42 U.S.C. § 13501 — National Advanced Materials Program

(a) Program direction. The Secretary had to set up a 5-year National Advanced Materials Program, following sections 13541 and 13542. This program must foster commercializing ways to process, synthesize, fabricate, and manufacture advanced materials and related parts. At minimum, it must speed up private-sector use of advanced materials in high-performance, energy-efficient, and renewable energy technology in the industrial, transportation, and buildings sectors, in ways that foster economic growth and competitiveness. It must include field demonstrations big enough and numerous enough to prove technical and economic feasibility. (b) Program plan. Within 180 days after October 24, 1992, the Secretary — after consulting industry, colleges, Department of Energy national laboratories, and professional and technical groups — had to give Congress a 5-year plan to guide this section's work. The Secretary must update and resubmit this plan to Congress every two years. (c) Proposals. Within 1 year after October 24, 1992, the Secretary had to ask for proposals matching the 5-year plan; one or more parties could submit a proposal. Proposals had to include: (A) an explanation of how the proposal would speed up commercializing advanced materials for near- to mid-term energy efficiency or renewable energy use; (B) evidence the proposer considered whether Department of Energy national laboratories' unique abilities warranted collaborating with them, and how much collaboration is proposed; (C) a description of how much the proposal involves collaborating with relevant industry or other groups; and (D) evidence the proposers can carry out and finish the project. (d) General Services Administration demonstration program. The Secretary, working with the head of the General Services Administration (GSA), had to set up a program to speed up using advanced materials technology in goods and services GSA buys. This program must include a demonstration of using advanced materials technology as needed to establish that it's technically and economically feasible. The Secretary must transfer funds to GSA to carry this out. (e) Authorization of appropriations. Congress authorized whatever sums are needed for this section, drawn from section 13451(e) for energy-efficient applications and from section 13471(c) for renewable applications — including national laboratory participation in proposals under (c), and transferring funds to GSA.