Yesterday, the Biden Administration announced a new Sustainable Products and Services procurement rule, which requires federal government buyers to prioritize sustainable products and services and expands the categories of Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Ecolabel standards for federal purchasing to a series of new sectors.
The proposed rule would update the government’s Federal Acquisition Regulation to focus on environmental and sustainability matters, and require federal agencies to purchase sustainable products and services “to the maximum extent practicable.”
Under the proposal, agencies would be directed to follow EPA’s Recommendations of Specifications, Standards, and Ecolabels for Federal Purchasing, designed to help government purchasers identify private sector standards and ecolabels that meet sustainable acquisition goals and mandates. Alongside the launch of the proposed rules, EPA announced that it will extend its recommendations to new product and services categories including healthcare, professional services, laboratories, uniforms and clothing, and food service ware. The new rules would also direct agencies to avoid the procurement of products containing PFAS, or “forever chemicals.”
The proposed rule will be open for public comment for 60 days via Federal Register docket FAR-2022-0006 at www.regulations.gov.
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