Ceres Calls for Bold Action to Curb Federal Supplier Emissions

Proposed federal procurement rule would advance investment in and deployment of proven climate solutions

BOSTON, Feb. 9, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- A Biden Administration proposed rule would reduce the harmful climate-related financial impacts of the $637 billion of products and services annually purchased by the U.S. government. It would enable the government to capitalize on climate-related economic opportunities.

The Federal Supplier Climate Risk and Resilience Rule requires the largest federal contractors—those representing roughly 1.3% of contractors but 85% of GHG emissions in the federal supply chain—to disclose their GHG emissions from direct operations and use of electricity. A subset of these contractors, those representing 0.3% of contractors, would be required to disclose indirect GHG emissions, asses their climate change risks and opportunities, and establish science-based targets for reducing GHG emissions.

The rule would strengthen the resilience of the federal supply chain and the overall U.S. economy by enabling "critical updates to contracting strategies and programs aimed at reducing climate risk to taxpayers and industries that the federal government and American people rely on for essential products and services," Ceres said in public comments filed today.

Ceres' comments included recommendations for reducing the government's GHG emissions, including:

•  Establishing federal standards for calculating GHG emissions, assessing climate-related financial risks and opportunities, and establishing science-based targets
•  Limiting use of "mission-essential" waivers and improved transparency around use of all waivers
•  Preventing businesses with large impacts on the government's climate risk from taking advantage of regulatory relief aimed at small businesses
•  Strongly encouraging disclosure by the largest contractors of any voluntary efforts to address the needs of historically disadvantaged communities and fossil fuel-dependent communities.

Ceres calls for the rule to be finalized soon to quickly increase climate risk disclosures and emissions reduction targets by large contractors.

The proposal is open for public comment until February 13. Read Ceres' full comments.

Click here to watch a webinar Ceres hosted with the Sustainable Purchasing Leadership Council that discusses the rule and includes comments from The White House's U.S. Chief Sustainability Officer Andrew Mayock. Click here to listen to a Sustainable Finance podcast interview with Ceres' Steven Rothstein that discusses the proposal. 

Media Contact: Reginald Zimmerman
Original Publication

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SOURCE Ceres