In its Winter 2024-25 edition of Monitor, the Pennsylvania Association of Housing and Redevelopment Agencies (PAHRA) published an article authored by Nelson Mullins attorneys Michelle Yarborough, Heather Toft, and Andrew Hall. In the article, they provide tips for navigating the Build America, Buy America (BABA) Act and why its applicability must be considered from the outset of any deal receiving Federal financial assistance from the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD). In an excerpt, they break down the applicability of BABA going forward:     

As of October 1, 2024, the start of HUD's 2025 fiscal year, the phased implementation of BABA is complete so it must be a consideration of any project receiving Federal financial assistance ("FFA") through HUD. FFA includes, and BABA thus applies to, grants and loans from HUD for the construction, alteration, maintenance, or repair of buildings and real property. The requirements of BABA may then be pushed down to subrecipients of such funds, making familiarity with the Act critically important for parties at every level.

In short, if BABA applies to your project because you are receiving FFA from HUD (as described above), then you are required to adhere to the Buy American Preference (the "BAP"). The BAP is a "domestic procurement preference" that requires all iron, steel, manufactured products, and construction materials used in the project be produced in the United States. As you can imagine, complying with the BAP requires significant advance planning and coordination, which makes understanding its applicability essential and something which should be done as early as possible in the development process.

Read the full article here.