Federal Acquisition, Recycling, And Waste Prevention
The White House
Office of the Press Secretary
__________________________________________________________________
For Immediate Release October 20, 1993
Executive Order
#12873
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Federal Acquisition, Recycling, And Waste Prevention
Whereas, the Nation's interest is served when the Federal
Government can make more efficient use of natural resources by
maximizing recycling and preventing waste wherever possible;
Whereas, this Administration is determined to strengthen
the role of the Federal Government as an enlightened,
environmentally conscious and concerned consumer;
Whereas, the Federal Government should -- through cost-
effective waste prevention and recycling activities -- work to
conserve disposal capacity, and serve as a model in this regard
for private and other public institutions; and
Whereas, the use of recycled and environmentally preferable
products and services by the Federal Government can spur private
sector development of new technologies and use of such products,
thereby creating business and employment opportunities and
enhancing regional and local economies and the national economy;
Now, Therefore, I, William J. Clinton, by the authority
vested in me as President by the Constitution and the laws of
the United States of America, including the Solid Waste Disposal
Act, Public Law 89-272, 79 Stat. 997, as amended by the Resource
Conservation and Recovery Act ("Rcra"), Public Law 94-580,
90 Stat. 2795 as amended (42 U.S.C. 6901-6907), and section 301
of title 3, United States Code, hereby order as follows:
Part 1 - Preamble
Section 101. Consistent with the demands of efficiency
and cost effectiveness, the head of each Executive agency shall
incorporate waste prevention and recycling in the agency's daily
operations and work to increase and expand markets for recovered
materials through greater Federal Government preference and
demand for such products.
Sec. 102. Consistent with policies established by Office
of Federal Procurement Policy ("Ofpp") Policy Letter 92-4,
agencies shall comply with executive branch policies for the
acquisition and use of environmentally preferable products and
services and implement cost-effective procurement preference
programs favoring the purchase of these products and services.
Sec. 103. This order creates a Federal Environmental
Executive and establishes high-level Environmental Executive
positions within each agency to be responsible for expediting
the implementation of this order and statutes that pertain to
this order.
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Part 2 - Definitions
For purposes of this order:
Sec. 201. "Environmentally preferable" means products or
services that have a lesser or reduced effect on human health
and the environment when compared with competing products or
services that serve the same purpose. This comparison may
consider raw materials acquisition, production, manufacturing,
packaging, distribution, reuse, operation, maintenance, or
disposal of the product or service.
Sec. 202. "Executive agency" or "agency" means an
Executive agency as defined in 5 U.S.C. 105. For the purpose of
this order, military departments, as defined in 5 U.S.C. 102,
are covered under the auspices of the Department of Defense.
Sec. 203. "Postconsumer material" means a material or
finished product that has served its intended use and has been
discarded for disposal or recovery, having completed its life as
a consumer item. "Postconsumer material" is a part of the
broader category of "recovered material".
Sec. 204. "Acquisition" means the acquiring by contract
with appropriated funds for supplies or services (including
construction) by and for the use of the Federal Government
through purchase or lease, whether the supplies or services are
already in existence or must be created, developed, demonstrated
and evaluated. Acquisition begins at the point when agency
needs are established and includes the description of
requirements to satisfy agency needs, solicitation and selection
of sources, award of contracts, contract financing, contract
performance, contract administration and those technical and
management functions directly related to the process of
fulfilling agency needs by contract.
Sec. 205. "Recovered materials" means waste materials and
by-products which have been recovered or diverted from solid
waste, but such term does not include those materials and by-
products generated from, and commonly reused within, an original
manufacturing process (42 U.S.C. 6903 (19)).
Sec. 206. "Recyclability" means the ability of a product
or material to be recovered from, or otherwise diverted from,
the solid waste stream for the purpose of recycling.
Sec. 207. "Recycling" means the series of activities,
including collection, separation, and processing, by which
products or other materials are recovered from the solid waste
stream for use in the form of raw materials in the manufacture
of new products other than fuel for producing heat or power by
combustion.
Sec. 208. "Waste prevention," also known as "source
reduction," means any change in the design, manufacturing,
purchase or use of materials or products (including packaging)
to reduce their amount or toxicity before they become municipal
solid waste. Waste prevention also refers to the reuse of
products or materials.
Sec. 209. "Waste reduction" means preventing or decreasing
the amount of waste being generated through waste prevention,
recycling, or purchasing recycled and environmentally preferable
products.
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Sec. 210. "Life Cycle Cost" means the amortized annual
cost of a product, including capital costs, installation costs,
operating costs, maintenance costs and disposal costs discounted
over the lifetime of the product.
Sec. 211. "Life Cycle Analysis" means the comprehensive
examination of a product's environmental and economic effects
throughout its lifetime including new material extraction,
transportation, manufacturing, use, and disposal.
Part 3 - The Role Of The Federal Environmental Executive
And Agency Environmental Executives
Sec. 301. Federal Environmental Executive. (a) A Federal
Environmental Executive shall be designated by the President and
shall be located within the Environmental Protection Agency
("Epa"). The Federal Environmental Executive shall take all
actions necessary to ensure that the agencies comply with the
requirements of this order and shall generate an annual report
to the Office of Management and Budget ("Omb"), at the time of
agency budget submissions, on the actions taken by the agencies
to comply with the requirements of this order. In carrying out
his or her functions, the Federal Environmental Executive shall
consult with the Director of the White House Office on
Environmental Policy.
(b) Staffing. A minimum of four (4) full time staff
persons are to be provided by the agencies listed below to
assist the Federal Environmental Executive, one of whom shall
have experience in specification review and program require-
ments, one of whom shall have experience in procurement
practices, and one of whom shall have experience in solid waste
prevention and recycling. These four staff persons shall be
appointed and replaced as follows:
(1) a representative from the Department of Defense
shall be detailed for not less than one year and no more than
two years;
(2) a representative from the General Services
Administration ("Gsa") shall be detailed for not less than
one year and no more than two years;
(3) a representative from Epa shall be detailed for not
less than one year and no more than two years; and
(4) a representative from one other agency determined by
the Federal Environmental Executive shall be detailed on a
rotational basis for not more than one year.
(c) Administration. Agencies are requested to make their
services, personnel and facilities available to the Federal
Environmental Executive to the maximum extent practicable for
the performance of functions under this order.
(d) Committees and Work Groups. The Federal Environmental
Executive shall establish committees and work groups to
identify, assess, and recommend actions to be taken to fulfill
the goals, responsibilities, and initiatives of the Federal
Environmental Executive. As these committees and work groups
are created, agencies are requested to designate appropriate
personnel in the areas of procurement and acquisition, standards
and specifications, electronic commerce, facilities management,
waste prevention, and recycling, and others as needed to staff
and work on the initiatives of the Executive.
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(e) Duties. The Federal Environmental Executive, in
consultation with the Agency Environmental Executives, shall:
(1) identify and recommend initiatives for government-wide
implementation that will promote the purposes of this order,
including:
(A) the development of a federal plan for agency
implementation of this order and appropriate
incentives to encourage the acquisition of recycled
and environmentally preferable products by the Federal
Government;
(B) the development of a federal implementation plan
and guidance for instituting economically efficient
federal waste prevention, energy and water efficiency
programs, and recycling programs within each agency;
and
(C) the development of a plan for making maximum use
of available funding assistance programs;
(2) collect and disseminate information electronically
concerning methods to reduce waste, materials that can be
recycled, costs and savings associated with waste prevention
and recycling, and current market sources of products that are
environmentally preferable or produced with recovered materials;
(3) provide guidance and assistance to the agencies in
setting up and reporting on agency programs and monitoring their
effectiveness; and
(4) coordinate appropriate government-wide education and
training programs for agencies.
Sec. 302. Agency Environmental Executives. Within 90 days
after the effective date of this order, the head of each
Executive department and major procuring agency shall designate
an Agency Environmental Executive from among his or her staff,
who serves at a level no lower than at the Deputy Assistant
Secretary level or equivalent. The Agency Environmental
Executive will be responsible for:
(a) coordinating all environmental programs in the areas
of procurement and acquisition, standards and specification
review, facilities management, waste prevention and recycling,
and logistics;
(b) participating in the interagency development of a
Federal plan to:
(1) create an awareness and outreach program for the
private sector to facilitate markets for environmentally
preferable and recycled products and services, promote new
technologies, improve awareness about federal efforts in this
area, and expedite agency efforts to procure new products
identified under this order;
(2) establish incentives, provide guidance and coordinate
appropriate educational programs for agency employees; and
(3) coordinate the development of standard agency reports
required by this order;
(c) reviewing agency programs and acquisitions to ensure
compliance with this order.
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Part 4 - Acquisition Planning And Affirmative Procurement
Programs
Sec. 401. Acquisition Planning. In developing plans,
drawings, work statements, specifications, or other product
descriptions, agencies shall consider the following factors:
elimination of virgin material requirements; use of recovered
materials; reuse of product; life cycle cost; recyclability; use
of environmentally preferable products; waste prevention
(including toxicity reduction or elimination); and ultimate
disposal, as appropriate. These factors should be considered in
acquisition planning for all procurements and in the evaluation
and award of contracts, as appropriate. Program and acquisition
managers should take an active role in these activities.
Sec. 402. Affirmative Procurement Programs. The head of
each Executive agency shall develop and implement affirmative
procurement programs in accordance with Rcra section 6002 (42
U.S.C. 6962) and this order. Agencies shall ensure that
responsibilities for preparation, implementation and monitoring
of affirmative procurement programs are shared between the
program personnel and procurement personnel. For the purposes
of all purchases made pursuant to this order, Epa, in consul-
tation with such other Federal agencies as appropriate, shall
endeavor to maximize environmental benefits, consistent with
price, performance and availability considerations, and shall
adjust bid solicitation guidelines as necessary in order to
accomplish this goal.
(a) Agencies shall establish affirmative procurement
programs for all designated Epa guideline items purchased by
their agency. For newly designated items, agencies shall revise
their internal programs within one year from the date Epa
designated the new items.
(b) For the currently designated Epa guideline items,
which are: (i) concrete and cement containing fly ash;
(ii) recycled paper products; (iii) re-refined lubricating oil;
(iv) retread tires; and (v) insulation containing recovered
materials; and for all future guideline items, agencies shall
ensure that their affirmative procurement programs require that
100 percent of their purchases of products meet or exceed the
Epa guideline standards unless written justification is provided
that a product is not available competitively within a
reasonable time frame, does not meet appropriate performance
standards, or is only available at an unreasonable price.
(c) The Agency Environmental Executives will track
agencies' purchases of designated Epa guideline items and report
agencies' purchases of such guideline items to the Federal
Environmental Executive. Agency Environmental Executives will
be required to justify to the Federal Environmental Executive as
to why the item(s) have not been purchased or submit a plan for
how the agencies intend to increase their purchases of the
designated item(s).
(d) Agency affirmative procurement programs, to the
maximum extent practicable, shall encourage that:
(1) documents be transferred electronically,
(2) all government documents printed internally be printed
double-sided, and
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(3) contracts, grants, and cooperative agreements issued
after the effective date of this order include provisions that
require documents to be printed double-sided on recycled paper
meeting or exceeding the standards established in this order or
in future Epa guidelines.
Sec. 403. Procurement of Existing Guideline Items. Within
90 days after the effective date of this order, the head of each
Executive agency that has not implemented an affirmative
procurement program shall ensure that the affirmative
procurement program has been established and is being
implemented to the maximum extent practicable.
Sec. 404. Electronic Acquisition System. To reduce waste
by eliminating unnecessary paper transactions in the acquisition
process and to foster accurate data collection and reporting of
agencies' purchases of recycled content and environmentally
preferred products, the executive branch will implement an
electronic commerce system consistent with the recommendations
adopted as a result of the National Performance Review.
Part 5 - Standards, Specifications And Designation Of Items
Sec. 501. Specifications, Product Descriptions and
Standards. Where applicable, Executive agencies shall review
and revise federal and military specifications, product
descriptions and standards to enhance Federal procurement
of products made from recovered materials or that are
environmentally preferable. When converting to a Commercial
Item Description (Cid), agencies shall ensure that environmental
factors have been considered and that the Cid meets or exceeds
the environmentally preferable criteria of the government
specification or product description. Agencies shall report
annually on their compliance with this section to the Federal
Environmental Executive for incorporation into the annual report
to Omb referred to in section 301 of this order.
(a) If an inconsistency with Rcra Section 6002 or this
order is identified in a specification, standard, or product
description, the Federal Environmental Executive shall request
that the Environmental Executive of the pertinent agency advise
the Federal Environmental Executive as to why the specification
cannot be revised or submit a plan for revising it within
60 days.
(b) If an agency is able to revise an inconsistent
specification but cannot do so within 60 days, it is the
responsibility of that agency's Environmental Executive to
monitor and implement the plan for revising it.
Sec. 502. Designation of Items that Contain Recovered
Materials. In order to expedite the process of designating
items that are or can be made with recovered materials, Epa
shall institute a new process for designating these items in
accordance with Rcra section 6002(e) as follows. (a) Epa
shall issue a Comprehensive Procurement Guideline containing
designated items that are or can be made with recovered
materials.
(1) The proposed guideline shall be published for
public comment in the Federal Register within 180 days after
the effective date of this order and shall be updated annually
after publication for comment to include additional items.
(2) Once items containing recovered materials have been
designated by Epa through the new process established pursuant
to this section and in compliance with Rcra section 6002,
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agencies shall modify their affirmative procurement programs to
require that, to the maximum extent practicable, their purchases
of products meet or exceed the Epa guideline standards unless
written justification is provided that a product is not
available competitively, not available within a reasonable time
frame, does not meet appropriate performance standards, or is
only available at an unreasonable price.
(b) Concurrent with the issuance of the Comprehensive
Procurement Guideline required by section 502(a) of this order,
Epa shall publish for public comment in the Federal Register
Recovered Material Advisory Notice(s) that present the range of
recovered material content levels within which the designated
recycled items are currently available. These levels shall be
updated periodically after publication for comment to reflect
changes in market conditions.
Sec. 503. Guidance for Environmentally Preferable
Products. In accordance with this order, Epa shall issue
guidance that recommends principles that Executive agencies
should use in making determinations for the preference and
purchase of environmentally preferable products.
(a) Proposed guidance shall be published for public
comment in the Federal Register within 180 days after the
effective date of this order, and may be updated after public
comment, as necessary, thereafter. To the extent necessary, Epa
may issue additional guidance for public comment on how the
principles can be applied to specific product categories.
(b) Once final guidance for environmentally preferable
products has been issued by Epa, Executive agencies shall use
these principles, to the maximum extent practicable, in
identifying and purchasing environmentally preferable products
and shall modify their procurement programs by reviewing and
revising specifications, solicitation procedures, and policies
as appropriate.
Sec. 504. Minimum Content Standard for Printing and
Writing Paper. Executive agency heads shall ensure that
agencies shall meet or exceed the following minimum materials
content standards when purchasing or causing the purchase of
printing and writing paper:
(a) For high speed copier paper, offset paper, forms bond,
computer printout paper, carbonless paper, file folders, and
white woven envelopes, the minimum content standard shall be no
less than 20 percent postconsumer materials beginning
December 31, 1994. This minimum content standard shall be
increased to 30 percent beginning on December 31, 1998.
(b) For other uncoated printing and writing paper, such as
writing and office paper, book paper, cotton fiber paper, and
cover stock, the minimum content standard shall be 50 percent
recovered materials, including 20 percent postconsumer materials
beginning on December 31, 1994. This standard shall be
increased to 30 percent beginning on December 31, 1998.
(c) As an alternative to meeting the standards in sections
504(a) and (b), for all printing and writing papers, the minimum
content standard shall be no less than 50 percent recovered
materials that are a waste material byproduct of a finished
product other than a paper or textile product which would
otherwise be disposed of in a landfill, as determined by the
State in which the facility is located.
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(1) The decision not to procure recycled content
printing and writing paper meeting the standards specified in
this section shall be based solely on a determination by the
contracting officer that a satisfactory level of competition
does not exist, that the items are not available within a
reasonable time period, or that the available items fail to
meet reasonable performance standards established by the agency
or are only available at an unreasonable price.
(2) Each agency should implement waste prevention
techniques, as specified in section 402(d) of this order, so
that total annual expenditures for recycled content printing and
writing paper do not exceed current annual budgets for paper
products as measured by average annual expenditures, adjusted
for inflation based on the Consumer Price Index or other
suitable indices. In determining a target budget for printing
and writing paper, agencies may take into account such factors
as employee increases or decreases, new agency or statutory
initiatives, and episodic or unique requirements (e.g., census).
(3) Effective immediately, all agencies making
solicitations for the purchase of printing and writing paper
shall seek bids for paper with postconsumer material or
recovered waste material as described in section 504(c).
Sec. 505. Revision of Brightness Specifications and
Standards. The General Services Administration and other
Federal agencies are directed to identify, evaluate and revise
or eliminate any standards or specifications unrelated to
performance that present barriers to the purchase of paper
or paper products made by production processes that minimize
emissions of harmful byproducts. This evaluation shall include
a review of unnecessary brightness and stock clause provisions,
such as lignin content and chemical pulp requirements. The Gsa
shall complete the review and revision of such specifications
within six months after the effective date of this order, and
shall consult closely with the Joint Committee on Printing
during such process. The Gsa shall also compile any information
or market studies that may be necessary to accomplish the
objectives of this provision.
Sec. 506. Procurement of Re-refined Lubricating Oil and
Retread Tires. Within 180 days after the effective date of this
order, agencies shall implement the Epa procurement guidelines
for re-refined lubricating oil and retread tires.
(a) Commodity managers shall finalize revisions to
specifications for re-refined oil and retread tires, and develop
and issue specifications for tire retreading services, as
commodity managers shall take affirmative steps to procure these
items in accordance with Rcra section 6002.
(b) Once these items become available, fleet managers
shall take affirmative steps to procure these items in
accordance with Rcra section 6002.
Sec. 507. Product Testing. The Secretary of Commerce,
through the National Institute of Standards and Technology
("Nist"), shall establish a program for testing the performance
of products containing recovered materials or deemed to be
environmentally preferable. Nist shall work with Epa, Gsa and
other public and private sector organizations that conduct
appropriate life cycle analyses to gather information that will
assist agencies in making selections of products and services
that are environmentally preferable.
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(a) Nist shall publish appropriate reports describing
testing programs, their results, and recommendations for testing
methods and related specifications for use by Executive agencies
and other interested parties.
(b) Nist shall coordinate with other Executive and State
agencies to avoid duplication with existing testing programs.
Part 6 - Agency Goals And Reporting Requirements
Sec. 601. Goals for Waste Reduction. Each agency shall
establish a goal for solid waste prevention and a goal for
recycling to be achieved by the year 1995. These goals shall be
submitted to the Federal Environmental Executive within 180 days
after the effective date of this order. Progress on attaining
these goals shall be reported by the agencies to the Federal
Environmental Executive for the annual report specified in
section 301 of this order.
Sec. 602. Goal for Increasing the Procurement of Recycled
and Other Environmentally Preferable Products. Agencies shall
strive to increase the procurement of products that are
environmentally preferable or that are made with recovered
materials and set annual goals to maximize the number of
recycled products purchased, relative to non-recycled
alternatives.
Sec. 603. Review of Implementation. The President's
Council on Integrity and Efficiency ("Pcie") will request that
the Inspectors General periodically review agencies' affirmative
procurement programs and reporting procedures to ensure their
compliance with this order.
Part 7 - Applicability And Other Requirements
Sec. 701. Contractor Operated Facilities. Contracts that
provide for contractor operation of a government-owned or leased
facility, awarded after the effective date of this order, shall
include provisions that obligate the contractor to comply with
the requirements of this order within the scope of its
operations. In addition, to the extent permitted by law and
where economically feasible, existing contracts should be
modified.
Sec. 702. Real Property Acquisition and Management.
Within 90 days after the effective date of this order, and to
the extent permitted by law and where economically feasible,
Executive agencies shall ensure compliance with the provisions
of this order in the acquisition and management of federally
owned and leased space. Gsa and other Executive agencies shall
also include environmental and recycling provisions in the
acquisition of all leased space and in the construction of new
federal buildings.
Sec. 703. Retention of Funds. Within 90 days after the
effective date of this order, the Administrator of Gsa shall
develop a legislative proposal providing authority for Executive
agencies to retain a share of the proceeds from the sale of
materials recovered through recycling or waste prevention
programs and specifying the eligibility requirements for the
materials being recycled.
Sec. 704. Model Facility Programs. Each Executive
department and major procuring agency shall establish model
facility demonstration programs that include comprehensive waste
prevention and recycling programs and emphasize the procurement
of recycled and environmentally preferable products and services
using an electronic data interchange (Edi) system.
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Sec. 705. Recycling Programs. Each Executive agency that
has not already done so shall initiate a program to promote cost
effective waste prevention and recycling of reusable materials
in all of its facilities. The recycling programs implemented
pursuant to this section must be compatible with applicable
State and local recycling requirements. Federal agencies
shall also consider cooperative ventures with State and local
governments to promote recycling and waste reduction in the
community.
Part 8 - Awareness
Sec. 801. Agency Awards Program. A government-wide award
will be presented annually by the White House to the best, most
innovative program implementing the objectives of this order to
give greater visibility to these efforts so that they can be
incorporated government-wide.
Sec. 802. Internal Agency Awards Programs. Each agency
shall develop an internal agency-wide awards program, as
appropriate, to reward its most innovative environmental
programs. Winners of agency-wide awards will be eligible for
the White House award program.
Part 9 - Revocation, Limitation And Implementation
Sec. 901. Executive Order No. 12780, dated October 31,
1991, is hereby revoked.
Sec. 902. This order is intended only to improve the
internal management of the executive branch and is not intended
to create any right or benefit, substantive or procedural,
enforceable at law by a party against the United States, its
agencies, its officers, or any other person.
Sec. 903. The policies expressed in this order, including
the requirements and elements for effective agency affirmative
procurement programs, shall be implemented and incorporated in
the Federal Acquisition Regulation (Far) within 180 days after
the effective date of this order. The implementation language
shall consist of providing specific direction and guidance on
agency programs for preference, promotion, estimation,
certification, reviewing and monitoring.
Sec. 904. This order shall be effective immediately.
William J. Clinton
The White House,
October 20, 1993.
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