[Congressional Bills 110th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 2940 Introduced in Senate (IS)]
110th CONGRESS
2d Session
S. 2940
To promote green energy production, and for other purposes.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES
April 30, 2008
Mr. Brown introduced the following bill; which was read twice and
referred to the Committee on Energy and Natural Resources
_______________________________________________________________________
A BILL
To promote green energy production, and for other purposes.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the
United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE; TABLE OF CONTENTS.
(a) Short Title.--This Act may be cited as the ``Green Energy
Production Act of 2008''.
(b) Table of Contents.--The table of contents of this Act is as
follows:
Sec. 1. Short title; table of contents.
Sec. 2. Definitions.
Sec. 3. Establishment of program.
Sec. 4. Green Technology Investment Corporation.
Sec. 5. Green Technology Investment Fund.
Sec. 6. Component programs.
Sec. 7. Criteria for provision of grants, loans, and other assistance.
Sec. 8. Energy efficiency grants.
Sec. 9. Administration.
Sec. 10. Authorization of appropriations.
SEC. 2. DEFINITIONS.
In this Act:
(1) Administrator.--The term ``Administrator'' means the
Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency.
(2) Biomass.--The term ``biomass'' has the meaning given
the term ``renewable biomass'' in section 211(o)(1) of the
Clean Air Act (42 U.S.C. 7545(o)(1)).
(3) Environmentally protective.--The term ``environmentally
protective'' means, with respect to technology, technology
that--
(A) is most likely to result in the least impact to
land, forests, water quantity and quality, air quality,
and wildlife habitat; and
(B) possesses the highest potential for long-term
sustained production of green energy.
(4) Green energy.--
(A) In general.--The term ``green energy'' has the
meaning given the term ``renewable energy''.
(B) Inclusion.--The term ``green energy'' includes
energy derived from coal produced in a manner that--
(i) sequesters carbon from carbon dioxide
emissions at a minimum 85 percent capture rate
on an annual basis; and
(ii) complies with section 1421(d) of the
Safe Drinking Water Act (42 U.S.C. 300h(d)).
(5) Institution of higher education.--The term
``institution of higher education'' has the meaning given the
term in section 101 of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20
U.S.C. 1001)).
(6) Renewable energy.--The term ``renewable energy'' means
electric energy generated at a facility (including a
distributed generation facility) from solar, wind, fuel cells,
biomass, geothermal, ocean energy, or landfill gas.
(7) Secretary.--The term ``Secretary'' means the Secretary
of Energy.
(8) Target area.--The term ``target area'' means--
(A) an area that has experienced a significant loss
of manufacturing employment;
(B) an area with a large manufacturing capacity;
(C) an area with an unemployment rate that is
higher than the national average unemployment rate; and
(D) priority for an area that includes a brownfield
site (as defined in section 101 of the Comprehensive
Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act
of 1980 (42 U.S.C. 9601)).
SEC. 3. ESTABLISHMENT OF PROGRAM.
The Secretary shall establish a green technology investment program
to develop high-tech green research capabilities, promote green
innovation and green energy investment, and increase scientific
knowledge that may reveal the basis for new or enhanced products,
equipment, or processes, in target areas by--
(1) assisting in the research and development of projects
that design, create, or formulate new or enhanced products,
equipment, or processes;
(2) expanding and supporting world-class research
facilities;
(3) supporting capital formation and the development of
innovative products; and
(4) financing advanced manufacturing technologies to help
new and existing industries become more productive, more
environmentally protective, and carbon-neutral.
SEC. 4. GREEN TECHNOLOGY INVESTMENT CORPORATION.
(a) Establishment.--
(1) In general.--There is established in the Department of
Energy a corporation to be known as the ``Green Technology
Investment Corporation''.
(2) Meetings.--The Corporation shall meet at least 4 times
during each fiscal year.
(3) Rules for corporation business.--Not later than 1 year
after the date of enactment of this Act, the Corporation shall
establish rules for the conduct of business of the Corporation.
(4) Applicable authority.--The Corporation shall be subject
to--
(A) subchapter II of chapter 5, and chapter 7, of
title 5, United States Code (commonly known as the
``Administrative Procedure Act''); and
(B) all other Federal law applicable to quasi-
autonomous agencies within the Department of Energy.
(5) Administrative costs.--The Secretary shall--
(A) be responsible for paying all administrative
costs of the Corporation; and
(B) in conjunction with the Board of Directors of
the Corporation, take every reasonable action to reduce
and minimize administrative costs of carrying out this
section and the program.
(b) Board of Directors.--
(1) In general.--The Board of Directors of the Corporation
shall consist of 7 members, appointed by the President, by and
with the advice and consent of the Senate, who are--
(A) leaders from industry, labor, academia,
government, and nongovernment organizations; and
(B) selected based on having the necessary
expertise--
(i) to build world-class applied research
capability;
(ii) to assist entrepreneurial innovators
in accelerating formation and attraction of
technology-based businesses;
(iii) to create product innovation;
(iv) to market the manufacturing
competitiveness of the United States;
(v) to create domestic jobs and skills
development opportunities in emerging domestic
markets; and
(vi) to evaluate and advise on
environmental sustainability and climate
change.
(2) Chairperson.--The President shall appoint, by and with
the advice and consent of the Senate, 1 member of the Board of
Directors to serve as Chairperson
(c) Term of Service.--
(1) In general.--Each member of the Board of Directors
shall be appointed for a term of 5 years.
(2) Additional terms.--The President may appoint, by and
with the advice and consent of the Senate, a member of the
Board to serve additional terms of service.
(d) Responsibilities.--The Corporation shall allocate funds,
provide grants, and carry out programs under section 6, for all phases
of technology commercialization, in accordance with this Act.
SEC. 5. GREEN TECHNOLOGY INVESTMENT FUND.
(a) Establishment.--There is established in the Treasury of the
United States a fund, to be known as the ``Green Technology Investment
Fund'' (referred to in this section as the ``Fund''), consisting of
such amounts as are appropriated to the Fund under section 10.
(b) Expenditures From Fund.--
(1) In general.--Subject to paragraph (2), on request by
the Corporation, the Secretary of the Treasury shall transfer
from the Fund to the Corporation such amounts as the
Corporation determines are necessary to provide grants, loans,
and other assistance, and otherwise carry out programs, under
this Act (other than section 8).
(2) Administrative expenses.--An amount not exceeding 10
percent of the amounts in the Fund shall be available for each
fiscal year to pay the administrative expenses necessary to
carry out this Act.
(c) Transfers of Amounts.--
(1) In general.--The amounts required to be transferred to
the Fund under this section shall be transferred at least
monthly from the general fund of the Treasury to the Fund on
the basis of estimates made by the Secretary of the Treasury.
(2) Adjustments.--Proper adjustment shall be made in
amounts subsequently transferred to the extent prior estimates
were in excess of or less than the amounts required to be
transferred.
SEC. 6. COMPONENT PROGRAMS.
(a) Green Development Loans.--The Corporation shall establish and
carry out a loan program to carry out the purposes described in section
3 (including conducting, or providing for the conduct of, scientific or
technological inquiry and experimentation in the physical sciences).
(b) Green Markets Program.--The Corporation shall establish and
carry out a grant program--
(1) to assist entities, including entities that are not
eligible for small business innovative research funding, to
receive grants to commercialize green energy products; and
(2) to assist small and medium-sized businesses with
funding to acquire, renovate, or construct facilities or
purchase of equipment for--
(A) research programs;
(B) technology development;
(C) product development; and
(D) commercialization programs.
(c) Green Redevelopment, Opportunity, and Workforce Grants.--The
Corporation shall establish and carry out a grant program--
(1) to assist small and medium-sized businesses in
accelerating new product development and commercialization of
technology products;
(2) to assist small and medium-sized businesses in
capitalizing on early-stage investment, particularly those
businesses that provide evidence of a capability to meet a
green marketplace need;
(3) to create and maintain jobs within the United States;
(4) to assist local governments in improving infrastructure
for related businesses in accordance with this section;
(5) to seek and develop innovative ways of assisting
businesses and communities in achieving the goals of this Act;
(6) to redeploy underused manufacturing capacity;
(7) to capitalize on export opportunities;
(8) to revitalize depressed manufacturing communities; and
(9) to search for and develop innovative ways to design
environmentally protective technologies and best practices and
demonstrate commercial green energy production.
(d) Green Energy Manufacturing Loans.--The Corporation shall
establish a program to encourage financial institutions approved by the
Corporation to make loans to for-profit or nonprofit small businesses
that are having difficulty obtaining business loans through
conventional underwriting standards.
(e) Green Energy Community Pilot Program.--
(1) In general.--The Corporation shall establish a pilot
program under which the Corporation shall provide grants to 5
green energy communities designated by the Corporation to
assist the communities--
(A) to establish models for green energy
communities;
(B) to reduce the traditional energy consumption of
the communities by using more green energy and reducing
energy consumption through innovative efficiency
programs; and
(C) to lower energy costs for consumers and local
government organizations.
(2) Eligibility.--To be eligible for designation as a green
energy community under this subsection, a community shall be a
target area.
(3) Duration.--
(A) In general.--The Corporation shall make grants
to green energy communities designated under this
subsection for a term of 10 years.
(B) Renewal.--Grants made to a green energy
community under this subsection may be renewed for
additional 10-year terms if the community continues to
meet the eligibility requirements of paragraph (2).
(f) Green Energy Institution of Higher Education Pilot Program.--
(1) In general.--The Corporation shall establish a pilot
program under which the Corporation shall provide grants to 5
green energy institutions of higher education designated by the
Corporation to assist the institutions of higher education--
(A) to establish models for green energy
institutions of higher education;
(B) to reduce the traditional energy consumption of
the institutions of higher education by using more
green energy and reducing energy consumption through
innovative efficiency programs; and
(C) to lower energy costs for the institutions of
higher education and students.
(2) Eligibility.--To be eligible for designation as a green
energy institution of higher education under this subsection,
an institution of higher education shall be located in a target
area.
(3) Duration.--The Corporation shall make grants to green
energy institutions of higher education designated under this
subsection for a term of 10 years.
(g) National Guard Base Green Energy Grant Pilot Program.--
(1) In general.--The Corporation shall establish a pilot
program under which the Corporation shall provide grants to 5
States for green energy National Guard bases designated by the
Corporation to assist the National Guard bases in those
States--
(A) to establish models for green energy National
Guard bases;
(B) to reduce the traditional energy consumption of
the National Guard bases by using more green energy and
reducing energy consumption through innovative
efficiency programs; and
(C) to lower energy costs for the National Guard
and States.
(2) Eligibility.--To be eligible for designation as a green
energy National Guard base under this subsection, a National
Guard base shall be located in a target area.
(3) Duration.--The Corporation shall make grants to green
energy National Guard bases designated under this subsection
for a term of 10 years.
(h) Green Energy Technology Internship Program.--
(1) In general.--The Corporation shall establish a green
energy technology internship program under which--
(A) students and educators at colleges and
universities in the United States are paired with
businesses of all sizes in the United States; and
(B) those businesses are encouraged--
(i) to develop cutting-edge, high-tech
skills in participating students; and
(ii) to ultimately offer full-time
employment to those students after graduation.
(2) Goal.--The Corporation shall establish as a goal for
the green energy technology internship program the
reimbursement by the Corporation, of not more than the greater
of 50 percent or $5,000 of the wages paid to a participating
student or educator, on the condition that, in the case of a
participating student, the business strives for the possibility
of full-time employment of the student after graduation.
(3) Requirements.--The Corporation shall establish
requirements for participation in the green energy technology
internship program, including requirements relating to--
(A) the eligibility of students, educators, and
businesses to participate in the program; and
(B) application contents and procedures.
(i) Green Energy Technology Apprenticeship Program.--
(1) In general.--The Corporation shall establish a green
energy technology apprenticeship program under which--
(A) apprentices and employers in the United States
are paired with businesses of all sizes in the United
States; and
(B) those businesses are encouraged--
(i) to develop cutting-edge, high-tech
skills in participating students;
(ii) to ultimately offer full-time
employment to those students after completion;
and
(iii) to work closely with organized labor.
(2) Goal.--As a goal for the green energy technology
apprenticeship program, the Corporation shall, to the maximum
extent practicable, provide reimbursement for not more than the
higher of 50 percent or $5,000 of the wages paid to a
participating apprentice, if the business paired with the
apprentice agrees to make every effort to offer full-time
employment to the apprentice on the completion of the
apprenticeship.
(3) Requirements.--The Corporation shall establish
requirements for participation in the green energy technology
apprenticeship program, including requirements relating to--
(A) the eligibility of apprentices, organized
labor, trades, and businesses to participate in the
program;
(B) partnerships with organized labor
apprenticeship programs; and
(C) application contents and procedures.
SEC. 7. CRITERIA FOR PROVISION OF GRANTS, LOANS, AND OTHER ASSISTANCE.
(a) Eligible Projects.--
(1) In general.--The Corporation shall provide grants,
loans, and other assistance in accordance with the programs
under section 6 for projects that, as determined by the
Corporation--
(A) offer the best technology, research, and
commercialization for the United States;
(B) permit anticipation and action on market
opportunities;
(C) encourage industry involvement;
(D) facilitate investment at the intersection of
core competency areas;
(E) recruit world-class talent and high-growth
companies;
(F) create economic opportunity for target areas;
(G) engage regional partners;
(H) emphasize accountability and metrics;
(I) upon completion, will serve as sites and
facilities primarily intended for commercial,
industrial, or manufacturing use; and
(J) advance environmental protection.
(2) Priority.--In carrying out paragraph (1), the
Corporation--
(A) shall give priority to--
(i) renewable energy, carbon-neutral
projects; and
(ii) projects that advance environmentally
protective goals, with a particular emphasis on
best practices and innovative technology that
reduce negative impacts on a commercial scale;
and
(B) may consider and give priority to the potential
of a project to develop or improve innovative, cutting-
edge technology for green energy projects that are
carbon neutral.
(b) Basis.--A grant, loan, or other assistance provided under this
Act--
(1) shall be based on the best available technology,
research, and commercialization, with a focus on diversity of
green technologies; and
(2) shall not be provided solely on a geographical basis.
(c) Eligible Applicants.--The Corporation may provide a grant,
loan, or other assistance under this Act to--
(1) a political subdivision or nonprofit economic
development organization;
(2) a municipality, local government, community, or
institution of higher education (including a technical
educational institution); and
(3) a private, for-profit entity, with the unanimous
approval by the Board of Directors of the Corporation.
(d) Funds Allocated.--The Corporation shall determine the maximum
and minimum amount provided for each program and program recipient
under this Act in order to maximize the purposes of this Act.
(e) Report.--Not later than 1 year after the date of enactment of
this Act, and annually thereafter, the Corporation shall submit to
Congress a report that describes all activities of the Corporation
carried out using funds made available under this Act, including, for
the year covered by the report, a description of--
(1) each grant, loan, or other award of assistance provided
under this Act; and
(2) the reason for each grant, loan, or other award.
SEC. 8. ENERGY EFFICIENCY GRANTS.
(a) In General.--The Secretary shall establish an energy efficiency
grant program under which the Secretary shall provide grants to
eligible recipients, on a dollar-for-dollar matching basis, for
implementing conservation programs that are designed to reduce consumer
energy use to the maximum extent practicable.
(b) Eligible Recipients.--Recipients that are eligible to receive
grants under this section include--
(1) energy producers;
(2) municipal power organizations; and
(3) rural electric cooperatives.
(c) Priority.--In making grants under this section, the Secretary
shall give priority to programs that are designed to reduce consumer
end-use of energy over programs that are designed to reduce the
consumer use of energy.
(d) Reduction in Energy Uses.--In making grants under this section,
the Secretary shall allocate grants, and provide minimum and maximum
award criteria for the grants, in a manner that maximizes the reduction
in energy use.
(e) Authorization of Appropriations.--There is authorized to be
appropriated to carry out this section $150,000,000 for each of fiscal
years 2009 through 2013.
SEC. 9. ADMINISTRATION.
Notwithstanding any other provision of this Act, none of the funds
made available to carry out this Act may be used to carry out any
project, activity, or expense that is not located within the United
States.
SEC. 10. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.
There are authorized to be appropriated to the Fund to carry out
this Act (other than section 8), to remain available until expended--
(1) $1,000,000,000 for fiscal year 2009;
(2) $5,000,000,000 for fiscal year 2010; and
(3) $10,000,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2011 through
2013.
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