Buy America (BA) law was enacted in 1981, was modified in the Moving Ahead for Progress in the 21st Century Act (MAP-21), and again with Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA), Build America Buy America (BABA) Act.  The modifications have imparted new requirements for utility relocations on federally funded state departments of transportation (DOTs) projects. Since state DOTs are working with third party companies and the facilities and subsequent facility relocations are typically not state DOT property, state DOTs often do not have direct control over the materials procurement process. The quality and quantity of useful, available information is not sufficient for state DOTs to have a clear path to compliance. Current practices appear to be non-uniform and inconsistent from agency to agency, as many agencies seek uniform guidance and clearly defined requirements to confidently proceed and know that BABA compliance is reached. Research is needed to identify methods and procedures to develop a centralized compendium that includes relevant FHWA guidance to maximize efficiency and compliance. 

The objective of this research is to develop a compendium of current BABA information as it relates to utility relocations, to include:

• National BABA guidance, law, regulation, and policy related to third party utility relocations.
• Case studies demonstrating effective practices, approaches, and techniques for implementing BABA on   third party utility relocations.    
• Iron/steel and construction material evaluation of BABA subject materials by industry type (electric, gas, telecom, other) facing compliance challenges.
• Solutions-based decision-tree model to include:
  1. Utility relocation agreements standards;
  2. Managing utility company procurement processes;
  3. Education recommendations for utility owners;
  4. Utilizing self-certification techniques;
  5. Step-certification techniques;
  6. Common products with compliance challenges; and
  7. Existing waiver impacts and processes to secure waivers.