42 U.S.C. § 17116 — Industrial research and assessment centers

(a) Definitions: This section defines six terms. A "covered project" is a project that an energy assessment recommended for an eligible entity's plant site, where the project either improves energy efficiency, material efficiency, cybersecurity, or productivity, or reduces waste, greenhouse gas emissions, or other air pollution. An "eligible entity" is a small- or medium-sized manufacturer that has already had an energy assessment done by an industrial research and assessment center, by a Department of Energy Combined Heat and Power Technical Assistance Partnership working jointly with a center, or by a third-party assessor the Secretary decides gives an equivalent assessment. An "energy service provider" is any business that helps improve the energy efficiency, water efficiency, power factor, or load management of a manufacturing site or other process in an energy-intensive industry, or any utility running a utility energy service project. An "industrial research and assessment center" is either a university-based center funded under subsection (b), or a center at a trade school, community college, or union training program funded under subsection (f). The "Program" is the implementation grant program set up in subsection (i)(1). A "small- or medium-sized manufacturer" is a manufacturing firm with less than $100,000,000 in gross annual sales, fewer than 500 employees at its plant site, and annual energy bills between $100,000 and $3,500,000. (b) Institution of higher education-based centers: The Secretary must fund university-based industrial research and assessment centers. Each center's job is to give in-depth assessments of small and medium manufacturers' plant sites; identify ways to improve energy efficiency and environmental performance, including through smart manufacturing, energy management systems, sustainable manufacturing, information technology for supply chains and monitoring, and waste management; promote new concepts and technologies among small and medium manufacturers, including water treatment facilities and federally owned plants; promote research into alternative energy sources for heat, power, and feedstocks in energy-intensive industries; coordinate with relevant Federal and State research offices; act as a clearinghouse for technical assistance resources; and coordinate with State-accredited technical training centers and community colleges, while making sure every region of the country is served. (c) Coordination: To make the centers more useful, they must coordinate with the National Institute of Standards and Technology's Manufacturing Extension Partnership Centers; coordinate with the Department's Federal Energy Management Program and Building Technologies Office to offer building assessments to manufacturers; build stronger partnerships with the National Laboratories to bring their expertise to industrial needs; build stronger partnerships with energy service providers and technology providers to speed up adoption of both new and existing efficiency technologies; identify ways to cut greenhouse gas and other air emissions; and promote sustainable manufacturing practices among small and medium manufacturers. (d) Outreach: The Secretary must fund outreach so centers can tell small and medium manufacturers what information, technology, and services are available, and must fund coordination so each center can work with Federal, State, and Tribal efforts, utilities and energy service providers, regional energy efficiency organizations, and other centers. (e) Centers of Excellence: The Secretary must designate up to five of the best-performing centers as Centers of Excellence. Each one must coordinate with and advise the centers in its region — mentoring new directors and staff on available resources and best practices, including by joining new centers' assessments; training center staff and students on new technologies and tools; providing specialized technical help and a clearinghouse of expertise; connecting industrial facilities that got assessments with regional, State, local, Tribal, or utility efficiency programs that can help them act on the recommendations; helping coordinate with the other Federal programs named in subsection (c); and coordinating the centers' outreach work. Each fiscal year, the Secretary must spend at least $500,000 to support each Center of Excellence. (f) Expansion of centers: The Secretary must fund new industrial research and assessment centers at trade schools, community colleges, and union training programs. As much as practical, these new centers should serve the same purpose as the university-based centers, but the Secretary must account for the different capabilities of trade schools, community colleges, and union programs when deciding exactly what each one does. (g) Workforce training: The Secretary must pay half the cost — the "Federal share" — of internship programs where students work with industries, manufacturers, or energy service providers to carry out center recommendations, and of apprenticeship programs that do the same, plus let employees of assessed facilities work with a center to learn engineering skills that improve productivity and energy savings. (h) Small business loans: The Small Business Administration must, as much as practical, speed up its review of loan applications from small businesses that want to carry out a center's recommendations. (i) Implementation grants: The Secretary must run a grant program to help eligible entities carry out covered projects. An entity applies the way the Secretary requires, showing it actually needs the financial help. The Secretary must prioritize entities that already had an assessment from a center and that propose projects with the greatest potential for energy savings or emissions cuts. No single grant can exceed $300,000, and a grant can cover no more than 50 percent of a covered project's cost. A grant must add to, not replace, any private or State money already available for the project. (j) Authorization of appropriations: For fiscal years 2022 through 2026, Congress authorized $150,000,000 to carry out subsections (a) through (h), and a separate $400,000,000 to carry out the implementation grants in subsection (i).