Vehicle Innovation Act of 2019

II Calendar No. 186 116TH CONGRESS 1ST SESSION S. 1085 [Report No. 116–83] To support research, development, and other activities to develop innovative vehicle technologies, and for other purposes. IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES APRIL 9, 2019 Mr. PETERS (for himself, Mr. ALEXANDER, and Ms. STABENOW) introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Energy and Natural Resources SEPTEMBER 10, 2019 Reported by Ms. MURKOWSKI, without amendment A BILL To support research, development, and other activities to develop innovative vehicle technologies, and for other pur- poses. 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 ‘‘Vehicle Innovation Act 4 of 2019’’. 5 VerDate Sep 11 2014 22:09 Sep 10, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00001 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S1085.RS S1085 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 2 •S 1085 RS SEC. 2. DEFINITIONS. 1 In this Act: 2 (1) DEPARTMENT.—The term ‘‘Department’’ 3 means the Department of Energy. 4 (2) SECRETARY.—The term ‘‘Secretary’’ means 5 the Secretary of Energy. 6 SEC. 3. OBJECTIVES. 7 The objectives of this Act are— 8 (1) to establish a consistent and consolidated 9 authority for the vehicle technology program at the 10 Department; 11 (2) to develop United States technologies and 12 practices that— 13 (A) improve the fuel efficiency and emis- 14 sions of all vehicles produced in the United 15 States; and 16 (B) reduce vehicle reliance on petroleum- 17 based fuels; 18 (3) to support domestic research, development, 19 engineering, demonstration, and commercial applica- 20 tion and manufacturing of advanced vehicles, en- 21 gines, and components; 22 (4) to enable vehicles to move larger volumes of 23 goods and more passengers with less energy and 24 emissions; 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 22:09 Sep 10, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S1085.RS S1085 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 3 •S 1085 RS (5) to develop cost-effective advanced tech- 1 nologies for wide-scale utilization throughout the 2 passenger, commercial, government, and transit ve- 3 hicle sectors; 4 (6) to allow for greater consumer choice of vehi- 5 cle technologies and fuels; 6 (7) shorten technology development and inte- 7 gration cycles in the vehicle industry; 8 (8) to ensure a proper balance and diversity of 9 Federal investment in vehicle technologies; and 10 (9) to strengthen partnerships between Federal 11 and State governmental agencies and the private 12 and academic sectors. 13 SEC. 4. COORDINATION AND NONDUPLICATION. 14 The Secretary shall ensure, to the maximum extent 15 practicable, that the activities authorized by this Act do 16 not duplicate those of other programs within the Depart- 17 ment or other relevant research agencies. 18 SEC. 5. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS. 19 There are authorized to be appropriated to the Sec- 20 retary for research, development, engineering, demonstra- 21 tion, and commercial application of vehicles and related 22 technologies in the United States, including activities au- 23 thorized under this Act— 24 (1) for fiscal year 2020, $313,567,000; 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 22:09 Sep 10, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S1085.RS S1085 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 4 •S 1085 RS (2) for fiscal year 2021, $326,109,000; 1 (3) for fiscal year 2022, $339,154,000; 2 (4) for fiscal year 2023, $352,720,000; and 3 (5) for fiscal year 2024, $366,829,000. 4 SEC. 6. REPORTING. 5 (a) TECHNOLOGIES DEVELOPED.—Not later than 18 6 months after the date of enactment of this Act and annu- 7 ally thereafter through 2024, the Secretary shall submit 8 to Congress a report regarding the technologies developed 9 as a result of the activities authorized by this Act, with 10 a particular emphasis on whether the technologies were 11 successfully adopted for commercial applications, and if 12 so, whether products relying on those technologies are 13 manufactured in the United States. 14 (b) ADDITIONAL MATTERS.—At the end of each fis- 15 cal year through 2024, the Secretary shall submit to the 16 relevant Congressional committees of jurisdiction an an- 17 nual report describing activities undertaken in the pre- 18 vious year under this Act, active industry participants, the 19 status of public-private partnerships, progress of the pro- 20 gram in meeting goals and timelines, and a strategic plan 21 for funding of activities across agencies. 22 SEC. 7. VEHICLE RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT. 23 (a) PROGRAM.— 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 22:09 Sep 10, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00004 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S1085.RS S1085 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 5 •S 1085 RS (1) ACTIVITIES.—The Secretary shall conduct a 1 program of basic and applied research, development, 2 engineering, demonstration, and commercial applica- 3 tion activities on materials, technologies, and proc- 4 esses with the potential to substantially reduce or 5 eliminate petroleum use and the emissions of the 6 passenger and commercial vehicles of the United 7 States, including activities in the areas of— 8 (A) electrification of vehicle systems; 9 (B) batteries, ultracapacitors, and other 10 energy storage devices; 11 (C) power electronics; 12 (D) vehicle, component, and subsystem 13 manufacturing technologies and processes; 14 (E) engine efficiency and combustion opti- 15 mization; 16 (F) waste heat recovery; 17 (G) transmission and drivetrains; 18 (H) hydrogen vehicle technologies, includ- 19 ing fuel cells and internal combustion engines, 20 and hydrogen infrastructure, including hydro- 21 gen energy storage to enable renewables and 22 provide hydrogen for fuel and power; 23 (I) natural gas vehicle technologies; 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 22:09 Sep 10, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00005 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S1085.RS S1085 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 6 •S 1085 RS (J) aerodynamics, rolling resistance (in- 1 cluding tires and wheel assemblies), and acces- 2 sory power loads of vehicles and associated 3 equipment; 4 (K) vehicle weight reduction, including 5 lightweighting materials and the development of 6 manufacturing processes to fabricate, assemble, 7 and use dissimilar materials; 8 (L) friction and wear reduction; 9 (M) engine and component durability; 10 (N) innovative propulsion systems; 11 (O) advanced boosting systems; 12 (P) hydraulic hybrid technologies; 13 (Q) engine compatibility with and optimi- 14 zation for a variety of transportation fuels in- 15 cluding natural gas and other liquid and gas- 16 eous fuels; 17 (R) predictive engineering, modeling, and 18 simulation of vehicle and transportation sys- 19 tems; 20 (S) refueling and charging infrastructure 21 for alternative fueled and electric or plug-in 22 electric hybrid vehicles, including the unique 23 challenges facing rural areas; 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 22:09 Sep 10, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00006 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S1085.RS S1085 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 7 •S 1085 RS (T) gaseous fuels storage systems and sys- 1 tem integration and optimization; 2 (U) sensing, communications, and actu- 3 ation technologies for vehicle, electrical grid, 4 and infrastructure; 5 (V) efficient use, substitution, and recy- 6 cling of potentially critical materials in vehicles, 7 including rare earth elements and precious met- 8 als, at risk of supply disruption; 9 (W) aftertreatment technologies; 10 (X) thermal management of battery sys- 11 tems; 12 (Y) retrofitting advanced vehicle tech- 13 nologies to existing vehicles; 14 (Z) development of common standards, 15 specifications, and architectures for both trans- 16 portation and stationary battery applications; 17 (AA) advanced internal combustion en- 18 gines; 19 (BB) mild hybrid; 20 (CC) engine down speeding; 21 (DD) vehicle-to-vehicle, vehicle-to-pedes- 22 trian, and vehicle-to-infrastructure technologies; 23 and 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 22:09 Sep 10, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00007 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S1085.RS S1085 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 8 •S 1085 RS (EE) other research areas as determined 1 by the Secretary. 2 (2) TRANSFORMATIONAL TECHNOLOGY.—The 3 Secretary shall ensure that the Department con- 4 tinues to support research, development, engineer- 5 ing, demonstration, and commercial application ac- 6 tivities and maintains competency in mid- to long- 7 term transformational vehicle technologies with po- 8 tential to achieve reductions in emissions, including 9 activities in the areas of— 10 (A) hydrogen vehicle technologies, includ- 11 ing fuel cells, hydrogen storage, infrastructure, 12 and activities in hydrogen technology validation 13 and safety codes and standards; 14 (B) multiple battery chemistries and novel 15 energy storage devices, including nonchemical 16 batteries and electromechanical storage tech- 17 nologies such as hydraulics, flywheels, and com- 18 pressed air storage; 19 (C) communication and connectivity among 20 vehicles, infrastructure, and the electrical grid; 21 and 22 (D) other innovative technologies research 23 and development, as determined by the Sec- 24 retary. 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 22:09 Sep 10, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00008 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S1085.RS S1085 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 9 •S 1085 RS (3) INDUSTRY PARTICIPATION.— 1 (A) IN GENERAL.—To the maximum ex- 2 tent practicable, activities under this Act shall 3 be carried out in partnership or collaboration 4 with automotive manufacturers, heavy commer- 5 cial, vocational, and transit vehicle manufactur- 6 ers, qualified plug-in electric vehicle manufac- 7 turers, compressed natural gas vehicle manufac- 8 turers, vehicle and engine equipment and com- 9 ponent manufacturers, manufacturing equip- 10 ment manufacturers, advanced vehicle service 11 providers, fuel producers and energy suppliers, 12 electric utilities, universities, national labora- 13 tories, and independent research laboratories. 14 (B) REQUIREMENTS.—In carrying out this 15 Act, the Secretary shall— 16 (i) determine whether a wide range of 17 companies that manufacture or assemble 18 vehicles or components in the United 19 States are represented in ongoing public- 20 private partnership activities, including 21 firms that have not traditionally partici- 22 pated in federally sponsored research and 23 development activities, and where possible, 24 partner with such firms that conduct sig- 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 22:09 Sep 10, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00009 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S1085.RS S1085 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 10 •S 1085 RS nificant and relevant research and develop- 1 ment activities in the United States; 2 (ii) leverage the capabilities and re- 3 sources of, and formalize partnerships 4 with, industry-led stakeholder organiza- 5 tions, nonprofit organizations, industry 6 consortia, and trade associations with ex- 7 pertise in the research and development of, 8 and education and outreach activities in, 9 advanced automotive and commercial vehi- 10 cle technologies; 11 (iii) develop more effective processes 12 for transferring research findings and tech- 13 nologies to industry; 14 (iv) support public-private partner- 15 ships, dedicated to overcoming barriers in 16 commercial application of transformational 17 vehicle technologies, that use such indus- 18 try-led technology development facilities of 19 entities with demonstrated expertise in 20 successfully designing and engineering pre- 21 commercial generations of such trans- 22 formational technology; and 23 (v) promote efforts to ensure that 24 technology research, development, engi- 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 22:09 Sep 10, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00010 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S1085.RS S1085 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 11 •S 1085 RS neering, and commercial application activi- 1 ties funded under this Act are carried out 2 in the United States. 3 (4) INTERAGENCY AND INTRAAGENCY COORDI- 4 NATION.—To the maximum extent practicable, the 5 Secretary shall coordinate research, development, 6 demonstration, and commercial application activities 7 among— 8 (A) relevant programs within the Depart- 9 ment, including— 10 (i) the Office of Energy Efficiency 11 and Renewable Energy; 12 (ii) the Office of Science; 13 (iii) the Office of Electricity Delivery 14 and Energy Reliability; 15 (iv) the Office of Fossil Energy; 16 (v) the Advanced Research Projects 17 Agency—Energy; and 18 (vi) other offices as determined by the 19 Secretary; and 20 (B) relevant technology research and devel- 21 opment programs within other Federal agen- 22 cies, as determined by the Secretary. 23 (5) FEDERAL DEMONSTRATION OF TECH- 24 NOLOGIES.—The Secretary shall make information 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 22:09 Sep 10, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00011 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S1085.RS S1085 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 12 •S 1085 RS available to procurement programs of Federal agen- 1 cies regarding the potential to demonstrate tech- 2 nologies resulting from activities funded through 3 programs under this Act. 4 (6) INTERGOVERNMENTAL COORDINATION.— 5 The Secretary shall seek opportunities to leverage 6 resources and support initiatives of State and local 7 governments in developing and promoting advanced 8 vehicle technologies, manufacturing, and infrastruc- 9 ture. 10 (7) CRITERIA.—In awarding grants under the 11 program under this subsection, the Secretary shall 12 give priority to those technologies (either individually 13 or as part of a system) that— 14 (A) provide the greatest aggregate fuel 15 savings based on the reasonable projected sales 16 volumes of the technology; and 17 (B) provide the greatest increase in United 18 States employment. 19 (8) SECONDARY USE APPLICATIONS.— 20 (A) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall 21 carry out a research, development, and dem- 22 onstration program that— 23 VerDate Sep 11 2014 22:09 Sep 10, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00012 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S1085.RS S1085 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 13 •S 1085 RS (i) builds on any work carried out 1 under section 915 of the Energy Policy Act 2 of 2005 (42 U.S.C. 16195); 3 (ii) identifies possible uses of a vehicle 4 battery after the useful life of the battery 5 in a vehicle has been exhausted; 6 (iii) conducts long-term testing to 7 verify performance and degradation pre- 8 dictions and lifetime valuations for sec- 9 ondary uses; 10 (iv) evaluates innovative approaches to 11 recycling materials from plug-in electric 12 drive vehicles and the batteries used in 13 plug-in electric drive vehicles; 14 (v)(I) assesses the potential for mar- 15 kets for uses descri [Text truncated for display. 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