Worldwide Wind Turbine Act

I 116TH CONGRESS 2D SESSION H. R. 8784 To amend the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961 to authorize the United States Agency for International Development to accept or purchase used property for planning and implementation of wind energy programs under that Act. IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES NOVEMBER 19, 2020 Mr. CURTIS (for himself and Mr. PHILLIPS) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Foreign Affairs A BILL To amend the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961 to authorize the United States Agency for International Development to accept or purchase used property for planning and implementation of wind energy programs under that Act. 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 ‘‘Worldwide Wind Tur- 4 bine Act’’. 5 SEC. 2. FINDINGS. 6 Congress finds the following: 7 VerDate Sep 11 2014 01:49 Nov 29, 2020 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00001 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H8784.IH H8784 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with BILLS 2 •HR 8784 IH (1) Eighty-five to 90 percent of a wind turbine 1 is recyclable, and is done so economically. However, 2 some pieces of the turbine, notably the blade, do not 3 have economical recycling options in the United 4 States. 5 (2) These blades are often made out of either 6 glass or carbon fiber and held together with a series 7 of resins and polymers. 8 (3) These blades are built to last for decades 9 and withstand the harshest conditions, making their 10 strength their weakness for recyclability. 11 (4) Currently, these blades are landfilled at a 12 low cost and because they are an inert product, can 13 safely be stored for long periods of time without con- 14 taminating local soil or aquifers. 15 (5) These blades often have useful life left and 16 can be used on a new turbine, potentially lowering 17 costs on other projects or enabling projects that may 18 not otherwise have been carried out. 19 VerDate Sep 11 2014 01:49 Nov 29, 2020 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H8784.IH H8784 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with BILLS 3 •HR 8784 IH SEC. 3. AUTHORITY OF UNITED STATES AGENCY FOR 1 INTERNATIONAL DEVELOPMENT TO ACCEPT 2 OR PURCHASE USED PROPERTY FOR PLAN- 3 NING AND IMPLEMENTATION OF WIND EN- 4 ERGY PROGRAMS. 5 Section 106 of the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961 6 (22 U.S.C. 2151d) is amended by adding at the end the 7 following: 8 ‘‘(g) AUTHORITY TO ACCEPT OR PURCHASE USED 9 PROPERTY.— 10 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Administrator of the 11 United States Agency for International Development 12 is authorized to accept as donation or purchase, use, 13 and dispose of used property for the planning and 14 implementation of wind energy programs under this 15 chapter as appropriate and consistent with country 16 needs and the Agency’s Country Development Co- 17 operation Strategy. In the case of donation of used 18 property described in this paragraph, the Adminis- 19 trator shall require the donor to provide the Admin- 20 istrator with information on the age and origins of 21 the used property. 22 ‘‘(2) CONSIDERATION AND APPROVAL OF APPLI- 23 CATIONS.—The Administrator shall establish a proc- 24 ess to— 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 01:49 Nov 29, 2020 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H8784.IH H8784 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with BILLS 4 •HR 8784 IH ‘‘(A) consider applications submitted to the 1 Administrator for the donation of used property 2 described in paragraph (1); and 3 ‘‘(B) approve any such application if the 4 Administrator determines that it meets the re- 5 quirements described in paragraph (1).’’. 6 Æ VerDate Sep 11 2014 01:49 Nov 29, 2020 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00004 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6301 E:\BILLS\H8784.IH H8784 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with BILLS