INSULATE Buildings Act of 2021

II 117TH CONGRESS 1ST SESSION S. 2066 To require the Secretary of Energy to establish an energy efficiency revolving loan fund capitalization grant program, and for other purposes. IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES JUNE 15, 2021 Mr. MANCHIN (for himself and Ms. MURKOWSKI) introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Energy and Nat- ural Resources A BILL To require the Secretary of Energy to establish an energy efficiency revolving loan fund capitalization grant pro- gram, and for other purposes. Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa- 1 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 2 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 3 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Investing in New 4 Strategies for Upgrading Lower Attaining Efficiency 5 Buildings Act of 2021’’ or the ‘‘INSULATE Buildings 6 Act of 2021’’. 7 SEC. 2. DEFINITIONS. 8 In this Act: 9 VerDate Sep 11 2014 05:11 Jun 24, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00001 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S2066.IS S2066 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 2 •S 2066 IS (1) PRIORITY STATE.—The term ‘‘priority 1 State’’ means a State that— 2 (A) is eligible for funding under the State 3 Energy Program; and 4 (B)(i) is among the 15 States with the 5 highest annual per-capita combined residential 6 and commercial sector energy consumption, as 7 most recently reported by the Energy Informa- 8 tion Administration; or 9 (ii) is among the 15 States with the high- 10 est annual per-capita energy-related carbon di- 11 oxide emissions by State, as most recently re- 12 ported by the Energy Information Administra- 13 tion. 14 (2) PROGRAM.—The term ‘‘program’’ means 15 the program established under section 3(a). 16 (3) SECRETARY.—The term ‘‘Secretary’’ means 17 the Secretary of Energy. 18 (4) STATE.—The term ‘‘State’’ means a State 19 (as defined in section 3 of the Energy Policy and 20 Conservation Act (42 U.S.C. 6202)), acting through 21 a State energy office. 22 (5) STATE ENERGY PROGRAM.—The term 23 ‘‘State Energy Program’’ means the State Energy 24 Program established under part D of title III of the 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 05:11 Jun 24, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S2066.IS S2066 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 3 •S 2066 IS Energy Policy and Conservation Act (42 U.S.C. 1 6321 et seq.). 2 SEC. 3. ENERGY EFFICIENCY REVOLVING LOAN FUND CAP- 3 ITALIZATION GRANT PROGRAM. 4 (a) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 1 year after the 5 date of enactment of this Act, under the State Energy 6 Program, the Secretary shall establish a program under 7 which the Secretary shall provide capitalization grants to 8 States to establish a revolving loan fund under which the 9 State shall provide loans and grants, as applicable, in ac- 10 cordance with this section. 11 (b) DISTRIBUTION OF FUNDS.— 12 (1) ALL STATES.— 13 (A) IN GENERAL.—Of the amounts made 14 available under subsection (k), the Secretary 15 shall use 40 percent to provide capitalization 16 grants to States that are eligible for funding 17 under the State Energy Program, in accordance 18 with the allocation formula established under 19 section 420.11 of title 10, Code of Federal Reg- 20 ulations (or successor regulations). 21 (B) REMAINING FUNDING.—After applying 22 the allocation formula described in subpara- 23 graph (A), the Secretary shall redistribute any 24 unclaimed funds to the remaining States seek- 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 05:11 Jun 24, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S2066.IS S2066 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 4 •S 2066 IS ing capitalization grants under that subpara- 1 graph. 2 (2) PRIORITY STATES.— 3 (A) IN GENERAL.—Of the amounts made 4 available under subsection (k), the Secretary 5 shall use 60 percent to provide supplemental 6 capitalization grants to priority States in ac- 7 cordance with an allocation formula determined 8 by the Secretary. 9 (B) REMAINING FUNDING.—After applying 10 the allocation formula described in subpara- 11 graph (A), the Secretary shall redistribute any 12 unclaimed funds to the remaining priority 13 States seeking supplemental capitalization 14 grants under that subparagraph. 15 (C) GRANT AMOUNT.— 16 (i) MAXIMUM AMOUNT.—The amount 17 of a supplemental capitalization grant pro- 18 vided to a State under this paragraph shall 19 not exceed $30,000,000. 20 (ii) SUPPLEMENT NOT SUPPLANT.—A 21 supplemental capitalization grant received 22 by a State under this paragraph shall sup- 23 plement, not supplant, a capitalization 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 05:11 Jun 24, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00004 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S2066.IS S2066 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 5 •S 2066 IS grant received by that State under para- 1 graph (1). 2 (c) APPLICATIONS FOR CAPITALIZATION GRANTS.— 3 A State seeking a capitalization grant under the program 4 shall submit to the Secretary an application at such time, 5 in such manner, and containing such information as the 6 Secretary may require, including— 7 (1) a detailed explanation of how the grant will 8 be used, including a plan to establish a new revolv- 9 ing loan fund or use an existing revolving loan fund; 10 (2) the need of eligible recipients for loans and 11 grants in the State for assistance with conducting 12 energy audits; 13 (3) a description of the expected benefits that 14 building infrastructure and energy system upgrades 15 and retrofits will have on communities in the State; 16 and 17 (4) in the case of a priority State seeking a 18 supplemental capitalization grant under subsection 19 (b)(2), a justification for needing the supplemental 20 funding. 21 (d) TIMING.— 22 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall establish 23 a timeline with dates by, or periods by the end of, 24 which a State shall— 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 05:11 Jun 24, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00005 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S2066.IS S2066 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 6 •S 2066 IS (A) on receipt of a capitalization grant 1 under the program, deposit the grant funds into 2 a revolving loan fund; and 3 (B) begin using the capitalization grant as 4 described in subsection (e)(1). 5 (2) USE OF GRANT.—Under the timeline estab- 6 lished under paragraph (1), a State shall be required 7 to begin using a capitalization grant not more than 8 180 days after the date on which the grant is re- 9 ceived. 10 (e) USE OF GRANT FUNDS.— 11 (1) IN GENERAL.—A State that receives a cap- 12 italization grant under the program— 13 (A) shall provide loans in accordance with 14 paragraph (2); and 15 (B) may provide grants in accordance with 16 paragraph (3). 17 (2) LOANS.— 18 (A) COMMERCIAL ENERGY AUDIT.— 19 (i) IN GENERAL.—A State that re- 20 ceives a capitalization grant under the pro- 21 gram may provide a loan to an eligible re- 22 cipient described in clause (iii) to conduct 23 a commercial energy audit. 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 05:11 Jun 24, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00006 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S2066.IS S2066 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 7 •S 2066 IS (ii) AUDIT REQUIREMENTS.—A com- 1 mercial energy audit conducted using a 2 loan provided under clause (i) shall— 3 (I) determine the overall con- 4 sumption of energy of the facility of 5 the eligible recipient; 6 (II) identify and recommend 7 lifecycle cost-effective opportunities to 8 reduce the energy consumption of the 9 facility of the eligible recipient, includ- 10 ing through energy efficient— 11 (aa) lighting; 12 (bb) heating, ventilation, 13 and air conditioning systems; 14 (cc) windows; 15 (dd) appliances; and 16 (ee) insulation and building 17 envelopes; 18 (III) estimate the energy and 19 cost savings potential of the opportu- 20 nities identified in subclause (II) 21 using software approved by the Sec- 22 retary; 23 (IV) identify— 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 05:11 Jun 24, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00007 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S2066.IS S2066 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 8 •S 2066 IS (aa) the period and level of 1 peak energy demand for each 2 building within the facility of the 3 eligible recipient; and 4 (bb) the sources of energy 5 consumption that are contrib- 6 uting the most to that period of 7 peak energy demand; 8 (V) recommend controls and 9 management systems to reduce or re- 10 distribute peak energy consumption; 11 (VI) recommend strategies to in- 12 crease electrification of the facility of 13 the eligible recipient, including the in- 14 stallation of— 15 (aa) charging infrastructure 16 for plug-in electric vehicles; 17 (bb) electric heating and 18 cooling systems; or 19 (cc) electric appliances; and 20 (VII) estimate the total energy 21 and cost savings potential for the fa- 22 cility of the eligible recipient if all rec- 23 ommended upgrades and retrofits are 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 05:11 Jun 24, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00008 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S2066.IS S2066 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 9 •S 2066 IS implemented, using software approved 1 by the Secretary. 2 (iii) ELIGIBLE RECIPIENTS.—An eligi- 3 ble recipient under clause (i) is a business 4 that— 5 (I) conducts the majority of its 6 business in the State that provides the 7 loan under that clause; and 8 (II) owns or operates— 9 (aa) 1 or more commercial 10 buildings; or 11 (bb) commercial space with- 12 in a building that serves multiple 13 functions, such as a building for 14 commercial and residential oper- 15 ations. 16 (B) RESIDENTIAL ENERGY AUDITS.— 17 (i) IN GENERAL.—A State that re- 18 ceives a capitalization grant under the pro- 19 gram may provide a loan to an eligible re- 20 cipient described in clause (iii) to conduct 21 a residential energy audit. 22 (ii) RESIDENTIAL ENERGY AUDIT RE- 23 QUIREMENTS.—A residential energy audit 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 05:11 Jun 24, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00009 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S2066.IS S2066 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 10 •S 2066 IS conducted using a loan under clause (i) 1 shall— 2 (I) utilize the same evaluation 3 criteria as the Home Performance As- 4 sessment used in the Energy Star 5 program established under section 6 324A of the Energy Policy and Con- 7 servation Act (42 U.S.C. 6294a); 8 (II) recommend lifecycle cost-ef- 9 fective opportunities to reduce energy 10 consumption within the residential 11 building of the eligible recipient, in- 12 cluding through energy efficient— 13 (aa) lighting; 14 (bb) heating, ventilation, 15 and air conditioning systems; 16 (cc) windows; 17 (dd) appliances; and 18 (ee) insulation and building 19 envelopes; 20 (III) recommend controls and 21 management systems to reduce or re- 22 distribute peak energy consumption; 23 (IV) recommend strategies to in- 24 crease electrification of the residential 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 05:11 Jun 24, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00010 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S2066.IS S2066 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 11 •S 2066 IS building of the eligible recipient, in- 1 cluding the installation of— 2 (aa) charging infrastructure 3 for plug-in electric vehicles, if 4 possible; 5 (bb) electric heating and 6 cooling systems; or 7 (cc) electric appliances; 8 (V) compare the energy con- 9 sumption of the residential building of 10 the eligible recipient to comparable 11 residential buildings in the same geo- 12 graphic area; and 13 (VI) provide a Home Energy 14 Score, or equivalent score, for the res- 15 idential building of the eligible recipi- 16 ent by using the Home Energy Score 17 Tool of the Department of Energy or 18 an equivalent scoring tool. 19 (iii) ELIGIBLE RECIPIENTS.—An eligi- 20 ble recipient under clause (i) is— 21 (I) an individual who owns— 22 (aa) a single family home; 23 (bb) a condominium or du- 24 plex; or 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 05:11 Jun 24, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00011 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S2066.IS S2066 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 12 •S 2066 IS (cc) a manufactured housing 1 unit; or 2 (II) a business that owns or oper- 3 ates a multifamily housing facility. 4 (C) COMMERCIAL AND RESIDENTIAL EN- 5 ERGY UPGRADES AND RETROFITS.— 6 (i) IN GENERAL.—A State that re- 7 ceives a capitalization grant under the pro- 8 gram may provide a loan to an eligible re- 9 cipient described in clause (ii) to carry out 10 upgrades or retrofits of building infrastruc- 11 ture and systems that— 12 (I) are recommended in the com- 13 mercial energy audit or residential en- 14 ergy audit, as applicable, completed 15 for the building or facility of the eligi- 16 ble recipient; 17 (II) satisfy at least 1 of the cri- 18 teria in the Home Performance As- 19 sessment used in the Energy Star 20 program established under section 21 324A of the Energy Policy and Con- 22 servation Act (42 U.S.C. 6294a); 23 VerDate Sep 11 2014 05:11 Jun 24, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00012 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S2066.IS S2066 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 13 •S 2066 IS (III) improve, with respect to the 1 building or facility of the eligible re- 2 cipient— 3 (aa) the physical comfort of 4 the building or facility occupants; 5 (bb) the energy efficiency of 6 the building or facility; or 7 (cc) the quality of the air in 8 the building or facility; and 9 (IV)(aa) are lifecycle cost-effec- 10 tive; and 11 (bb)(AA) reduce the energy in- 12 tensity of the building or facility of 13 the eligible recipient; or 14 (BB) improve the control and 15 management of energy usage of the 16 building or facility to reduce demand 17 during peak times. 18 (ii) ELIGIBLE RECIPIENTS.—An eligi- 19 ble recipient under clause (i) is an eligible 20 recipient described in subparagraph (A)(iii) 21 or (B)(iii) that— 22 (I) has completed a commercial 23 energy audit described in subpara- 24 graph (A) or a residential energy 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 05:11 Jun 24, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00013 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S2066.IS S2066 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 14 •S 2066 IS audit described in subparagraph (B) 1 using a loan provided under the appli- 2 cable subparagraph; or 3 (II) has completed a commercial 4 energy audit or residential energy 5 audit that— 6 (aa) was not funded by a 7 loan under this paragraph; and 8 (bb)(AA) meets the require- 9 ments for the applicable audit 10 under subparagraph (A) or (B), 11 as applicable; or 12 (BB) the Secretary deter- 13 mines is otherwise satisfactory. 14 (iii) LOAN TERM.—A loan provided 15 under this subparagraph shall be required 16 to be fully amortized by the earlier of— 17 (I) the year in which the up- 18 grades or retrofits carried out using 19 the loan exceed their expected useful 20 life; and 21 (II) 15 years after those up- 22 grades or retrofits are installed. 23 (D) REFERRAL TO QUALIFIED CONTRAC- 24 TORS.—Following the completion of an audit [Text truncated for display. 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