SF 2156

3rd Engrossment - 93rd Legislature (2023 - 2024) Posted on 06/28/2023 03:58pm

A bill for an act
relating to state purchasing; requiring the establishment of global warming impact
standards for certain construction materials used in state buildings and roads;
creates an environmental procurement task force; requires the commissioners of
transportation and administration to establish processes for incorporating
recommendations of environmental procurement task force; establishing pilot
program to encourage submission environmental product data from vendors;
requiring a report; appropriating money; proposing coding for new law in Minnesota
Statutes, chapter 16B.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MINNESOTA:

Section 1.

new text begin [16B.312] CONSTRUCTION MATERIALS; ENVIRONMENTAL
ANALYSIS.
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new text begin Subdivision 1. new text end

new text begin Definitions. new text end

new text begin For purposes of this section, the following terms have the
meanings given.
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new text begin (a) "Carbon steel" means steel in which the main alloying element is carbon and whose
properties are chiefly dependent on the percentage of carbon present.
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new text begin (b) "Commissioner" means the commissioner of administration.
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new text begin (c) "Electric arc furnace" means a furnace that produces molten alloy metal and heats
the charge materials with electric arcs from carbon electrodes.
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new text begin (d) "Eligible material" means:
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new text begin (1) carbon steel rebar;
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new text begin (2) structural steel;
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new text begin (3) concrete; or
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new text begin (4) asphalt paving mixtures.
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new text begin (e) "Eligible project" means:
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new text begin (1) new construction of a state building larger than 50,000 gross square feet of occupied
or conditioned space;
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new text begin (2) renovation of more than 50,000 gross square feet of occupied or conditioned space
in a state building whose renovation cost exceeds 50 percent of the building's assessed value;
or
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new text begin (3) new construction or reconstruction of two or more lane-miles of a trunk highway.
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new text begin (f) "Environmental product declaration" means a supply chain specific type III
environmental product declaration that:
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new text begin (1) contains a lifecycle assessment of the environmental impacts of manufacturing a
specific product by a specific firm, including the impacts of extracting and producing the
raw materials and components that compose the product;
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new text begin (2) is verified by a third party; and
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new text begin (3) meets the ISO 14025 standard developed and maintained by the International
Organization for Standardization (ISO).
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new text begin (g) "Global warming potential" has the meaning given in section 216H.10, subdivision
6.
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new text begin (h) "Greenhouse gas" has the meaning given to "statewide greenhouse gas emissions"
in section 216H.01, subdivision 2.
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new text begin (i) "Integrated steel manufacturing" means the production of iron and subsequently steel
from primarily iron ore or iron ore pellets. An integrated steel manufacturing process can
include a blast furnace, a basic oxygen furnace for refining molten iron into steel, but may
also include furnaces that continuously feed direct-reduced iron ore pellets as the primary
source of iron.
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new text begin (j) "Lifecycle" means an analysis that includes the environmental impacts of all stages
of a specific product's production, from mining and processing its raw materials to the
process of manufacturing the product itself.
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new text begin (k) "Rebar" means a steel reinforcing bar or rod encased in concrete.
new text end

new text begin (l) "Secondary steel manufacturing" means the production of steel where primarily
ferrous scrap and other metallic inputs are recycled by melting and refining in electric arc
furnaces.
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new text begin (m) "State building" means a building which is owned by the state of Minnesota or a
Minnesota state agency.
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new text begin (n) "Structural steel" means steel that is classified by the shapes of its cross-sections,
such as I, T, and C shapes.
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new text begin (o) "Supply chain specific" means an environmental product declaration that includes
specific data for the production processes of the materials and components composing a
product that contribute at least 80 percent of the product's lifecycle global warming potential,
as defined in International Organization for Standardization standard 21930.
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new text begin Subd. 2. new text end

new text begin Standard; maximum global warming potential. new text end

new text begin (a) The commissioner must,
based upon a recommendation from the Environmental Standards Procurement Task Force
in subdivision 5, establish and publish a maximum acceptable global warming potential for
each eligible material used in an eligible project, in accordance with the following schedule:
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new text begin (1) for concrete used in buildings, no later than January 15, 2026; and
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new text begin (2) for carbon steel rebar and structural steel and, after conferring with the commissioner
of transportation, for asphalt paving mixtures and concrete pavement, no later than January
15, 2028.
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new text begin (b) The commissioner must, after considering nationally or internationally recognized
databases of environmental product declarations for an eligible material, establish the
maximum acceptable global warming potential for that eligible material.
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new text begin (c) The commissioner may set different maximum global warming potentials for different
specific products and sub product categories that are examples of the same eligible material
based on distinctions between eligible material production and manufacturing processes
such as integrated versus secondary steel production.
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new text begin (d) The commissioner must establish maximum global warming potentials that are
consistent with criteria in an environmental product declaration.
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new text begin (e) Not later than three years after establishing the maximum global warming potential
for an eligible material under paragraph (a), and not longer than every three years thereafter,
the commissioner, after conferring with the commissioner of transportation with respect to
asphalt paving mixtures and concrete pavement, must review the maximum acceptable
global warming potential for each eligible material and for specific eligible material products.
The commissioner may adjust any of those values downward to reflect industry improvements
if, based on the process described in paragraph (b), the commissioner determines that the
industry average has declined.
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new text begin Subd. 3. new text end

new text begin Procurement process. new text end

new text begin The commissioners of administration and transportation
must, based upon the recommendations of the Environmental Procurement Task Force,
establish processes for incorporating the maximum allowable global warming potential of
eligible materials into their bidding processes by the effective dates established in subdivision
2.
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new text begin Subd. 4. new text end

new text begin Pilot program. new text end

new text begin (a) No later than July 1, 2024, the commissioner of
administration must establish a pilot program that seeks to obtain from vendors an estimate
of the lifecycle greenhouse gas emissions of products selected by the department from
among those procured. The pilot program must encourage, but may not require, a vendor
to submit the following data for each selected product that represents at least 90 percent of
the total cost of the materials or components composing the selected product:
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new text begin (1) the quantity of the product purchased by the department;
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new text begin (2) a current environmental product declaration for the product;
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new text begin (3) the name and location of the product's manufacturer;
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new text begin (4) a copy of the vendor's Supplier Code of Conduct, if any;
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new text begin (5) the names and locations of the product's actual production facilities; and
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new text begin (6) an assessment of employee working conditions at the product's production facilities.
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new text begin (b) The commissioner must construct a publicly accessible or adopt an existing publicly
accessible database which must be posted on the department's website and must contain the
data reported to the department under this subdivision. The data must be reported in a manner
that does not disclose, directly or in combination with other publicly available data, the
identification of the product manufacturer.
new text end

new text begin Subd. 5. new text end

new text begin Environmental Standards Procurement Task Force. new text end

new text begin (a) No later than October
1, 2023, the commissioners of administration and transportation must establish an
Environmental Standards Procurement Task Force to examine issues surrounding the
implementation of a program requiring vendors of certain construction materials purchased
by the state to:
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new text begin (1) submit environmental product declarations that assess the lifecycle environmental
impacts of those materials to state officials as part of the procurement process; and
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new text begin (2) meet standards established by the commissioner that limit greenhouse gas emission
impacts of those materials.
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new text begin (b) The task force must examine, at a minimum, the following:
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new text begin (1) which construction materials should be subject to the program requirements;
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new text begin (2) what factors should be considered in establishing greenhouse gas emission standards
including distinctions between eligible material production and manufacturing processes
such as integrated versus secondary steel production;
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new text begin (3) a schedule for the development of standards for specific materials and for
incorporating the standards into the purchasing process including distinctions between
eligible material production and manufacturing processes;
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new text begin (4) the development and use of financial incentives to reward vendors for developing
products whose greenhouse gas emissions are below the standards;
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new text begin (5) the provision of grants to defer a vendor's cost to obtain environmental product
declarations;
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new text begin (6) how the issues in clauses (1) to (5) are addressed by existing programs in other states
and countries;
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new text begin (7) how to coordinate with the federal Buy Clean Task Force established under Executive
Order 14057 and representatives of the United States Departments of Commerce, Energy,
Housing and Urban Development, Transportation; the Environmental Protection Agency;
the General Services Administration; the White House Office of Management and Budget;
and the White House Domestic Climate Policy Council; and
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new text begin (8) any other issues the task force deems relevant.
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new text begin (c) The task force must make recommendations to the commissioners of administration
and transportation regarding:
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new text begin (1) how the agencies must implement requirements requiring maximum global warming
impacts for eligible materials are integrated into the bidding process for eligible projects;
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new text begin (2) what incentive structures can be included in bidding processes to encourage the use
of materials below the maximum global warming potential;
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new text begin (3) how a successful bidder for a contract will notify the commissioner of the specific
environmental product declaration for a material used on a project;
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new text begin (4) a process for waiving the requirements to procure materials below the maximum
global warming potential in case of product supply problems, geographic impracticability,
or financial hardship;
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new text begin (5) a system for awarding grants to manufacturers of eligible materials located in
Minnesota to offset the cost of obtaining environmental product declarations or otherwise
collect environmental product declaration data from manufacturers based in Minnesota;
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new text begin (6) whether to use an industry average or a different method to set the maximum allowable
global warming potential, or whether that average could be used for some materials but not
others; and
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new text begin (7) any other items it deems appropriate for the implementation of this section.
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new text begin (d) Members of the task force must include, but may not be limited to, representatives
of:
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new text begin (1) the Departments of Administration and Transportation;
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new text begin (2) the Center for Sustainable Building Research at the University of Minnesota;
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new text begin (3) the Aggregate and Ready Mix Association of Minnesota;
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new text begin (4) the Concrete Paving Association of Minnesota;
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new text begin (5) the Minnesota Asphalt Pavement Association;
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new text begin (6) the Minnesota Board of Architecture, Engineering, Land Surveying, Landscape
Architecture, Geoscience, and Interior Design;
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new text begin (7) a representative of the Minnesota steel industry;
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new text begin (8) building and transportation construction firms;
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new text begin (9) suppliers of eligible materials;
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new text begin (10) organized labor in the construction trades;
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new text begin (11) organized labor in the manufacturing or industrial sectors;
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new text begin (12) environmental advocacy organizations; and
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new text begin (13) environmental justice organizations.
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new text begin (e) The Department of Administration must provide meeting space and serve as staff to
the task force.
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new text begin (f) The commissioner, or the commissioner's designee, must serve as chair of the task
force. The task force must meet at least four times annually, and must convene additional
meetings at the call of the chair.
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new text begin (g) The commissioner must summarize the findings and recommendations of the task
force in a report submitted to the chairs and ranking minority members of the senate and
house of representatives committees with primary jurisdiction for state government,
transportation, and energy no later than December 1, 2025, and annually thereafter until the
task force expires.
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new text begin (h) The task force is subject to section 15.059, subdivision 6.
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new text begin (i) The task force must sunset on January 1, 2029.
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new text begin EFFECTIVE DATE. new text end

new text begin This section is effective the day following final enactment.
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Sec. 2. new text begin APPROPRIATION.
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new text begin (a) $300,000 in fiscal year 2024 is appropriated from the general fund to the commissioner
of transportation for the requirements under section 1. This is a onetime appropriation and
is available until June 30, 2025.
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new text begin (b) $200,000 in fiscal year 2024 is appropriated from the general fund to the commissioner
of administration for the requirements under section 1. This is a onetime appropriation and
is available until June 30, 2025.
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