A bill to achieve emission reductions and cost savings through accelerated use of cost-effective lighting technologies in public buildings, and for other purposes.

Summary: Public Buildings Cost Reduction Act of 2007 - (Sec. 2) Requires the Administrator of General Services to establish a program to accelerate the use of more cost-effective technologies and practices at General Services Administration (GSA) facilities. Requires such program to: (1) ensure centralized responsibility for the coordination of cost reduction recommendations, practices, and activities of all relevant federal agencies; (2) provide technical assistance and operational guidance to tenants in order to achieve a 20% reduction in operational costs through the application of cost-effective technologies and practices from 2003 levels at GSA facilities by not later than five years after this Act's enactment; and (3) establish methods to track the success of departments and agencies with respect to the reduction goal.

Requires the Administrator, as part of such program, to: (1) review the current use of cost-effective lighting technologies in GSA facilities and the availability to managers of GSA facilities of cost-effective lighting technologies; and (2) establish a cost-effective lighting technology acceleration program to achieve maximum feasible replacement of existing lighting technologies with more cost-effective lighting technologies in each GSA facility using available appropriations.

Requires the Administrator to annually ensure that a manager responsible for accelerating the use of cost-effective technologies and practices is designated for each GSA facility. Requires the Administrator to annually submit to Congress a plan that: (1) identifies the specific activities needed to achieve a 20% reduction in operational costs; (2) describes activities required and carried out to estimate the funds necessary to achieve such reduction; (3) describes the status of the implementation of cost-effective technologies and practices at GSA facilities; (4) identifies within the planning, budgeting, and construction process all types of GSA facility-related procedures that inhibit new and existing GSA facilities from implementing cost-effective technology and practices; (5) recommends language for uniform standards for use by federal agencies in implementing cost-effective technologies and practices; (6) reviews the budget process for capital programs with respect to alternatives for permitting federal agencies to retain all identified savings accrued as a result of the use of cost-effective technologies and practices and identifying cost savings that accrue from cost-effective technologies and practices; (7) achieves cost savings through the application of such technologies and practices sufficient to pay the incremental additional costs of installing them by not later than the five years after the date of installation; and (8) includes recommendations to address each of the matters and a plan for implementation of each recommendation.

(Sec. 3) Requires the Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to establish a demonstration program under which the Administrator shall provide competitive grants program to assist local governments with respect to local government buildings to: (1) deploy cost-effective technologies and practices; and (2) achieve operational cost savings, through the application of such technologies and practices.

Provides that the federal share of the cost of an activity carried out using a grant shall be 40%. Requires the Administrator to waive up to 100% of the local share of the cost of any grant under this Act if the community is economically distressed, pursuant to objective economic criteria established by the Administrator.

Requires the Administrator to issue guidelines to implement the grant program.

Authorizes appropriations to carry out this Act.

Requires the Administrator to report to Congress on the cost savings achieved, action taken, recommendations made under this Act, and any recommendations for further action.

Terminates the program on September 30, 2012.

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Public Buildings Cost Reduction Act 
of 2007''.

SEC. 2. COST-EFFECTIVE TECHNOLOGY ACCELERATION PROGRAM.

    (a) Establishment.--
            (1) In general.--The Administrator of General Services 
        (referred to in this section as the ``Administrator'') shall 
        establish a program to accelerate the use of more cost-
        effective technologies and practices at GSA facilities.
            (2) Requirements.--The program established under this 
        subsection shall--
                    (A) ensure centralized responsibility for the 
                coordination of cost reduction recommendations, 
                practices, and activities of all relevant Federal 
                agencies;
                    (B) provide technical assistance and operational 
                guidance to applicable tenants in order to achieve the 
                goals identified in subsection (c)(2)(A); and
                    (C) establish methods to track the success of 
                departments and agencies with respect to the goals 
                identified in subsection (c)(2)(A).
    (b) Accelerated Use of Cost-Effective Lighting Technologies.--
            (1) Review.--
                    (A) In general.--As part of the program under this 
                subsection, not later than 90 days after the date of 
                enactment of this Act, the Administrator shall conduct 
                a review of--
                            (i) current use of cost-effective lighting 
                        technologies in GSA facilities; and
                            (ii) the availability to managers of GSA 
                        facilities of cost-effective lighting 
                        technologies.
                    (B) Requirements.--The review under subparagraph 
                (A) shall--
                            (i) examine the use of cost-effective 
                        lighting technologies and other cost-effective 
                        technologies and practices by Federal agencies 
                        in GSA facilities; and
                            (ii) identify, in consultation with the 
                        Environmental Protection Agency, cost-effective 
                        lighting technology standards that could be 
                        used for all types of GSA facilities.
            (2) Replacement.--
                    (A) In general.--As part of the program under this 
                subsection, not later than 180 days after the date of 
                enactment of this Act, the Administrator shall 
                establish a cost-effective lighting technology 
                acceleration program to achieve maximum feasible 
                replacement of existing lighting technologies with more 
                cost-effective lighting technologies in each GSA 
                facility using available appropriations.
                    (B) Acceleration plan timetable.--
                            (i) In general.--To implement the program 
                        established under subparagraph (A), not later 
                        than 1 year after the date of enactment of this 
                        Act, the Administrator shall establish a 
                        timetable including milestones for specific 
                        activities needed to replace existing lighting 
                        technologies with more cost-effective lighting 
                        technologies, to the maximum extent feasible 
                        (including at the maximum rate feasible), at 
                        each GSA facility.
                            (ii) Goal.--The goal of the timetable under 
                        clause (i) shall be to complete, using 
                        available appropriations, maximum feasible 
                        replacement of existing lighting technologies 
                        with more cost-effective lighting technologies 
                        by not later than the date that is 5 years 
                        after the date of enactment of this Act.
    (c) GSA Facility Cost-Effective Technologies and Practices.--Not 
later than 180 days after the date of enactment of this Act, and 
annually thereafter, the Administrator shall--
            (1) ensure that a manager responsible for accelerating the 
        use of cost-effective technologies and practices is designated 
        for each GSA facility; and
            (2) submit to Congress a plan, to be implemented to the 
        maximum extent feasible (including at the maximum rate 
        feasible) using available appropriations, by not later than the 
        date that is 5 years after the date of enactment of this Act, 
        that--
                    (A) identifies the specific activities needed to 
                achieve a 20-percent reduction in operational costs 
                through the application of cost-effective technologies 
                and practices from 2003 levels at GSA facilities by not 
                later than 5 years after the date of enactment of this 
                Act;
                    (B) describes activities required and carried out 
                to estimate the funds necessary to achieve the 
                reduction described in subparagraph (A);
                    (C) describes the status of the implementation of 
                cost-effective technologies and practices at GSA 
                facilities, including--
                            (i) the extent to which programs, including 
                        the program established under subsection (b), 
                        are being carried out in accordance with this 
                        Act; and
                            (ii) the status of funding requests and 
                        appropriations for those programs;
                    (D) identifies within the planning, budgeting, and 
                construction process all types of GSA facility-related 
                procedures that inhibit new and existing GSA facilities 
                from implementing cost-effective technologies and 
                practices;
                    (E) recommends language for uniform standards for 
                use by Federal agencies in implementing cost-effective 
                technologies and practices;
                    (F) in coordination with the Office of Management 
                and Budget, reviews the budget process for capital 
                programs with respect to alternatives for--
                            (i) permitting Federal agencies to retain 
                        all identified savings accrued as a result of 
                        the use of cost-effective technologies and 
                        practices; and
                            (ii) identifying short- and long-term cost 
                        savings that accrue from cost-effective 
                        technologies and practices;
                    (G) achieves cost savings through the application 
                of cost-effective technologies and practices sufficient 
                to pay the incremental additional costs of installing 
                the cost-effective technologies and practices by not 
                later than the date that is 5 years after the date of 
                installation; and
                    (H) includes recommendations to address each of the 
                matters, and a plan for implementation of each 
                recommendation, described in subparagraphs (A) through 
                (G).
    (d) Authorization of Appropriations.--There are authorized to be 
appropriated such sums as are necessary to carry out this section, to 
remain available until expended.

SEC. 3. ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY DEMONSTRATION GRANT PROGRAM FOR 
              LOCAL GOVERNMENTS.

    (a) Grant Program.--
            (1) In general.--The Administrator of the Environmental 
        Protection Agency (referred to in this section as the 
        ``Administrator'') shall establish a demonstration program 
        under which the Administrator shall provide competitive grants 
        to assist local governments (such as municipalities and 
        counties), with respect to local government buildings--
                    (A) to deploy cost-effective technologies and 
                practices; and
                    (B) to achieve operational cost savings, through 
                the application of cost-effective technologies and 
                practices, as verified by the Administrator.
            (2) Cost sharing.--
                    (A) In general.--The Federal share of the cost of 
                an activity carried out using a grant provided under 
                this section shall be 40 percent.
                    (B) Waiver of non-federal share.--The Administrator 
                may waive up to 100 percent of the local share of the 
                cost of any grant under this section should the 
                Administrator determine that the community is 
                economically distressed, pursuant to objective economic 
                criteria established by the Administrator in published 
                guidelines.
            (3) Maximum amount.--The amount of a grant provided under 
        this subsection shall not exceed $1,000,000.
    (b) Guidelines.--
            (1) In general.--Not later than 1 year after the date of 
        enactment of this Act, the Administrator shall issue guidelines 
        to implement the grant program established under subsection 
        (a).
            (2) Requirements.--The guidelines under paragraph (1) shall 
        establish--
                    (A) standards for monitoring and verification of 
                operational cost savings through the application of 
                cost-effective technologies and practices reported by 
                grantees under this section;
                    (B) standards for grantees to implement training 
                programs, and to provide technical assistance and 
                education, relating to the retrofit of buildings using 
                cost-effective technologies and practices; and
                    (C) a requirement that each local government that 
                receives a grant under this section shall achieve 
                facility-wide cost savings, through renovation of 
                existing local government buildings using cost-
                effective technologies and practices, of at least 40 
                percent as compared to the baseline operational costs 
                of the buildings before the renovation (as calculated 
                assuming a 3-year, weather-normalized average).
    (c) Compliance With State and Local Law.--Nothing in this section 
or any program carried out using a grant provided under this section 
supersedes or otherwise affects any State or local law, to the extent 
that the State or local law contains a requirement that is more 
stringent than the relevant requirement of this section.
    (d) Authorization of Appropriations.--There is authorized to be 
appropriated to carry out this section $20,000,000 for each of fiscal 
years 2007 through 2012.
    (e) Reports.--
            (1) In general.--The Administrator shall provide annual 
        reports to Congress on cost savings achieved and actions taken 
        and recommendations made under this section, and any 
        recommendations for further action.
            (2) Final report.--The Administrator shall issue a final 
        report at the conclusion of the program, including findings, a 
        summary of total cost savings achieved, and recommendations for 
        further action.
    (f) Termination.--The program under this section shall terminate on 
September 30, 2012.

SEC. 4. DEFINITIONS.

    In this Act:
            (1) Cost-effective lighting technology.--
                    (A) In general.--The term ``cost-effective lighting 
                technology'' means a lighting technology that--
                            (i) will result in substantial operational 
                        cost savings by ensuring an installed 
                        consumption of not more than 1 watt per square 
                        foot; or
                            (ii) is contained in a list under--
                                    (I) section 553 of Public Law 95-
                                619 (42 U.S.C. 8259b); and
                                    (II) Federal acquisition regulation 
                                23-203.
                    (B) Inclusions.--The term ``cost-effective lighting 
                technology'' includes--
                            (i) lamps;
                            (ii) ballasts;
                            (iii) luminaires;
                            (iv) lighting controls;
                            (v) daylighting; and
                            (vi) early use of other highly cost-
                        effective lighting technologies.
            (2) Cost-effective technologies and practices.--The term 
        ``cost-effective technologies and practices'' means a 
        technology or practice that--
                    (A) will result in substantial operational cost 
                savings by reducing utility costs; and
                    (B) complies with the provisions of section 553 of 
                Public Law 95-619 (42 U.S.C. 8259b) and Federal 
                acquisition regulation 23-203.
            (3) Operational cost savings.--
                    (A) In general.--The term ``operational cost 
                savings'' means a reduction in end-use operational 
                costs through the application of cost-effective 
                technologies and practices, including a reduction in 
                electricity consumption relative to consumption by the 
                same customer or at the same facility in a given year, 
                as defined in guidelines promulgated by the 
                Administrator pursuant to section 3(b), that achieves 
                cost savings sufficient to pay the incremental 
                additional costs of using cost-effective technologies 
                and practices by not later than the date that is 5 
                years after the date of installation.
                    (B) Inclusions.--The term ``operational cost 
                savings'' includes savings achieved at a facility as a 
                result of--
                            (i) the installation or use of cost-
                        effective technologies and practices; or
                            (ii) the planting of vegetation that shades 
                        the facility and reduces the heating, cooling, 
                        or lighting needs of the facility.
                    (C) Exclusion.--The term ``operational cost 
                savings'' does not include savings from measures that 
                would likely be adopted in the absence of cost-
                effective technology and practices programs, as 
                determined by the Administrator.
            (4) GSA facility.--
                    (A) In general.--The term ``GSA facility'' means 
                any building, structure, or facility, in whole or in 
                part (including the associated support systems of the 
                building, structure, or facility) that--
                            (i) is constructed (including facilities 
                        constructed for lease), renovated, or 
                        purchased, in whole or in part, by the 
                        Administrator for use by the Federal 
                        Government; or
                            (ii) is leased, in whole or in part, by the 
                        Administrator for use by the Federal 
                        Government--
                                    (I) except as provided in subclause 
                                (II), for a term of not less than 5 
                                years; or
                                    (II) for a term of less than 5 
                                years, if the Administrator determines 
                                that use of cost-effective technologies 
                                and practices would result in the 
                                payback of expenses.
                    (B) Inclusion.--The term ``GSA facility'' includes 
                any group of buildings, structures, or facilities 
                described in subparagraph (A) (including the associated 
                energy-consuming support systems of the buildings, 
                structures, and facilities).
                    (C) Exemption.--The Administrator may exempt from 
                the definition of ``GSA facility'' under this paragraph 
                a building, structure, or facility that meets the 
                requirements of section 543(c) of Public Law 95-619 (42 
                U.S.C. 8253(c)).