The Biden Administration has proposed another important climate policy. The recent Federal Supplier Climate Risks and Resilience Proposed Rule, released by the Federal Acquisition Regulatory (FAR) Council on November 10, would create new responsibilities and opportunities for large federal suppliers. Our roundtable unpacks the details of the proposal, identifies its implications for government contractors, offers perspectives from key stakeholders, and provides recommendations for your own comment submission.
Under this proposal, federal contractors, depending on the volume of contracts with the federal government, would be required to publicly disclose greenhouse gas emissions. The largest contractors would be asked to establish science-based emissions reduction targets, and other strategies for reducing climate-related financial risk. This proposal seeks to implement the directives in Biden’s May 2021 Executive Order on climate risk and December 2021 Sustainability Plan.
The FAR Council—composed of the White House’s Office of Federal Procurement Policy (OFPP), General Services Administration (GSA), Department of Defense (DOD), and National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA)—will accept comments on the proposal through Monday, February 13, 2023. The U.S. government is the largest purchaser of goods and services in the world and has a long track record of helping commercialize innovative technologies. The rule has significant potential to create new opportunities for forward-leaning companies, accelerate the decarbonization of the economy and improve transparency on corporate climate action.
Speakers
Steven Rothstein, Managing Director, Ceres Accelerator for Sustainable Capital Markets
Sarah O’Brien, CEO, Sustainable Purchasing Leadership Council
John Kostyack, Ceres Consultant
Andrew Mayock, Federal Chief Sustainability Officer, The White House
Ruth Cox, Principal, RFC Enterprises
Anand Narasimhan, General Manager, Cloud Supply Chain Sustainability, Microsoft
Steve Ellis, President, Taxpayers for Common Sense