Draft Climate Rules May Signal Approach To Implementing Purchasing EO

Mike Wagner and Sarah Shepson spoke with Inside EPA about the FAR Council’s ongoing development of preliminary rulemaking that prioritizes federal contractors and bids with lower greenhouse gas emissions.

“I think there’s still a fair amount of runway until you see actual changes in procurement policy,” said Mike. “[I]n order for the administration to achieve its climate objectives, there’s going to be greater emphasis on the administrative and regulatory route, just by necessity…I wouldn’t be surprised if that means the executive branch agencies are diligent and forward leaning in implementing and pursuing the objectives that are set forth in the executive order.” With final rules still likely months away, he said companies “would be wise to closely monitor [the EO’s] implementation process and seek out opportunities to shape aspects of emerging new requirements in real time.”

Sarah added that some companies are already looking at their greenhouse gas emissions and can offer input about what worked for them. She noted that the FAR Council’s focus on what methods companies are using to measure greenhouse gas emissions indicates their desire to create a rule that is “implementable” and “administrable way for federal contractors in the future to actually report out on greenhouse gas emissions data.” She added that “ultimately this needs to be something that federal contractors are actually able to do, in practice.”