EPA EXPANDS COMPREHENSIVE
PROCUREMENT GUIDELINE (CPG)
COMPREHENSIVE
PROCUREMENT
GUIDELINES
As part of its continuing program to promote the use of recovered materi-
als, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has expanded the
federal buy-recycled program by adding seven new items to its
Comprehensive Procurement Guideline (CPG). EPA also revised the designations
for three CPG items. This brings to 61 the number of recycled-content products
designated under the CPG. EPA issued the original CPG regulations and the non-
regulatory Recovered Materials Advisory Notice (RMAN) in May 1995. RMANs
provide purchasing recommendations and guidance for the products designated in
the CPG and are updated periodically to reflect market conditions.
In November 1997, EPA updated the original CPG with the publication of
Federal Register notices for CPG II and RMAN II, covering an additional 12
items. In January 2000, EPA issued CPG III and RMAN III, covering 18 new
items. Most recently, in April 2004, EPA issued CPG IV and RMAN IV, covering
seven new items. Updated RMANs for paper and paper products were published
in May 1996 and June 1998.
The CPG designates items in the following eight product categories: paper and
paper products, vehicular products, construction products, transportation prod-
ucts, park and recreation products, landscaping products, nonpaper office prod-
ucts, and miscellaneous products.
Why Did EPA Publish the CPG and RMANs?
SER&
Solid Waste and Emergency
Response (5305W)
Washington, DC 20460
EPA530-F-04-008
www. epa. gov/osw
May 2004
To encourage the use of materials recovered through recycling, and thereby help
to reduce the amount of waste that must be disposed of, Congress directed gov-
ernment agencies to increase their purchases of recycled-content products.
Section 6002 of the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA) requires
EPA to designate products that can be made with recovered materials and to rec-
ommend practices for buying these products. Once a product is designated,
procuring agencies are required to purchase it with the highest recovered mate-
rial content level practicable. Executive Order (EO) 13101, issued in September
1998, reinforces RCRA's buy-recycled requirements.
Who Is Required to Buy Recycled Products?
Under RCRA, the requirement to purchase an EPA-designated product contain-
ing recovered materials applies to "procuring agencies" that spend more than
$10,000 a year on that item. Procuring agencies include all federal agencies, and
any state or local agency or government contractor that uses appropriated feder-
al funds. For example, if a county agency spends more than $10,000 a year on an
EPA-designated item, and part of that money is from appropriated federal funds,
then the agency must purchase that item made from recovered materials.
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CPG Categories and Designated Items
(Items in italics were designated in CPG IV)
Paper and Paper Products
Vehicular Products
Engine Coolants
Rebuilt Vehicular Parts
Re-refined Lubricating Oils
Retread Tires
Construction Products
Building Insulation Products
Carpet Cushion
Cement and Concrete Containing Coal Fly Ash,
Ground Granulated Blast Furnace Slag,
Cenospheres, or Silica Fume
Consolidated and Reprocessed Latex Paint
Floor Tiles
Flowable Fill
Laminated Paperboard
Modular Threshold Ramps
Nonpressure Pipe
Patio Blocks
Polyester Carpet
Railroad Grade Crossing Surfaces
Roofing Materials
Shower and Restroom Dividers and Partitions
Structural Fiberboard
Transportation Products
Channelizers
Delineators
Flexible Delineators
Parking Stops
Traffic Barricades
Traffic Cones
Park and Recreation Products
Park Benches and Picnic Tables
Plastic Fencing
Playground Equipment
Playground Surfaces
Running Tracks
Landscaping Products
Food Waste Compost
Garden and Soaker Hoses
Hydraulic Mulch
Lawn and Garden Edging
Plastic Lumber Landscaping Timbers and Posts
Yard Trimmings Compost
Nonpaper Office Products
Binders (plastic covered, chipboard, and
pressboard)
Office Furniture
Office Recycling Containers
Office Waste Receptacles
Plastic Binders
Plastic Clipboards
Plastic File Folders
Plastic Clip Portfolios
Plastic Presentation Folders
Plastic Desktop Accessories
Plastic Envelopes
Plastic Trash Bags
Printer Ribbons
Toner Cartridges
Miscellaneous Products
Awards and Plaques
Bike Racks
Blasting Grit
Industrial Drums
Manual-Grade Strapping
Mats
Pallets
Signage
Sorbents
CPG
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Affirmative Procurement Program
Affirmative procurement—or buying recycled—is an agency's strategy for maximiz-
ing its purchases of EPA-designated items. The affirmative procurement program
should also ensure that designated items purchased are composed of as much recov-
ered materials as possible. Programs should be flexible enough to incorporate newly
designated items, and must consist of the following components:
• A recovered materials preference program.
• An agency promotion program.
• Procedures for obtaining estimates and certifications of recovered materials content
and, where appropriate, reasonably verifying those estimates and certifications.*
• A program to monitor and annually review the effectiveness of the affirmative
procurement program.
Additionally, within one year following EPA designation of an item, procuring agen-
cies must revise their specifications to require the use of recovered materials to the
maximum extent possible without jeopardizing the intended end use of the item.
The May 1995 RMAN provides general guidance for developing affirmative procure-
ment programs. In addition, technical background documents and supporting analy-
ses to each CPG update include detailed guidance on establishing affirmative
procurement programs. See page 5 of this fact sheet for information on accessing
these and other helpful resources.
Preference Program
A preference program is the system by which an agency implements its stated pref-
erence for purchasing products containing recovered materials. RCRA identifies
three options for preference programs:
• Minimum Content Standards specify the minimum amount of recovered materi-
als that designated items should contain. EPA recommends ranges of recovered
materials content that are currently available, and procuring agencies should
establish their own standards based on these ranges.
• Case-by-Case Policy Development is used when a procuring agency determines
that minimum content standards are inappropriate for a specific procurement
action. This option allows the procuring agency to establish a separate recovered
materials content requirement for the specific procurement action, while still
enabling the agency to procure the designated product with the highest amount
of recovered materials practicable.
• Substantially Equivalent Approaches, such as establishing service contracts for
product remanufacturing, are used when minimum content standards are inap-
propriate. For example, procuring agencies may establish service contracts for
remanufacturing toner cartridges.
* The Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) requires standard contract language to obtain estimates, certifications, and verifica-
tions of recovered materials content of products provided under a contract. See page 4 of this fact sheet for more information on
the FAR.
CPG
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Promotion Program
Agencies must actively advertise their desire to buy recycled content products, both within
their organizations and to product vendors. Internal promotion usually is a broad-based employ-
ee education and outreach program that affirms an agency's procurement policy through adver-
tising, workshops, agency newsletters, and technical and staff manuals. Examples of external
promotion to suppliers include publishing articles in trade journals, participating in vendor
shows or trade fairs, placing statements in bid solicitations, and discussing an agency's procure-
ment policy at bidders' conferences.
What Are the Estimation, Certification, Verification, and Monitoring
Agencies should use standard contract provisions to estimate, certify, and, where appropriate, rea-
sonably verify the recovered materials content in a product procured by an agency. Programs also
must be monitored and tracked to ensure that they are fulfilling their requirements to purchase
items composed of recovered materials.
May an Agency Purchase CPG Items That Do Not Contain Recovered
Materials?
Agencies may elect not to purchase designated items containing recovered materials when the cost
is unreasonable; inadequate competition exists; items are not available within a reasonable period
of time; or items do not meet reasonable performance specifications. Sections 402(c) and 502(c) of
EO 13101 require agencies to provide written justification for non-compliant procurements.
Does the Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) Address Purchasing of
Products Designated in the CPG?
Under RCRA section 6002, purchasing of EPA-designated items must be consistent with other fed-
eral procurement requirements. The FAR is the primary regulation used by federal executive agen-
cies in their acquisition of supplies and services. On August 22, 1997, a final rule was published in
the Federal Register (62 FR 44809) amending the FAR to reflect the federal government's prefer-
ence for the acquisition of environmentally sound and energy-efficient products and services and
to incorporate the requirements of RCRA section 6002. The FAR revisions include solicitation pro-
visions, clauses for obtaining certifications and estimates of recovered materials content from con-
tractors, and a requirement that agencies establish an affirmative procurement program for
EPA-designated items. The FAR can be accessed electronically at ; then select
the section that includes Part 23.
What's the Difference Between Items Designated in the CPG and
Environmentally Preferable Products?
EO 13101 directs federal agencies to identify and purchase environmentally preferable products,
which are products that have a lesser or reduced effect on human health and the environment
when compared to other products and services that serve the same purpose. Items listed in the
CPG are designated based on recycled content, whereas the criteria for environmentally preferable
products include multiple attributes such as energy use; conservation of resources; impacts on air,
water, and land; and use of toxic or hazardous constituents.
CPG
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For More Information
This fact sheet and other documents on the CPG program are available on the
Internet at . This Web site provides an overview of the CPG pro-
gram, product fact sheets, and details on the individual designated items. Links to
all of the CPG and RMAN Federal Register notices are available on the Web site at
.
CPG
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