[Congressional Record Volume 163, Number 148 (Wednesday, September 13, 2017)]
[Senate]
[Pages S5698-S5699]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
SA 1045. Mr. SANDERS submitted an amendment intended to be proposed
by him to the bill H.R. 2810, to authorize appropriations for fiscal
year 2018 for military activities of the Department of Defense, for
military construction, and for defense activities of the Department of
Energy, to prescribe military personnel strengths for such fiscal year,
and for other purposes; which was ordered to lie on the table; as
follows:
At the end of subtitle E of title III, add the following:
SEC. _. SECURE ENERGY FOR READINESS AND NATIONAL SECURITY.
(a) Findings.--Congress makes the following findings:
(1) Secretary of Defense James Mattis testified in writing
to the Senate Armed Services Committee in March of this year
that ``climate change can be a driver of instability and the
Department of Defense must pay attention to potential adverse
impacts generated by this phenomenon.'' The Department of
Defense must not only prepare for the impacts of climate
change, but also implement sustainable energy projects to
fight climate change and to enhance force readiness and
national security.
(2) Department of Defense Directive 4715.21, Climate Change
Adaptation and Resilience, states that the Department of
Defense must adapt current and future operations to address
the impacts of climate change in order to maintain an
effective and efficient United States military.
[[Page S5699]]
(3) According to the United States Energy Information
Agency, the Department of Defense accounts for more than 75
percent of all energy consumed by the Federal Government, and
fully 30 percent of Department of Defense energy costs are
related to the operation of military installations. The
Energy Independence and Security Act of 2007 included goals
to reduce energy intensity in Federal buildings.
(4) The Office of the Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense
for Installation Energy has outlined a strategy to--
(A) reduce demand for military installation energy through
conservation and efficiency;
(B) expand the supply of distributed (on-site) energy for
mission assurance;
(C) improve the energy grid and storage resilience of
installations; and
(D) leverage advanced technology for energy resource
efficiencies and increased security.
(5) The rising costs of fossil fuel derived energy will
continue to cause budgetary pressures on the operation of
United States military bases.
(6) The United States Armed Forces have begun to implement
important alternative energy projects and energy efficiency
programs. However, the Department of Defense needs to do much
more to contain energy costs and improve access to reliable
and sustainable energy sources, including at Air National
Guard facilities.
(7) Efficient lighting reduces airfield energy costs,
enables backup power to work more efficiently during
disruptions to the electrical grid, and the payback periods
are short. These projects enable critical functions to
continue longer in a state of electrical emergency.
(8) In the face of growing national security and climate
crises, the Air National Guard requires emergency power
backup, independent of the power grid, to confront threats
from sabotage, cyberattack, terrorism, extreme weather, or
mechanical failure. Currently, most bases depend on fossil
fuel backup generation, and as was evident during Hurricanes
Harvey and Irma, fuel supplies are likely to be interrupted
during and immediately after extreme weather events and other
emergencies.
(9) Our Armed Forces require new and more reliable forms of
electric backup, including locally generated solar, wind, or
geothermal power with an uninterruptible power supply,
available instantly whenever other power sources fail.
(10) By reducing energy use, generating electrical energy
from both solar photovoltaic panels and wind sources at Air
Guard bases, and storing that energy in state-of-the-art
batteries, these projects will enhance the continuity of
critically important Air Guard functions in times of crisis,
including the defense of the homeland.
(b) Definitions.--In this section:
(1) Distribution electric utility.--The term ``distribution
electric utility'' means a distribution utility providing
retail electric service.
(2) Geothermal heating system.--The term ``geothermal
heating system'' means a system that uses the heat from
ground water for heating applications.
(3) Geothermal power system.--The term ``geothermal power
system'' means--
(A) a generator that creates electricity from the heat of
ground water; and
(B) the accompanying hardware enabling that electricity to
flow--
(i) onto the electric grid; or
(ii) into an uninterruptible power supply.
(4) Higher-efficiency light bulbs.--The term ``higher-
efficiency light bulbs'' means light bulbs that are more
efficient than bulbs currently installed.
(5) Net metering.--The term ``net metering'' refers to a
system that allows excess electricity to be sold to a
distribution electric utility or transmission electric
utility so the Air National Guard customer may either receive
payment or credit on their utility bill.
(6) Photovoltaic solar electricity generating array.--The
term ``photovoltaic solar electricity generating array''
means--
(A) a generator that creates electricity from light
photons; and
(B) the accompanying hardware enabling that electricity to
flow--
(i) onto the electric grid; or
(ii) into an uninterruptible power supply.
(7) Transmission electric utility.--The term ``transmission
electric utility'' means a transmission electric utility or
market purchasing wholesale power from an Air National Guard
installation through a capacity or energy market, power
purchase agreement, or other means, including sale from a
Qualified Facility into a wholesale market under the Public
Utility Regulatory Policies Act of 1978 (Public Law 95-617).
(8) Uninterruptible power supply.--The term
``uninterruptible power supply'' means--
(A) an uninterruptible power source, uninterruptible power
system, continuous power supply, fuel cell, flywheel, or
battery backup; or
(B) a device which maintains a continuous supply of
electric power to connected equipment to provide power when
distribution electric utility or transmission electric
utility power is more expensive or is not available.
(9) Wind turbine.--The term ``wind turbine'' means--
(A) a generator that creates electricity from the kinetic
power of wind; and
(B) the accompanying hardware enabling that electricity to
flow--
(i) onto the electric grid; or
(ii) into an uninterruptible power supply.
(c) Authority.--The Secretary of Defense shall carry out a
program--
(1) to design and build wind turbines, geothermal heating
or power systems, and ground or roof mounted fixed-tilt or
dual-axis tracked photovoltaic solar electricity generating
arrays on Air National Guard properties and host airports,
the generated power from which shall be used by the Air
National Guard on base or stored in uninterruptible power
supplies or sold to a transmission electric utility or
through net metering for additional revenue to be used by the
Air National Guard or utility energy services contractor as
defined in part 41 of the Federal Acquisition Regulation;
(2) to design and install uninterruptible power supplies to
mission critical functions of the Air National Guard; and
(3) to replace taxiway and other mission critical lighting
with higher-efficiency bulbs to maximize energy efficiency.
(d) Project Eligibility and Preference Criteria.--In
carrying out the program under this section, the Secretary of
Defense shall give priority to--
(1) eligible projects on Air National Guard bases that can
most feasibly be completed by leveraging appropriated amounts
from previous years; and
(2) eligible projects bringing the total generation
capacity from ground and roof mounted photovoltaic solar
arrays to at least 1.5 megawatts.
(e) Authorized Appropriations.--There is authorized to be
appropriated for fiscal year 2018 $5,000,000 for the
Secretary of Defense to carry out the program under this
section.
(f) Offset.--The amount authorized to be appropriated for
fiscal year 2018 by section 301 for operation and maintenance
is hereby decreased by $5,000,000, with the amount of the
decrease to be applied as an increase to the reduction from
fuel savings in the funding table in section 4301.
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