Transforming Green Procurement in New York State
CSMM is thrilled to be partnered with the Responsible Purchasing Network (RPN) to support a comprehensive review of the current GreenNY specifications and provide the NYS Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) and the NYS Office of General Services (OGS) with recommended updates. The new GreenNY specifications will reflect state-of-the-art certifications and standards for nearly 100 categories of goods and services to ensure that they protect human health and the environment.
NYS Executive Order 22 mandates that state agencies and other affected entities purchase commodities, services, and technology that meet the approved GreenNY procurement specifications. GreenNY specifications and compliant procurement lists are available to help state and local entities inform their purchasing processes and decisions.
New York StateDEC, OGS and other GreenNY Council members expressed concern that many GreenNY specifications were developed over a decade ago. Consequently, they include out-of-date language relating to environmental certifications and standards, and lack current language that would enable the State to effectively avoid toxic chemicals of current concern (e.g., PFAS) as well as climate impacts.
In collaboration with the Center, RPN will lead a project over the next year to analyze the existingGreen NY specifications and add any new ones that are deemed necessary. This technical assistance will:
Provide an updated and standardized template for GreenNY specifications;
Standardize, revise, and update all 89 current GreenNY specifications based on market assessments of the availability, price and performance of environmentally preferable options in each category;
Examine opportunities to further reduce toxic chemical use, climate impacts and plastics pollution;
Recommend up to 10 new specifications for goods and services that are deemed to have a high environmental and/or health impacts but are not yet included on the GreenNY specifications list;
Draft outreach and education materials to increase adoption among state agencies and institutions;
Increase the percentage of government agency procurement specialists that are engaged as stakeholders in commenting on draft GreenNY specifications.
Additionally, one of the major challenges currently facing Green Procurement is the lack of recognition and understanding of the GreenNY logo and brand compared to third-party certifications such as Green Seal and ENERGY STAR. By enhancing the specifications and improving brand awareness, we will work to address this gap, ensuring that state buyers and vendors can easily identify and verify compliance with the GreenNY specifications.
According to State Finance Law, “affected entities” must first look for GreenNY-compliant products and services from Preferred Sources such as NYS Industries for the Disabled, NYS PSP, and Corcraft. If those goods and services do not meet their needs (in terms of form, function, and utility), they must next look for them on statewide contracts, before using any decentralized purchasing methods such as P-cards. NYS OGS is also embarking on a complementary project to help Preferred Sources to offer goods and services that comply with these new GreenNY specifications.
"We are thrilled to launch this project, which will modernize New York State’s green purchasing practices by making its GreenNY specifications stronger and more user-friendly,”said Alicia Culver, Executive Director of the Responsible Purchasing Network. "This collaborative initiative with CSMM, DEC and OGS will enable the State to continue using its tremendous purchasing power to create a more sustainable future for its residents and future generations and demonstrate its commitment to environmental stewardship and responsible governance.”
