Smarter Purchasing Act

I 116TH CONGRESS 2D SESSION H. R. 7399 To require the Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency to conduct a feasibility study regarding the use of the shadow price of carbon in Federal spending decisions to take into account the resulting carbon dioxide emissions, and for other purposes. IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES JUNE 29, 2020 Mr. BEYER (for himself and Mr. CONNOLLY) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Oversight and Reform A BILL To require the Administrator of the Environmental Protec- tion Agency to conduct a feasibility study regarding the use of the shadow price of carbon in Federal spending decisions to take into account the resulting carbon diox- ide emissions, and for other purposes. Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa- 1 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 2 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 3 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Smarter Purchasing 4 Act’’. 5 VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:44 Jul 22, 2020 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00001 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H7399.IH H7399 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 2 •HR 7399 IH SEC. 2. FEASIBILITY STUDY REGARDING THE USE OF THE 1 SHADOW PRICE OF CARBON IN FEDERAL 2 SPENDING DECISIONS TO TAKE INTO AC- 3 COUNT THE RESULTING CARBON DIOXIDE 4 EMISSIONS. 5 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Administrator of the Envi- 6 ronmental Protection Agency, in consultation with the 7 Secretary of Energy, the Secretary of the Interior, the 8 Secretary of Transportation, and the Administrator of the 9 General Services Administration, shall conduct a study to 10 determine whether it is feasible for Federal agencies to 11 factor in the shadow price of carbon in their internal deci- 12 sion-making processes for Federal procurement, acquisi- 13 tions, contracting, and other investments. 14 (b) CONTENT.—The feasibility study required by sub- 15 section (a) shall include the following: 16 (1) An assessment of— 17 (A) the use of the shadow price of carbon 18 in the private sector, in States, and in other 19 countries, as relevant; and 20 (B) the ability of Federal agencies to im- 21 plement similar use of the shadow price of car- 22 bon. 23 (2) An assessment of which kinds of Federal 24 expenditures and operations are best suited for 25 shadow pricing. 26 VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:44 Jul 22, 2020 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H7399.IH H7399 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 3 •HR 7399 IH (3) An assessment of whether the shadow price 1 of carbon should be— 2 (A) tied to the social cost of carbon that 3 Federal agencies use to conduct regulatory 4 analyses of economically significant regulatory 5 actions; 6 (B) tied to a path that minimizes the cost 7 of achieving a long-term cumulative emissions 8 goal; or 9 (C) based on some other rationale. 10 (4) An identification and evaluation of any stat- 11 utory, regulatory, or other obstacle to the use of the 12 shadow price of carbon. 13 (c) FINAL REPORT.—Not later than 1 year after the 14 date of enactment of this Act, the Administrator of the 15 Environmental Protection Agency shall— 16 (1) prepare a final report on the results of the 17 feasibility study conducted under subsection (a); and 18 (2) submit to Congress the final report pre- 19 pared under paragraph (1) and any recommenda- 20 tions of the Administrator relating to such results. 21 (d) PUBLIC AVAILABILITY OF DATA.—The Adminis- 22 trator of the Environmental Protection Agency shall make 23 available to the public the final report prepared under sub- 24 section (c). 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:44 Jul 22, 2020 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H7399.IH H7399 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 4 •HR 7399 IH (e) DEFINITIONS.—In this Act: 1 (1) SHADOW PRICE OF CARBON.—The term 2 ‘‘shadow price of carbon’’ means a hypothetical sur- 3 charge to market prices for goods or services that 4 involve significant carbon dioxide emissions in their 5 supply chain. 6 (2) SOCIAL COST OF CARBON.—The term ‘‘so- 7 cial cost of carbon’’ means the social cost of carbon 8 as described in the technical support document enti- 9 tled ‘‘Technical Support Document: Technical Up- 10 date of the Social Cost of Carbon for Regulatory Im- 11 pact Analysis Under Executive Order 12866’’, pub- 12 lished by the Interagency Working Group on Social 13 Cost of Carbon, United States Government, in May 14 2013, revised in November 2013, or any successor 15 or substantially related document, or any other esti- 16 mate of the monetized damages associated with an 17 incremental increase in carbon dioxide emissions in 18 a given year. 19 Æ VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:44 Jul 22, 2020 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00004 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6301 E:\BILLS\H7399.IH H7399 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS