The EPA risks “not determining whether it is meeting the intent of the Build America, Buy America Act, which strengthens America’s industrial base, protects national security, and supports good-wage jobs.”
The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has its own internal oversight body. Warnings in new reports EPA said it “does not always track” exemptions from Build America, Buy America (BABA) requirements, which means EPA does not “consistently track” exemptions from Build America, Buy America (BABA) requirements, which allow EPA to “use U.S. goods, products, and materials” in taxpayer-funded infrastructure projects. This means that you may not be able to make full use of it.
The EPA Office of Inspector General revealed that EPA has approved 11 BABA waivers for infrastructure projects as of December 2023. However, the usage of only one of them is tracked, an exemption used for 26 infrastructure projects. The remaining 10 exemptions are not tracked, meaning the IG cannot determine how many times those exemptions have been applied to infrastructure projects.
Considering that EPA has been allocated $60 billion for projects under the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, EPA has been given $60 billion for projects under the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act to meet the intent of Congress in the Act to “maximize the use of the goods and products of the United States.” It is extremely important that individuals understand how to use their exemptions. , materials in infrastructure projects,” the IG said.
“EPA’s oversight of exemptions, regardless of legal obligations, is essential to holding infrastructure projects accountable for U.S. job and market growth.” Said EPA IG Sean W. O’Donnell.
In a press release announcing the report, the EPA IG said, “While waivers of the Made in America requirement are permissible, they are intended to be time-limited, targeted, and conditional. ” he said.
Unfortunately, that doesn’t usually happen with the EPA.
There are two types of Buy America exemptions: project-specific exemptions and general exemptions. As the name suggests, project-specific exemptions are designed to apply to a single infrastructure project and are therefore limited in scope. A general exemption, on the other hand, applies to the entire project. The EPA IG report states that EPA typically initiates “general application waivers, which are available to any award recipient as long as the project meets the eligibility requirements.”
If tracking is not done, the EPA IG I got it. It’s unclear how often general exemptions are used for taxpayer-funded infrastructure projects, and “all agencies must monitor closely, It undermines Congress’s intent to “enforce and comply with the law, and to minimize the scope of its application.” Use of exemptions. ”
The American Manufacturing Alliance and other groups have criticized EPA’s use of general exemptions.For example, we wrote a letter to the EPA In April, EPA’s $3 Billion Clean Ports Program This “contradicts both the letter and spirit of BABA” and “undermines the usefulness of Buy America to the domestic port equipment supply chain, as BABA compliance becomes less important at all stages of port equipment and component production.” It is damaging.”
so were we Stunned by EPA’s decision not to apply Buy America This means it is very likely that a large number of buses purchased using taxpayers’ money will be imported.
EPA IG officially recommended EPA’s Assistant Mission Support Administrator has “developed and implemented a method to track” the use of BABA waivers across EPA-funded infrastructure projects, and the Office of Mission Support “agrees with and accepts our recommendations.” We have provided possible corrective actions and an estimated completion date.” ” according to the report. EPA reported to the IG’s office that “the corrective actions have been completed,” and the IG promised to “continue to work with EPA to ensure the actions are completed.”
That’s the beginning. Tracking the use of BABA exemptions is a small step forward for EPA. The authorities need to do more to comply with BABA’s parliamentary intent to encourage domestic production. We strongly encourage EPA to avoid using BABA’s general exemptions and implement project-specific exemptions only when absolutely necessary. And at a minimum, EPA needs to follow through on its promise to track the BABA exemptions it has introduced.
