Federal Register / Vol. 87, No. 14 / Friday, January 21, 2022 / Notices 3365 

MAY 16, 2022—Continued 

10:55 a.m.–11:10 a.m .............................. Discussion/Questions ................................................................................................ OPEN. 

11:10 a.m.–11:30 a.m .............................. IRG–1 Presentation ................................................................................................... OPEN. 

11:30 a.m.–11:35 a.m .............................. Discussion/Questions ................................................................................................ OPEN. 

11:35 a.m.–11:45 a.m .............................. Break ......................................................................................................................... OPEN. 

11:45 a.m.–12:05 p.m .............................. IRG–2 Presentation ................................................................................................... OPEN. 

12:05 p.m.–12:10 p.m .............................. Discussion/Questions ................................................................................................ OPEN. 

12:10 p.m.–12:35 p.m .............................. Education and Outreach, Diversity Plan ................................................................... OPEN. 

12:35 p.m.–12:45 p.m .............................. Discussion/Questions ................................................................................................ OPEN. 

12:45 p.m.–01:30 p.m .............................. Working Lunch ........................................................................................................... CLOSED. 

01:30 p.m.–02:30 p.m .............................. Poster Session .......................................................................................................... OPEN. 

02:30 p.m.–02:45 p.m .............................. Site Visit Discussion .................................................................................................. OPEN. 

02:45 p.m.–03:30 p.m .............................. Executive Session ..................................................................................................... CLOSED. 

03:30 p.m.–04:00 p.m .............................. Debriefing .................................................................................................................. OPEN. 

04:00 p.m .................................................. Adjourn.

REASON FOR CLOSING: The work being 

reviewed during closed portions of the 

virtual site visit include information of 

a proprietary or confidential nature, 

including technical information; 

financial data, such as salaries and 

personal information concerning 

individuals associated with the project. 

These matters are exempt under 5 

U.S.C. 552b(c), (4) and (6) of the 

Government in the Sunshine Act. 

Dated: January 14, 2022. 

Crystal Robinson, 

Committee Management Officer. 

[FR Doc. 2022–01096 Filed 1–20–22; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 7555–01–P 

NATIONAL SCIENCE FOUNDATION 

Identification of Federal Financial 

Assistance Infrastructure Programs 

Subject to the Build America, Buy 

America Provisions of the 

Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act 

AGENCY: National Science Foundation. 

ACTION: Notice. 

SUMMARY: The Division of Acquisition 

and Cooperative Support within the 

National Science Foundation (NSF) is 

publishing this notice to advise the 

public of the report that reflects the 

National Science Foundation’s analysis 

of financial assistance-funded 

infrastructure programs and associated 

Build America, Buy America 

requirements. NSF has focused on 

infrastructure related to science and 

education programs. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Patrick Breen, Division Director, 

Division of Acquisition and Cooperative 

Support, National Science Foundation. 

Phone: 703–292–7719; email: pkbreen@

nsf.gov. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: After 

OMB releases implementation guidance 

subject to section 70915 of the 

Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, 

the National Science Foundation will 

work closely with OMB to ensure that 

appropriate agency programs that are 

subject to Build America, Buy America 

requirements are administered with 

those requirements in place and will 

adhere to forthcoming OMB guidance. 

This analysis is subject to change upon 

further evaluation. 

In accordance with Section 70913 of 

the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs 

Act (IIJA), which includes the ‘‘Build 

America, Buy America Act’’ (the Act), 

the National Science Foundation (NSF) 

is submitting the following information 

to the Office of Management and Budget 

(OMB) and Congress. Additionally, NSF 

will publish this report in the Federal 

Register. 

Background 

On November 15, 2021, President 

Biden signed into law the Infrastructure 

Investment and Jobs Act, which 

includes the ‘‘Build America, Buy 

America Act’’. This Act requires 

agencies submit to the OMB and 

Congress a report within 60 days of its 

enactment, January 14, 2022, listing all 

Federal financial assistance programs 

for infrastructure administered by the 

agency. As required by the Act, this 

report will also be published in the 

Federal Register. 

In accordance with the Act, NSF’s 60- 

day report includes the following 

information: 

1. Identification of all domestic 

content procurement preferences 

applicable to Federal financial 

assistance; 

2. An assessment of the application of 

the domestic content procurement 

preference requirements; 

3. Details on any applicable domestic 

content procurement preference 

requirement, including the purpose, 

scope, applicability, and any exceptions 

and waivers issued under the 

requirement; 

4. A description of the type of 

infrastructure projects that receive 

funding under the program; and 

5. Identification and evaluation of all 

infrastructure programs to determine if 

they are inconsistent with section 70914 

of the Act. 

1. Domestic Content Procurement 

Preference Applicable to Federal 

Financial Assistance Issued by NSF 

Grants 

NSF has implemented one article in 

its Grant General Conditions (GC–1). 

Article 44, Domestic Preference for 

Procurements, notifies awardees of the 

applicability of 2 CFR 200.322, entitled 

Domestic Preferences for Procurements. 

The Article, and the reference to 2 CFR 

200.322, ensure that recipients provide 

preference for the purchase, acquisition, 

or use of goods, products, or materials 

produced in the United States. These 

items include, but are not limited to, 

iron, aluminum, steel, cement, and 

other manufactured products. 

Cooperative Agreements 

NSF has implemented two articles in 

its Cooperative Agreement Financial 

and Administrative Terms and 

Conditions (CA–FATC). 

Article 45, Domestic Preference for 

Procurements, notifies awardees of the 

applicability of 2 CFR 200.322, entitled 

Domestic Preferences for Procurements. 

The Article, and the reference to 2 CFR 

200.322, ensure that recipients provide 

preference for the purchase, acquisition, 

or use of goods, products, or materials 

produced in the United States. These 

items include, but are not limited to, 

iron, aluminum, steel, cement, and 

other manufactured products. 

Article 46, Made in America, applies 

to major facility construction stage 

awards and mid-scale research 

infrastructure implementation awards 

greater than $20 million and notifies 

these awardees that they must retain 

appropriate documentation to 

substantiate any circumstance where the 

awardee has deemed a U.S. preference 

is not feasible in acquiring goods, 


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3366 Federal Register / Vol. 87, No. 14 / Friday, January 21, 2022 / Notices 

products, or materials due to nonavailability or unreasonable cost. 

2. Assessment of the Application of the 

Domestic Content Procurement 

Preference Requirements 

Domestic Procurement Preferences Not 

Applicable to NSF 

NSF reviewed the authorities listed in 

section 70913(b)(2)(A)–(G) of the Act. 

The listed authorities are not appliable 

to financial assistance awards issued by 

NSF. There are no NSF-specific statutes 

which require a domestic preference in 

NSF financial assistance programs. 

Domestic Procurement Preferences 

Applicable to NSF 

In reviewing other authorities, and as 

stated above, 2 CFR 200.322, Domestic 

Preference for Procurements, is 

included in the financial assistance 

awards issued by NSF subject to GC–1, 

or the CA–FATC. 

3. Details on Any Applicable Domestic 

Content Procurement Preference 

Requirement, Including the Purpose, 

Scope, Applicability, and Any 

Exceptions and Waivers Issued Under 

the Requirement 

As stated above, as of November 12, 

2020, 2 CFR 200.322, Domestic 

Preferences for Procurements, from the 

Uniform Administrative Requirements, 

Cost Principles, and Audit 

Requirements for Federal Awards 

applies to NSF financial assistance 

awards. NSF further reemphasized this 

new requirement by adding new terms 

and conditions to grants and 

cooperative agreements issued by NSF 

on or after October 4, 2021. Article 44 

of the GC–1 and Article 45 of the CA– 

FATC are included in awards to ensure 

recipients are aware of the preference 

for the purchase, acquisition, or use of 

goods, products, or materials produced 

in the United States. Further, the 

reference to 2 CFR 200.322 ensures the 

use of common definitions of ‘‘produced 

in the United States’’ and 

‘‘manufactured products’’. 

The text of Article 44 of the GC–1 and 

Article 45 of the CA–FATC, Domestic 

Preferences for Procurements is: 

The awardee is notified of the applicability 

of 2 CFR 200.322, entitled Domestic 

Preferences for Procurements. 

Article 46 of the CA–FATC, which 

applies to major facility construction 

stage awards and mid-Scale research 

infrastructure implementation awards 

greater than $20 million, adds an 

additional requirement. See definitions 

in Section 4 below. This article requires 

the recipient to document and 

substantiate any circumstance where the 

recipient has deemed a U.S. preference 

not feasible in acquiring goods, 

products, or materials which could then 

be reviewed by NSF upon request. 

The text of Article 46, Made in 

America is: 

In implementation of 2 CFR 200.322, major 

facility construction stage awards and midScale research infrastructure implementation 

awards greater than $20 million must retain 

appropriate documentation to substantiate 

any circumstance where the awardee has 

deemed a U.S. preference not feasible in 

acquiring goods, products, or materials. The 

documentation must identify the basis for the 

determination and be based on: 

a. Domestic non-availability—articles, 

materials, or supplies are not mined, 

produced, or manufactured in sufficient and 

reasonably available commercial quantities 

and of a satisfactory quality to meet technical 

or operational requirements; 

b. Unreasonable cost—the price of the 

domestic end product (including transport to 

the construction site) is higher than the price 

of a foreign end product by 30 percent if 

offered by small business or 20 percent if 

offered by other than a small business; 

c. The purchase is related to commerciallyavailable information technology; and/or 

d. The purchases are at or below the micropurchase threshold (currently $10,000 for 

most acquisitions) or related to procurements 

for use outside of the United States. 

The requirements of this article must 

be included in all subawards, contracts 

and purchase orders for work or 

products under this award. 

NSF is not aware of any exercise of 

exceptions or waivers requested as to 

the domestic preference requirements 

established by 2 CFR 200.322 as 

implemented through GC–1 or the CA– 

FATC. 

4. A Description of the Type of 

Infrastructure Projects That Receive 

Funding Under the Program 

Types of Infrastructure Projects 

As an integral part of its responsibility 

for strengthening the science and 

engineering capacity of the country, 

NSF provides support for the design, 

construction, operation, and upgrade of 

research infrastructure. NSF defines 

research infrastructure as any 

combination of facilities, equipment, 

instrumentation, computational 

hardware and software, and the 

necessary supporting human capital. 

Research infrastructure includes major 

research instrumentation, mid-scale 

projects, and major facilities. 

NSF typically supports research 

infrastructure construction from two 

appropriations accounts: The Major 

Research Equipment and Facility 

Construction (MREFC) account and the 

Research and Related Activities (R&RA) 

account, but additional support may 

come from the Education and Human 

Resources (EHR) Account. 

The MREFC account was created in 

1995 to fund the acquisition, 

construction, commissioning, and 

upgrading of major science and 

engineering infrastructure projects that 

could not be otherwise supported by 

NSF directorate-level budgets without a 

severe negative impact on funded 

science. MREFC projects generally range 

in cost from one hundred million to 

several hundred million dollars 

expended over a multi-year period. 

The R&RA account is used to support 

other activities involving a major facility 

that the MREFC account cannot support, 

including planning and development, 

design, operations and maintenance, 

and associated scientific research. 

Construction and acquisition projects at 

a smaller scale, usually of a scale 

ranging from millions to tens of millions 

of dollars, are also normally supported 

from the R&RA account unless a specific 

program is included in the MREFC 

account. 

Per Section 110 of the 2017 American 

Innovation and Competitiveness Act 

(AICA), as amended, a major multi-use 

research facility project (major facility) 

is defined as follows: 

‘‘(2) MAJOR MULTI-USER RESEARCH 

FACILITY PROJECT. The term ‘major multiuser research facility project’ means a science 

and engineering facility project that exceeds 

$100,000,000 in total construction, 

acquisition, or upgrade costs to the 

Foundation.’’ (42 U.S.C. 1862s–2(g)(2)). 

NSF interprets the above to mean the 

Total Project Costs (TPC) as defined by 

the investment in construction or 

acquisition, not the operations or 

associated science program costs. If the 

TPC for research infrastructure is above 

the major facility project threshold as 

defined by statute, it is considered a 

major facility throughout its full life 

cycle. 

Per Section 109 of AICA, a mid-scale 

project means research instrumentation, 

equipment, and upgrades to major 

research facilities or other research 

infrastructure investments that exceeds 

the maximum funded by the Major 

Research Instrumentation (MRI) 

program (currently $4M) and are below 

that of a major facility. Similar to major 

facilities, mid-scale projects may also 

involve development and design, 

construction or acquisition, operations, 

and eventual divestment. 

For the purposes of implementing the 

Act and reporting the figures below, 

NSF defines ‘‘infrastructure’’ as any 

mid-scale project over $20M and all 

major facilities, including upgrades to 

major facilities. At this time design, 

operations and routine maintenance 


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Federal Register / Vol. 87, No. 14 / Friday, January 21, 2022 / Notices 3367 

costs associated with this infrastructure 

are not included. 

PROGRAMS, NUMBER OF RECIPIENTS, AND DOLLARS OBLIGATED FOR FISCAL YEARS 2019 THROUGH 2021 

Assistance listing No. 

Fiscal year 2019 Fiscal year 2020 Fiscal year 2021 

Number of 

recipients Funding Number of recipients Funding Number of recipients Funding 

47.041—Engineering ............................................................................. 1 $7,810,746 0 $0 2 $31,106,800 

47.049—Mathematical and Physical Sciences ..................................... 3 83,541,638 3 79,349,626 5 89,530,899 

47.050—Geosciences ........................................................................... 2 117,977,019 1 25,000,000 2 25,987,704 

47.070—Computer and Information Science and Engineering ............ 0 0 0 0 0 0 

47.074—Biological Sciences ................................................................. 0 0 0 0 1 20,048,344 

47.078—Polar Programs ....................................................................... 0 0 0 0 0 0 

47.083—Integrative Activities ................................................................ 0 0 0 0 0 0 

5. Identify and Evaluate All 

Infrastructure Programs To Determine 

if They Are Inconsistent With Section 

70914 of the Act 

Currently NSF is fully compliant with 

all domestic preference requirements 

effective on the date of this report that 

are applicable to the Federal financial 

assistance awards issued by NSF. 

Section 70914(a) of the Act requires 

the following: 

‘‘Not later than 180 days after the date of 

enactment of this Act, the head of each 

Federal agency shall ensure that none of the 

funds made available for a Federal financial 

assistance program for infrastructure, 

including each deficient program, 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.’’ 

NSF will update its terms and 

conditions for affected programs to 

comply with this section of the Act on 

or before May 14, 2022. 

Dated: January 14, 2022. 

Raymond McCollum, 

Policy Branch Chief, National Science 

Foundation. 

[FR Doc. 2022–01120 Filed 1–20–22; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 7555–01–P 

NATIONAL SCIENCE FOUNDATION 

Proposal Review Panel for Materials 

Research; Notice of Meeting 

In accordance with the Federal 

Advisory Committee Act (Pub. L. 92– 

463, as amended), the National Science 

Foundation (NSF) announces the 

following meeting: 

NAME AND COMMITTEE CODE: MRSEC— 

Brandeis 2nd Year Virtual Site Visit 

(1203). 

DATE AND TIME: April 26, 2022; 9:30 

a.m.–4:00 p.m. 

PLACE: NSF, 2415 Eisenhower Avenue, 

Alexandria, VA 22314 | Virtual. 

TYPE OF MEETING: Part-Open. 

CONTACT PERSON: Dr. Miriam Deutsch, 

Program Director, Division of Materials 

Research, National Science Foundation, 

2415 Eisenhower Avenue, Room W 

9216, Alexandria, VA 22314; 

Telephone: (703) 292–5360. 

PURPOSE OF MEETING: Virtual site visit 

to provide an evaluation of the progress 

of the projects at the host site for the 

Division of Materials Research at the 

National Science Foundation. 

AGENDA: 

APRIL 26, 2022 

9:30 a.m.–10:00 a.m ................................ Brief Charge to Panel ................................................................................................ CLOSED. 

10:00 a.m.–10:10 a.m .............................. Introduction ................................................................................................................ OPEN. 

10:10 a.m.–10:55 a.m .............................. Director’s Overview ................................................................................................... OPEN. 

10:55 a.m.–11:10 a.m .............................. Discussion/Questions ................................................................................................ OPEN. 

11:10 a.m.–11:30 a.m .............................. IRG–1 Presentation ................................................................................................... OPEN. 

11:30 a.m.–11:35 a.m .............................. Discussion/Questions ................................................................................................ OPEN. 

11:35 a.m.–11:45 a.m .............................. Break ......................................................................................................................... OPEN. 

11:45 a.m.–12:05 p.m .............................. IRG–2 Presentation ................................................................................................... OPEN. 

12:05 p.m.–12:10 p.m .............................. Discussion/Questions ................................................................................................ OPEN. 

12:10 p.m.–12:35 p.m .............................. Education and Outreach, Diversity Plan ................................................................... OPEN. 

12:35 p.m.–12:45 p.m .............................. Discussion/Questions ................................................................................................ OPEN. 

12:45 p.m.–01:30 p.m .............................. Working Lunch ........................................................................................................... CLOSED. 

01:30 p.m.–02:30 p.m .............................. Poster Session .......................................................................................................... OPEN. 

02:30 p.m.–02:45 p.m .............................. Site Visit Discussion .................................................................................................. OPEN. 

02:45 p.m.–03:30 p.m .............................. Executive Session ..................................................................................................... CLOSED. 

03:30 p.m.–04:00 p.m .............................. Debriefing .................................................................................................................. OPEN. 

04:00 p.m .................................................. Adjourn.

REASON FOR CLOSING: The work being 

reviewed during closed portions of the 

virtual site visit include information of 

a proprietary or confidential nature, 

including technical information; 

financial data, such as salaries and 

personal information concerning 

individuals associated with the project. 

These matters are exempt under 5 

U.S.C. 552b(c), (4) and (6) of the 

Government in the Sunshine Act. 

Dated: January 14, 2022. 

Crystal Robinson, 

Committee Management Officer. 

[FR Doc. 2022–01092 Filed 1–20–22; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 7555–01–P 

NATIONAL SCIENCE FOUNDATION 

Proposal Review Panel for Materials 

Research; Notice of Meeting 

In accordance with the Federal 

Advisory Committee Act (Pub. L. 92– 

463, as amended), the National Science 

Foundation (NSF) announces the 

following meeting: 


jspears on DSK121TN23PROD with NOTICES1