42 U.S.C. § 17083 — Public outreach

Page 8961 TITLE 42—THE PUBLIC HEALTH AND WELFARE § 17083 (D) to be economically viable. (b) Establishment (1) In general The Commercial Director shall establish an initiative, to be known as the ‘‘Zero-Net-En- ergy Commercial Buildings Initiative’’— (A) to reduce the quantity of energy con- sumed 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 December 19, 2007, the Commercial Director shall competi- tively 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 con- sortium under subparagraph (A), the Com- mercial Director shall use the authority de- scribed in section 7256(g) of this title, 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 con- structed 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, compo- nents, equipment and controls, operation and other practices, integration, energy use meas- urement, and benchmarking; (2) conduct pilot programs and demonstra- tion 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, prac- tices, and policies (including demand-response technologies, practices, and policies) to achieve energy efficient commercial buildings; (4) conduct other research, development, demonstration, and deployment activities nec- essary 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 en- ergy efficient buildings; (6) develop and disseminate public education materials to share information on the benefits and cost-effectiveness of high-performance en- ergy 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-perform- ance energy efficient buildings; (8) develop strategies for overcoming the split incentives between builders and pur- chasers, 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 per- formance for public dissemination. (e) Cost sharing In carrying out this section, the Commercial Director shall require cost sharing in accord- ance with section 16352 of this title. (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. (Pub. L. 110–140, title IV, § 422, Dec. 19, 2007, 121 Stat. 1604; Pub. L. 117–58, div. D, title I, § 40104(d), Nov. 15, 2021, 135 Stat. 933.) Editorial Notes AMENDMENTS 2021—Subsec. (d)(3). Pub. L. 117–58 inserted ‘‘(includ- ing demand-response technologies, practices, and poli- cies)’’ after ‘‘policies’’. Statutory Notes and Related Subsidiaries EFFECTIVE DATE Section effective on the date that is 1 day after Dec. 19, 2007, see section 1601 of Pub. L. 110–140, set out as a note under section 1824 of Title 2, The Congress. WAGE RATE REQUIREMENTS For provisions relating to rates of wages to be paid to laborers and mechanics on projects for construction, alteration, or repair work funded under div. D or an amendment by div. D of Pub. L. 117–58, including au- thority of Secretary of Labor, see section 18851 of this title. § 17083. Public outreach The Commercial Director and Federal Direc- tor, 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 clearing- house, 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 Page 8962 TITLE 42—THE PUBLIC HEALTH AND WELFARE § 17084 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 non- governmental and nonprofit entities and organizations); and (iv) international organizations; (2) identifying and recommending edu- cational resources for implementing high-per- formance green building practices, including security and emergency benefits and practices; (3) providing access to technical assistance, tools, and resources for constructing high-per- formance green buildings, particularly tools to conduct life-cycle costing and life-cycle as- sessment; (4) providing information on application processes for certifying a high-performance green building, including certification and commissioning; (5) providing to the public, through the Com- mercial Director, technical and research infor- mation or other forms of assistance or advice that would be useful in planning and con- structing high-performance green buildings; (6) using such additional methods as are de- termined 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 inter- est. (Pub. L. 110–140, title IV, § 423, Dec. 19, 2007, 121 Stat. 1606.) Statutory Notes and Related Subsidiaries EFFECTIVE DATE Section effective on the date that is 1 day after Dec. 19, 2007, see section 1601 of Pub. L. 110–140, set out as a note under section 1824 of Title 2, The Congress. § 17084. Separate spaces with high-performance energy efficiency measures (a) Definitions In this section: (1) High-performance energy efficiency meas- ure The term ‘‘high-performance energy effi- ciency measure’’ means a technology, product, or practice that will result in substantial operational cost savings by reducing energy consumption and utility costs. (2) Separate spaces The term ‘‘separate spaces’’ means areas within a commercial building that are leased or otherwise occupied by a tenant or other oc- cupant for a period of time pursuant to the terms of a written agreement. (b) Study (1) In general Not later than 1 year after April 30, 2015, the Secretary, acting through the Assistant Sec- retary of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy, shall complete a study on the feasi- bility of— (A) significantly improving energy effi- ciency in commercial buildings through the design and construction, by owners and ten- ants, of separate spaces with high-perform- ance energy efficiency measures; and (B) encouraging owners and tenants to im- plement high-performance energy efficiency measures in separate spaces. (2) Scope The study shall, at a minimum, include— (A) descriptions of— (i) high-performance energy efficiency measures that should be considered as part of the initial design and construction of separate spaces; (ii) processes that owners, tenants, ar- chitects, and engineers may replicate when designing and constructing separate spaces with high-performance energy effi- ciency measures; (iii) policies and best practices to achieve reductions in energy intensities for lighting, plug loads, heating, cooling, cooking, laundry, and other systems to satisfy the needs of the commercial build- ing tenant; (iv) return on investment and payback analyses of the incremental cost and pro- jected energy savings of the proposed set of high-performance energy efficiency measures, including consideration of avail- able incentives; (v) models and simulation methods that predict the quantity of energy used by sep- arate spaces with high-performance energy efficiency measures and that compare that predicted quantity to the quantity of en- ergy used by separate spaces without high- performance energy efficiency measures but that otherwise comply with applicable building code requirements; (vi) measurement and verification plat- forms demonstrating actual energy use of high-performance energy efficiency meas- ures installed in separate spaces, and whether such measures generate the sav- ings intended in the initial design and con- struction of the separate spaces; (vii) best practices that encourage an in- tegrated approach to designing and con- structing separate spaces to perform at op- timum energy efficiency in conjunction with the central systems of a commercial building; and (viii) any impact on employment result- ing from the design and construction of separate spaces with high-performance en- ergy efficiency measures; and (B) case studies reporting economic and energy savings returns in the design and construction of separate spaces with high- performance energy efficiency measures. (3) Public participation Not later than 90 days after April 30, 2015, the Secretary shall publish a notice in the Federal Register requesting public comments regarding effective methods, measures, and