Operating Instruction 5.14.2.3 Sustainable Procurement Guidance

System Procedures
Chapter 5 - Administration

for Board Policy 5.14

Part 1. Purpose
This operating instruction establishes the sustainable procurement guidance for Minnesota State colleges, universities, and the system office. It supports procurement activity that contributes to the environmental sustainability and resilience targets established in System Procedure 5.17.1 Environmental Sustainability Practices and strives to align with statewide sustainability goals set for state cabinet agencies by Minnesota law, executive orders and supported by the State of Minnesota Office of Enterprise Sustainability.

This instruction provides expectations for incorporating environmental, economic, and social sustainability into solicitation development, proposal evaluation, supplier selection, and ongoing contract management.

Part 2. Definitions

Environmentally Preferable Products (EPP)
Products or services that have a reduced effect on human health and the environment relative to comparable products.

Office of Enterprise Sustainability (OES) sustainability goals
State of Minnesota enterprise-level statewide sustainability objectives covering greenhouse gases, energy, water, waste, fleet, and sustainable procurement. See Related Documents for additional information.

Life cycle cost
Costs including: first costs, ongoing maintenance, repair and labor costs, operating (fuel) costs, product efficiency over time, technological improvement timeline, and reuse/reconfiguration, or disposal cost.

Sustainable procurement
A purchasing decision that considers environmental, social, and economic factors throughout the product or service life cycle.

Part 3. Authority

  • Board Policy 5.14, Contracts, Procurement, and Supplier Diversity
  • System Procedure 5.17.1, Environmental Sustainability Practices

Part 4. General Responsibilities

  1. Chief Procurement Officer, Purchasing Directors, and Contract Managers must incorporate sustainability considerations into procurement planning, solicitation drafting, evaluation criteria, and supplier management.
  2. Campuses must align procurement decisions with Minnesota State sustainability targets related to carbon, energy, water, waste, transportation, and pollution-prevention categories outlined in System Procedure 5.17.1.
  3. Campuses shall utilize State of Minnesota enterprise contracts that have sustainability requirements whenever applicable and economically feasible (see Related Documents).
  4. Procurement staff shall work in partnership with the institution’s energy or sustainability lead (as required in System Procedure 5.17.1, Part 4) to evaluate the sustainability impact of purchasing decisions.

Part 5. Sustainable Procurement Targets
To align procurement activity with statewide OES goals and System Procedure 5.17.1, the following procurement targets must apply:

Subpart A. Solicitations with sustainability elements
Responsible parties must consider sustainability elements in all direct purchase and competitive solicitations where applicable. Elements might include:

  • Energy efficiency requirements
  • Recycled content
  • Extended product lifespan
  • Low-emission or zero-emission equipment
  • Waste minimization requirements
  • Packaging reduction
  • Take-back or product stewardship programs
  • Specifications supporting reuse, repair, or modularity
  • End of useful life recyclability

Subpart B. Procurement actions supporting Minnesota State sustainability targets
Procurement decisions must support institutional progress toward the following Minnesota State goals, as established in System Procedure 5.17.1:

  • Carbon emissions target (50% reduction by 2030; 80% by 2050)
  • Building energy consumption target (30% reduction by 2030)
  • Building water use target (15% reduction by 2030)
  • 75% solid waste diversion by 2030 (primarily achieved through recycling and composting)
  • Fleet fuel efficiency improvements and adherence to the state’s vehicle purchasing hierarchy

Procurement teams shall evaluate whether purchases materially support or hinder progress toward these targets.

Subpart C. Vendor and product preferences
Procurement staff shall give preference in the order below, where economically and compatibly feasible, and aligned with policy targets by using:

  • The Minnesota State surplus property email list-serve or State of Minnesota Surplus Services for office equipment and supplies
  • State Contracts with sustainability criteria (see Resources below)
  • Suppliers demonstrating documented sustainability programs

and for:

  • Products that meet United States Environmental Protection Agency (U.S. EPA) specification, standards, and ecolabels by purchase category,
  • Recycled-content commodities following minimum standard guidelines as established by the U.S. EPA’s Comprehensive Procurement Guideline Program; specifically BPI Compostable certified or locally recyclable products for food service and custodial uses,
  • Low-emission equipment and vehicles or electrified alternatives,
  • Low (less than 700) global warming potential refrigerants with low ozone depleting potential in cooling and refrigeration equipment, prioritize alternatives to refrigerants being phased out under the Montreal Protocol. This phase out means Class I and Class II ozone depleting substances will no longer be produced or imported to the United States by 2030.

Refer to System Procedure 5.24.1 for acceptance of donated materials that may contain regulated wastes. See also Part 6. Solicitation and Contract Requirements below.

Part 6. Solicitation and Contract Requirements

Subpart A. Sustainability in planning
Before issuing a solicitation, purchasing staff shall evaluate whether sustainability criteria apply by reviewing:

  • Energy or utility impacts
  • Waste generation and durability
  • Product recyclability or compostability
  • Product materials (recycled content, non-toxic)
  • Packaging <
  • Transportation or fleet impacts
  • Life cycle costs
  • Indoor environmental impact
  • Chemical or pollution-prevention considerations in production, use and disposal
  • Future availability of renewal and repair components, specifically refrigerants
  • Human health impact and risk, following U.S. EPA’s instruction related to the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA) for new and existing chemicals and MPCA’s requirements for hazardous chemical management and listed[HN1.1], universal and infectious waste restrictions.

Subpart B. Sustainability evaluation criteria
Competitive solicitations must include request for vendor disclosure and evaluation points for sustainability, such as:

  • Environmental certifications
  • Life cycle cost analysis Energy and fuel consumption or efficiency when compared to existing conditions
  • Waste reduction potential
  • Take-back or recycling programs
  • Transportation delivery impact, specifically shipping distance and modality
  • Use of low-chemical emitting materials (aligned with System Procedure 5.17.1 Part 4.G - H)
  • Human impact or risk factors

Not all sustainability factors will apply to all procurements; purchasing units must document the rationale when sustainability requirements cannot be included. Procurement decisions aligned with a Minnesota Buildings, Benchmarking, and Beyond (B3) applicable project will follow that program’s purchasing and design guidelines. (see Related Documents below).

Subpart C. Contract language
All awarded contracts must include the sustainability provisions considered and evaluated when applicable.

Part 7. Reporting Requirements
To support reporting timelines by Minnesota State identified in System Procedure 5.17.1:

  • Procurement units must work with the campus sustainability lead to submit an annual Sustainable Procurement Report to the Minnesota State Facilities Unit representative.
  • The report must include:
    • Number of solicitations or state contract purchases that contained or considered preferred sustainable product attribute requirements
    • Sustainability criteria used
    • Cost impacts where data are available
  • Reports are due annually by October 31, consistent with institutional reporting responsibilities outlined in System Procedure 5.17.1.

Part 8. Continuous Improvement and Training

  • Procurement staff shall complete periodic sustainability training made available by Minnesota State, the State of Minnesota OES, or national procurement in sustainability organizations.
  • Minnesota State will maintain guidance and resources (templates, sample RFP language, checklists) to support implementation.
  • Campuses are encouraged to partner with their sustainability representatives to review progress annually and identify opportunities to increase sustainable procurement practices.

Related Documents:

To view any of the following related statutes, go to the Revisor's Office website. You can conduct a search from this site by typing in the statute number.

  • Minn. Stat. §16B.325 Sustainable Building Guidelines and §216B.241, Subd. 9, Subd.9’s building performance standards for SB 2030
  • Minn. Stat. §§16C.135 and 16C.137 (Vehicle purchasing hierarchy)
  • Minn. Stat. §16C.073 Paper and printing related service
  • Minn. Stat. §16C.0725 Agency allowance to purchase recycled content materials with cost within 10% of nonrecycled alternative
  • Executive Order 19-25 Advancing Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy Programs for Minnesota's Public Buildings (use as reference)
  • Executive Order 19-27 Directing State Government to Conserve Energy and Water, and Reduce Waste to Save Money (use as reference)

Operating Instructions History:

Date of Adoption: 06/25/26
Date of Implementation: 06/25/26
Date of Last Review:

Date & Subject of Amendments:

No additional HISTORY

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