The alliance said avoiding the provision, which is tied to about $460 million Metro receives each year for capital projects from the U.S. Department of Transportation, is especially egregious when unemployment slumps at 11 percent and as Metro survives off of a nearly $800-million bailout from the federal Cares Act and is seeking millions more in another stimulus.
“[Metro] survives on those tax dollars, and in this time of crisis [Metro] should do its part to support domestic manufacturers, American workers, and the communities they sustain,” Scott N. Paul, president of the Alliance for American Manufacturing, wrote in the letter. “We urge you to immediately stop the egregious outsourcing of the public infrastructure in our nation’s capital and reissue the pending request for bids with the inclusion of the federal Buy American laws.”
Metro said it is not violating the “Buy America” provision because it is not using federal money to build the 8000-series cars. Instead it is using funding from Maryland, Virginia and the District that is dedicated for capital projects. Federal funding the transit agency gets annually for capital expenses is being earmarked for other uses.
Metro said that it was still early in its process to secure a contract to build the 8000 Series, which is expected to look similar to the current 7000-series rail cars but with technological advancements including phone chargers, digital maps and advertising.
But the agency said it has its own contract clause requiring a builder to create an assembly plant and keep a percentage of the total contract’s value not just in-country but inside of the Mid-Atlantic region.
“Metro is committed to ensuring that our local region sees direct economic benefits from the dedicated funding established to support the system’s infrastructure needs,” Metro spokesman Dan Stessel said.
The Metro contract would require 8 percent of the project to be manufactured in the Mid-Atlantic region. By contrast, the federal “Buy America” provision requires that 70 percent remain domestic.
Metro is ordering more than 250 rail cars for its 8000 series and has options to buy up to 800 as it phases out older-model cars and modernizes its fleet. The 8000 series will replace its 2000-series cars, which were built in 1982, as well as the 3000-series cars built in 1987.
The first shipment of 8000-series cars could arrive in 2024, Metro has said.
The 8000-series cars will be Metro’s eighth model since the rail system opened four decades ago. Currently, there are no U.S.-based manufacturers of subway cars, but Kawasaki Heavy Industries Rolling Stock Company of Japan built Metro’s most recent model at a plant in Lincoln, Neb. Each of the cars is valued at $2 million and the 8000-series is expected to cost as much if not more.
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