State Revolving Fund American Iron and Steel (AIS) Requirement

The American Iron and Steel (AIS) provision requires Clean Water State Revolving Fund (CWSRF) and Drinking Water State Revolving Fund (DWSRF) assistance recipients to use iron and steel products that are produced in the United States. This requirement applies to projects for the construction, alteration, maintenance, or repair of a public water system or treatment works.

The AIS provision is a permanent requirement for all CWSRF projects. The Consolidated and Further Continuing Appropriations Act of 2015 requires the use of AIS products in DWSRF projects through September 30, 2015. For details, see Legal Authority below.

The appropriation language sets forth certain circumstances under which EPA may waive American Iron and Steel requirements. For details, see Waiver Process.

AIS Guidance, Questions and Answers, and Training

AIS Guidance and Questions and Answers describe how EPA implements the AIS requirement. The guidance addresses the types of projects that must comply with the AIS requirement, the types of products covered by the AIS requirement, and compliance. The guidance provides a step-by-step process for requesting waivers and the circumstances under which waivers may be granted.
AIS Training Materials discuss how to implement the requirement, project coverage, the waiver request process, and the national waivers.

Inquiries and Comments

General inquiries and concerns regarding the American Iron and Steel requirement may be sent to: SRF_AIS@epa.gov. This includes specific questions and comments about products, projects, and availability.

Comments on CWSRF waiver requests can be submitted to cwsrfwaiver@epa.gov.

Comments on DWSRF waiver requests can be submitted to dwsrfwaiver@epa.gov.

Confidential Business Information (CBI) should not be submitted to these email boxes.

If fraud, waste, abuse or any violation of the law is suspected, the Office of Inspector General (OIG) should be contacted immediately. The OIG can be reached at 1-888-546-8740 or OIG_Hotline@epa.gov. More information can be found at the OIG Hotline website (http://www.epa.gov/office-inspector-general/epa-oig-hotline).

AIS Legal Authority

The Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2014 (Public Law 113-76) includes an American Iron and Steel (AIS) requirement. Clean Water State Revolving Fund (CWSRF) and Drinking Water State Revolving Fund (DWSRF) assistance recipients are required to use iron and steel products that are produced in the United States for projects for the construction, alteration, maintenance, or repair of a public water system or treatment works and if the project is funded through an assistance agreement executed beginning January 17, 2014 (enactment of the Act), through the end of Fiscal Year 2014.

The appropriation language sets forth certain circumstances under which EPA may waive AIS requirements. Furthermore, the act exempts projects where engineering specifications and plans were approved by a state agency prior to January 17, 2014.

On June 10 2014, the Water Resources Reform and Development Act amended the Clean Water Act (CWA) to include permanent requirements for the use of AIS in CWSRF projects. Section 608 of the CWA now contains requirements for AIS that repeat those of the Consolidated Appropriations Act of FY 2014. As such, all CWSRF projects must comply with Section 608 of the CWA for implementation of the permanent AIS requirements. Therefore, all guidances adopted for FY 2014 apply for the permanent AIS requirements for the CWSRF.

On December 16, 2014, the president signed Public Law 113-235, the “Consolidated and Further Continuing Appropriations Act 2015," which provides fiscal year 2015 full-year appropriations through September 30, 2015. This law continues the requirement for the use of AIS products in DWSRF projects. For details see the memorandum, Application of American Iron and Steel Requirements to Fiscal Year 2015 Drinking Water State Revolving Funds under the Consolidated and Further Continuing Appropriations Act 2015.

On December 18, 2015, the president signed Public Law 114-113, the “Consolidated Appropriations Act 2016," which provides fiscal year 2016 full-year appropriations through September 30, 2016. This law continues the requirement for the use of AIS products in DWSRF projects. For details see the memorandum, Application of American Iron and Steel Requirements for Drinking Water State Revolving Fund Projects Under the Consolidated Appropriations Act 2016.