Section 6002 of RCRA (42 USC 6962)

[Laws in effect as of January 24, 1994]
[Document affected by Public Law 103-355 Section 1554(1)]
[Document affected by Public Law 103-355 Section 4104(e)]
[Document affected by Public Law 103-355 Section 1554(2)]
[CITE: 42USC6962]

 
                 TITLE 42--THE PUBLIC HEALTH AND WELFARE
 
                    CHAPTER 82--SOLID WASTE DISPOSAL
 
                 SUBCHAPTER VI--FEDERAL RESPONSIBILITIES
 
Sec. 6962. Federal procurement


(a) Application of section

    Except as provided in subsection (b) of this section, a procuring 
agency shall comply with the requirements set forth in this section and 
any regulations issued under this section, with respect to any purchase 
or acquisition of a procurement item where the purchase price of the 
item exceeds $10,000 or where the quantity of such items or of 
functionally equivalent items purchased or acquired in the course of the 
preceding fiscal year was $10,000 or more.

(b) Procurement subject to other law

    Any procurement, by any procuring agency, which is subject to 
regulations of the Administrator under section 6964 of this title (as 
promulgated before October 21, 1976, under comparable provisions of 
prior law) shall not be subject to the requirements of this section to 
the extent that such requirements are inconsistent with such 
regulations.

(c) Requirements

    (1) After the date specified in applicable guidelines prepared 
pursuant to subsection (e) of this section, each procuring agency which 
procures any items designated in such guidelines shall procure such 
items composed of the highest percentage of recovered materials 
practicable (and in the case of paper, the highest percentage of the 
postconsumer recovered materials referred to in subsection (h)(1) of 
this section practicable), consistent with maintaining a satisfactory 
level of competition, considering such guidelines. The decision not to 
procure such items shall be based on a determination that such 
procurement items--
        (A) are not reasonably available within a reasonable period of 
    time;
        (B) fail to meet the performance standards set forth in the 
    applicable specifications or fail to meet the reasonable performance 
    standards of the procuring agencies; or
        (C) are only available at an unreasonable price. Any 
    determination under subparagraph (B) shall be made on the basis of 
    the guidelines of the National Institute of Standards and Technology 
    in any case in which such material is covered by such guidelines.

    (2) Agencies that generate heat, mechanical, or electrical energy 
from fossil fuel in systems that have the technical capability of using 
energy or fuels derived from solid waste as a primary or supplementary 
fuel shall use such capability to the maximum extent practicable.
    (3) After the date specified in any applicable guidelines prepared 
pursuant to subsection (e) of this section, contracting officers shall 
require that vendors:
        (A) certify that the percentage of recovered materials to be 
    used in the performance of the contract will be at least the amount 
    required by applicable specifications or other contractual 
    requirements and
        (B) estimate the percentage of the total material utilized for 
    the performance of the contract which is recovered materials.

(d) Specifications

    All Federal agencies that have the responsibility for drafting or 
reviewing specifications for procurement items procured by Federal 
agencies shall--
        (1) as expeditiously as possible but in any event no later than 
    eighteen months after November 8, 1984, eliminate from such 
    specifications--
            (A) any exclusion of recovered materials and
            (B) any requirement that items be manufactured from virgin 
        materials; and

        (2) within one year after the date of publication of applicable 
    guidelines under subsection (e) of this section, or as otherwise 
    specified in such guidelines, assure that such specifications 
    require the use of recovered materials to the maximum extent 
    possible without jeopardizing the intended end use of the item.

(e) Guidelines

    The Administrator, after consultation with the Administrator of 
General Services, the Secretary of Commerce (acting through the National 
Institute of Standards and Technology), and the Public Printer, shall 
prepare, and from time to time revise, guidelines for the use of 
procuring agencies in complying with the requirements of this section. 
Such guidelines shall--
        (1) designate those items which are or can be produced with 
    recovered materials and whose procurement by procuring agencies will 
    carry out the objectives of this section, and in the case of paper, 
    provide for maximizing the use of post consumer recovered materials 
    referred to in subsection (h)(1) of this section; and
        (2) set forth recommended practices with respect to the 
    procurement of recovered materials and items containing such 
    materials and with respect to certification by vendors of the 
    percentage of recovered materials used,

and shall provide information as to the availability, relative price, 
and performance of such materials and items and where appropriate shall 
recommend the level of recovered material to be contained in the 
procured product. The Administrator shall prepare final guidelines for 
paper within one hundred and eighty days after November 8, 1984, and for 
three additional product categories (including tires) by October 1, 
1985. In making the designation under paragraph (1), the Administrator 
shall consider, but is not limited in his considerations, to--
        (A) the availability of such items;
        (B) the impact of the procurement of such items by procuring 
    agencies on the volume of solid waste which must be treated, stored 
    or disposed of;
        (C) the economic and technological feasibility of producing and 
    using such items; and
        (D) other uses for such recovered materials.

(f) Procurement of services

    A procuring agency shall, to the maximum extent practicable, manage 
or arrange for the procurement of solid waste management services in a 
manner which maximizes energy and resource recovery.

(g) Executive Office

    The Office of Procurement Policy in the Executive Office of the 
President, in cooperation with the Administrator, shall implement the 
requirements of this section. It shall be the responsibility of the 
Office of Procurement Policy to coordinate this policy with other 
policies for Federal procurement, in such a way as to maximize the use 
of recovered resources, and to, every two years beginning in 1984, 
report to the Congress on actions taken by Federal agencies and the 
progress made in the implementation of this section, including agency 
compliance with subsection (d) of this section.

(h) ``Recovered materials'' defined

    As used in this section, in the case of paper products, the term 
``recovered materials'' includes--
        (1) postconsumer materials such as--
            (A) paper, paperboard, and fibrous wastes from retail 
        stores, office buildings, homes, and so forth, after they have 
        passed through their end-usage as a consumer item, including: 
        used corrugated boxes; old newspapers; old magazines; mixed 
        waste paper; tabulating cards; and used cordage; and
            (B) all paper, paperboard, and fibrous wastes that enter and 
        are collected from municipal solid waste, and

        (2) manufacturing, forest residues, and other wastes such as--
            (A) dry paper and paperboard waste generated after 
        completion of the papermaking process (that is, those 
        manufacturing operations up to and including the cutting and 
        trimming of the paper machine reel into smaller rolls or rough 
        sheets) including: envelope cuttings, bindery trimmings, and 
        other paper and paperboard waste, resulting from printing, 
        cutting, forming, and other converting operations; bag, box, and 
        carton manufacturing wastes; and butt rolls, mill wrappers, and 
        rejected unused stock; and
            (B) finished paper and paperboard from obsolete inventories 
        of paper and paperboard manufacturers, merchants, wholesalers, 
        dealers, printers, converters, or others;
            (C) fibrous byproducts of harvesting, manufacturing, 
        extractive, or wood-cutting processes, flax, straw, linters, 
        bagasse, slash, and other forest residues;
            (D) wastes generated by the conversion of goods made from 
        fibrous material (that is, waste rope from cordage manufacture, 
        textile mill waste, and cuttings); and
            (E) fibers recovered from waste water which otherwise would 
        enter the waste stream.

(i) Procurement program

    (1) Within one year after the date of publication of applicable 
guidelines under subsection (e) of this section, each procuring agency 
shall develop an affirmative procurement program which will assure that 
items composed of recovered materials will be purchased to the maximum 
extent practicable and which is consistent with applicable provisions of 
Federal procurement law.
    (2) Each affirmative procurement program required under this 
subsection shall, at a minimum, contain--
        (A) a recovered materials preference program;
        (B) an agency promotion program to promote the preference 
    program adopted under subparagraph (A);
        (C) a program for requiring estimates of the total percentage of 
    recovered material utilized in the performance of a contract; 
    certification of minimum recovered material content actually 
    utilized, where appropriate; and reasonable verification procedures 
    for estimates and certifications; and
        (D) annual review and monitoring of the effectiveness of an 
    agency's affirmative procurement program.

In the case of paper, the recovered materials preference program 
required under subparagraph (A) shall provide for the maximum use of the 
post consumer recovered materials referred to in subsection (h)(1) of 
this section.
    (3) In developing the preference program, the following options 
shall be considered for adoption:
        (A) Case-by-Case Policy Development: Subject to the limitations 
    of subsection (c)(1)(A) through (C) of this section, a policy of 
    awarding contracts to the vendor offering an item composed of the 
    highest percentage of recovered materials practicable (and in the 
    case of paper, the highest percentage of the post consumer recovered 
    materials referred to in subsection (h)(1) of this section). Subject 
    to such limitations, agencies may make an award to a vendor offering 
    items with less than the maximum recovered materials content.
        (B) Minimum Content Standards: Minimum recovered materials 
    content specifications which are set in such a way as to assure that 
    the recovered materials content (and in the case of paper, the 
    content of post consumer materials referred to in subsection (h)(1) 
    of this section) required is the maximum available without 
    jeopardizing the intended end use of the item, or violating the 
    limitations of subsection (c)(1)(A) through (C) of this section.

Procuring agencies shall adopt one of the options set forth in 
subparagraphs (A) and (B) or a substantially equivalent alternative, for 
inclusion in the affirmative procurement program.

(j) Preference for recycled toner cartridges \1\
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \1\ See Codification note below.
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    (a) Notwithstanding any other provision of law, a Federal agency in 
conducting a procurement for toner cartridges for use in laser printers, 
photocopiers or microphotographic printers shall purchase recycled 
cartridges, unless the contracting or purchasing officer determines in 
writing that--
        (1) adequate market research establishes that recycled 
    cartridges for the type of equipment used by the agency do not 
    exist,
        (2) the price or life cycle cost offered for the recycled 
    cartridge is higher than the original equipment manufacturer's new 
    cartridge, or
        (3) recycled cartridges are not available in quantities needed 
    within the timeframes required.

    (b) Nothing in this subsection shall prohibit the purchase of one 
newly manufactured cartridge (or a number equal to those normally 
supplied at the time of initial purchase) as part of an initial printer 
or copier acquisition.
    (c) For purposes of this subsection, ``recycled cartridge'' means a 
laser printer, photocopier, or microphotographic toner cartridge which 
has been remanufactured in the United States by a small-business concern 
which has been certified by an independent laboratory to meet generally 
accepted industry standards. In the absence of an independent laboratory 
certification, a contracting officer may in his discretion rely on the 
agency's past experience with the offered recycled cartridge as evidence 
that the offered product meets generally accepted industry standards.
    (d) For purposes of this subsection, ``small-business concern'' has 
the meaning given such term in the Small Business Act (15 U.S.C. 
632(a)).
    (e) For purposes of this subsection, ``independent laboratory'' 
means an independently owned engineering and product testing firm, whose 
primary business activity is not limited to the testing and 
certification of recycled cartridges.

(Pub. L. 89-272, title II, Sec. 6002, as added Pub. L. 94-580, Sec. 2, 
Oct. 21, 1976, 90 Stat. 2822; amended Pub. L. 95-609, Sec. 7(n), Nov. 8, 
1978, 92 Stat. 3082; Pub. L. 96-482, Sec. 22, Oct. 21, 1980, 94 Stat. 
2346; Pub. L. 97-375, title I, Sec. 102, Dec. 21, 1982, 96 Stat. 1819; 
Pub. L. 98-616, title V, Sec. 501(a)-(e), Nov. 8, 1984, 98 Stat. 3274-
3276; Pub. L. 100-418, title V, Sec. 5115(c), Aug. 23, 1988, 102 Stat. 
1433; Pub. L. 102-393, title VI, Sec. 630, Oct. 6, 1992, 106 Stat. 
1773.)

                       References in Text

    The Small Business Act, referred to in subsec. (j)(d), is Pub. L. 
85-536, July 18, 1958, 72 Stat. 384, as amended, which is classified 
generally to chapter 14A (Sec. 631 et seq.) of Title 15, Commerce and 
Trade. For complete classification of this Act to the Code, see Short 
Title note set out under section 631 of Title 15 and Tables.

                          Codification

    Section 630 of Pub. L. 102-393, which directed that this title be 
amended by adding a new section 6962j, was executed by classifying 
provisions of purported new section to subsec. (j) of this section, to 
reflect the probable intent of Congress, in light of Senate Report 102-
353, p. 115, which described the amendment by section 630 of the 
proposed legislation as adding the provisions as subsec. (j) of section 
6962 of this title. In view of this execution, references in subsec. (j) 
to ``this section'' have been translated ``this subsection''.


                               Amendments

    1992--Subsec. (j). Pub. L. 102-393 added subsec. (j). See 
Codification note above.
    1988--Subsecs. (c)(1)(C), (e). Pub. L. 100-418 substituted 
``National Institute of Standards and Technology'' for ``Bureau of 
Standards''.
    1984--Subsec. (c)(1). Pub. L. 98-616, Sec. 501(c), inserted ``(and 
in the case of paper, the highest percentage of the postconsumer 
recovered materials referred to in subsection (h)(1) of this section 
practicable)''.
    Subsec. (d)(1). Pub. L. 98-616, Sec. 501(e), substituted ``eighteen 
months after November 8, 1984'' for ``five years after October 21, 
1976''.
    Subsec. (e). Pub. L. 98-616, Sec. 501(b)(2), substituted ``for paper 
within one hundred and eighty days after November 8, 1984, and for three 
additional product categories (including tires) by October 1, 1985'' for 
``for at least three product categories, including paper, by May 1, 
1981, and for two additional product categories, including construction 
materials, by September 30, 1982.'' in provisions following par. (2).
    Subsec. (e)(1). Pub. L. 98-616, Sec. 501(b)(1), inserted ``, and in 
the case of paper, provide for maximizing the use of post consumer 
recovered materials referred to in subsection (h)(1) of this section''.
    Subsec. (g). Pub. L. 98-616, Sec. 501(d), substituted ``the 
requirements of'' for ``the policy expressed in'' and inserted ``, and 
to, every two years beginning in 1984, report to the Congress on actions 
taken by Federal agencies and the progress made in the implementation of 
this section, including agency compliance with subsection (d) of this 
section''.
    Subsecs. (h), (i). Pub. L. 98-616, Sec. 501(a), added subsecs. (h) 
and (i).
    1982--Subsec. (g). Pub. L. 97-375 struck out provision requiring the 
Office of Procurement Policy to report annually to Congress on actions 
taken by Federal agencies and the progress made in the implementation of 
the policy expressed in this section.
    1980--Subsec. (c)(1). Pub. L. 96-482, Sec. 22(1), (2), in provision 
preceding subpar. (A), substituted ``After the date specified in 
applicable guidelines prepared pursuant to subsection (e) of this 
section, each procuring agency which procures any item designated in 
such guidelines shall procure such'' for ``After two years after October 
21, 1976, each procuring agency shall procure'', and in subpar. (C), 
``subparagraph (B)'' for ``clause (B)''.
    Subsec. (c)(2). Pub. L. 96-482, Sec. 22(3), substituted ``energy or 
fuels derived from solid waste'' for ``recovered material and recovered-
material-derived fuel''.
    Subsec. (c)(3). Pub. L. 96-482, Sec. 22(4), substituted subpars. (A) 
and (B) for provision requiring certification of the percentage of the 
total material utilized for the performance of the contract which is 
recovered materials.
    Subsec. (d). Pub. L. 96-482, Sec. 22(5), in par. (1), substituted 
provision requiring Federal agencies to eliminate from specifications as 
expeditiously as possible, but in no event later than 5 years after Oct. 
21, 1976, any exclusion of recovered materials and any requirement that 
items be manufactured from virgin materials for provision that Federal 
agencies in reviewing specifications, ascertain whether those 
specifications violate prohibitions in par. (2)(A) to (C), with such 
review undertaken not later than 18 months after Oct. 21, 1976, and in 
par. (2), substituted provision that Federal agencies act within 1 year 
from publication of applicable guidelines under subsec. (e) of this 
section for provision that in drafting or revising specifications after 
Oct. 21, 1976, any exclusion of recovered materials be eliminated and 
specifications not require the item to be manufactured from virgin 
materials.
    Subsec. (e). Pub. L. 96-482, Sec. 22(6), designated provision 
relating to requirements of guidelines as cl. (2) and subpars. (A) and 
(C), added cl. (1), subpars. (B) and (C), and provision preceding 
subpar. (A), and struck out provision requiring information on source of 
supply.
    1978--Subsec. (c). Pub. L. 95-609, Sec. 7(n)(1), (2), redesignated 
subpar. (1)(A) as par. (1), subpars. (1)(B) and (C) as pars. (2) and 
(3), respectively, and cls. (i) to (iii) of former subpar. (1)(A) as 
subpars. (A) to (C), respectively, of par. (1), and in par. (3), as so 
redesignated, inserted ``After the date specified in any applicable 
guidelines prepared pursuant to subsection (e) of this section,'' before 
``contracting''.
    Subsec. (e). Pub. L. 95-609, Sec. 7(n)(3), inserted provision 
dealing with certification by vendors of the materials used.

                          Transfer of Functions

    For transfer of certain enforcement functions of Administrator or 
other official of Environmental Protection Agency under this chapter to 
Federal Inspector, Office of Federal Inspector for the Alaska Natural 
Gas Transportation System, and subsequent transfer to Secretary of 
Energy, see note set out under section 6903 of this title.


                           Similar Provisions

    Provisions similar to those comprising subsec. (j) of this section 
were contained in the following appropriation act:
    Pub. L. 103-123, title IV, Sec. 401, Oct. 28, 1993, 107 Stat. 1238.


          Federal Acquisition, Recycling, and Waste Prevention

    Executive agency heads to develop and implement affirmative 
procurement programs in accordance with this section and Ex. Ord. No. 
12873, and specifications, standards, and product descriptions 
inconsistent with this section or Ex. Ord. No. 12873 to be revised, see 
Ex. Ord. No. 12873, Secs. 402, 501(a), Oct. 20, 1993, 58 F.R. 54914, 
54915, set out as a note under section 6961 of this title.

                  Section Referred to in Other Sections

    This section is referred to in sections 6905, 6941 of this title.

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