Cal. Public Contract Code - PCC § 3500. Section 3500.
This article shall be known, and may be cited, as the Buy Clean California Act.
ARTICLE 5. Buy Clean California Act [3500. - 3505.]
Cal. Public Contract Code - PCC 5.
in effectCal. Public Contract Code - PCC § 3501. Section 3501.
For purposes of this article, the following definitions apply:
(a)
“Awarding authority” means any of the following:
(1)
A state agency for a contract for a public works project that is subject to the State Contract Act (Chapter 1 (commencing with Section 10100) of Part 2).
(2)
The Regents of the University of California for a contract for a public works project that is subject to Chapter 2.1 (commencing with Section 10500) of Part 2.
(3)
The Trustees of the California State University for a contract for a public works project
that is subject to the California State University Contract Law (Chapter 2.5 (commencing with Section 10700) of Part 2).
(b)
“Department” means the Department of General Services.
(c)
“Eligible materials” means any of the following:
(1)
Carbon steel rebar.
(2)
Flat glass.
(3)
Insulation.
(4)
Structural steel.
(d)
“Eligible project” means a project that the awarding authority determines will require eligible materials.
Cal. Public Contract Code - PCC § 3502. Section 3502.
(a)
By January 1, 2022, the department, in consultation with the State Air Resources Board, shall establish, and publish in the State Contracting Manual or a department management memorandum, or make available on the department’s internet website, a maximum acceptable global warming potential for each category of eligible materials in accordance with both of the following requirements:
(1)
The department shall set the maximum acceptable global warming potential at the industry average of facility-specific global warming potential emissions for that material with a phase-in period of not more than two years. The department shall determine the industry average by consulting recognized databases of environmental product declarations.
If the department determines that the facility-specific environmental product declarations available do not adequately represent the industry as a whole, it may use industrywide environmental product declarations based on domestic production data in its calculation of the industry average. When determining the industry averages pursuant to this paragraph, the department should include all stages of manufacturing required by the relevant product category rule. However, when setting the initial industry average, the department may exclude emissions that occur during fabrication stages, and make reasonable judgments aligned with the product category rule.
(2)
The department shall express the maximum acceptable global warming potential as a number that states the maximum acceptable facility-specific global warming potential for each category of eligible materials. The department may set different maximums
for different products within each category and, when more than one set of product category rules exists for a category or set of products, may set a different maximum for each set of product category rules. The global warming potential shall be provided in a manner that is consistent with criteria in an Environmental Product Declaration.
(b)
The department, by January 1, 2022, shall submit a report to the Legislature that describes the method that the department used to develop the maximum global warming potential for each category of eligible materials pursuant to subdivision (a). The report required by this subdivision shall be submitted in compliance with Section 9795 of the Government Code.
(c)
By January 1, 2025, and every three years thereafter, the department shall review the maximum acceptable global warming potential for each category of eligible materials established pursuant to subdivision (a), and may adjust that number downward for any eligible material to reflect industry improvements if the department, based on the process described in paragraph (1) of subdivision (a), determines that the industry average has changed, but the department shall not adjust that number upward for any eligible material. At that time, the department shall update the State Contracting Manual, department management memorandum, or information available on the department’s internet website, to reflect that adjustment.
Cal. Public Contract Code - PCC § 3503. Section 3503.
(a)
An awarding authority shall require the successful bidder for a contract described in subdivision (b) to submit a current facility-specific Environmental Product Declaration, Type III, as defined by the International Organization for Standardization (ISO) standard 14025, or similarly robust life cycle assessment methods that have uniform standards in data collection consistent with ISO standard 14025, industry acceptance, and integrity, for each eligible material proposed to be used.
(b)
An awarding authority shall include in a specification for bids for an eligible project that the facility-specific global warming potential for any eligible material does not exceed the maximum acceptable global warming potential for that material determined pursuant to
Section 3502. An awarding authority may include in a specification for bids for an eligible project a facility-specific global warming potential for any eligible material that is lower than the maximum acceptable global warming potential for that material determined pursuant to Section 3502.
(c)
A successful bidder for a contract described in subdivision (b) shall not install any eligible materials on the project until that bidder submits a facility-specific Environmental Product Declaration for that material pursuant to subdivision (a).
(d)
This section shall only apply to a contract entered into on or after July 1, 2022.
(e)
This section shall not apply to an eligible material for a particular contract if the awarding authority determines, upon written justification published on its internet website, that requiring those eligible materials to comply would be technically infeasible, would result in a significant increase in the project cost or a significant delay in completion, or would result in only one source or manufacturer being able to provide the type of material needed by the state.
(f)
This section shall not apply if the awarding authority determines that an emergency exists, as defined in Section 1102, or that any of the circumstances described in subdivisions (a) to (d), inclusive, of Section 10122 exist.
Cal. Public Contract Code - PCC § 3504. Section 3504.
In carrying out its duties under this article, an awarding authority shall strive to achieve a continuous reduction of emissions over time.
Cal. Public Contract Code - PCC § 3505. Section 3505.
The department, by July 1, 2023, shall submit a report to the Legislature on any obstacles to the implementation of this article, and the effectiveness of this article to reduce global warming potential. The report required by this section shall be submitted in compliance with Section 9795 of the Government Code.
Source: CA Legislative Counsel Bulk DataURL: https://downloads.leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/pubinfo_2025.zipFetched: 6/27/2026