Source: https://www.federalregister.gov/documents/2012/05/01/2012-10420/guidelines-for-designating-biobased-products-for-federal-procurement
Timestamp: 2018-09-19 15:01:31
Document Index: 16188871

Matched Legal Cases: ['§\u20093201', '§\u20093201', '§\u20093201', '§\u20093201', '§\u20093201', '§\u20093201', '§\u20093201', '§\u20093201', '§\u20093201', '§\u20093201', '§\u20093201', '§\u200925', '§\u20093201']

A Proposed Rule by the Agriculture Department on 05/01/2012
25632-25641 (10 pages)
https://www.federalregister.gov/d/2012-10420 https://www.federalregister.gov/d/2012-10420
Qualitative Unable to quantify at this time Unable to quantify at this time.
Qualitative 1. Costs of developing biobased alternative products 1. Advances the objectives of the BioPreferred program, as envisioned by Congress in developing the 2002 and 2008 Farm Bills.
2. Costs to gather and submit biobased product information for BioPreferred Web site 2. Opens new (Federal) market for biobased products that USDA designates.
3. Loss of market share by manufacturers who choose not to offer biobased versions of products 3. Opportunity for new and emerging biobased products to be publicized via BioPreferred Web site.
In addition to the changes discussed above, USDA is proposing to simplify the definition of the term “BEES” by removing the references to the BEES User Guide and Web site from the current definition, as this information is not necessary to define the term. USDA is also revising the format of the definition of “procuring agency” to make it consistent with the other definitions in section 3201.2 and adding a definition of the term “relevant stakeholder,” which is used in the proposed revision to § 3201.1 to refer to non-Federal stakeholders having an interest or involvement in the BioPreferred program.
USDA is proposing to revise the text in §§ 3201.3 and 3201.4 to be consistent with the decision to clarify the terminology used in the BioPreferred program by avoiding, to the extent possible, the use of the terms “item” and “designated item.” As proposed, the references in the sections will be to “products” and “qualifying biobased products,” as applicable. The revisions in these sections will make the terminology consistent throughout the rule but will have no other effect on the rule.
Sub-paragraph (3) presents the procedure for designating those final products that are made from designated intermediate ingredients or feedstocks. The FCEA states that USDA shall “automatically designate” final products composed of designated intermediate ingredients or feedstocks if the content of the designated intermediate ingredients or feedstocks exceeds 50 percent of the final product (unless the Secretary determines a different composition percentage is appropriate). Even though the FCEA uses the term “automatically” when specifying that these final products are eligible for the Federal procurement preference, they still must be incorporated into the Guidelines by publication in the Federal Register. USDA is proposing a procedure whereby the designation of these final products would be done in conjunction with the designation of the intermediate ingredient or feedstock categories.
USDA is proposing that paragraph (b) of § 3201.5 be amended to add a statement that “USDA will designate for preferred procurement those product categories and intermediate ingredient or feedstock categories that are determined to create new and emerging markets for biobased materials.” This statement is being added to emphasize the section 9002 objectives “to improve demand for biobased products” and “to spur development of the industrial base through value-added agricultural processing and manufacturing in rural communities.”
USDA is also proposing to amend paragraph (c) of § 3201.5 to delete the exclusion (currently found in 3201.5(c)(2)) for products that are determined to have mature markets. This exclusion is being removed, in conjunction with the additions to paragraph (b), as part of USDA efforts to emphasize the intent to create new and emerging markets for biobased materials.
USDA is proposing to create two sub-paragraphs under paragraph (a) of § 3201.6. The first sub-paragraph describes the type of information provided on the USDA-maintained Web site and has been updated to include reference to products within designated intermediate ingredient or feedstock categories. The second sub-paragraph is new and notifies stakeholders that the BioPreferred Web site will also include the National Testing Center Registry, an electronic listing of recognized industry standard testing organizations.
USDA is proposing to make several revisions to § 3201.7. Proposed paragraphs (a) and (b) have been revised to refer to designated product categories, rather than to designated items, and to include references to the new designated intermediate ingredient or feedstock categories. Proposed paragraph (c) has been updated to refer to the new name for ASTM Standard Method D-6866. Proposed paragraph (c) has also been revised to include three sub-paragraphs.
BCi = biobased content of an individual component that has the potential to be manufactured with biobased material (percent);
Wi = weight of an individual component that has the potential to be manufactured with biobased material, (mass unit); and
WT = total weight of all components that have the potential to be manufactured with biobased material (mass unit).
USDA is also proposing to revise paragraph (d) of § 3201.7 to add a reference to intermediate ingredients or feedstocks to the existing provisions of the paragraph. Paragraph (d) states that where multiple products are marketed under several brand names but are all essentially the same formulation, the biobased content testing does not have to be brand-name specific. This provision reduces the cost of biobased content testing for manufacturers of products or intermediate ingredients or feedstocks who sell their products or materials under more than one brand name.
USDA is proposing to change the name of this section to “Determining relative price, environmental and health benefits, and performance.” In the original guidelines, manufacturers were required, under § 3201.8(a), to provide life cycle cost information from either a BEES analysis or a similar analysis using ASTM D7075 when such information was requested by a Federal agency. In response to the language in section 9001 of the FCEA and numerous comments by stakeholders, USDA previously amended § 3201.8 (76 FR 6322) to eliminate this requirement. In today's proposed revisions, USDA is adding language to paragraph (a) encouraging stakeholders to develop and provide information on environmental and public health benefits, including life cycle costs, associated with their biobased products. While Federal agencies may no longer require such information from manufacturers of biobased products, USDA believes that information from life cycle analyses (LCA) will be a valuable tool in the marketing of biobased products. Numerous stakeholders have provided comments and recommendations regarding the role of LCA in the BioPreferred program and USDA acknowledges that opinions vary widely on the benefits and the most appropriate approach to conducting LCA. USDA considered requiring that manufacturers perform LCA on their biobased products but decided that such a requirement would not be appropriate at this time, given the issues raised by stakeholders. USDA continues to believe, however, that the availability of LCA information, developed using industry-accepted approaches, such as the ASTM D7075 standard or the BEES analytical tool, may be valuable in Federal procurements that take into account human health, environmental, or disposal considerations in the product selection process. Thus, USDA is encouraging biobased product manufacturers to voluntarily perform these analyses and make the information available for posting on the BioPreferred Web site.
7. USDA is proposing to revise § 3201.5(b) to state that “USDA will designate for preferred procurement those product categories and intermediate ingredient or feedstock categories that are determined to create new and emerging markets for biobased materials.” USDA is also proposing to remove § 3201.5(c)(2), the exclusion of mature market products. USDA requests comments on what the term “new and emerging markets” means to stakeholders.
(c) Procuring products composed of the highest percentage of biobased content. Section 9002(a)(2) of FSRIA requires procuring agencies to procure qualifying biobased products composed of the highest percentage of biobased content practicable or such products that comply with the regulations issued under section 103 of Public Law 100-556 (42 U.S.C. 6914b-1). Procuring agencies may decide not to procure such qualifying biobased products if they are not reasonably priced or readily available or do not meet specified or reasonable performance standards.
(3) In implementing the preference program, Federal agencies shall treat as eligible for the preference biobased products from “designated countries,” as that term is defined in § 25.003 of the Federal Acquisition Regulation, provided that those products otherwise meet all requirements for participation in the preference program.
(1) Product Information. The Web site will provide information as to the availability, relative price, biobased content, performance and environmental and public health benefits of the designated product categories and designated intermediate ingredient or feedstock categories. USDA encourages manufacturers and vendors to provide product and business contact information for designated categories. Instructions for posting information are found on the Web site itself. USDA also encourages Federal agencies to utilize this Web site to obtain current information on designated categories, contact information on manufacturers and vendors, and access to information on product characteristics relevant to procurement decisions. In addition to any information provided on the Web site, manufacturers and vendors are expected to provide relevant information to Federal agencies, subject to the limitations specified in § 3201.8(a), with respect to product characteristics, including verification of such characteristics if requested.
Wi = weight of an individual component that has the potential to be manufactured with biobased material, (mass unit);and
Determining relative price, environmental and health benefits, and performance.