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Buy America And Steel Products

Under the original Buy America Program, all permanently incorporated steel products used in Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) construction projects had to be domestically manufactured.

On December 21, 2012, the FHWA issued a memorandum exempting certain steel products used in FHWA construction projects from Buy America requirements. This exemption covered many of the products made in America by Buy American Steel Products Association members.

A group of companies, a trade association and a union challenged the FHWA exemption in court. On December 20, 2015, the federal district court in Washington, DC, ruled in favor of the plaintiffs making these steel products once again subject to Buy America

A state DOT administering an FHWA construction project may request a waiver from Buy America for any steel product that is not produced in America in sufficient and reasonably available quantities or of a satisfactory quality.

We publish on this website a directory of companies that make steel products that meet Buy America standards so that state DOTs and construction contractors have ready access to these companies and products so that Buy America can be properly enforced.