Government operations and workforce

Executive Order 12969: Federal Acquisition and Community Right-To-Know

President: Bill Clinton

Used federal contracting policy to encourage covered facilities to report toxic chemical releases under community right-to-know requirements.

Status: Revoked — by EO 13148 in 2000.

Is Executive Order 12969 still in effect? No. EO 13148 revoked it in 2000.

What does Executive Order 12969 do?

EO 12969 directed agencies to contract, above the simplified acquisition threshold, only with companies that certified compliance with specified Emergency Planning and Community Right-to-Know Act reporting duties for covered facilities. EPA was assigned compliance and waiver functions, and the Federal Acquisition Regulation implemented the requirement. EO 13148 revoked EO 12969 in 2000 as federal environmental-management policy was recast; the obsolete FAR subpart was later removed.

Administration position: The order used purchasing leverage to reinforce public toxic-release reporting. It did not expand the underlying statutory reporting threshold for every private facility.
SignedAugust 8, 1995
ImplementersEPA and federal contracting agencies
Procurement ruleFormer FAR subpart 23.9

Before and after

Before the order

EPCRA imposed reporting duties, but federal acquisition did not contain this government-wide certification condition.

After the order

Covered bidders and contractors faced certification and compliance clauses until the policy was revoked.

Who had to do what

Agency / officeActionTiming / position
Contracting agenciesInclude certification and contract clausesUntil revocation
EPADetermine compliance and consider waiversUntil revocation
Covered contractorsSubmit required toxic-release reportsUnder the former acquisition condition

What happened next

EO 12969 established the procurement policy.

EO 13148 revoked EO 12969.