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 IV. CONSOLIDATION OF PROCUREMENT GUIDELINES INTO 40 CFR PART 247
A. Overview of Consolidated Provisions
Currently, EPA's five existing procurement guidelines are codified in 40 CFR Parts
248, 249, 250, 252, and 253. In addition, 40 CFR Part 247 contains general guidance for
purchasing products containing recovered materials; however, Part 247 predates the 1984
amendments to RCRA and, therefore, does not address the statutory provisions requiring
agencies to establish affirmative procurement programs.
In the April 20, 1994 proposed rule, EPA proposed to delete the outdated general
guidance in Part 247 and to consolidate the existing five guidelines and new item
designations into a new Part 247. (See 59 FR 18862.) The Agency did not receive any
public comments on these proposed changes and, therefore, is finalizing the consolidation of
the guidelines into 40 CFR Part 247 as described below. This consolidated Part 247
supersedes the previous Parts 248, 249, 250, 252, and 253.
The new Part 247, Comprehensive Procurement Guideline, contains two subparts:
Subpart A - General, which includes the requirements of RCRA section 6002 and definitions,
and Subpart B - Item Designations. This consolidation allows EPA to (1) specify the
statutory requirements once, instead of repeating them in each individual guideline, (2) define
all applicable terms in one subpart, instead of in each individual guideline, and (3) provide
procuring agencies with one, central list of the designated items. Consolidating these
provisions into one Part will make them easier for procuring agencies to locate and use. In
addition, each of the five existing guidelines contains general sections addressing its purpose,
scope, and applicability. The applicability sections of the guidelines do not contain identical
text, which has created confusion among procuring agencies in the past. By consolidating
the procurement guidelines into one Part, EPA will be avoiding duplication and ambiguity.
RCRA section 6002 and Executive Order 12873 require agencies to establish
affirmative procurement programs for items designated by EPA. In addition, section 6002
requires agencies to review their specifications for designated items and revise them as
necessary to permit the use of recovered materials to the maximum extent practicable. These
requirements were explained in each of EPA's earlier guidelines and are now found in
Subpart A of 40 CFR Part 247. Subpart A also contains applicable definitions found in
RCRA, definitions used in the five existing procurement guidelines, and definitions for the
items that EPA designates, including those being issued in today's final rule.
Subpart B of the new Part 247 contains EPA's designated list of items that are or can
be made with recovered materials. The items are grouped into eight product categories:
paper and paper products, vehicular products, construction producta, transportation products,
park and recreation products, landscaping products, non-paper office products, and
miscellaneous products. The first category contains the designation of paper and paper
products, while the existing designations of lubricating oil containing re-refined oil and
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