Energy Independence and Security Act of 2007/Title IV/Subtitle B

SEC. 421. COMMERCIAL HIGH-PERFORMANCE GREEN BUILDINGS.

 * (a) Director of Commercial High-Performance Green Buildings—
 * Notwithstanding any other provision of law, the Secretary, acting through the Assistant Secretary of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy, shall appoint a Director of Commercial High-Performance Green Buildings to a position in the career-reserved Senior Executive service, with the principal responsibility to—
 * (1) establish and manage the Office of Commercial High-Performance Green Buildings; and
 * (2) carry out other duties as required under this subtitle.


 * (b) Qualifications—
 * The Commercial Director shall be an individual, who by reason of professional background and experience, is specifically qualified to carry out the duties required under this subtitle.


 * (c) Duties—
 * The Commercial Director shall, with respect to development of high-performance green buildings and zero-energy commercial buildings nationwide—
 * (1) coordinate the activities of the Office of Commercial High-Performance Green Buildings with the activities of the Office of Federal High-Performance Green Buildings;
 * (2) develop the legal predicates and agreements for, negotiate, and establish one or more public-private partnerships with the Consortium, members of the Consortium, and other capable parties meeting the qualifications of the Consortium, to further such development;
 * (3) represent the public and the Department in negotiating and performing in accord with such public-private partnerships;
 * (4) use appropriated funds in an effective manner to encourage the maximum investment of private funds to achieve such development;
 * (5) promote research and development of high-performance green buildings, consistent with section 423; and
 * (6) jointly establish with the Federal Director a national high-performance green building clearinghouse in accordance with section 423(1), which shall provide high-performance green building information and disseminate research results through—
 * (A) outreach;
 * (B) education; and
 * (C) the provision of technical assistance.


 * (d) Reporting—
 * The Commercial Director shall report directly to the Assistant Secretary for Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy, or to other senior officials in a way that facilitates the integrated program of this subtitle for both energy efficiency and renewable energy and both technology development and technology deployment.


 * (e) Coordination—
 * The Commercial Director shall ensure full coordination of high-performance green building information and activities, including activities under this subtitle, within the Federal Government by working with the General Services Administration and all relevant agencies, including, at a minimum—
 * (1) the Environmental Protection Agency;
 * (2) the Office of the Federal Environmental Executive;
 * (3) the Office of Federal Procurement Policy;
 * (4) the Department of Energy, particularly the Federal Energy Management Program;
 * (5) the Department of Health and Human Services;
 * (6) the Department of Housing and Urban Development;
 * (7) the Department of Defense;
 * (8) the National Institute of Standards and Technology;
 * (9) the Department of Transportation;
 * (10) the Office of Science Technology and Policy; and
 * (11) such nonprofit high-performance green building rating and analysis entities as the Commercial Director determines can offer support, expertise, and review services.


 * (f) High-Performance Green Building Partnership Consortium-
 * (1) RECOGNITION—
 * Not later than 90 days after the date of enactment of this Act, the Commercial Director shall formally recognize one or more groups that qualify as a high-performance green building partnership consortium.
 * (2) REPRESENTATION TO QUALIFY—
 * To qualify under this section, any consortium shall include representation from—
 * (A) the design professions, including national associations of architects and of professional engineers;
 * (B) the development, construction, financial, and real estate industries;
 * (C) building owners and operators from the public and private sectors;
 * (D) academic and research organizations, including at least one national laboratory with extensive commercial building energy expertise;
 * (E) building code agencies and organizations, including a model energy code-setting organization;
 * (F) independent high-performance green building associations or councils;
 * (G) experts in indoor air quality and environmental factors;
 * (H) experts in intelligent buildings and integrated building information systems;
 * (I) utility energy efficiency programs;
 * (J) manufacturers and providers of equipment and techniques used in high-performance green buildings;
 * (K) public transportation industry experts; and
 * (L) nongovernmental energy efficiency organizations.
 * (3) FUNDING—
 * The Secretary may make payments to the Consortium pursuant to the terms of a public-private partnership for such activities of the Consortium undertaken under such a partnership as described in this subtitle directly to the Consortium or through one or more of its members.


 * (g) Report—
 * Not later than 2 years after the date of enactment of this Act, and biennially thereafter, the Commercial Director, in consultation with the Consortium, shall submit to Congress a report that—
 * (1) describes the status of the high-performance green building initiatives under this subtitle and other Federal programs affecting commercial high-performance green buildings in effect as of the date of the report, including—
 * (A) the extent to which the programs are being carried out in accordance with this subtitle; and
 * (B) the status of funding requests and appropriations for those programs; and
 * (2) summarizes and highlights development, at the State and local level, of high-performance green building initiatives, including executive orders, policies, or laws adopted promoting high-performance green building (including the status of implementation of those initiatives).

SEC. 422. ZERO NET ENERGY COMMERCIAL BUILDINGS INITIATIVE.

 * (a) Definitions—
 * In this section:
 * (1) CONSORTIUM—
 * The term `consortium' means a High-Performance Green Building Consortium selected by the Commercial Director.
 * (2) INITIATIVE—
 * The term `initiative' means the Zero-Net-Energy Commercial Buildings Initiative established under subsection (b)(1).
 * (3) ZERO-NET-ENERGY COMMERCIAL BUILDING—
 * The term `zero-net-energy commercial building' means a high-performance commercial building that is designed, constructed, and operated—
 * (A) to require a greatly reduced quantity of energy to operate;
 * (B) to meet the balance of energy needs from sources of energy that do not produce greenhouse gases;
 * (C) in a manner that will result in no net emissions of greenhouse gases; and
 * (D) to be economically viable.


 * (b) Establishment-
 * (1) IN GENERAL—
 * The Commercial Director shall establish an initiative, to be known as the `Zero-Net-Energy Commercial Buildings Initiative'—
 * (A) to reduce the quantity of energy consumed by commercial buildings located in the United States; and
 * (B) to achieve the development of zero net energy commercial buildings in the United States.
 * (2) CONSORTIUM-
 * (A) IN GENERAL—
 * Not later than 180 days after the date of enactment of this Act, the Commercial Director shall competitively select, and enter into an agreement with, a consortium to develop and carry out the initiative.
 * (B) AGREEMENTS—
 * In entering into an agreement with a consortium under subparagraph (A), the Commercial Director shall use the authority described in section 646(g) of the Department of Energy Organization Act (42 U.S.C. 7256(g)), to the maximum extent practicable.


 * (c) Goal of Initiative—
 * The goal of the initiative shall be to develop and disseminate technologies, practices, and policies for the development and establishment of zero net energy commercial buildings for—
 * (1) any commercial building newly constructed in the United States by 2030;
 * (2) 50 percent of the commercial building stock of the United States by 2040; and
 * (3) all commercial buildings in the United States by 2050.


 * (d) Components—
 * In carrying out the initiative, the Commercial Director, in consultation with the consortium, may—
 * (1) conduct research and development on building science, design, materials, components, equipment and controls, operation and other practices, integration, energy use measurement, and benchmarking;
 * (2) conduct pilot programs and demonstration projects to evaluate replicable approaches to achieving energy efficient commercial buildings for a variety of building types in a variety of climate zones;
 * (3) conduct deployment, dissemination, and technical assistance activities to encourage widespread adoption of technologies, practices, and policies to achieve energy efficient commercial buildings;
 * (4) conduct other research, development, demonstration, and deployment activities necessary to achieve each goal of the initiative, as determined by the Commercial Director, in consultation with the consortium;
 * (5) develop training materials and courses for building professionals and trades on achieving cost-effective high-performance energy efficient buildings;
 * (6) develop and disseminate public education materials to share information on the benefits and cost-effectiveness of high-performance energy efficient buildings;
 * (7) support code-setting organizations and State and local governments in developing minimum performance standards in building codes that recognize the ready availability of many technologies utilized in high-performance energy efficient buildings;
 * (8) develop strategies for overcoming the split incentives between builders and purchasers, and landlords and tenants, to ensure that energy efficiency and high-performance investments are made that are cost-effective on a lifecycle basis; and
 * (9) develop improved means of measurement and verification of energy savings and performance for public dissemination.


 * (e) Cost Sharing—
 * In carrying out this section, the Commercial Director shall require cost sharing in accordance with section 988 of the Energy Policy Act of 2005 (42 U.S.C. 16352).


 * (f) Authorization of Appropriations—
 * There are authorized to be appropriated to carry out this section—
 * (1) $20,000,000 for fiscal year 2008;
 * (2) $50,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2009 and 2010;
 * (3) $100,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2011 and 2012; and
 * (4) $200,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2013 through 2018.

SEC. 423. PUBLIC OUTREACH.

 * The Commercial Director and Federal Director, in coordination with the Consortium, shall carry out public outreach to inform individuals and entities of the information and services available governmentwide by—
 * (1) establishing and maintaining a national high-performance green building clearinghouse, including on the Internet, that—
 * (A) identifies existing similar efforts and coordinates activities of common interest; and
 * (B) provides information relating to high-performance green buildings, including hyperlinks to Internet sites that describe the activities, information, and resources of—
 * (i) the Federal Government;
 * (ii) State and local governments;
 * (iii) the private sector (including nongovernmental and nonprofit entities and organizations); and
 * (iv) international organizations;
 * (2) identifying and recommending educational resources for implementing high-performance green building practices, including security and emergency benefits and practices;
 * (3) providing access to technical assistance, tools, and resources for constructing high-performance green buildings, particularly tools to conduct life-cycle costing and life-cycle assessment;
 * (4) providing information on application processes for certifying a high-performance green building, including certification and commissioning;
 * (5) providing to the public, through the Commercial Director, technical and research information or other forms of assistance or advice that would be useful in planning and constructing high-performance green buildings;
 * (6) using such additional methods as are determined by the Commercial Director to be appropriate to conduct public outreach;
 * (7) surveying existing research and studies relating to high-performance green buildings; and
 * (8) coordinating activities of common interest.