In a June 18th Federal Register notice, HUD announced that they were seeking public input in support of Build America, Buy America Act. HUD is seeking information on the availability of domestically manufactured items necessary for the “construction, alteration, maintenance, and repair of housing and certain infrastructure projects.”
Build America, Buy America was enacted in November 2021 as part of the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA) and requires that certain materials and products used in federally funded projects must be produced in the United States. The act defines manufactured domestic goods as meaning the final point of manufacturing must occur in the United States and “the cost of the components of the manufactured product that are mined, produced, or manufactured in the United States is greater than 55 percent of the total cost of all components of the manufactured product.” For construction materials, all manufacturing processes must occur in the United States. This has been previously interpreted to mean that the combination of constituent parts must be done in the United States. The act specifically notes plastic and polymer-based products as included construction materials.
HUD specifically requests information from product manufacturers, suppliers, distributers, and other stakeholders on the availability of domestically manufactured options of the following products and categories of products identified by HUD grantees, builders and other stakeholders:
- Heating, ventilation, and air-conditioning (HVAC) systems including:
- Variable refrigerant flow (VRF) systems
- Heat pumps, including cold climate air-source, ducted split, ductless mini-split, geothermal/ground source, and water source systems
- Exhaust fans
- Packaged terminal air conditioner (PTAC) units/vertical terminal conditioner (VTAC) units
- Gas furnaces
- Portable and room air conditioners
- Plumbing fixtures, including:
- Toilets
- Lavatory sinks
- Kitchen sinks
- Faucets
- Bathtubs and shower systems
- Door hardware, including electronic access control systems and digital locksets
- Elevators
- Fire alarm systems and fire suppression systems
- Solar panels
- Electrical components
- Interior and exterior LED lightings fixtures
- Surge protection devices
- Security cameras
- Unit load centers, panelboards, and distribution panels
- Ground fault circuit interrupter (GFCI) receptacles, cover plates, and wiring devices
- Wood trusses
For each of the categories and products, HUD is requesting specific information about the domestic production, BABA compliance of the products/categories, and the domestic capacity to produce BABA compliant products. The prompts for the specific requests can be found on pages 8 – 10 of the Federal Register notice. You may also respond to these prompts for products not included in this list that are essential to completing the construction, alteration, maintenance or repair of HUD-assisted housing and other building and real property programs’ projects.
Comments are due on or before July 18th, 2026. For more information or if you have any questions, please reach out to Brad Lavelle at blavelle@acmanet.org.