Last updated: Dec. 12, 2023
Overview
The Inflation Reduction Act of 2022 (IRA), Pub. L. No. 117-169, was enacted in August 2022. The law made the single largest investment in climate and energy in American history. The IRA is helping the United States tackle the climate crisis, advance environmental justice, and secure our nation’s position as a world leader in domestic clean energy manufacturing. This law helps put the United States on a pathway to achieving the Administration’s climate goals, including its Federal Sustainability Plan that aims to achieve net zero operational emissions from the Federal building portfolio by 2045 and net zero emissions procurement by 2050. IRA Section 60503 provides the U.S. General Services Administration with $2.15 billion for acquisition and installation of construction materials and products with substantially lower levels of embodied greenhouse gas emissions as compared to estimated industry averages. As part of the Biden-Harris Administration’s Federal Buy Clean Initiative, these investments are helping GSA leverage its purchasing power to spur markets for American-made products that have lower levels of “cradle to factory gate” embodied greenhouse gas emissions associated with their raw materials, transportation to plants, and manufacturing — all of which are emitted before GSA purchases the products.
Consistent with standard GSA practice and the Federal Acquisition Regulation, and having taken public input and pilot program experience into consideration, GSA has developed IRA low embodied carbon material requirements. These requirements specify the properties of materials with the highest embodied carbon concerns — asphalt, concrete, glass and steel — that meet the agency’s needs in entering contracts funded under GSA’s IRA LEC program. GSA may update its contract requirements as GSA and other agencies collaborate to gather additional market information.
GSA has established material requirements for each of the four key construction materials identified by the Buy Clean Task Force and defined by the Environmental Protection Agency’s Interim Determination: asphalt, concrete, glass and steel. Construction product assemblies (such as window assemblies or rebar-reinforced concrete) qualify for IRA funding if at least 80% of the assembly’s total cost or total weight comprises materials that meet the requirements.
An asterisk (*) at the end of any question indicates it is new or revised.
General
1. Why did GSA establish IRA LEC Material Requirements?
GSA launched the first nationally-applicable environmental product declaration requirements for concrete and asphalt in March 2022. Those requirements included global warming potential limits for concrete, and were added to the Facilities Standards for Public Buildings Service (P100) that apply to all GSA projects. As a follow-on specific to its IRA-funded material purchases, GSA strengthened its concrete and asphalt requirements, and added new ones for glass and steel.
GSA’s IRA LEC Material Requirements comply with IRA Section 60503, which provides funding for materials with “substantially lower levels of embodied greenhouse gas emissions … as compared to estimated industry averages for similar materials and products.”
2. Have GSA’s IRA LEC material requirements changed from the interim requirements issued in May 2023?*
Following implementation of the low embodied carbon material Pilot Program, GSA’s IRA LEC Material Requirements remain largely unchanged since the pilot commenced in May 2023.
The GWP limits remain the same because market research suggests there have not been dramatic shifts in the GWP of products, nor new industry-wide EPDs, in these four material categories over the past six months. Also, consistency in these initial stages helps promote market certainty among manufacturers about whether investments will enable their products to qualify for GSA’s IRA funding.
The only substantial change is clarifying the definition of glass material assemblies. Standardizing on the insulating glass unit, also called IGU, will yield consistency in applying the “80/20” assembly rule from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s Interim Determination [PDF]. (At least 80% of IGU weight must be compliant flat glass).
3. What other concurrent/complementary actions are being led by other agencies that can influence GSA’s work?*
GSA may reevaluate these requirements after the U.S. Department of Transportation Federal Highway Administration releases GWP limits for its IRA-funded low-carbon transportation materials. FHWA is expected to release additional details about its program in Winter 2023–2024.
GSA may consider prospectively harmonizing its IRA GWP limits with FHWA and efforts led by other federal agencies, such as EPA’s grant program to support more robust EPDs, and EPA’s upcoming labeling program for low-carbon construction materials.
4. Is there a schedule for updating GSA’s IRA LEC Material Requirements?*
GSA may revise these requirements based on: ongoing lessons learned from broader implementation; substantially-changed industry averages based on product-specific and/or industry-wide EPDs; updated determinations from the EPA on IRA Section 60503-qualifying materials; and/or opportunities to align with other federal and state agencies’ collaborative industry engagement. Because GSA cannot anticipate these potential developments or their timing, GSA has not committed to a schedule for an update, if any.
Any revisions will only apply prospectively to contracts awarded after updated GSA Requirements are issued, and will not retroactively change active projects’ contractual terms or conditions.
5. Is an EPD required for all materials and products funded under IRA Section 60503? When?*
Yes. The EPA Interim Determination states that an EPD is required to identify the material/product-specific GWP. A material/product qualifies for GSA IRA LEC funding if its GWP reported in the EPD is lower than the GSA IRA limit(s) incorporated into each contract.
A product-specific Type III (third-party verified) EPD must be provided to GSA at the time of bid, or before construction notice to proceed is issued, depending on what is indicated in project-specific solicitations and contract documents. Materials must be accompanied by a compliant EPD to be purchased using IRA LEC funding.
6. How does the Buy American Act apply?
GSA’s IRA LEC Materials Requirements build on the continued application of existing laws such as the Buy American Act of 1933, the Build America, Buy America Act, which mostly applies to grant programs (enacted as part of the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act of 2021), and the Trade Agreements Act of 1979. All materials and products procured for GSA projects must comply with these laws.
For IRA Section 60503-funded procurements, existing trade-related laws will be applied first, before applying GSA’s IRA LEC Material Requirements.
Data specificity
7. Why is GSA focused on the data specificity of EPDs?*
More specific data on material production — such as where raw materials were sourced and transported from, and how they were processed — provides transparency and more reliable information on environmental impacts of materials and products. Actual data from the plant(s) that manufacture inputs within a specific supply chain increases a reported GWP’s certainty. GSA therefore requests facility-specific, supply chain-specific EPDs where available.
More data certainty better-informs material selection decisions, and mitigates the risk of selecting a higher-GWP product due to insufficient transparency into its supply chain emissions.
8. Is GSA still interested in accounting for varying levels of data specificity in EPDs?*
Yes. GSA strongly supports additional supply chain-specific data in EPDs, to base decisions on the best-available information. GSA is collaborating with Federal agencies through the Buy Clean Task Force who are also focused on strengthening EPDs.
FHWA is actively developing a “Low-Carbon Transportation Materials Grants” program under IRA Section 60506, which will help further this ambition.
FHWA is currently conducting outreach to industry stakeholders representing all four material categories to identify data for determining whether the materials meet the EPA Interim Determination’s definition of substantially lower carbon.
EPA gathered stakeholder input via a request for information and related public engagement webinars on topics including how to increase the transparency of GHG emissions data associated with the production, use and disposal of construction materials and products.
EPA has launched an EPD grant program, and started developing a low-carbon construction material labeling program, with participation on both initiatives from federal agencies including GSA. Further announcements are expected in January 2024.
9. Could product category rules (PCR) require more specific data in EPDs?
Yes. Based on the feedback GSA received from domestic manufacturers, local suppliers, small businesses, and environmental and labor groups, GSA recognizes that PCR improvements are an ideal way to require greater transparency (e.g. supply chain-specific data) in EPDs.
GSA supports PCRs that can yield high-quality EPD data, including but not limited to supply-chain specific data and recycled content details.
To help promote robust EPDs, GSA has joined relevant product category rule (PCR) committees. This enables the agency to partner with industry to promote PCRs that result in EPDs that are more comparable, with higher-quality data, and greater reliability for use in procurement.
10. Why does GSA require a product-specific Type III EPD (with facility-specific data, including for the supply chain’s associated unit processes, where feasible)?
GSA’s EPD requirements accord with EPA’s Interim Determination.
Facility-specific data on the supply chain’s associated unit processes enhances transparency, increases reliability, and allows more fair and accurate comparisons of product-level data.
EPDs using industry average or generic data may not reflect the environmental indicators associated with the plant(s) that manufactured inputs for a particular product’s supply chain.
Global warming potential limits
11. How were GSA’s IRA GWP limits established?
Pursuant to EPA’s Interim Determination, GSA determines “quintile” (20% range) GWP thresholds “using data from a verified source (e.g., an open source EPD database, industry-wide EPDs or a 3rd party-verified LCA [life cycle assessment] developed using the relevant PCR).”
GSA’s GWP limits are based on industry average EPDs and actual products’ publicly-available EPD data, filtered by material type, PCR(s) specified in GSA’s Requirements, North American geographical scope, and EPD validity dates of January 1, 2022 or later.
The PCR(s) reflected in each product category are shown in GSA’s IRA LEC material requirements.
12. Is GSA considering region-specific GWP limits?
GSA’s IRA GWP limits apply to all the agency’s IRA Section 60503-funded purchases in covered product categories. The limits are based on data availability for the region of North America, from sources allowed under EPA’s Interim Determination: (a) an open-source EPD database; (b) industry-wide EPDs; or (c) a 3rd party-verified LCA developed using the relevant PCR.
The agency recognizes that the average GWP of materials like concrete and asphalt may vary by location. If or when adequate region-specific data is available (e.g. from EPDs), GSA may establish region-specific GWP limits for certain materials.
13. Is GSA considering global GWP limits?
No. GSA uses North American manufacturing data to establish its GWP limits. Different EPD PCRs are used in different parts of the world. Comparisons require that the same PCR be used to develop all EPDs being compared. This approach will ensure the same inputs, emissions and actions are being consistently applied.
GSA accordingly determined that North American PCRs are most applicable to its procurements, and the Compliance Documentation criteria in GSA’s IRA LEC material requirements specify acceptable PCRs.
14. Why do the steel requirements still show “TBD” for some steel products?
GSA has found insufficient EPDs available representing materials made via integrated steel mills to establish GWP limits for certain products at this time. When adequate data (e.g., from EPDs that meet IRA LEC steel “Compliance Documentation” requirements) is available for material made via integrated steel mills, it may be possible to identify numeric limits for substantially lower embodied carbon, compared to industry averages for relevant material/product categories. GSA will continue to collaborate with interagency partners and relevant stakeholders to understand the GWP and emissions reduction opportunities to decarbonize the manufacturing processes of all steel products to support American workers, industry competitiveness, and national security considerations.
15. Why may GSA establish separate GWP limits for integrated mill and electric arc furnace — also called EAF — steel production methods if/when adequate data is available?*
Opportunities for improvement exist throughout the steel industry. Establishing GWP limits for products produced by multiple manufacturing processes will promote innovation throughout the industry, support American workers, lower emissions from all processes and help catalyze broad-based industrial decarbonization.
According to the U.S. Department of Energy Pathways to Commercial Liftoff reports, the U.S. has seen production shift from blast furnaces to EAFs. EAFs now account for ~70% of domestic steel, and are less carbon-intensive. DOE recognizes that this trend will continue, but will face increased resource constraints (e.g., limited domestic prime scrap availability). Currently, some critical grades of steel cannot be made using EAFs. For these reasons among others, DOE is working to support a diversity of technologies to continue to decarbonize all production pathways for steel.
Similarly, current market research suggests it is unlikely for material made from one manufacturing process alone to meet 100% of the demand for steel over time. For example, the International Energy Agency October 2020 Iron and Steel Technology Roadmap [PDF] states that: “[S]crap cannot fulfill the sector’s raw material input requirements alone because steel production today is higher than when the products that are currently being recycled were produced. This means that recycling alone cannot be relied upon to reduce emissions from the sector to the extent needed to meet climate goals.”
According to the Congressional Research Service’s May 2022 Domestic Steel Manufacturing: Overview and Prospects [PDF] report, “Integrated steelmaking is inherently more difficult to decarbonize than EAF steelmaking, largely due to the use of blast furnaces to reduce iron ore to elemental iron.” Similarly, the American Iron and Steel Institute’s Steel Technology Glossary definition for Integrated Mills notes that “the differing technological approaches to molten steel [integrated mills and minimills] imply different scale efficiencies and, therefore, separate management styles, labor relations, and product markets.”
There is precedent for considering steel manufacturing processes separately to support manufacturing decarbonization. Although not governing the separate GWP limit question, an example of an instance where manufacturing processes are treated differently can be found in the EPA IRA Interim Determination [PDF]. That document requires ENERGY STAR Energy Performance Score reporting for “steel produced in an integrated steel (not an electric arc furnace) mill.” EPA has only published an ENERGY STAR Energy Performance Indicator, or EPI, that is specific to integrated mills.
The ENERGY STAR Integrated Steel Mill EPI [PDF] “score[s] individual steel mills’ energy performance based on a comparison of a plant to the entire integrated steel industry in the U.S. and Canada.” (Emphasis added.) This EPI does not compare the plant-level energy efficiency of integrated mills against that of EAFs, due to their dissimilar manufacturing processes.
Facilitating more sustainable steel production — including where substantial decarbonization opportunities exist — will enable all manufacturing processes to reduce emissions, creating a more competitive and sustainable American industry in the long run.
GSA’s requirements may be adjusted based on industry innovations, including steel PCR updates.
If a steel product has higher (or lower) “cradle to factory gate” emissions due to the nature of its manufacturing process, source materials, etc., its EPD-reported GWP numbers will speak for themselves. This is because the North American steel industry uses one PCR framework1 to account for “cradle to factory gate” emissions across almost all steel product types and manufacturing processes.
Data sources
16. What data sources did GSA use?
EPA’s Interim Determination states “Agencies shall estimate the GWP at the 20th and 40th percentiles and the industry average, as needed, for each material/product category using data from a verified source (e.g., an open source EPD database2, industrywide EPDs or a 3rd party-verified LCA developed using the relevant PCR).”
GSA’s GWP limits were developed based on industry average EPDs and actual products’ publicly-available EPD data, filtered by material type, PCR(s) specified in GSA’s requirements, North American geographical scope and current validity.
17. What if publicly-available EPD data contains errors?
GSA seeks the most reliable available data, and leverages aggregated information from third-party-verified EPDs.
GSA and other Federal agencies encourage digitized EPD submission and automated quality control processes, which can improve data quality and more quickly identify potential anomalies.
18. Is there a government-run EPD database for Federal agencies to use?*
Not currently. EPA’s RFI to Support New [IRA] Programs to Lower Embodied Greenhouse Gas Emissions Associated with Construction Materials and Products collected comments on topics including ways to improve background datasets, how to improve PCRs and EPDs to better-inform public agencies’ decisions, labeling opportunities, and how EPA grants or cooperative agreements may help develop national PCR and EPD repositories.
EPA’s RFI was built on findings from GSA’s prior RFIs and industry feedback. It helped shape EPA’s IRA Section 60112 Environmental Product Declaration Assistance and Section 60116 Carbon Labeling programs. The EPD assistance program is detailed in the following answer, and EPA may support improvements to repositories of data that goes into EPDs, such as the Federal Life Cycle Assessment, or LCA, Commons.
19. Is support available to help develop EPDs?*
GSA cannot directly pay for EPD development. GSA generally awards construction contracts on a firm-fixed price basis; such pricing allocates responsibility for cost recovery to the business judgment of the prime contractor. Prime contractors commonly include overhead (e.g. research, development, documentation, and compliance costs) and supplier/subcontractor costs in their overall pricing.
IRA Section 60112 appropriated $250 million to EPA for EPD Assistance, and EPA hosted a March 2023 webinar on Grants and Technical Assistance for Environmental Product Declarations.
In September 2023, EPA posted a notice of funding opportunity for the aforementioned grant program. Find information on EPA’s Reducing Embodied Greenhouse Gas Emissions for Construction Materials and Products EPD assistance grant program. The application deadline is January 16, 2024.
Other trade associations of nonprofit groups may be willing to support EPD development. For example, the National Ready Mixed Concrete Association has expressed interest in helping smaller concrete companies obtain EPDs where cost, staffing, or tools may be barriers to entry for the growing market for EPD-documented low-carbon materials. Other public or private initiatives may be available now or in the future.
Whole-building
20. Will GSA’s project teams use more asphalt, concrete, glass and steel in project designs, instead of other materials, since IRA funding initially only covers these four?*
GSA reviewed existing project portfolio-wide needs for how best to leverage the IRA funding for the four materials, including smaller-scale projects such as parking lot refurbishments or window replacements that (a) may require IRA-eligible materials, and (b) can be obligated by the statutory deadline of September 30, 2026. This investment strategy was publicly announced November 6, 2023.
GSA’s new construction and major modernization projects also use whole-building life cycle assessment to promote right-sizing of materials, consider low-carbon alternatives across material types (including beyond these four initial key materials allowed under EPA’s IRA Interim Determination), and factor in material durability and ease of maintenance.
GSA’s IRA project selections center predominantly on existing well-defined project needs from GSA’s deferred maintenance backlog, and in support of the Federal building efficiency goals. IRA funding can be used to assist an existing project’s scope to enhance its overall sustainability impact, including by specifying lower-carbon materials.
GSA’s Green Proving Ground, or GPG, program is also currently evaluating a low-carbon precast concrete product. Within IRA, GSA looks forward to exploring more opportunities to implement proven, commercially-available innovative materials, products, and processes.
21. Can materials’ long-term operational carbon impacts be considered, in addition to their upfront embodied carbon?
EPA’s Interim Determination notes that “EPA is prioritizing the production stage in this interim determination due to data availability in EPDs and production’s outsized embodied greenhouse gas emissions impact when compared to the use and disposal stages of the construction product lifecycle.”
IRA Sections 60502 and 60504 appropriate funding to GSA for high-performance green buildings, and emerging and sustainable technologies, respectively. Work funded under those sections may save energy and reduce operational carbon emissions.
P100 1.9.2.9 [PDF - 12 MB] requires the agency’s new construction and major modernization projects (including IRA-funded work) design to achieve 20% lower whole-building embodied carbon, compared to a modeled standard code-compliant baseline building, using whole-building life cycle assessment. This requires GSA’s design teams to consider both operational and embodied carbon, material selections, and “right-sizing” the amount of material.
GSA reports its operational carbon quantities and trends annually, and pursues Federal operational decarbonization goals, such as a net-zero emissions building portfolio by 2045.3
Materials
22. Will additional IRA-eligible material categories be added?*
Not at this time. Considering the EPA Interim Determination, the Federal Buy Clean Initiative’s current focus, and the condensed time frame of IRA funding availability, GSA is maintaining its emphasis on the four key building materials (concrete, asphalt, steel and glass) that are significant contributors to embodied carbon emissions in building construction and modernization projects.
23. Can GSA use low embodied carbon cement instead of concrete?*
Where provision of concrete that qualifies under GSA’s IRA concrete limits is practical, GSA’s IRA concrete limits must be used.
Where provision of concrete that qualifies under GSA IRA concrete limits is impractical, GSA’s IRA limits for cement may be applied to the cement being used in the concrete mix.
24. How is GSA addressing LEC materials for window systems? What qualifies for low embodied carbon funding and what doesn’t?*
The Insulated Glazing Unit, or IGU, will qualify as an assembly if 80% of the IGU (by weight or by cost) is comprised of qualifying flat glass. Qualifying related necessary expenses include directly-related demolition and abatement work, design, commissioning, and necessary infrastructure components.
For purposes of the calculation, the glazing assembly on curtain wall, storefront, or punch window conditions includes only the assembly components of the glazing unit (e.g., an IGU or laminated glazing unit). Glazing assembly components include flat glass lites, any laminate interlayers (e.g., PVB), any fritting or internal IGU shading components, spacer and created airspace, desiccant, and perimeter edge seals.
Assembly components exclude adjacent materials from the glazing unit assembly calculation, such as window sashes and framing, gaskets, sealants, seals, air vapor barrier, and structural connections. Those adjacent materials may be covered as expenses necessary to acquire and install approved products, materials, and assemblies.
25. What did GSA learn about the origin of the products and materials procured? Were they all compliant with the Buy American and Trade Agreements Acts?*
To date, all LEC materials acquired under the pilot program have complied with applicable laws and regulations concerning domestic sourcing and trade agreements. GSA contractors are obligated to comply with FAR 52.225-9, Buy American-Construction Materials or FAR 52.225-11 Buy American-Construction Materials under Trade Agreements, as applicable. Incidents of noncompliance are handled in accordance with FAR 25.206.
For example, GSA’s first procurement obligated under the pilot went to windows made in Pennsylvania for the Lewis F. Powell, Jr. U.S. Courthouse project.
26. Can unfabricated source materials qualify for GSA IRA funding?
Yes. GSA has added GWP limits for four unfabricated steel categories per industry input.
Additionally, construction product assemblies (such as processed glass or insulating glass units fabricated from flat glass) can qualify for IRA funding if at least 80% of the assembly’s total cost or total weight comprises materials that meet these requirements.
27. How will GSA verify whether contractors used the materials identified in the project’s design?
GSA’s contracts will require that vendors provide submittals during design and construction, including quantities of qualifying materials, and product-specific EPDs.
In addition to Government monitoring, construction managers and commissioning providers will also be required to verify and report whether: (a) submitted EPDs comply with design specifications for IRA-qualifying materials; (b) reported quantity was accurate; and (c) reported IRA-qualifying materials were actually installed.
ENERGY STAR
28. Why must ENERGY STAR Energy Performance Scores be reported for steel that originates from an integrated steel mill, cement, and glass?
EPA’s Interim Determination requires ENERGY STAR Energy Performance Scores “for all plants in the supply chain for a specific construction product within the year of product purchase for which an ENERGY STAR Energy Performance Indicator for the product purchase category is available.”
A manufacturing plant’s energy consumption provides important information about this key contributor to the final product’s embodied carbon, compared to industry averages of similar materials and products. Energy efficiency is often a good first step to help plants decarbonize without changing the composition of the materials or products they produce.
Any cement, glass, or integrated steel plant based in the U.S. can use the free ENERGY STAR Energy Performance Indicator tool to generate a score, even if the plant is not ENERGY STAR certified.
Producing an Energy Performance Score should take a plant no more than one hour to gather from existing files of the past twelve months of energy consumption and material production.
The Energy Performance Indicator tool is a spreadsheet that generates this score.
Footnotes
1 GSA’s steel compliance documentation criteria specify that EPDs in all steel subcategories must use the same industry-accepted PCR: UL’s PCR Guidance for Building-Related Products and Services, Part B: Designated Steel Construction Product EPD Requirements.
2 EPA has clarified to GSA that the phrase “open source EPD database” in the Interim Determination was intended to provide an example of a suitable verified source platform, not to require use of open sources for which underlying code is available, nor to restrict agencies’ use of other kinds of free-to-use, open EPD data platforms.
3 Executive Order 14057 [PDF] also seeks to mitigate the U.S. government’s operational and embodied carbon impacts, stating that “Agencies shall reduce emissions, promote environmental stewardship, support resilient supply chains, drive innovation, and incentivize markets for sustainable products and services by … maximizing environmental benefits and cost savings through use of full lifecycle cost methodologies; [and by] purchasing products that contain recycled content, are biobased, or are energy and water efficient ….” Exec. Order 14057 Section 208 (2021).
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