House Subcommittee Approves ‘Buy American’ Amendment for SRFs

The following article is reprinted with the permission of ECOS:

U.S. Rep. Pete Visclosky (D-IN) on Wednesday joined Rep. Robert Aderholt (R-AL) in advancing a Buy American Amendment to the fiscal year (FY) 2013 Interior and Related Agencies Appropriations Act. The amendment would require that any project “for the construction, alteration, maintenance, or repair of a public water system or treatment works” use iron, steel, and manufactured goods produced in the United States.

In 2009, Congress passed the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA), which contained a similar Buy American provision.  The amendment was approved by voice vote Wednesday during the House Appropriations Subcommittee on Interior, Environment and Related Agencies’ markup of EPA’s FY 2013 budget.

Meanwhile, in a joint letter to Congress earlier in the week, business organizations laid out their concerns with making the provision a permanent part of U.S. EPA’s state revolving loan funds (SRFs) for clean water and drinking water. Signatories included the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, Council of Infrastructure Financing Agencies, National Association of Water Companies, and Associated General Contractors of America.