Short title

This Act may be cited as the

Climate Change Center and Clearinghouse Act of 2008

Findings

The Congress finds the following: (1)There are 26.8 million small business concerns in the United States, and they are the backbone of the American economy. However, small business concerns face overwhelming obstacles in addressing climate change issues, such as reducing their carbon footprint while balancing business needs to remain economically competitive. (2)The United States Government is the largest purchaser of goods and services in the world and plays a large role in influencing the overall business marketplace. In 2006, the United States Government spent over $417 billion on goods and services in 8.3 million separate contract actions. Small business concerns won approximately $80 billion in contracts which is about 21.5 percent of the remaining prime contracts. (3)The Small Business Act of 1953 specified that small business concerns should be given every opportunity to compete fairly for the award of Federal contracts. Congress has long recognized the value of small business concerns because they are important sources of job creation and economic growth; however, small business concerns are typically disadvantaged in competing against large firms. (4)The United States Environmental Protection Agency has created a directory to help small business concerns access financial services by State or service type (i.e. loans, consulting, credit, etc.) to help small business concerns achieve energy efficiency through their Energy Star Small Business—Financial Resources Directory. (5)The fusion of a powerful purchasing mechanism with green business practices provides a small business concern with significant incentives and opportunities for market penetration of environmentally preferable products, for the development of green services, and for the adoption of green practices in their own facilities. (6)Many small business concerns have taken the first step in incorporating sustainable practices into their own business, however small business concerns face obstacles in comparing the cost, performance, and life cycle environmental impacts of alternatives. Most small business concerns do not have the scientific and technical capability to fully assess the issues and choices to address the impact of climate change. In addition, small business concerns offering green products and services often face barriers to market acceptance of environmentally preferable products and services when competing with products or service practices that have long-standing market penetration. (7)It is vital for the competitiveness of the United States that small business concerns, including small, minority-owned, women-owned, historically underutilized businesses (HUBZones), and veteran-owned small business concerns be provided greater opportunity to become a procurement source for goods and services to Federal agencies. It is also critical that small business concerns be encouraged to develop and supply environmentally sound products and services. (8)By utilizing new energy efficient technologies and whole building design practices, small business concerns can save in long-term operating costs, become more competitive, improve the productivity and health of employees, and reduce their carbon footprint. (9)In the National Small Business Association’s 2006 energy survey, the majority of owners of small business concerns said they have been affected by rising energy prices and that reducing energy costs would increase profitability. At the same time, over half of these entrepreneurs have not invested in energy efficient programs for their small business concerns. (10)There are many ways to increase energy efficiency. For example, an owner of a small business concern who replaces twenty 100-watt incandescent bulbs with 27-watt compact fluorescent bulbs would pay $400 up-front, but save $980 over one year. (11)Today, buildings account for more than a third of the carbon emissions in the United States. Whole building design practices, also known as green buildings, have a positive effect on the reduction of green house gases and the health of the environment, increase production of workers, and improve the water supply for communities. Studies have shown— (A)a 2 to 16 percent increase in productivity in buildings that incorporate whole building design practices; and (B)that an up-front investment of 2 percent in whole building design practices, on average, results in life cycle savings of 20 percent of the total construction costs. (12)Some of the tools that a small business concern could use to design are— (A)green roofs, vegetated roof systems that passively perform no less than eight highly beneficial and cost-saving functions; (B)daylighting, because people respond, concentrate, and think better with diffuse, full-spectrum light provided by the sun; (C)on-site renewable energy, produced from fuels that have a stable, predictable supply such as solar, wind, biomass, and ground sources; (D)natural ventilation, which can replace all or part of mechanical ventilation systems, improving indoor air quality and occupant comfort; and (E)integrated design, the method by which the design team identifies systems early in the process to provide a coordinated implementation of efficiency and building methods, realizing an exponential gain in savings and comfort.

Office of Environment, Energy, and Climate Change

The Small Business Act (15 U.S.C. 631 et seq.) is amended by redesignating section 37 as section 38, and by inserting after section 36 the following:

38.

Office of Environment, Energy, and Climate Change

(a)

Establishment

There is established within the Small Business Administration an office to be known as the Office of Environment, Energy, and Climate Change headed by an Assistant Administrator for Environment, Energy, and Climate Change, who shall be appointed by, and report to, the Administrator of the Small Business Administration. (b)

Duties

The Office of Environment, Energy, and Climate Change shall— (1)oversee and administer the Climate Change Center and Clearinghouse established under subsection (c); (2)promote energy efficiency efforts for small business concerns; (3)promote efforts to reduce energy costs of small business concerns; and (4)oversee efforts by small business concerns to develop renewable energy technologies. (c)

Climate Change Center and Clearinghouse

(1)

Establishment

There is established within the Office of Environment, Energy, and Climate Change an office to be known as the Climate Change Center and Clearinghouse (hereinafter in this section referred to as the Center). (2)

Duties of the Center

The Center shall— (A)provide scientific, economic, and technical information to small business concerns on— (i)assessing and managing the technical, economic, and business impacts of climate change; and (ii)cost savings and revenue gains made possible through carbon credit trading opportunities and Federal and State renewable energy and energy efficiency tax relief programs, purchase incentives, and rebate programs; (B)ensure that the information described in subparagraph (A) is available to small business concerns by— (i)placing the information on a website accessible by small business concerns; and (ii)developing and carrying out nationwide workshops for small business concerns, with such workshops recorded and made available to small business concerns on a website and, if practicable, broadcast live on the internet; (C)coordinate any efforts which are undertaken by the Department of Energy’s Ombudsman, the Environmental Protection Agency’s Small Business Ombudsman, the National Institute of Standards and Technology’s Manufacturing Extension Partnership, the Small Business and Agriculture Regulatory Enforcement Ombudsman, the Office of Small and Disadvantaged Business Utilization within each Federal agency having procurement powers, and other appropriate Federal departments and agencies to provide technical, scientific, and engineering support to small business concerns for the purpose of maintaining competitiveness while— (i)developing green products or services; (ii)implementing green business practices; or (iii)reducing the amount of pollution produced by the small business concern; (D)develop a baseline study— (i)that provides a broad analysis that aggregates small business energy consumption and emissions; (ii)that includes, but is not limited to, an analysis of the energy consumption and greenhouse gas emissions from processes, practices, and product developments of small business concerns; (iii)the development of which the Center shall coordinate with similar efforts undertaken by other Federal agencies; and (iv)which upon completion is made available to the public on a website. (E)raise awareness among small business concerns of the information, technical support, and network opportunities made available through the Energy Star Program to reduce energy waste and energy costs; (F)develop a carbon footprint website that contains— (i)educational and technical information on how small business concerns can reduce their carbon footprint; (ii)links to tools and information relating to carbon footprints available on other websites; and (iii)a carbon footprint calculator which can calculate a rough estimate of a small business concern’s carbon emissions based on, but not limited to, the concern’s electricity usage, heating fuel usage, and fleet mileage; and (G)develop a marketing plan and coordinate with the Office of Small Business Development Centers to raise awareness among small business concerns of the Center’s duties and available resources. (3)

Duties of the heads of departments and agencies

The head of each Federal department or agency shall provide information to the Center, upon request, unless otherwise prohibited by law. (d)

Interagency working group

(1)

In general

The President shall establish an interagency working group, which shall be co-chaired by the Assistant Administrator for Environment, Energy, and Climate Change and the Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency and shall include representatives from— (A)the National Institute of Standards and Technology; (B)the Department of Energy; (C)the Department of Transportation; (D)the Office of Small Business Development Centers; (E)small business concerns; and (F)any additional agency that the President may designate. (2)

Advisors

The co-chairs of the interagency working group may appoint representatives from environmental groups and groups concerned with climate change to advise the working group. (3)

Duties

The interagency working group shall— (A)establish goals and priorities for the Center; and (B)provide for interagency coordination, including budget coordination, of activities undertaken by the Center. (e)

Definitions

(1)

Green products or services and green business practices

The Administrator of the Small Business Administration shall, in consultation with the Environmental Protection Agency, the General Services Administration, and other appropriate Federal departments and agencies, specify a detailed definition for the terms green products or services and green business practices for purposes of this section. (2)

Greenhouse gas

For purposes of this section, the term greenhouse gas means— (A)carbon dioxide; (B)methane; (C)nitrous oxide; (D)hydrofluorocarbons; (E)perfluorocarbons; or (F)sulfur hexafluoride. (f)

Authorization of Appropriations

There are authorized to be appropriated such sums as may be necessary to carry out this section.