MAKING BABA WORK FOR

AMERICAN MANUFACTURERS
The Build America, Buy America Act (BABA) was signed into law by President Biden as part of the Bipartisan
Infrastructure Law (BIL)—also known as the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act of 2021. BABA strengthens
and expands “Buy America” requirements for federally financed infrastructure projects. Specifically, it
requires that the iron, steel, construction materials, and manufactured products used in all federally assisted
infrastructure projects be produced in the United States.

The idea behind BABA is simple: when taxpayer money is used to build infrastructure, the constituent products
and materials should be made in the United States. The law will help strengthen U.S. businesses and their
domestic supply chains and create opportunities for America’s workers to thrive. It will prevent inadvertently
using tax dollars to support environmental, labor, and human rights violations that are unfortunately present in
some foreign supply chains. It will ensure workers and manufacturers in the U.S. get the first shot at taxpayer-
funded contracts for federally financed projects. It will also help strengthen domestic supply chains and ensure
economic resilience in the face of international supply constraints that are becoming increasingly common.

BABA doesn’t just support the existing manufacturing base and workforce—it provides a powerful market
signal to expand it. The certainty of ongoing infrastructure investments being subject to BABA means that
manufacturers have a clearer understanding of the long-term demand for the products they produce, and a
powerful incentive to expand their U.S. production. In cases where important infrastructure components are
not currently manufactured domestically, the law allows commonsense waivers of the requirement. In limited
cases, waivers of general applicability—such as those applied to a specific product—is appropriate so long as
they are targeted, time-limited, and transparent. Far from circumventing the intent of BABA, narrowly applied
and transparent waivers afford meaningful market insights. They can indicate the potential scope of demand
for specific products and the absence—at present—of domestic manufacturers producing them. If implemented
correctly, Buy America waivers are the mechanism to alert manufacturers to a major market opportunity if they
can make a product domestically to fill the gap, while allowing projects to move forward in the meantime.

Congress has recently directed hundreds of billions of dollars in clean energy and other decarbonization
infrastructure through the BIL and Inflation Reduction Act. BABA’s application to these investments supports
manufacturing communities and workers, and in turn, will create a durable constituency of support from these
communities and workers to ensure investments in clean infrastructure continue.

For America’s workers, strong Buy America policies are essential to making the transition away from fossil fuels
to cleaner, renewable energy sources. Absent these requirements, our nation risks creating new dependencies
on foreign sources for these critical sectors.

For American manufacturers, the passage of BABA means that billions of dollars are ready to be spent on
the products you produce in the United States. This set of BABA questions and answers from the BlueGreen
Alliance (BGA) is designed to guide you through the law, help you certify your products, and take advantage of
this new opportunity.

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 The idea behind BABA is simple: when taxpayer money is
used to build infrastructure, the constituent products and
materials should be made in the United States.

What does the law say, exactly?

BABA requires that on or after May 14, 2022, the head of each Federal agency shall ensure that “none of the
funds made available for a federal financial assistance program for infrastructure… 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.”1

BABA doesn’t just apply to the major infrastructure investments made by the BIL and the Inflation Reduction
Act. It is a permanent law that applies to all federal financial assistance for infrastructure spending.

Detailed guidance on the specifics of BABA has been provided by the Office of Management and Budget (OMB),
which in turn serves to guide the implementation of BABA by the federal agencies that administer financial
assistance for infrastructure.2 Some agencies have released additional guidance and issued implementing
policies in the form of general waivers that address details specific to those agencies’ programs and the types
of projects that they fund. Additional guidance from OMB and agencies is expected as more projects covered
by BABA are financed, planned, and constructed. In the meantime, awardees of federal financial assistance are
expected to work with their funding agencies to clarify any potential questions.

How big of a market opportunity does BABA create for U.S. manufacturers?
BABA and other recent legislation will dramatically increase the demand for U.S. materials and products that are
incorporated into federally assisted infrastructure products, in two main ways.

First, BABA expands the scope of products and projects subject to domestic sourcing requirements. Previous
domestic content preference laws include the Buy American Act of 1933 (applicable to direct federal
procurement and acquisition) and various Buy America laws, including a 1982 law applied to highway and transit
projects. These existing laws were limited in their coverage and had been narrowed over the years by loopholes
and implementing policies. The 2021 BABA law enhances Buy America laws applied to federally assisted
infrastructure projects by expanding its coverage to al l iron and steel, construction materials, and manufactured
products for all infrastructure projects receiving federal financial assistance. This means a much larger number
and wider scope of projects will be covered, and as a result, there will be much stronger demand for a much
broader set of U.S.-produced materials and products, compared to prior policy. (See “What’s the difference
between Build America, Buy America and prior Buy America/n policy?” for more details.)

Second, the BIL and the Inflation Reduction Act have created a surge of new infrastructure spending on projects
ranging from transportation to renewable electricity to building energy efficiency. BGA estimates that the BIL
and Inflation Reduction Act allocated more than $700 billion to programs that will require BABA compliance.
Hundreds of billions of additional funding falls outside the scope of BABA but is subject to other incentives or
requirements, such as domestic content bonuses for clean energy tax credits. Finally, BABA will continue to
apply to the majority of the roughly $100 billion per year that is spent on infrastructure, even after the BIL and
Inflation Reduction Act funds have been spent.3

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What types of projects require BABA compliance?
BABA applies to the construction, alteration, maintenance, or repair of public infrastructure undertaken by non-
federal entities using federal financial assistance.

“Infrastructure” is defined very broadly, and includes the structures, facilities, and equipment for infrastructure.
OMB provides the following illustrative list of types of infrastructure projects covered by BABA:
• Roads, highways, and bridges
• Public transportation
• Dams, ports, harbors, and other maritime facilities
• Intercity passenger and freight railroads
• Freight and intermodal facilities
• Airports
• Water systems, including drinking water and wastewater systems
• Electrical transmission facilities and systems
• Utilities
• Broadband infrastructure
• Buildings and real property
• Structures, facilities, and equipment that generate, transport, and distribute energy including electric
vehicle charging

Beyond these examples, a project may also be considered “public infrastructure” if it is “publicly owned and
operated, privately operated on behalf of the public, or is a place of public accommodation, as opposed to a
project that is privately owned and not open to the public.”4

“Federal financial assistance” is defined in the BIL to mean “all expenditures by a federal agency to a non-Federal
entity for an infrastructure project.” This can include grants, loans, loan guarantees, cooperative agreements,
non-cash contributions, donations of property, and direct assistance. Even if federal assistance is supplemented
by other streams of funding, BABA still applies to the entire project.

“Non-federal entities” in this context means state, territorial, tribal, and local governments; institutions of higher
education; and non-profit organizations. Projects undertaken by for-profit entities are not automatically covered
by BABA but may be covered in certain circumstances. For instance, when a “non-federal entity” is the prime
recipient of federal financial assistance, the BABA requirements “flow down” to all sub-awardees and sub-
recipients of the assistance, as well as the contractors and sub-contractors undertaking the work, even if these
are for-profit entities.

What types of projects do not require BABA compliance?

BABA does not apply if the federal financial assistance comes exclusively from tax credits. For example, projects
funded under the Low-Income Housing Tax Credit or the Inflation Reduction Act’s various clean energy tax
credits are not required to comply with BABA, unless they also receive an additional source of federal financial
assistance. Note however that many of these tax credits have their domestic content provisions with origin
standards and implementing policies that may differ from BABA.5

BABA does not apply to direct federal procurement, such as when federal agencies buy products or construct
buildings for their own use, as this spending does not constitute “federal financial assistance” to a “non-federal
agency”. However, this type of spending is covered by another law, the 1933 Buy American Act, which has both
similarities and differences to BABA. (see What’s the Difference between Build America, Buy America and prior
Buy America/n policy?)

BABA does not apply to projects that are not considered “infrastructure”. OMB defines infrastructure broadly,
including all projects on its list of examples as well as other types of projects that are publicly owned or serve a
public function. Projects are, therefore, exempt from BABA on these grounds only if they are not on OMB’s list

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 of examples, are privately owned, and are not publicly accessible. For instance, grants made to manufacturers to
build and retool factories generally do not require BABA compliance.

Certain categories of buildings also do not fall under the definition of “public infrastructure”, although the exact
scope is complicated. Private homes are explicitly exempted from the definition and thus not covered by BABA.
Schools, government offices, and community centers do constitute public infrastructure and thus require BABA
compliance, even if they are privately developed, owned, or operated. Mixed-use developments, commercial
property, and multifamily housing may or may not be covered, depending on the specific details of the project
and the discretion of the funding agency. Future guidance from OMB may clarify the applicability of BABA to
different types of buildings and building projects.

Finally, following guidance from OMB, many agencies have adopted implementing policies designed to afford
flexibility for smaller projects–including general waivers applicable to “Small Grants” of less than $250,000 in
total federal funding.6

What types of products are covered by BABA?

BABA applies to all iron and steel, construction materials, and manufactured products that are consumed in,
incorporated into, or affixed to an infrastructure project. Each of these categories has a specific definition and a
specific threshold for what is considered “produced in the United States.”

Category Definition of “Produced in the United States”

Iron and Steel All manufacturing processes, from initial melting
through the application of coatings, occurred in
the United States
Construction Materials All manufacturing processes occurred in the
United States
Manufactured Products Final assembly of the product occurred in the
United States, and 55% of components are of
domestic origin

Iron and steel means building components and products composed entirely or predominantly of iron and steel,
such as rebar, framing, pipes, and ductwork (See Appendix 1 for a more comprehensive list of examples). For
iron and steel, every step of production must take place in the United States, beginning with initial melting
(not reheating) and pouring, and including grinding, rolling, bending, reheating, casting, and the application
of coatings, as applicable. Following OMB guidance, most agencies have issued a waiver allowing “minor
components” of iron and steel products, valuing up to 5% of the total cost, to be of foreign or unknown origin.
For instance, a steel frame would need to be domestically assembled from domestic steel, but the bolts holding
it together could be imported.

Construction materials are defined as articles, materials, or supplies that consist primarily of one of the
following:
• Non-ferrous metals (i.e., any metal other than iron or steel)
• Plastic and polymer-based products (including polyvinylchloride (PVC), composite building materials, and
polymers used in fiber optic cables)
• Glass (including optic glass)
• Lumber
• Drywall
• Coatings (paints and stains)
• Optical fiber
• Clay brick
• Composite building materials
• Engineered wood products

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To qualify, all manufacturing processes for the material in question must take place in the United States. For a
specific breakdown of the required domestic manufacturing processes for each product, see Appendix 2.

Manufactured products are “articles, materials, or supplies that have been both 1) processed into a specific
form or shape; and 2) are combined with other articles, materials, or supplies to create a product with different
properties than the individual articles, materials, or supplies.”7 Or more simply, manufactured products are made
of multiple materials and components combined into something new.

To qualify as “produced in the United States”, the final assembly of a manufactured product must take place
domestically, and 55% of the product’s components by cost must be mined, manufactured, or produced in the
United States. A component is an article, material, or supply incorporated directly into a manufactured product.

In calculating this 55% threshold, the manufacturer should consider the total cost of acquisition for each
component, including transportation costs and duties. For components manufactured in-house, the total cost of
production should be considered including transportation and overhead but excluding profit. Costs associated
with the assembly of the final product should not be included in the cost of any component.

The following table shows a simple cost breakdown for a hypothetical Heating, Ventilation, and Air Conditioning
(HVAC) product:

Component Origin Cost Shipping costs Import duties

Housing Purchased $90 $10 NA
domestically
Motor Manufactured in- $200 NA NA
house
Fan Purchased from $50 $25 $0
Canada
Circuitry Purchased from $75 $25 $25
China

Costs associated with domestic components $300

Total cost of components $500

Domestic component cost share 60%

Because the total costs of domestic components equal 60%, the product exceeds the 55% threshold and would
constitute a BABA-compliant manufactured product, provided final assembly also took place in the U.S. Note
that the costs of the final assembly of the product do not factor into this calculation at all.

How do I determine whether a specific product should be considered iron and steel, a
building material, or a manufactured product?

Generally, the rules for building materials and iron and steel apply to products made predominantly of just one
material, while manufactured products are made from multiple materials combined. For instance, a sheet of
glass would be considered a building material, and a steel frame would be considered iron and steel, but a steel-
framed glass window would be considered a manufactured product.

For manufactured products made out of iron and steel, the line between the two categories may not always be
clear. The Code of Federal Regulations states that a product should be classified as iron and steel if “the cost of
the iron and steel content exceeds 50 percent of the total cost of all its components”.8 This means that simple
products made predominantly from iron and steel such as ductwork, piping, and valves should be considered
iron and steel for BABA compliance even if they incorporate some components made from other materials. By
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 contrast, more complex products such as cranes, boilers, and generators will often be considered manufactured
products—even if they contain a large amount of iron and steel, if other components make up much of the cost,
they should be considered manufactured products. The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has written an
extensive illustrative list of example products and how they should be categorized for EPA projects, reproduced
in Appendix 1.

What types of products are not covered under BABA?

BABA covers only iron and steel, manufactured products, and construction materials consumed in, incorporated
into, or affixed to an infrastructure project. This means that products such as tools, scaffolding, and vehicles used
during construction are not covered. Contents of buildings, such as moveable furniture and portable computers,
are likewise exempt. The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) and U.S. Department of Agriculture
(USDA) have issued guidance saying that appliances such as stoves, dishwashers, refrigerators, and microwaves;
as well as smoke and carbon monoxide detectors are considered building contents and exempt from BABA.9, 10
This determination will not apply to other agencies, and OMB has not issued any guidance on these products.
On the other hand, systems such as HVAC and plumbing (including sinks and toilets) are considered to be
permanently affixed and thus must comply.

BABA explicitly exempts cement; cementitious material; aggregates such as stone, sand, and gravel; and
aggregate binding agents or additives. However, if these materials are combined to form a new product, the
resulting item may be considered a manufactured product.

Consistent with OMB’s guidance, many agencies have implemented a de minimis waiver allowing awardees to
exempt materials and products making up to a cumulative 5% of the project’s total budget for products and
materials (up to a maximum of $1 million). This means that products such as small hardware, wiring, and paint
will not be required to meet BABA for most projects when the de minimis allowance is utilized.

How does a manufacturer demonstrate that their products are BABA compliant?
Manufacturers that supply products to covered infrastructure projects must self-certify by issuing
documentation that includes the name of the project making use of the product, specific information about the
product, the location of the manufacturing process, and an attestation that the product or material complies
with BABA. Typically, this documentation would be a signed certification letter on company letterhead, although
other forms of documentation may also be acceptable as long as the required information is included. This
type of self-certification by manufacturers is already in widespread use for establishing compliance with prior
domestic content requirements.

OMB’s guidance does not prescribe uniform requirements for the form and content of manufacturers’
compliance certifications. Agencies appear generally inclined to allow manufacturers and project developers
to provide information most conveniently. For instance, EPA requests that self-certification documentation for
manufactured products indicate the product meets the 55% domestic content threshold in its final form but
does not require extensive “step certification” documentation for each step of manufacturing.11 Appendix 3
contains example self-certification letters that companies can use as templates.

While documentation for manufactured products may require an affirmation that the product meets the 55%
domestic content threshold, it does not need to indicate the exact percentage of domestic content of a product
or any other details about a company’s product sourcing or supply chain.

Awardees are responsible for demonstrating that their projects comply with applicable BABA requirements.
Recipients of federal assistance must agree to meet the terms of BABA and be able to demonstrate that they
have done so. They pass this obligation on to sub-awardees, contractors, and sub-contractors, who are in turn
responsible for requesting self-certification documents from manufacturers.

Note that a generic, multi-use “to whom it may concern” letter attesting a product’s BABA compliance is not
sufficient. Self-certifications should be both project-specific and product-specific.
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As a U.S. manufacturer, how can I ensure that my company stands to benefit from
BABA?
There are several steps you can take to help funding recipients find and use your products in federally assisted
infrastructure projects.

1. Pre-emptively assess your products for compliance and advertise them as such.

If you make products or materials in the United States that are used in covered infrastructure projects, double
check that they meet the specific BABA requirements based on their category. All manufacturing processes must
take place domestically for iron and steel and construction materials. For manufactured products, 55% of the
components by cost must be of domestic origin and it must be manufactured in the United States.

You can then advertise your products as “BABA-compliant” on your website, in any online databases that list
your products, and anywhere else you share information. Many major companies, such as Armstrong World
Industries, are already doing this.12

The Department of Commerce, for example, which oversees several broadband infrastructure programs, has
set up a process by which manufacturers can preemptively self-certify their products, allowing them to appear
on a list for project developers. If your company makes products with applications in broadband infrastructure
projects, consider filling out the Self-Certification Intake Form to appear on this list. To date, no other federal
agency has set up a preemptive self-certification process or database like this one.13

2. Be ready to provide self-certification documentation to projects as needed.

A representative of your company will need to issue unique self-certification documentation for every project
that uses your product. It is not sufficient to release a general-use “to whom it may concern” letter to be used by
any project. However, it is permissible to create a template self-certification that can be updated with project
and product information before a signature is added to attest to compliance.

In some cases, you may be contacted directly by an awardee or contractor building a project. In others, you may
be contacted by the program officer at a federal agency or another organization working to assist an awardee.
Either way, sharing information on your products and offering to provide project-specific self-certification
documentation will be necessary.

3. Look at scouting opportunities from National Institute of Standards and Technology Manufacturing Extension
Program (NIST MEP).

NIST MEP is helping awardees to scout for BABA-compliant suppliers. When a project awardee needs to
find a BABA-compliant product, they can submit information to NIST MEP, who will search for domestic
manufacturers that fulfill the need.

A list of current scouting opportunities is maintained on the NIST MEP website.14 A more detailed database is
available from the MEP Center in North Dakota.15 If you make a product that fulfills the need detailed in the
provided scouting opportunity documentation—or if you previously made such a product, could potentially
retool to make it, or make a similar product—you can reply to the scouting opportunity. Scouting opportunities
typically remain open for at least 30 days.

4. Keep an eye on product specific waivers.

The BABA law and OMB guidance allows awardees to request waivers from compliance on an ad hoc project-
specific basis to overcome short-term market limitations that may exist, such as when a recipient can’t identify
a compliant product that fits the project’s needs (non-availability waivers) or because the use of a domestic
product or material would increase the overall cost of the project by more than 25% (unreasonable cost waivers).

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 Additionally, the law allows agencies to issue general applicability waivers when doing so is in the “public
interest.” Such general waivers have been issued in certain instances to cover entire programs, specific products,
or categories of products, although OMB has directed agencies to “always issue, construe, and apply waivers to
ensure the maximum utilization of goods, products, and materials produced in the United States,” meaning that
they be time-limited, targeted, and conditional.16

When a waiver is proposed, it is both reviewed by the agency and posted for public comment for at least 15
days before being approved. During the public comment period, waivers are generally posted to individual
agency websites and, in some cases, are also made available at a central directory provided by the Made in
America Office.17 This public website documenting waivers continues to be improved over time.

As a manufacturer of BABA compliant products and materials, you can treat these waivers like Requests for
Proposals. If you see a non-availability waiver requested for a product you make, or a cost waiver including a
product that you offer at a competitive price, you can issue a comment. The agency program officers will then be
able to connect you with the project developer before a determination is completed on the proposed waiver.

Even if you discover a waiver after public comment has ended and the waiver has been granted, you can reach
out to the agency to alert them to your product. They will then be able to direct subsequent developers seeking
a waiver or information about this product to you.

What’s the difference between Build America, Buy America and prior Buy America/n
policy?
Prior to the passage of BABA and the BIL, there were several different Buy American and Buy America laws and
policies requiring the purchase, acquisition, or use of domestic goods for direct federal procurement or federally
assisted infrastructure projects, respectively. Notable examples include:
• The Buy American Act of 1933, which applies only to direct federal procurement (i.e., federal agencies
purchasing products or building projects for their own use). This law and its regulations are not impacted by
BABA or its guidance.
• The Berry Amendment of 1941, which applies only to procurement of certain types of goods procured by
the Department of Defense and is likewise not impacted by BABA.
• Buy America provisions within the Surface Transportation Assistance Act of 1982, which apply to federally
assisted transportation projects like highway construction or the purchase of subway cars.
• The EPA’s 2014 and USDA’s 2017 American Iron and Steel (AIS) requirements, which apply only to iron and
steel products procured for programs administered by these two agencies.

BABA expands upon these existing laws by requiring domestic procurement of all iron and steel, construction
materials, and manufactured products used in any federally assisted infrastructure project. This is particularly
important given that the BIL and Inflation Reduction Act authorized billions of dollars to support federally
assisted infrastructure projects, which will need to comply with BABA. However, it should be noted that
BABA does not only apply to these bills—it will remain in effect indefinitely for all other infrastructure projects
regardless of the source of federal assistance funding.

Critically, Congress included a “savings provision” in the BABA text to preserve the application of Buy America
laws and policies that preexisted the enactment of BABA. This provision was included to ensure that no existing
Buy America laws or policies would be weakened during implementation of the new BABA requirements.

Since the passage of BABA, the Federal Highway Administration has indicated that it will update its Buy
America implementing policies to be consistent with the 1982 Buy America law and the 2021 BABA law. This
includes BABA’s definitions of “produced in the United States.”18 EPA has stated that compliance with the AIS
requirements will be sufficient to demonstrate compliance with BABA for iron and steel products, but it has
established new policies for construction materials and manufactured products.19

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There are different origin standards and international obligations applicable to Buy American versus Buy America
policies. For instance, the domestic content component thresholds for a manufactured product to comply with
the Buy American Act of 1933 are higher than the equivalent requirements in BABA, so many Buy American
compliant products should also be BABA compliant. However, there is one important difference between BABA
and Buy American as it applies to U.S. international obligations made under the World Trade Organization. The
Trade Agreements Act (TAA) allows certain domestic preferences policies to be waived in instances where the
United States has entered into a reciprocal procurement trade agreement. The effect of these TAA waivers is
that the eligible products from certain countries compete on comparable footing with U.S.-made products.
However, this provision applies only to direct federal procurement covered by the Buy American Act. The United
States has largely spared its Buy America laws and the federal-aid transportation infrastructure markets to which
they apply from its trade obligations. For this reason, products that meet Buy American requirements may not
be domestically BABA compliant. For instance, EPA has stated that it will not consider demonstration of Buy
American compliance to be sufficient for BABA compliance.20

Conclusion
The Build America, Buy America Act of 2021 represents an enormous market opportunity for domestic
manufacturers. All federally assisted infrastructure projects must now use U.S.-produced iron and steel,
construction materials, and manufactured products. These requirements are attached to more than $700
billion being spent right now through the BIL and the Inflation Reduction Act, and to all future federally funded
infrastructure.

Because the requirement is new, agencies and project developers are still figuring out how to find domestic
products and comply with the law. As a domestic manufacturer, you can help these projects move forward and
gain access to an enormous new market for domestic goods by verifying, advertising, and certifying the BABA
compliant status of your company’s products.

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 Appendix 1: example list of iron and steel products versus manufactured products
from EPA21
Note that these examples are illustrative and not exhaustive and apply only to EPA programs.
Products likely made “primarily” of iron and steel to be classified as Iron and Steel under BABA: Lined and
Unlined Pipe; Flanges; Valves; Manhole Covers and other Municipal Castings; Iron or Steel Benches; Cast Iron Hinged
Hatches; Cleanout/Monument Boxes; Curb Boxes; Detectable Warning Plates; Drainage Grate Frames and Curb
Inlets; Lampposts; Meter Boxes; Steel Riser Rings; Tree Guards; Valve Box Covers and Risers; Angles; Lined and Unlined
Fittings; Pipe Clamps and Restraints; Hydrants; Access Hatches; Bollards; Cast Iron Riser Rings; Construction Covers
and Frames; Curb Openings; Downspout Shoes; Inlets; Manhole Rings and Frames; Service Boxes; Trash Receptacles;
Trench Grates; Access Ramps; Backflow Preventers/Double Check Valves; Tanks; Structural Steel; Pre-Cast, Iron/Steel
Reinforced Concrete (of all types, regardless of iron/steel content percentage); Ballast Screens; Cast Bases; Catch Basin
Inlets; Curb and Corner Guards; Curb Stops; Drainage Grates; Junction Boxes; Manhole Risers; Steel Hinged Hatches;
Tree Grates; Valve Boxes; Aeration Pipes and Fittings (separate from aeration/blowers); Baffle Curtains; Iron or Steel
Bar; Cable Hanging Systems; Column Piping; Corrugated Pipe; Digestor Covers; Doors; Expansion Tanks (diaphragm,
surge, and hydropneumatics); Fire Escapes; Framing; Grating; Guardrails; Knife Gates; Lockers; Mud Valves; Overhead
Rolling Doors/Uplifting Doors (manual open, no motor); Pipe Pilings (any type of steel piling); Pitless Adaptors; Railings;
Service Saddles; Solenoid Valves; Stationary Screens; Telescoping Valves; Tubing; Wall Panels; Well Casing; Wire Cloth;
Bathroom Stalls; Clarifier Tanks; Concrete Reinforcing Bar,; Wire, and Fibers; Couplings; Dome Structures; Ductwork;
Fasteners; Flanged Pipe; Gate Valves; Ground Testing Boxes; HVAC Registers, Diffusers, and Grilles; Ladders; Man
Baskets and Material; Platforms; Municipal Casting Junctions; Pipe Connectors; Pipe Spool (pipe, flanges, connectors,
etc.); Pre-fab Steel; Buildings/Sheds (simple structure, unfurnished); Reduced Pressure Zone (RPZ) Valves; Sheet Piling;
Stairs; Surface Drains; Tipping Buckets; Valve Stem Extensions; Wall Sleeves/Floor Sleeves; Well Screens; Wire Rod;
Beam Clamps; Coiled Steel; Condensate Sediment Traps; Decking; Door Hardware; Expansion Joints; Fencing and
Fence Tubing; Flap Gates; Generic Hanging Brackets; Ground Test Wells; Joists; Lifting Hooks, J-bar, Connectors within,
and Anchors for Concrete; Manhole Steps; Non-mechanical (aka stationary) Louvers and Dampers; Pipe Hangers; Pipe
Supports; Pre-stressed Concrete Cylinder Pipe (PCCP); Roofing; Sinks (not part of eyewash systems); Static Mixers;
Tapping Sleeves; Trusses; Valve Stems (excluding handwheels and actuators); Welding Rods; Wire; Wire Rope and
Cables

Products likely made “primarily” of iron and steel to be classified as Manufactured Products under BABA:
Actuator Superstructures/Support Structures; Analytical Instrumentation; Blowers/Aeration Equipment; Chemical
Injection Quills; Compressors; Cranes; Dewatering Roll-offs; Electric/Pneumatic/Manual Accessories Used to Operate
valves (such as electric valve actuators); Electrical Junction Boxes; Emergency Life Systems (including eyewash stations,
emergency safety showers, fire extinguishers, fire suppression systems including sprinklers /piping/valves, first aid,
etc.); Fiberglass Tank w/Appurtenances; Fluidized Bed Incinerators; Generators; Heat Exchangers; Aeration Nozzles and
Injectors; Analyzers (e.g., ozone, oxygen); Boilers, Boiler Systems; Chemical Injectors; Controls and Switches; Desiccant
Air Dryer Tanks; Disinfection Systems; Electrical Cabinetry and Housings (such as electrical boxes/enclosures);
Electronic Door Locks; Exhaust Fans; Filters (and appurtenances, including underdrains, backwash systems);
Galvanized Anodes/Cathodic Protection; Geothermal Systems; HVAC (excluding ductwork); Aerators; Automated
Water Fill Stations; Chemical Feed Systems (e.g., polymer, coagulant, treatment chemicals); Clarifier Mechanisms/
Arms; Conveyors; Dewatering Equipment; Drives (e.g., variable frequency drives); Electrical Conduit; Elevator
Systems (hydraulic, etc.,); Fall Protection Anchor Points; Flocculators; Gear Reducers; Grinders; HVAC Dampers (if
appurtenances to aerators/blowers); HVAC Louvers (mechanical); Intake and Exhaust Grates (if appurtenances to
aerators/blowers); Instrumentation; Laboratory Equipment; Ladder Fall Prevention Systems ; Ladder Safety Posts;
Lighting Fixtures Lightning and Grounding Rods; Mechanical or Actuated Louvers/Dampers; Membrane Bioreactor
Systems; Membrane Filtration Systems; Metal Office Furniture (fixed); Meters (including flow, wholesale, water, and
service connection); Motorized Doors (unit); Motorized Mixers; Motorized Screens (such as traveling screens); Motors;
Pelton Wheels; Pipeline Flash Reactors (similar to injectors); Plate Settlers; Precast Concrete without Iron/Steel
Reinforcement; Furnished Pre-fab Buildings (such as furnished with pumps, mechanics inside); Presses (including belt
presses); Pressure Gauges; Pump Cans/Barrels and Strainers; Pumps; Mechanical Rakes; Safety Climb Cable; Sampling
Stations (unless also act as hydrant); Scrubbers; Sensors Sequencing Batch Reactors (SBR); Steel Shelving (fixed);
Slide and Sluice Gates; Spray Header Units; Steel Cabinets (fixed interior/furniture); Supervisory Control and Data
Acquisition (SCADA) Systems; Tracer Wire; Valve Manual Gears, Actuators, and Handles; Voltage Transformer; Water
10 Electrostatic Precipitators (WESP); Water Heaters; Weir Gates
Appendix 2: Construction Material Details22
The following table contains additional details on how OMB defines “all manufacturing processes occurred in the
United States” for each construction material. The information is reproduced from OMB guidance.
Construction Material Processes that must occur in the United States

Non-ferrous metals Initial smelting or melting through final shaping,

coating, and assembly
Plastic and polymer-based products Initial combination of constituent plastic or polymer-
based inputs, or, where applicable, constituent
composite materials, until the item is in its final form
Glass Initial batching and melting of raw materials through
annealing, cooling, and cutting
Fiber optic cable (including drop cable) The initial ribboning (if applicable), through buffering,
fiber stranding and jacketing. This also includes the
standards for glass and optical fiber, but not for non-
ferrous metals, plastic and polymer-based products, or
any others.
Optical fiber The initial preform fabrication stage through the
completion of the draw
Lumber Initial debarking through treatment and planning

Drywall Initial blending of mined or synthetic gypsum

plaster and additives through cutting and drying of
sandwiched panels
Engineered wood The initial combination of constituent materials until
the wood product is in its final form

Appendix 3: sample self-certification letters from FEMA23

Sample final certification letter: This should be prepared and sent by the manufacturer who performs the
final assembly of the product or material and delivers it to the worksite. This format represents the minimum
information required for compliance.

Company letterhead

Date
Company Name
Company Address
City, State Zip

Subject: Build America, Buy America Act Certification for Project (XXXXXXXXXX)

I, (company representative), certify that the following products and/or materials shipped/provided to the subject
project are in full compliance with the Build America, Buy America Act (BABAA) requirement as mandated in the
Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA) Pub. L. No. 117-58, §§ 70901-52.

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 Item, Products and/or Materials:
1. XXXX
2. XXXX
3. XXXX

Such process took place at the following location:______________________________.

If any of the above compliance statements change while providing material to this project, we will immediately
notify the prime contractor and the engineer.

Signed by company representative _________________

Sample step certification letter: This is a slightly more detailed type of certification, preferred by FEMA and
some other agencies when possible. Individual step certification letters would be prepared at each step of
production, to certify that the step took place in the United States. This is most appropriate for simple materials
like iron and steel that go through a linear, easily traceable production process with relatively few steps. For
more complex products, step certification is unlikely to be feasible, and final certification may be used instead.

Company letterhead

Date
Company Name
Company Address
City, State Zip

Subject: Build America, Buy America Act Step Certification for Project (XXXXXXXXXX)

I, (company representative), certify the (melting, bending, coating, galvanizing, cutting, etc.) process for
(manufacturing or fabricating) the following products and/or materials shipped or provided for the subject
project is in full compliance with the Build America, Buy America Act Best Practices for Documenting
Compliance with BABAA 7 (BABAA) requirement as mandated in the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act
(IIJA) Pub. L. No. 117-58, §§ 70901-52.

Item, Products and/or Materials:

1. XXXX
2. XXXX
3. XXXX

Such process took place at the following location:______________________________.

If any of the above compliance statements change while providing material to this project, we will immediately
notify the prime contractor and the engineer.

Signed by company representative _________________

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Endnotes
1 U.S. Congress, Public Law 117–58, November 15, 2021. https://www.congress.gov/117/plaws/publ58/PLAW-117publ58.pdf
2 U.S. Office of Management and Budget, M-24-02 Implementation Guidance for Application of Buy America Preference in Federal
Financial Assistance Programs for Infrastructure, October 25, 2023. https://www.whitehouse.gov/wp-content/uploads/2023/10/
M-24-02-Buy-America-Implementation-Guidance-Update.pdf
3 Congressional Budget Office, Public Spending on Transportation and Water Infrastructure, 1956 to 2017, October 2018. https://
www.cbo.gov/system/files/2018-10/54539-Infrastructure.pdf
4 Code of Federal Regulations, 1 CFR 184.4 Applying the Buy America Preference to a Federal award. https://www.ecfr.gov/current/
title-2/subtitle-A/chapter-I/part-184/section-184.4
5 In particular, projects must meet domestic content requirements to take full advantage of the Inflation Reduction Act’s direct pay
option allowing tax credits to be claimed as an up-front cash payment. As a result, many federally subsidized projects are expected
to use domestic content even when not directly required by BABA. See BGA’s User Guide for more details.
6 “Small Grants” waivers are tied to the Simplified Acquisition Threshold (SAT) and may vary by agency and change over time.
7 Code of Federal Regulations, 1 CFR 184.3 Definitions. https://www.ecfr.gov/current/title-2/subtitle-A/chapter-I/part-184/
section-184.3
8 Ibid.
9 U.S. Department of Agriculture Rural Development, Build America, Buy America Act (BABAA) External Webinar Questions and
Answers, January 27, 2023. https://www.rd.usda.gov/media/file/download/babaa-external-training-questions-and-answers
10 U.S. Federal Emergency Management Agency FEMA, FEMA Policy: Buy America Preference in FEMA Financial Assistance Programs
for Infrastructure, FEMA Policy #207-22-0001, April 25, 2024. https://www.fema.gov/sites/default/files/documents/fema_gpd-
babaa-policy_042024.pdf
11 U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Office of Land and Emergency Management, Frequently Asked Questions for Build America,
Buy America Act (BABA), March 2, 2023. https://www.epa.gov/system/files/documents/2023-03/OLEM_BABA_FAQs_Final_
March_2_2023.pdf
12 Amstrong World Industries, Build America, Buy America (BABA) Act. https://www.armstrongceilings.com/commercial/en/
programs-services/build-america-buy-america-baba-act-armstrong-products.html
13 National Telecommunications and Information Administration, “Intake Form for Build America Buy America (BABA) Self-
Certification List for the Broadband Equity Access and Deployment (BEAD) Program.” https://broadbandusa.ntia.doc.gov/sites/
default/files/2024-07/BEAD_BABA_Self_Certification_Intake_Form.pdf
14 National Institute of Standards and Technology, MEP National Network Open Supplier Scouting Opportunities, December 9, 2024.
https://www.nist.gov/mep/mep-national-network-open-supplier-scouting-opportunities
15 Impact Dakota, Open Supplier Scouting Opportunities. https://www.impactdakota.com/scouting/opportunities/
16 U.S. Office of Management and Budget, M-24-02 Implementation Guidance for Application of Buy America Preference in Federal
Financial Assistance Programs for Infrastructure, October 25, 2023. https://www.whitehouse.gov/wp-content/uploads/2023/10/
M-24-02-Buy-America-Implementation-Guidance-Update.pdf
17 Made in America, Buy America Waivers for Federal Financial Assistance. https://www.madeinamerica.gov/waivers/financial-
assistance/
18 U.S. Department of Transportation Federal Highway Administration, Buy America Requirements for Manufactured Products, March
12, 2024. https://www.federalregister.gov/documents/2024/03/12/2024-05182/buy-america-requirements-for-manufactured-
products
19 U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Office of Land and Emergency Management, Frequently Asked Questions for Build America,
Buy America Act (BABA), March 2, 2023. https://www.epa.gov/system/files/documents/2023-03/OLEM_BABA_FAQs_Final_
March_2_2023.pdf
20 Ibid.
21 Ibid.
22 U.S. Office of Management and Budget, M-24-02 Implementation Guidance for Application of Buy America Preference in Federal
Financial Assistance Programs for Infrastructure, October 25, 2023. https://www.whitehouse.gov/wp-content/uploads/2023/10/
M-24-02-Buy-America-Implementation-Guidance-Update.pdf
23 U.S. Federal Emergency Management Agency, BABAA Best Practices, January 2023. https://www.fema.gov/sites/default/files/
documents/fema_best-practices-documenting-compliance-babaa.pdf

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