or Korean owned companies’’. 

These comments appear to indicate a 

misunderstanding of Buy America and 

the 2022 waiver. Buy America’s 

standards for rolling stock require a 

minimum percentage of U.S. 

components and subcomponents by cost 

and U.S. final assembly. Neither Buy 

America nor the 2022 waiver excludes 

vehicles based on the countries where 

their global brands are headquartered or 

historically originated.1

Finding on Waiver 

For the reasons stated in FTA’s 

August 22, 2024, notice, and based on 

comments received from the public, 

FTA is extending the October 25, 2022, 

waiver for vans and minivans. 

For mass-produced, unmodified nonADA accessible vans and minivans with 

seating capacity for at least six adults 

not including the driver, in lieu of 

applying the Buy America standards for 

rolling stock, FTA will require: 

(1) Final assembly must be in the 

United States, as reported to NHTSA 

under the AALA; and 

(2) The country of origin of the engine 

(or electric vehicle motor) must be the 

United States, as reported to NHTSA 

under the AALA. 

The waiver is available to all FTA 

grant recipients. FTA recipients do not 

need to submit individual applications 

for nonavailability waivers for these 

vehicles. The waiver applies to 

contracts recipients award during the 

waiver period. This waiver expires five 

years after the effective date of this 

notice as published in the Federal 

Register. FTA will review this waiver 

twice during the waiver period to assess 

whether it remains necessary. Based on 

the results of that review, FTA will take 

such action as deemed appropriate, 

including but not limited to rescinding, 

or narrowing the scope or duration of 

the waiver. 

Veronica Vanterpool, 

Deputy Administrator. 

[FR Doc. 2024–26832 Filed 11–15–24; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 4910–57–P 


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