Section 2800.50  Exemption from Required Practices

a)         Existing Supplies

A school may deplete its existing cleaning and maintenance supply stocks (existing on May 9, 2008).  [105 ILCS 140/10]

b)         Economic Feasibility

1)         The Council has found sufficient competition for the categories of environmentally sensitive cleaning supplies set forth in Section 2800.30(a) to ensure reasonable costs.  However, some schools may find that certain green cleaning supplies are not available in their geographic area or are cost-prohibitive.

2)         The Act allows individual schools to forego establishing a green cleaning policy, including but not limited to the purchase and use of environmentally sensitive cleaning supplies, if to do so would not be "economically feasible" for specified product categories.  Any school in such a circumstance may provide a written notification to the Council that implementation of a green cleaning policy for a product category is not economically feasible.  A school seeking exemption must use the form provided in Appendix B and the Council's website.

3)         After notification, the school may continue using its non-green cleaning policy for the specified product category.  The exemption must be renewed annually until such time as green cleaning becomes economically feasible for the product category.  An exemption must be sought for each school, although multiple schools in a district may apply together.

4)         To claim a product category exemption due to economic infeasibility, the school must provide:

A)        The price of the current cleaning supply;

B)        If applicable, the dilution factor for the current cleaning supply in use;

C)        The prices of three comparable green cleaning supplies; and

D)        If applicable, the dilution factors of those three comparable green cleaning supplies.

5)         If the costs of the three comparable green cleaning supplies, accounting for dilution factors, are higher than the cost of the current product in use, the Council will find economic infeasibility for that supply category.  The finding of economic infeasibility is specific to the supply category and the applicant school.