1.Pilot projects for
agriculture renewable energy systems
(a)The
Secretary shall establish, under such terms and conditions as the Secretary
determines appropriate, pilot projects for renewable energy systems to provide
financial and technical assistance through existing agriculture programs to
eligible entities to implement renewable energy systems in participating
States.
(b)In establishing pilot projects under this section, the
Secretary shall—
(1)ensure, to the
maximum extent practicable, that such projects—
(A)are located in
geographically diverse regions of the United States;
(B)consist of a
diverse group of herd sizes and technologies; and
(C)are located in
States that have established net metering programs; and
(2)take into
consideration any other criteria that the Secretary determines to be
appropriate.
(c)
(1)Financial assistance provided under this section shall
consist of cost-shares, grants, loans, or loan guarantees, or any combination
thereof.
(2)In
providing financial assistance to carry out this section, the Secretary shall
rely on the authorities granted to the Secretary under—
(A)the Environmental
Quality Incentives Program;
(B)the Rural Energy
for America Program;
(C)the Biomass Crop
Assistance Program;
(D)the Rural
Utilities Service; or
(E)any other program
that the Secretary determines to be appropriate to carry out the purposes this
section.
(d)In
carrying out this section, the Secretary shall consult with State and Federal
agencies, and any other entity that the Secretary determines has relevant
experience.
(e)Not
later than 90 days after the date of the enactment of this section, the
Secretary shall submit to the Committee on Agriculture of the House of
Representatives and the Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry of
the Senate a report describing the implementation of the program authorized
under this section.
(f)
(1)The Secretary shall conduct a study to evaluate rural
electrification issues. Such study shall include—
(A)an analysis of
rural infrastructure; and
(B)rural electric
transmission and generation.
(2)As
soon as practicable after conducting the study under paragraph (1), the
Secretary shall submit to Congress a report containing the results of the
study.
(g)In this section:
(1)The term eligible entity
means a producer
or group of producers implementing a renewable energy system on a farm.
(2)Eligible
electric utilityThe term eligible electric
utility
means—
(A)any public or
cooperative electric utility that is eligible to borrow from the Rural Utility
Service electrification programs authorized under the Rural Electrification Act
of 1936 (7 U.S.C. 901 et seq.) that serves a rural area defined by that
Act;
(B)any current
borrower from the Rural Utilities Service electrification program authorized
under that Act; or
(C)any entity
primarily owned or controlled by an entity described in subparagraph (A) or
(B).
(3)The term net metering
means measuring the
difference between electricity supplied by an electric utility and the
electricity generated by a net metering customer and fed back to the electric
utility over the applicable billing period.
(4)The term renewable energy systems
means a
system where renewable energy is derived from animal waste and used for
improving energy conservation on a farm.
(5)The term participating state
means a State
that has established a net metering program.