Contracts for the Purchase of Products Containing Secondary Material and Minimum Secondary Material Content Standards for the Purchase of Establishing Price Preference Eligibility

RCNY tit. 55, ch. 8

in effect

55 RCNY § 8-01 Purpose.

§ 8-01 Purpose. New York City's Recycling Law, which is codified as §§ 16-301 et seq. of the Administrative Code of the City of New York encourages the use of "secondary materials" in the manufacture of products purchased by DMSS for use by various city agencies and departments. A mechanism authorized by the Recycling Law to achieve the goal of purchasing products made from secondary materials is the authority to award a contract pursuant to a "price preference." Simply stated, the City is given the discretion to determine that the public interest will be served by awarding contracts for the purchase of specified products to other than the lowest responsive and responsible bidder provided that the product contains a mandated "minimum amount of secondary material" and that the price is within the specified percentage of the price bid by the lowest responsive and responsible bidder.

55 RCNY § 8-02 Definitions.

§ 8-02 Definitions. Aggregate product purchase. "Aggregate product purchase" shall mean a procurement of products by DMSS which consists of a group or groups of products which are related to each other in one of the following ways: (1) The products are manufactured by a single manufacturer and are purchased in the form of a price list which is a listing of items and their prices; (2) The products are contained in a published catalog which is offered to DMSS at prices listed in the catalog or at a discount therefrom; or (3) The products have been combined in a class for award to a single vendor based upon fiscal, operational or pricing advantages. Commissioner. "Commissioner" shall mean the Commissioner of the Department of Citywide Administrative Services of the City of New York, or his or her designee. Contract. "Contract" means a procurement by DMSS to purchase goods, the total value of which is in excess of $10,000 (or such other amount as the Procurement Policy Board Rules may hereafter establish as the ceiling below which the procurement is treated as a small purchase). DMSS. "DMSS" means the Division of Municipal Supply Services of the Department of Citywide Administrative Services. Minimum amount of secondary material. "Minimum amount of secondary material" means the secondary material content level established by these Rules as the minimum percentage required for a product to potentially qualify for a price preference in accordance with Administrative Code § 16-322. Post-consumer material. "Post-consumer material" means only those products generated by a business or a consumer which have served their intended end uses, and which have been separated or diverted from solid waste for the purposes of collection, recycling and disposition. Procurement Policy Board Rules. "Procurement Policy Board Rules" means the regulations originally effective September 1, 1990 governing contracting by city agencies which are promulgated by the Procurement Policy Board of the City of New York as those rules may, from time to time, be amended. Secondary material. "Secondary material" means any material recovered from or otherwise destined for the waste stream, including but not limited to, post-consumer material, industrial scrap material and overstock or obsolete inventories from distributors, wholesalers and other companies, but such term does not include those materials and by-products generated from and commonly reused within an original manufacturing process. USEPA. "USEPA" means the United States Environmental Protection Agency.

55 RCNY § 8-03 Minimum Content Standards and Applicability of Price Preference.

§ 8-03 Minimum Content Standards and Applicability of Price Preference. (a) Applicability of price preference. In general, on a contract let by DMSS for the purchase of a product, a bidder shall be eligible for the price preference set forth in § 16-322 of the Administrative Code for such product only if such bidder offers to supply such product manufactured with the minimum content of secondary material specified in these Rules. (b) Minimum content standards incorporated. DMSS shall utilize the minimum content standards for secondary materials contained in the tables in subdivision (g) of this section to determine eligibility for the price preference set forth in § 16-322 of the Administrative Code, provided, however, that, except as provided in subdivision (c) of this section, DMSS shall utilize all minimum content standards for secondary materials subsequently promulgated or amended by either USEPA or the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC), and if there is a conflict between USEPA and DEC standards, DMSS shall utilize the highest standard that it is permitted to utilize by § 16-322 of the Administrative Code. (c) Minimum content standards for aggregate product purchases, multi-material products, and metals. Except as provided by § 16-322, notwithstanding any other provision of this section, the minimum content standard for the following products shall be zero: (1) any product which DMSS purchases by means of an aggregate product purchase, except where such aggregate product purchase consists solely of products that are substantially manufactured from the same material, and for which the same minimum content standard applies or identical numerical minimum content standards apply; (2) any product that is not substantially manufactured from a single material; and (3) metal products. (d) Recycled product purchases. DMSS may restrict bids solely to products composed of specified minimum secondary material content levels. If the minimum secondary material content level specified by DMSS for such a bid is less than the minimum secondary material content standard for such product set forth in these Rules, a bidder may be eligible for a price preference if such bidder offers to provide such product with a level of secondary material content that is equal to or greater than the minimum content standard specified in these Rules. (e) Market stimulus bids. Except for products for which DMSS is required to utilize a USEPA minimum content standard for secondary materials pursuant to Administrative Code § 16-322, DMSS may stipulate that for a specific bid a price preference shall only be applicable to products which satisfy additional minimum content standards or higher minimum content standards than those set forth in these Rules, provided that DMSS first finds that such additional or higher standards are intended to stimulate the market for secondary materials. (f) Packaging. Notwithstanding any other provision of this section, this section does not apply to packaging incidental to the product being purchased. (g) Tables. Paper and Paper Products1 (1) USEPA Standard Material Minimum percentage of recovered materials Minimum percentage of postconsumer recovered materials Minimum percentage of waste paper 2 Newsprint – 40 – High grade bleached printing and writing papers: Offset printing – – 50 Mimeo and duplicator paper – – 50 Writing (stationary) – – 50 Office paper (e.g., note pads) – – 50 Paper for high-speed copiers – – ( 3 ) Envelopes – – 50 Form bond including computer paper and carbonless – – ( 3 ) Book papers – – 50 Bond papers – – 50 Ledger – – 50 Cover stock – – 50 Cotton fiber papers 25 – – Tissue products: Toilet tissue – 20 – Paper towels – 40 – Paper napkins – 30 – Facial tissue – 5 – Doilies – 40 – Industrial wipers – 0 – Unbleached packaging: Corrugated boxes – 35 – Fiber boxes – 35 – Brown boxes (e.g., bags) – 5 – Recycled paperboard: Recycled paperboard products including folding cartons – 80 – Pad backing – 90 – 1. This table has been taken from 40 C.F.R. § 250.21. All terms in this USEPA standard are as defined in the regulations heretofore adopted by the USEPA, pursuant to 42 U.S.C. § 6901 for paper products. The definitions for such terms are found at 40 C.F.R. § 250.4. 2. Waste paper is defined in § 250.4 and refers to specified postconsumer and other recovered materials. 3. [U.S.] EPA found insufficient production of these papers with recycled content to assure adequate competition. (2) Additional Standards for Paper Product Minimum Percentage by Weight of Secondary Material Content Minimum Percentage by weight of Post- Consumer Material Content Paper for High Speed Copiers 50 percent 10 percent Form bond including computer paper and carbonless 50 percent 10 percent (3) Printing Contracts The price preference is applicable solely to the paper portion of any printing contract. For purposes of establishing the size of the price preference, the paper portion of printing contracts shall be deemed to be 50 percent of the bid price. The minimum content standard for preference eligibility for the paper shall be that established for the type of paper specified in the Request for Bids. Building Insulation Products 4 Product Percentage by Weight of Secondary Material Cellulose loose-fill and spray-on 75 percent postconsumer recovered paper Perlite composite board 23 percent postconsumer recovered paper Plastic rigid foam, polyisocyanurate / polyurethane: Rigid foam 9 percent recovered material Foam-in place 5 percent recovered material Glass fiber reinforced 6 percent recovered material Phenolic rigid foam 5 percent recovered material Rock wool 50 percent recovered material Lubricating Oils 5 For engine lubricating oils, hydraulic fluids, and gear oils, excluding marine and aviation oils, the minimum re-refined oil content shall be not less than 25 percent re-refined oil. Plastics 6 Minimum Percentage by Weight of Secondary Material Content Minimum Percentage by Weight of Post-Consumer Material Content 50 percent 15 percent Note – The minimum content standards are based on the weight of material (not volume) in the insulating core only. 4. This Table has been taken from 40 C.F.R. § 248.21(a)(4). All terms used in this standard are as defined in the regulations heretofore adopted by the USEPA, pursuant to 42 U.S.C. § 6901 for building insulation products. The definitions for such terms are found at 40 C.F.R. § 248.4. 5. The source for this standard is found at 40 C.F.R. § 252.21(a)(12). Definitions for same are located at 40 C.F.R. § 252.4. 6. These standards have been derived from Table 1 located at 6 NYCRR § 368.4(a). The definitions for the terms used in these standards may be found at 6 NYCRR § 368.2. Glass 6 Minimum Percentage by Weight of Secondary Material Content Minimum Percentage by Weight of Post-Consumer Material Content 50 percent 35 percent Rubber 6 Minimum Percentage by Weight of Secondary Material Content Minimum Percentage by Weight of Post-Consumer Material Content 50 percent 25 percent Solvents 6 Minimum Percentage by Weight of Secondary Material Content Minimum Percentage by Weight of Post-Consumer Material Content 75 percent 75 percent 6. These standards have been derived from Table 1 located at 6 NYCRR § 368.4(a). The definitions for the terms used in these standards may be found at 6 NYCRR § 368.2.

55 RCNY § 8-04 Implementation Procedure.

§ 8-04 Implementation Procedure. (a) To be eligible for a price preference, bidders must submit with their bids a written certification of the secondary material and post-consumer material content of such product. (b) In the event that a bidder offers a product which at the time of bid submission is authorized by DEC, pursuant to 6 NYCRR Part 368 et seq., to use the New York State "Recycled" emblem in connection with the sale of such product in New York State, then such product shall be deemed to meet the standards for minimum secondary material content pursuant to these Rules, and the bidder, in lieu of the certification required by 55 RCNY § 8-04(a) above, may submit with its bid a copy of the DEC letter to the manufacturer authorizing the use of the "Recycled" emblem in connection with the sale of the particular product.

55 RCNY § 8-05 Miscellaneous.

§ 8-05 Miscellaneous. (a) DMSS' specifications will encourage: (1) the offering of products made with secondary materials; (2) the offering of products manufactured with remanufactured components; (3) the offering of products which are capable of utilizing products made with secondary materials or components that are remanufactured. (b) DMSS will work with other government agencies and purchase from their existing contracts for products made with secondary materials or join with them in the cooperative purchase of such products. (c) Requests for bids for aggregate product purchases and multi-material products will require that vendors identify products which are made wholly or partially with secondary materials. As appropriate, based upon considerations which include the amount of secondary material content and the volume of purchases by the City, such products may be separately bid or bid as a recycled product purchase or as a market stimulus bid. (d) DMSS will encourage agencies wherever practicable to purchase retreaded tires from the DMSS requirements contract for such retreaded tires. (e) DMSS will encourage agencies wherever practicable to purchase products made from post-consumer and other secondary materials.

55 RCNY § 8-06 Separability.

§ 8-06 Separability. If any provision or section of these Rules, or the application thereof to particular persons is held invalid, the remainder of these Rules, and their application to other persons or circumstances shall not be affected by such holding and shall remain in full force and effect.

Source: City of New York, Charter, Administrative Code and Rules (American Legal Publishing XML export, codelibrary.amlegal.com)URL: https://codelibrary.amlegal.com/codes/newyorkcity/latest/NYCrules/0-0-0-86921Fetched: 10/24/2026