[Congressional Bills 115th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 1225 Introduced in Senate (IS)]

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115th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                S. 1225

   To support research, development, and other activities to develop 
        innovative vehicle technologies, and for other purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                              May 24, 2017

Mr. Peters (for himself, Mr. Alexander, Ms. Stabenow, and Mr. Portman) 
introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred to the 
               Committee on Energy and Natural Resources

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
   To support research, development, and other activities to develop 
        innovative vehicle technologies, and for other purposes.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Vehicle Innovation Act of 2017''.

SEC. 2. DEFINITIONS.

    In this Act:
            (1) Department.--The term ``Department'' means the 
        Department of Energy.
            (2) Secretary.--The term ``Secretary'' means the Secretary 
        of Energy.

SEC. 3. OBJECTIVES.

    The objectives of this Act are--
            (1) to establish a consistent and consolidated authority 
        for the vehicle technology program at the Department;
            (2) to develop United States technologies and practices 
        that--
                    (A) improve the fuel efficiency and emissions of 
                all vehicles produced in the United States; and
                    (B) reduce vehicle reliance on petroleum-based 
                fuels;
            (3) to support domestic research, development, engineering, 
        demonstration, and commercial application and manufacturing of 
        advanced vehicles, engines, and components;
            (4) to enable vehicles to move larger volumes of goods and 
        more passengers with less energy and emissions;
            (5) to develop cost-effective advanced technologies for 
        wide-scale utilization throughout the passenger, commercial, 
        government, and transit vehicle sectors;
            (6) to allow for greater consumer choice of vehicle 
        technologies and fuels;
            (7) shorten technology development and integration cycles 
        in the vehicle industry;
            (8) to ensure a proper balance and diversity of Federal 
        investment in vehicle technologies; and
            (9) to strengthen partnerships between Federal and State 
        governmental agencies and the private and academic sectors.

SEC. 4. COORDINATION AND NONDUPLICATION.

    The Secretary shall ensure, to the maximum extent practicable, that 
the activities authorized by this Act do not duplicate those of other 
programs within the Department or other relevant research agencies.

SEC. 5. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.

    There are authorized to be appropriated to the Secretary for 
research, development, engineering, demonstration, and commercial 
application of vehicles and related technologies in the United States, 
including activities authorized under this Act--
            (1) for fiscal year 2018, $313,567,000;
            (2) for fiscal year 2019, $326,109,000;
            (3) for fiscal year 2020, $339,154,000;
            (4) for fiscal year 2021, $352,720,000; and
            (5) for fiscal year 2022, $366,829,000.

SEC. 6. REPORTING.

    (a) Technologies Developed.--Not later than 18 months after the 
date of enactment of this Act and annually thereafter through 2022, the 
Secretary shall submit to Congress a report regarding the technologies 
developed as a result of the activities authorized by this Act, with a 
particular emphasis on whether the technologies were successfully 
adopted for commercial applications, and if so, whether products 
relying on those technologies are manufactured in the United States.
    (b) Additional Matters.--At the end of each fiscal year through 
2022, the Secretary shall submit to the relevant congressional 
committees of jurisdiction an annual report describing activities 
undertaken in the previous year under this Act, active industry 
participants, the status of public-private partnerships, progress of 
the program in meeting goals and timelines, and a strategic plan for 
funding of activities across agencies.

SEC. 7. VEHICLE RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT.

    (a) Program.--
            (1) Activities.--The Secretary shall conduct a program of 
        basic and applied research, development, engineering, 
        demonstration, and commercial application activities on 
        materials, technologies, and processes with the potential to 
        substantially reduce or eliminate petroleum use and the 
        emissions of the passenger and commercial vehicles of the 
        United States, including activities in the areas of--
                    (A) electrification of vehicle systems;
                    (B) batteries, ultracapacitors, and other energy 
                storage devices;
                    (C) power electronics;
                    (D) vehicle, component, and subsystem manufacturing 
                technologies and processes;
                    (E) engine efficiency and combustion optimization;
                    (F) waste heat recovery;
                    (G) transmission and drivetrains;
                    (H) hydrogen vehicle technologies, including fuel 
                cells and internal combustion engines, and hydrogen 
                infrastructure, including hydrogen energy storage to 
                enable renewables and provide hydrogen for fuel and 
                power;
                    (I) natural gas vehicle technologies;
                    (J) aerodynamics, rolling resistance (including 
                tires and wheel assemblies), and accessory power loads 
                of vehicles and associated equipment;
                    (K) vehicle weight reduction, including 
                lightweighting materials and the development of 
                manufacturing processes to fabricate, assemble, and use 
                dissimilar materials;
                    (L) friction and wear reduction;
                    (M) engine and component durability;
                    (N) innovative propulsion systems;
                    (O) advanced boosting systems;
                    (P) hydraulic hybrid technologies;
                    (Q) engine compatibility with and optimization for 
                a variety of transportation fuels including natural gas 
                and other liquid and gaseous fuels;
                    (R) predictive engineering, modeling, and 
                simulation of vehicle and transportation systems;
                    (S) refueling and charging infrastructure for 
                alternative fueled and electric or plug-in electric 
                hybrid vehicles, including the unique challenges facing 
                rural areas;
                    (T) gaseous fuels storage systems and system 
                integration and optimization;
                    (U) sensing, communications, and actuation 
                technologies for vehicle, electrical grid, and 
                infrastructure;
                    (V) efficient use, substitution, and recycling of 
                potentially critical materials in vehicles, including 
                rare earth elements and precious metals, at risk of 
                supply disruption;
                    (W) aftertreatment technologies;
                    (X) thermal management of battery systems;
                    (Y) retrofitting advanced vehicle technologies to 
                existing vehicles;
                    (Z) development of common standards, 
                specifications, and architectures for both 
                transportation and stationary battery applications;
                    (AA) advanced internal combustion engines;
                    (BB) mild hybrid;
                    (CC) engine down speeding;
                    (DD) vehicle-to-vehicle, vehicle-to-pedestrian, and 
                vehicle-to-infrastructure technologies; and
                    (EE) other research areas as determined by the 
                Secretary.
            (2) Transformational technology.--The Secretary shall 
        ensure that the Department continues to support research, 
        development, engineering, demonstration, and commercial 
        application activities and maintains competency in mid- to 
        long-term transformational vehicle technologies with potential 
        to achieve reductions in emissions, including activities in the 
        areas of--
                    (A) hydrogen vehicle technologies, including fuel 
                cells, hydrogen storage, infrastructure, and activities 
                in hydrogen technology validation and safety codes and 
                standards;
                    (B) multiple battery chemistries and novel energy 
                storage devices, including nonchemical batteries and 
                electromechanical storage technologies such as 
                hydraulics, flywheels, and compressed air storage;
                    (C) communication and connectivity among vehicles, 
                infrastructure, and the electrical grid; and
                    (D) other innovative technologies research and 
                development, as determined by the Secretary.
            (3) Industry participation.--
                    (A) In general.--To the maximum extent practicable, 
                activities under this Act shall be carried out in 
                partnership or collaboration with automotive 
                manufacturers, heavy commercial, vocational, and 
                transit vehicle manufacturers, qualified plug-in 
                electric vehicle manufacturers, compressed natural gas 
                vehicle manufacturers, vehicle and engine equipment and 
                component manufacturers, manufacturing equipment 
                manufacturers, advanced vehicle service providers, fuel 
                producers and energy suppliers, electric utilities, 
                universities, national laboratories, and independent 
                research laboratories.
                    (B) Requirements.--In carrying out this Act, the 
                Secretary shall--
                            (i) determine whether a wide range of 
                        companies that manufacture or assemble vehicles 
                        or components in the United States are 
                        represented in ongoing public-private 
                        partnership activities, including firms that 
                        have not traditionally participated in 
                        federally sponsored research and development 
                        activities, and where possible, partner with 
                        such firms that conduct significant and 
                        relevant research and development activities in 
                        the United States;
                            (ii) leverage the capabilities and 
                        resources of, and formalize partnerships with, 
                        industry-led stakeholder organizations, 
                        nonprofit organizations, industry consortia, 
                        and trade associations with expertise in the 
                        research and development of, and education and 
                        outreach activities in, advanced automotive and 
                        commercial vehicle technologies;
                            (iii) develop more effective processes for 
                        transferring research findings and technologies 
                        to industry;
                            (iv) support public-private partnerships, 
                        dedicated to overcoming barriers in commercial 
                        application of transformational vehicle 
                        technologies, that use such industry-led 
                        technology development facilities of entities 
                        with demonstrated expertise in successfully 
                        designing and engineering pre-commercial 
                        generations of such transformational 
                        technology; and
                            (v) promote efforts to ensure that 
                        technology research, development, engineering, 
                        and commercial application activities funded 
                        under this Act are carried out in the United 
                        States.
            (4) Interagency and intraagency coordination.--To the 
        maximum extent practicable, the Secretary shall coordinate 
        research, development, demonstration, and commercial 
        application activities among--
                    (A) relevant programs within the Department, 
                including--
                            (i) the Office of Energy Efficiency and 
                        Renewable Energy;
                            (ii) the Office of Science;
                            (iii) the Office of Electricity Delivery 
                        and Energy Reliability;
                            (iv) the Office of Fossil Energy;
                            (v) the Advanced Research Projects Agency--
                        Energy; and
                            (vi) other offices as determined by the 
                        Secretary; and
                    (B) relevant technology research and development 
                programs within other Federal agencies, as determined 
                by the Secretary.
            (5) Federal demonstration of technologies.--The Secretary 
        shall make information available to procurement programs of 
        Federal agencies regarding the potential to demonstrate 
        technologies resulting from activities funded through programs 
        under this Act.
            (6) Intergovernmental coordination.--The Secretary shall 
        seek opportunities to leverage resources and support 
        initiatives of State and local governments in developing and 
        promoting advanced vehicle technologies, manufacturing, and 
        infrastructure.
            (7) Criteria.--In awarding grants under the program under 
        this subsection, the Secretary shall give priority to those 
        technologies (either individually or as part of a system) 
        that--
                    (A) provide the greatest aggregate fuel savings 
                based on the reasonable projected sales volumes of the 
                technology; and
                    (B) provide the greatest increase in United States 
                employment.
            (8) Secondary use applications.--
                    (A) In general.--The Secretary shall carry out a 
                research, development, and demonstration program that--
                            (i) builds on any work carried out under 
                        section 915 of the Energy Policy Act of 2005 
                        (42 U.S.C. 16195);
                            (ii) identifies possible uses of a vehicle 
                        battery after the useful life of the battery in 
                        a vehicle has been exhausted;
                            (iii) conducts long-term testing to verify 
                        performance and degradation predictions and 
                        lifetime valuations for secondary uses;
                            (iv) evaluates innovative approaches to 
                        recycling materials from plug-in electric drive 
                        vehicles and the batteries used in plug-in 
                        electric drive vehicles;
                            (v)(I) assesses the potential for markets 
                        for uses described in clause (ii) to develop; 
                        and
                            (II) identifies any barriers to the 
                        development of those markets; and
                            (vi) identifies the potential uses of a 
                        vehicle battery--
                                    (I) with the most promise for 
                                market development; and
                                    (II) for which market development 
                                would be aided by a demonstration 
                                project.
                    (B) Report.--Not later than 1 year after the date 
                of enactment of this Act, the Secretary shall submit to 
                the appropriate committees of Congress an initial 
                report on the findings of the program described in 
                subparagraph (A), including recommendations for 
                stationary energy storage and other potential 
                applications for batteries used in plug-in electric 
                drive vehicles.
                    (C) Secondary use demonstration.--
                            (i) In general.--Based on the results of 
                        the program described in subparagraph (A), the 
                        Secretary shall develop guidelines for projects 
                        that demonstrate the secondary uses and 
                        innovative recycling of vehicle batteries.
                            (ii) Publication of guidelines.--Not later 
                        than 18 months after the date of enactment of 
                        this Act, the Secretary shall--
                                    (I) publish the guidelines 
                                described in clause (i); and
                                    (II) solicit applications for 
                                funding for demonstration projects.
                            (iii) Pilot demonstration program.--Not 
                        later than 21 months after the date of 
                        enactment of this Act, the Secretary shall 
                        select proposals for grant funding under this 
                        subsection, based on an assessment of which 
                        proposals are mostly likely to contribute to 
                        the development of a secondary market for 
                        batteries.
    (b) Manufacturing.--The Secretary shall carry out a research, 
development, engineering, demonstration, and commercial application 
program of advanced vehicle manufacturing technologies and practices, 
including innovative processes--
            (1) to increase the production rate and decrease the cost 
        of advanced battery and fuel cell manufacturing;
            (2) to vary the capability of individual manufacturing 
        facilities to accommodate different battery chemistries and 
        configurations;
            (3) to reduce waste streams, emissions, and energy 
        intensity of vehicle, engine, advanced battery, and component 
        manufacturing processes;
            (4) to recycle and remanufacture used batteries and other 
        vehicle components for reuse in vehicles or stationary 
        applications;
            (5) to develop manufacturing processes to effectively 
        fabricate, assemble, and produce cost-effective lightweight 
        materials such as advanced aluminum and other metal alloys, 
        polymeric composites, and carbon fiber for use in vehicles;
            (6) to produce lightweight high pressure storage systems 
        for gaseous fuels;
            (7) to design and manufacture purpose-built hydrogen fuel 
        cell vehicles and components;
            (8) to improve the calendar life and cycle life of advanced 
        batteries; and
            (9) to produce permanent magnets for advanced vehicles.

SEC. 8. MEDIUM- AND HEAVY-DUTY COMMERCIAL AND TRANSIT VEHICLES PROGRAM.

    The Secretary, in partnership with relevant research and 
development programs in other Federal agencies, and a range of 
appropriate industry stakeholders, shall carry out a program of 
cooperative research, development, demonstration, and commercial 
application activities on advanced technologies for medium- to heavy-
duty commercial, vocational, recreational, and transit vehicles, 
including activities in the areas of--
            (1) engine efficiency and combustion research;
            (2) onboard storage technologies for compressed and 
        liquefied natural gas;
            (3) development and integration of engine technologies 
        designed for natural gas operation of a variety of vehicle 
        platforms;
            (4) waste heat recovery and conversion;
            (5) improved aerodynamics and tire rolling resistance;
            (6) energy and space-efficient emissions control systems;
            (7) mild hybrid, heavy hybrid, hybrid hydraulic, plug-in 
        hybrid, and electric platforms, and energy storage 
        technologies;
            (8) drivetrain optimization;
            (9) friction and wear reduction;
            (10) engine idle and parasitic energy loss reduction;
            (11) electrification of accessory loads;
            (12) onboard sensing and communications technologies;
            (13) advanced lightweighting materials and vehicle designs;
            (14) increasing load capacity per vehicle;
            (15) thermal management of battery systems;
            (16) recharging infrastructure;
            (17) compressed natural gas infrastructure;
            (18) advanced internal combustion engines;
            (19) complete vehicle and power pack modeling, simulation, 
        and testing;
            (20) hydrogen vehicle technologies, including fuel cells 
        and internal combustion engines, and hydrogen infrastructure, 
        including hydrogen energy storage to enable renewables and 
        provide hydrogen for fuel and power;
            (21) retrofitting advanced technologies onto existing truck 
        fleets;
            (22) advanced boosting systems;
            (23) engine down speeding; and
            (24) integration of these and other advanced systems onto a 
        single truck and trailer platform.

SEC. 9. CLASS 8 TRUCK AND TRAILER SYSTEMS DEMONSTRATION.

    (a) In General.--The Secretary shall conduct a competitive grant 
program to demonstrate the integration of multiple advanced 
technologies on Class 8 truck and trailer platforms, including a 
combination of technologies listed in section 8.
    (b) Applicant Teams.--Applicant teams may be comprised of truck and 
trailer manufacturers, engine and component manufacturers, fleet 
customers, university researchers, and other applicants as appropriate 
for the development and demonstration of integrated Class 8 truck and 
trailer systems.

SEC. 10. TECHNOLOGY TESTING AND METRICS.

    The Secretary, in coordination with the partners of the interagency 
research program described in section 8--
            (1) shall develop standard testing procedures and 
        technologies for evaluating the performance of advanced heavy 
        vehicle technologies under a range of representative duty 
        cycles and operating conditions, including for heavy hybrid 
        propulsion systems;
            (2) shall evaluate heavy vehicle performance using work 
        performance-based metrics other than those based on miles per 
        gallon, including those based on units of volume and weight 
        transported for freight applications, and appropriate metrics 
        based on the work performed by nonroad systems; and
            (3) may construct heavy duty truck and bus testing 
        facilities.

SEC. 11. NONROAD SYSTEMS PILOT PROGRAM.

    The Secretary shall undertake a pilot program of research, 
development, demonstration, and commercial applications of technologies 
to improve total machine or system efficiency for nonroad mobile 
equipment including agricultural, construction, air, and sea port 
equipment, and shall seek opportunities to transfer relevant research 
findings and technologies between the nonroad and on-highway equipment 
and vehicle sectors.

SEC. 12. REPEAL OF EXISTING AUTHORITIES.

    (a) In General.--Sections 706, 711, 712, and 933 of the Energy 
Policy Act of 2005 (42 U.S.C. 16051, 16061, 16062, 16233) are repealed.
    (b) Energy Efficiency.--Section 911 of the Energy Policy Act of 
2005 (42 U.S.C. 16191) is amended--
            (1) in subsection (a)--
                    (A) in paragraph (1)(A), by striking ``vehicles, 
                buildings,'' and inserting ``buildings''; and
                    (B) in paragraph (2)--
                            (i) by striking subparagraph (A); and
                            (ii) by redesignating subparagraphs (B) 
                        through (E) as subparagraphs (A) through (D), 
                        respectively; and
            (2) in subsection (c)--
                    (A) by striking paragraph (3);
                    (B) by redesignating paragraph (4) as paragraph 
                (3); and
                    (C) in paragraph (3) (as so redesignated), by 
                striking ``(a)(2)(D)'' and inserting ``(a)(2)(C)''.
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