FRA waives Buy America rules on high speed train prototypes

[mahatmakanejeeves]

Hat tip, Trainorders: Passenger Trains > FRA waives Buy America rules on HSR prototypes

FRA waives Buy America rules on high speed train prototypes

04 Dec 2014

USA: The Federal Railroad Administration has approved a waiver on Buy America procurement rules covering the supply of up to four high speed trainsets for the US market.

The letter dated November 24 is a response to requests from both Amtrak and the California High Speed Rail Authority, who are each seeking to procure two pre-series trains for testing at speeds of at least 255 km/h on the Northeast Corridor and California’s nascent high speed line in the Central Valley.

Buy America rules are intended to ensure that federally-funded railway vehicles and equipment contain a high proportion of locally-produced components and that final assembly and commissioning is undertaken in the USA. But for the procurement of prototypes, FRA does not believe that it is in the public interest for Buy America to be imposed.

‘FRA believes a waiver is appropriate because domestically-produced high speed trainsets meeting the specific technical, design, and schedule needs of Amtrak and CHSRA are not currently available in the USA’, the letter explains. ‘Moreover, domestically-produced high speed trainsets cannot be bought or produced in the USA within a reasonable time given the programme schedule associated with Amtrak's and CHSRA’s projects.’

Also: Passenger Trains > Calif HSR Gets Buy America Waiver from FRA

http://www.fra.dot.gov/eLib/details/L16035

ETA, Friday: maybe not yet:

FRA considers granting 'Buy America' waiver to Amtrak, California rail authority for train prototypes

Rail News: Amtrak
12/5/2014

The Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) earlier this week filed a notice of intent to grant Amtrak and the California High-Speed Rail Authority a waiver to federal "Buy America" requirements for the non-domestic assembly of up to four prototype Tier III high-speed rail trainsets.

The waivers apply only to the final assembly of up to two prototype high-speed trainsets, each for Amtrak and the authority, the FRA said in its notice filed with the U.S. Department of Transportation.

According to the notice, the waivers require Amtrak and the authority to prove to the FRA that the selected supplier still has not established domestic manufacturing facilities capable of assembling the prototypes and delivering them in a reasonable amount of time before they issue the "notice to proceed" to the selected supplier. All components used in the prototypes still must be manufactured in the United States or separate waivers for components must be requested and granted, the notice adds.

Amtrak and the authority earlier this year issued requests for proposals for the supply of high-speed trainsets.

[djean111]

1. Buy America will be completely obliterated by the TPP and TTIP and other

"trade agreements".
So, the FRA is just jumping the gun, is all that is happening.