[Federal Register Volume 87, Number 68 (Friday, April 8, 2022)]
[Notices]
[Page 20828]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2022-07548]



[[Page 20828]]

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DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY


Notice of Request for Information; Bipartisan Infrastructure Law 
(BIL)--Request for Information on Energy Improvements at Public School 
Facilities

AGENCY: Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy, Department of 
Energy.

ACTION: Request for information.

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SUMMARY: The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) invites public comment on 
its request for information (RFI) number DE-FOA-0002715 regarding the 
implementation of the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA), 
Grants for Energy Efficiency Improvements and Renewable Energy 
Improvements at Public School Facilities. The purpose of this RFI is to 
solicit feedback from Local Education Agencies (LEAs), school staff, 
states, local governments, energy service companies, unions, service 
providers, utilities, researchers, community partners, manufacturers, 
and other stakeholders on issues related to program development and 
execution of IIJA. The Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy 
(EERE) is specifically interested in information on capacity 
development and technical assistance needs of applicants and their 
stakeholders and partners; how to define, support, and leverage the 
needs assessments required of applicants; initial methodologies for 
evaluating priority eligibility and award metrics; potential 
partnerships structures and models to achieve the goals of the 
provision and maximize impact; pathways and models to leverage the 
financial investments to reach more facilities and achieve deeper 
impact; and workforce development.

DATES: Responses to the RFI must be received by 5:00 p.m. (ET) on May 
18, 2022.

ADDRESSES: Interested parties are to submit comments electronically to 
[email protected]. Include ``Schools RFI Response'' in the subject 
line of the email. Responses must be provided as attachments to an 
email. It is recommended that attachments with file sizes exceeding 
25MB be compressed (i.e., zipped) to ensure message delivery. Responses 
must be provided as a Microsoft Word (.docx) attachment to the email, 
and no more than 10 pages in length, 12-point font, 1 inch margins. 
Only electronic responses will be accepted.
    Please identify your answers by responding to a specific question 
or topic if applicable. Respondents may answer as many or as few 
questions as they wish.
    EERE will not respond to individual submissions or publish publicly 
a compendium of responses. A response to this RFI will not be viewed as 
a binding commitment to develop or pursue the project or ideas 
discussed. The complete RFI document is located at https://eere-exchange.energy.gov/.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Questions may be addressed to 
[email protected] or Sam Petty at 240-562-1335. Further instruction 
can be found in the RFI document posted on EERE Exchange.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The 100,000 public K-12 schools across the 
United States (U.S.) contain the classrooms, libraries, cafeterias, 
playgrounds, and gyms where 50 million students learn, eat, build 
friendships, and exercise. As the second largest sector of public 
infrastructure spending in the U.S., public K-12 schools are also a 
center of our communities, serving as voting and polling locations, 
emergency shelters, and community gathering places. The significant 
under-investment in energy improvements at American schools, however, 
results in unnecessarily high utility costs and contributes to 
unhealthy and uncomfortable environments for students, teachers, and 
staff.
    The Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA) (Pub. L. 117-58), 
American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 (ARP) (Pub. L. 117-2), and 2021 
Coronavirus Response and Relief Supplemental Appropriations Act 
(CRRSAA) (Pub. L. 116-260, Div. M), provide tens of billions of dollars 
in new funding to U.S. K-12 public schools for facility and 
transportation improvements. Strategic use of this funding will help 
remedy the historic inequity of school facilities investments, reduce 
school energy expenditures, help schools lead the nation in solving the 
climate crisis, and create good-paying union jobs.
    Through this RFI, the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) Office of 
Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy (EERE) seeks input regarding the 
implementation of Section 40541 of the IIJA, which provides $500 
million for grants for energy improvements \1\ at public school 
facilities. DOE aims to facilitate substantial additional investment, 
prioritize schools with high needs, minimize administrative burden, and 
build enduring capacity in local educational agencies (LEAs) and the 
states to maximize impact equitably and efficiently. DOE is seeking 
information amongst these six categories of questions:
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    \1\ See IIJA Section 40541(a)(4) for statutory definition.

1. Capacity Development for Local Education Agencies
2. Needs Assessments
3. Criteria and Metrics
4. Workforce
5. Leveraging Funds
6. Partnership Structures

    The RFI is available at: https://eere-exchange.energy.gov/.
    Confidential Business Information: Pursuant to 10 CFR 1004.11, any 
person submitting information that he or she believes to be 
confidential and exempt by law from public disclosure should submit via 
email, postal mail, or hand delivery two well-marked copies: One copy 
of the document marked ``confidential'' including all the information 
believed to be confidential, and one copy of the document marked ``non-
confidential'' with the information believed to be confidential 
deleted. Submit these documents via email or on a CD, if feasible. DOE 
will make its own determination about the confidential status of the 
information and treat it according to its determination.
    Signing Authority: This document of the Department of Energy was 
signed on April 1, 2022, by Kelly J. Speakes-Backman, Principal Deputy 
Assistant Secretary for Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy, 
pursuant to delegated authority from the Secretary of Energy. That 
document with the original signature and date is maintained by DOE. For 
administrative purposes only, and in compliance with requirements of 
the Office of the Federal Register, the undersigned DOE Federal 
Register Liaison Officer has been authorized to sign and submit the 
document in electronic format for publication, as an official document 
of the Department of Energy. This administrative process in no way 
alters the legal effect of this document upon publication in the 
Federal Register.

    Signed in Washington, DC, on April 5, 2022.
Treena V. Garrett,
Federal Register Liaison Officer, U.S. Department of Energy.
[FR Doc. 2022-07548 Filed 4-7-22; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6450-01-P