Calendar No. 448

106TH CONGRESS

2D SESSION S. 397

[Report No. 106–232]

A BILL

To authorize the Secretary of Energy to establish

a multiagency program in support of the Materials Corridor Partnership Initiative to promoteenergy efficient, environmentally sound economicdevelopment along the border with Mexicothrough the research, development, and use ofnew materials technology.

MARCH 9, 2000

Reported with an amendment and an amendment to the

title
II

Calendar No. 448

106TH CONGRESS

2D SESSION S. 397

[Report No. 106–232]

To authorize the Secretary of Energy to establish a multiagency program

in support of the Materials Corridor Partnership Initiative to promote

energy efficient, environmentally sound economic development along the

border with Mexico through the research, development, and use of new

materials technology.

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

FEBRUARY 10, 1999

Mr. BINGAMAN (for himself and Mr. DOMENICI) introduced the following bill;

which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Energy and Natural Resources

MARCH 9, 2000

Reported by Mr. MURKOWSKI, with an amendment and an amendment to the

title

[Strike out all after the enacting clause and insert the part printed in italic]

A BILL

To authorize the Secretary of Energy to establish a multiagency program in support of the Materials Corridor

Partnership Initiative to promote energy efficient, environmentally sound economic development along the border with Mexico through the research, development, and

use of new materials technology.
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1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

4 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘National Materials

5 Corridor Partnership Act of 1999’’.

6 SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

7 Congress finds that—

8 (1) the region adjacent to the 2,000-mile border

9 between the United States and Mexico is an impor10 tant region for energy-intensive manufacturing and

11 materials industries critical to the economic and so12 cial wellbeing of both countries;

13 (2) there are currently more than 800 multi14 national firms (including firms known as

15 ‘‘maquiladoras’’) representing United States invest16 ments of more than $1,000,000,000 in the San

17 Diego, California, and Tijuana, Baja California, bor18 der region and in the El Paso, Texas, and Juarez,

19 Chihuahua, border region;

20 (3) materials and materials-related industries

21 comprise a major portion of the industries operating

22 on both sides of the border, amounting to more than

23 $6,800,000,000 in annual commerce on the Mexican

24 side alone;
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1 (4) there are a significant number of major in2 stitutions in the border States of both countries cur3 rently conducting academic and research activities in

4 materials;

5 (5)(A) the United States Government currently

6 invests approximately $1,000,000,000 annually in

7 materials research, of which, in 1996, the Depart8 ment of Energy funded the largest proportion of ci9 vilian materials research; and

10 (B) there are also major materials programs at

11 the National Science Foundation, the National Insti12 tute of Standards and Technology, and Department

13 of Defense, among other entities;

14 (6) the United States and Mexico have invested

15 heavily in domestic and binational cooperative pro16 grams to address major concerns for the natural re17 sources, environment, and public health of the

18 United States-Mexico border region, expending hun19 dreds of millions of dollars annually in those efforts;

20 (7)(A) scientific and technical advances in ma21 terials and materials processing provide major op22 portunities for—

23 (i) significantly improving energy effi24 ciency;
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1 (ii) reducing emissions of global climate

2 change gases;

3 (iii) using recycled natural resources as

4 primary materials for industrial production; and

5 (iv) minimizing industrial wastes and pol6 lution; and

7 (B) such advances will directly benefit both

8 sides of the United States-Mexico border by encour9 aging energy efficient, environmentally sound eco10 nomic development that protects the health and nat11 ural resources of the border region;

12 (8)(A) promoting clean materials industries in

13 the border region that are energy efficient has been

14 identified as a high priority issue by the United

15 States-Mexico Foundation for Science Cooperation;

16 and

17 (B) at the 1998 discussions of the United

18 States-Mexico Binational Commission, Mexico for19 mally proposed joint funding of a ‘‘Materials Cor20 ridor Partnership Initiative’’, proposing $1,000,000

21 to implement the Initiative if matched by the United

22 States;

23 (9) recognizing the importance of materials and

24 materials processing, academic and research institu25 tions in the border States of both the United States
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1 and Mexico, in conjunction with private sector part2 ners of both countries, and with strong endorsement

3 from the Government of Mexico, in 1998 organized

4 the Materials Corridor Council to implement a coop5 erative program of materials research and develop6 ment, education and training, and sustainable indus7 trial development as part of the Materials Corridor

8 Partnership Initiative; and

9 (10) successful implementation of the Materials

10 Corridor Partnership Initiative would advance im11 portant United States energy, environmental, and

12 economic goals not only in the United States-Mexico

13 border region but also as a model for similar collabo14 rative materials initiatives in other regions of the

15 world.

16 SEC. 3. PURPOSE.

17 The purpose of this Act is to establish a multiagency

18 program in support of the Materials Corridor Partnership

19 Initiative referred to in section 2(8) to promote energy ef20 ficient, environmentally sound economic development

21 along the United States-Mexico border through the re22 search, development, and use of new materials technology.

23 SEC. 4. DEFINITIONS.

24 In this Act:
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1 (1) PROGRAM.—The term ‘‘program’’ means

2 the program established under section 5(a).

3 (2) SECRETARY.—The term ‘‘Secretary’’ means

4 the Secretary of Energy.

5 SEC. 5. ESTABLISHMENT AND IMPLEMENTATION OF THE

6 PROGRAM.

7 (a) ESTABLISHMENT.—

8 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall establish

9 a comprehensive program to promote energy effi10 cient, environmentally sound economic development

11 along the United States-Mexico border through the

12 research, development, and use of new materials

13 technology.

14 (2) CONSIDERATIONS.—In developing the pro15 gram, the Secretary shall give due consideration to

16 the proposal made to the United States-Mexico Bi17 national Commission for the Materials Corridor

18 Partnership Initiative.

19 (b) PARTICIPATION OF OTHER FEDERAL AGEN20 CIES.—The Secretary shall organize and conduct the pro21 gram jointly with—

22 (1) the Department of State;

23 (2) the Environmental Protection Agency;

24 (3) the National Science Foundation;
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1 (4) the National Institute of Standards and

2 Technology; and

3 (5) any other departments or agencies the par4 ticipation of which the Secretary considers appro5 priate.

6 (c) PARTICIPATION OF THE PRIVATE SECTOR.—

7 When appropriate, funds made available under this Act

8 shall be made available for research and development or

9 education and training activities that are conducted with

10 the participation and support of private sector organiza11 tions located in the United States and, subject to section

12 7(c)(2), Mexico, to promote and accelerate in the United

13 States-Mexico border region the use of energy efficient,

14 environmentally sound technologies and other advances re15 sulting from the program.

16 (d) MEXICAN RESOURCE CONTRIBUTIONS.—The

17 Secretary shall—

18 (1) encourage public, private, nonprofit, and

19 academic organizations located in Mexico to con20 tribute significant financial and other resources to

21 the program; and

22 (2) take any such contributions into account in

23 conducting the program.

24 (e) TRANSFER OF TECHNOLOGY FROM NATIONAL

25 LABORATORIES.—In conducting the program, the Sec-
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1 retary shall emphasize the transfer and use of materials

2 technology developed by the national laboratories of the

3 Department of Energy before the date of enactment of

4 this Act.

5 SEC. 6. ACTIVITIES AND MAJOR PROGRAM ELEMENTS.

6 (a) ACTIVITIES.—Funds made available under this

7 Act shall be made available for research and development

8 and education and training activities that are primarily

9 focused on materials, and the synthesis, processing, and

10 fabrication of materials, that promote—

11 (1) improvement of energy efficiency;

12 (2) elimination or minimization of emissions of

13 global climate change gases and contaminants;

14 (3) minimization of industrial wastes and pol15 lutants; and

16 (4) use of recycled resources as primary mate17 rials for industrial production.

18 (b) MAJOR PROGRAM ELEMENTS.—

19 (1) IN GENERAL.—The program shall have the

20 following major elements:

21 (A) Applied research, focused on maturing

22 and refining materials technologies to dem23 onstrate the feasibility or utility of the mate24 rials technologies.
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1 (B) Basic research, focused on the dis2 covery of new knowledge that may eventually

3 prove useful in creating materials technologies

4 to promote energy efficient, environmentally

5 sound manufacturing.

6 (C) Education and training, focused on

7 educating and training scientists, engineers,

8 and workers in the border region in energy effi9 cient, environmentally sound materials tech10 nologies.

11 (2) APPLIED RESEARCH.—Applied research

12 projects under paragraph (1)(A) should typically in13 volve significant participation from private sector or14 ganizations that would use or sell such a technology.

15 (3) BASIC RESEARCH.—Basic research projects

16 conducted under paragraph (1)(B) should typically

17 be led by an academic or other research institution.

18 SEC. 7. PARTICIPATION OF DEPARTMENTS AND AGENCIES

19 OTHER THAN THE DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY.

20 (a) AGREEMENT.—Not later than 120 days after the

21 date of enactment of this Act, the Secretary shall enter

22 into an agreement with the departments and agencies re23 ferred to in section 5(b) on the coordination and imple24 mentation of the program.
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1 (b) ACTIONS OF DEPARTMENTS AND AGENCIES.—

2 Any action of a department or agency under an agreement

3 under subsection (a) shall be the responsibility of that de4 partment or agency and shall not be subject to approval

5 by the Secretary.

6 (c) USE OF FUNDS.—

7 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary and the de8 partments and agencies referred to in section 5(b)

9 may use funds made available for the program for

10 research and development or education and training

11 activities carried out by—

12 (A) State and local governments and aca13 demic, nonprofit, and private organizations lo14 cated in the United States; and

15 (B) State and local governments and aca16 demic, nonprofit, and private organizations lo17 cated in Mexico.

18 (2) CONDITION.—Funds may be made available

19 to a State or local government or organization lo20 cated in Mexico only if a government or organization

21 located in Mexico (which need not be the recipient

22 of the funds) contributes a significant amount of fi23 nancial or other resources to the project to be fund24 ed.
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1 (d) TRANSFER OF FUNDS.—The Secretary may

2 transfer funds to the departments and agencies referred

3 to in section 5(b) to carry out the responsibilities of the

4 departments and agencies under this Act.

5 SEC. 8. PROGRAM ADVISORY COMMITTEE.

6 (a) ESTABLISHMENT.—

7 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall establish

8 an advisory committee consisting of representatives

9 of the private, academic, and public sectors.

10 (2) CONSIDERATIONS.—In establishing the ad11 visory committee, the Secretary shall take into con12 sideration organizations in existence on the date of

13 enactment of this Act, such as the Materials Cor14 ridor Council and the Business Council for Sustain15 able Development-Gulf Mexico.

16 (b) CONSULTATION AND COORDINATION.—Depart17 ments and agencies of the United States to which funds

18 are made available under this Act shall consult and coordi19 nate with the advisory committee in identifying and imple20 menting the appropriate types of projects to be funded

21 under this Act.

22 SEC. 9. FINANCIAL AND TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE.

23 (a) IN GENERAL.—Federal departments and agencies

24 participating in the program may provide financial and
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1 technical assistance to other organizations to achieve the

2 purpose of the program.

3 (b) APPLIED RESEARCH.—

4 (1) USE OF COOPERATIVE AGREEMENTS.—

5 (A) IN GENERAL.—Federal departments

6 and agencies shall, to the extent practicable,

7 use cooperative agreements to fund applied re8 search activities by organizations outside the

9 Federal Government.

10 (B) NATIONAL LABORATORIES.—In the

11 case of an applied research activity conducted

12 by a national laboratory, a funding method

13 other than a cooperative agreement may be

14 used if such a funding method would be more

15 administratively convenient.

16 (2) FEDERAL SHARE.—

17 (A) IN GENERAL.—The Federal Govern18 ment shall pay not more than 50 percent of the

19 cost of applied research activities under the pro20 gram.

21 (B) QUALIFIED FUNDING AND RE22 SOURCES.—No funds or other resources ex23 pended either before the start of a project

24 under the program or outside the scope of work

25 covered by the funding method determined
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1 under paragraph (1) shall be credited toward

2 the non-Federal share of the cost of the project.

3 (c) BASIC RESEARCH AND EDUCATION AND TRAIN4 ING.—

5 (1) IN GENERAL.—Federal departments and

6 agencies shall, to the extent practicable, use grants

7 to fund basic research and education and training

8 activities by organizations outside the Federal Gov9 ernment.

10 (2) NATIONAL LABORATORIES.—In the case of

11 a basic research or education activity conducted by

12 a national laboratory, a funding method other than

13 a grant may be used if such a funding method would

14 be more administratively convenient.

15 (3) FEDERAL SHARE.—The Federal Govern16 ment may fund 100 percent of the cost of the basic

17 research and education and training activities of the

18 program.

19 (d) COMPETITIVE SELECTION.—All projects funded

20 under the program shall be competitively selected using

21 such selection criteria as the Secretary, in consultation

22 with the departments and agencies referred to in section

23 5(b), determines to be appropriate.

24 (e) ACCOUNTING STANDARDS.—
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1 (1) WAIVER.—To facilitate participation in the

2 program, Federal departments and agencies may

3 waive any requirements for Government accounting

4 standards by organizations that have not established

5 such standards.

6 (2) GAAP.—Generally accepted accounting

7 principles shall be sufficient for projects under the

8 program.

9 (f) NO CONSTRUCTION.—No program funds may be

10 used for construction.

11 SEC. 10. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.

12 There is authorized to be appropriated to carry out

13 this Act $5,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2000 through

14 2004.

15 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

16 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘National Materials Cor17 ridor and United States-Mexico Border Technology Part18 nership Act of 2000’’.

19 SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

20 Congress finds that—

21 (1) the 2,000 mile long United States-Mexico

22 border region, extending 100 kilometers north and

23 south of the international boundary, has undergone

24 rapid economic growth that has provided economic

25 opportunity to millions of people;
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1 (2) the border region’s rapid economic growth

2 has unfortunately created serious problems including

3 pollution, hazardous wastes, and the inefficient use of

4 resources that threaten people’s health and the pros5 pects for long-term economic growth in the region;

6 (3) there are a significant number of major in7 stitutions in the border States of both countries cur8 rently conducting research, development and testing

9 activities in technologies that might help alleviate

10 these problems;

11 (4)(A) these new technologies may provide major

12 opportunities for significantly—

13 (i) minimizing industrial wastes and pollu14 tion that may pose a threat to public health;

15 (ii) reducing emissions of atmospheric pol16 lutants;

17 (iii) using recycled natural resources as pri18 mary materials for industrial production; and

19 (iv) improving energy efficiency; and

20 (B) such advances will directly benefit both sides

21 of the United States-Mexico border by encouraging en22 ergy efficient, environmentally sound economic devel23 opment that improves the health and protects the nat24 ural resources of the border region;
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1 (5) in August 1998, the binational United

2 States-Mexico Border Region Hazardous Wastes

3 Forum, organized by the Department of Energy’s

4 Carlsbad Area Office, resulted in a consensus of ex5 perts from the United States and Mexico that the De6 partment of Energy’s science and technology could be

7 leveraged to address key environmental issues in the

8 border region while fostering further economic devel9 opment of the border region;

10 (6) the Carlsbad Area Office, which manages the

11 Waste Isolation Pilot Plant in Carlsbad, New Mexico,

12 is well suited to lead a multiagency program focused

13 on the problems of the border region given its signifi14 cant expertise in hazardous materials and location

15 near the border;

16 (7)(A) promoting clean materials industries in

17 the border region that are energy efficient has been

18 identified as a high priority issue by the United

19 States-Mexico Foundation for Science Cooperation;

20 and

21 (B) at the 1998 discussions of the United States22 Mexico Binational Commission, Mexico formally pro23 posed joint funding of a ‘‘Materials Corridor Partner24 ship Initiative’’, proposing $1,000,000 to implement

25 the Initiative if matched by the United States;
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1 (8) recognizing the importance of materials proc2 essing, research institutions in the border States of

3 both the United States and Mexico, in conjunction

4 with private sector partners of both nations, and with

5 strong endorsement from the Government of Mexico,

6 in 1998 organized the Materials Corridor Council to

7 implement a cooperative program of materials re8 search and development, education and training, and

9 sustainable industrial development as part of the Ma10 terials Corridor Partnership Initiative; and

11 (9) successful implementation of this Act would

12 advance important United States energy, environ13 mental, and economic goals not only in the United

14 States-Mexico border region but also serve as a model

15 for similar collaborative, transnational initiatives in

16 other regions of the world.

17 SEC. 3. PURPOSE.

18 The purpose of this Act is to establish a multiagency

19 program to—

20 (1) alleviate the problems caused by rapid eco21 nomic development along the United States-Mexico

22 border;

23 (2) support the Materials Corridor Partnership

24 Initiative referred to in section 2(7); and
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1 (3) promote energy efficient, environmentally

2 sound economic development along that border

3 through the development and use of new technologies,

4 particularly hazardous waste and materials tech5 nologies.

6 SEC. 4. DEFINITIONS.

7 In this Act:

8 (1) PROGRAM.—The term ‘‘program’’ means the

9 program established under section 5(a).

10 (2) SECRETARY.—The term ‘‘Secretary’’ means

11 the Secretary of Energy.

12 SEC. 5. ESTABLISHMENT AND IMPLEMENTATION OF THE

13 PROGRAM.

14 (a) ESTABLISHMENT.—

15 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall establish

16 a multiagency program to—

17 (A) alleviate the problems caused by rapid

18 economic development along the United States19 Mexico border, particularly those associated with

20 public health and environmental security;

21 (B) support the Materials Corridor Partner22 ship Initiative; and

23 (C) promote energy efficient, environ24 mentally sound economic development along that

25 border through the development and use of new
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1 technologies, particularly hazardous waste and

2 materials technologies.

3 (2) CONSIDERATIONS.—In developing the pro4 gram, the Secretary shall give due consideration to

5 the proposal made to the United States-Mexico Bina6 tional Commission for the Materials Corridor Part7 nership Initiative.

8 (3) PROGRAM MANAGEMENT.—This program

9 shall be managed for the Secretary by the Depart10 ment’s Carlsbad Area Office, with support, as nec11 essary, from the Albuquerque Operations Office.

12 (b) PARTICIPATION OF OTHER FEDERAL AGENCIES

13 AND COMMISSIONS.—The Secretary shall organize and con14 duct the program jointly with—

15 (1) the Department of State;

16 (2) the Environmental Protection Agency;

17 (3) the National Science Foundation;

18 (4) the National Institute of Standards and

19 Technology;

20 (5) the United States-Mexico Border Health

21 Commission; and

22 (6) any other departments, agencies, or commis23 sions the participation of which the Secretary con24 siders appropriate.
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1 (c) PARTICIPATION OF THE PRIVATE SECTOR.—When

2 appropriate, funds made available under this act shall be

3 made available for technology deployment, research, and

4 training activities that are conducted with the participa5 tion and support of private sector organizations located in

6 the United States and, subject to section 7(c)(2), Mexico,

7 to promote and accelerate in the United States-Mexico bor8 der region the use of energy efficient, environmentally sound

9 technologies and other advances resulting from the program.

10 (d) MEXICAN RESOURCE CONTRIBUTIONS.—The Sec11 retary shall—

12 (1) encourage public, private, nonprofit, and

13 academic organizations located in Mexico to con14 tribute significant financial and other resources to the

15 program; and

16 (2) take any such contributions into account in

17 conducting the program.

18 (e) TRANSFER OF TECHNOLOGY FROM NATIONAL LAB19 ORATORIES.—In conducting the program, the Secretary

20 shall emphasize the transfer and use of technology developed

21 by the national laboratories of the Department of Energy.

22 SEC. 6. ACTIVITIES AND MAJOR PROGRAM ELEMENTS.

23 (a) ACTIVITIES.—Funds made available under this Act

24 shall be made available for technology deployment, research,

25 and training activities, particularly related to hazardous
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1 waste and materials technologies, that will alleviate the

2 problems caused by rapid economic development along the

3 United States-Mexico border, that focus on issues related to

4 the protection of public health and environmental security,

5 and that promote—

6 (1) minimization of industrial wastes and pol7 lutants;

8 (2) reducing emissions of atmospheric pollutants;

9 (3) use of recycled resources as primary mate10 rials for industrial production; and

11 (4) improvement of energy efficiency.

12 (b) MAJOR PROGRAM ELEMENTS.—

13 (1) IN GENERAL.—The program shall have the

14 following major elements, all of which shall emphasize

15 hazardous waste and materials technologies:

16 (A) Technology Deployment, focused on the

17 clear, operational demonstration of the utility of

18 well developed technologies in new organizations

19 or settings.

20 (B) Research, focused on developing, matur21 ing, and refining technologies to investigate or

22 improve the feasibility or utility of the tech23 nologies.

24 (C) Training, focused on training busi25 nesses, industries, and their workers in the bor-
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1 der region in energy efficient, environmentally

2 sound technologies that minimize waste, decrease

3 public health risks, increase recycling, and im4 prove environmental security.

5 (2) TECHNOLOGY DEPLOYMENT AND RE6 SEARCH.—Projects under paragraph (1)(A) and

7 (1)(B) should typically involve significant participa8 tion from private sector organizations that would use

9 or sell such a technology.

10 SEC. 7. PARTICIPATION OF DEPARTMENTS, AGENCIES, AND

11 COMMISSIONS OTHER THAN THE DEPART12 MENT OF ENERGY.

13 (a) AGREEMENT.—Not later than 120 days after the

14 date of enactment of this Act, the Secretary shall enter into

15 an agreement with the departments, agencies, and commis16 sions referred to in section 5(b) on the coordination and

17 implementation of the program.

18 (b) ACTIONS OF DEPARTMENTS, AGENCIES, AND COM19 MISSIONS.—Any action of a department, agency, or com20 mission under an agreement under subsection (a) shall be

21 the responsibility of that department, agency, or commis22 sion and shall not be subject to approval by the Secretary.

23 (c) USE OF FUNDS.—

24 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary and the depart25 ments, agencies, and commissions referred to in sec-
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1 tion 5(b) may use funds made available for the pro2 gram for technology deployment, research, or training

3 activities carried out by—

4 (A) State and local governments and aca5 demic, nonprofit, and private organizations lo6 cated in the United States; and

7 (B) State and local governments and aca8 demic, nonprofit, and private organizations lo9 cated in Mexico.

10 (2) CONDITION.—Funds may be made available

11 to a State or local government or organization located

12 in Mexico only if a government or organization lo13 cated in Mexico (which need not be the recipient of

14 the funds) contributes a significant amount of finan15 cial or other resources to the project to be funded.

16 (d) TRANSFER OF FUNDS.—The Secretary may trans17 fer funds to the departments, agencies, and commissions re18 ferred to in section 5(b) to carry out the responsibilities

19 of the departments, agencies, and commissions under this

20 Act.

21 SEC. 8. PROGRAM ADVISORY COMMITTEE.

22 (a) ESTABLISHMENT.—

23 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall establish

24 an advisory committee consisting of representatives of

25 the private, academic, and public sectors.
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1 (2) CONSIDERATIONS.—In establishing the advi2 sory committee, the Secretary shall take into consider3 ation organizations in existence on the date of enact4 ment of this Act, such as the Materials Corridor

5 Council and the Business Council for Sustainable De6 velopment-Gulf Mexico.

7 (b) CONSULTATION AND COORDINATION.—Depart8 ments, agencies, and commissions of the United States to

9 which funds are made available under this Act shall consult

10 and coordinate with the advisory committee in identifying

11 and implementing the appropriate types of projects to be

12 funded under this Act.

13 SEC. 9. FINANCIAL AND TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE.

14 (a) IN GENERAL.—Federal departments, agencies, and

15 commissions participating in the program may provide fi16 nancial and technical assistance to other organizations to

17 achieve the purpose of the program.

18 (b) TECHNOLOGY DEPLOYMENT AND RESEARCH.—

19 (1) USE OF COOPERATIVE AGREEMENTS.—

20 (A) IN GENERAL.—Federal departments,

21 agencies, and commissions shall, to the extent

22 practicable, use cooperative agreements to fund

23 technology deployment and research activities by

24 organizations outside the Federal Government.
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1 (B) NATIONAL LABORATORIES.—In the case

2 of a technology deployment or research activity

3 conducted by a national laboratory, a funding

4 method other than a cooperative agreement may

5 be used if such a funding method would be more

6 administratively convenient.

7 (2) FEDERAL SHARE.—

8 (A) IN GENERAL.—The Federal Government

9 shall pay not more than 50 percent of the cost

10 of technology deployment or research activities

11 under the program.

12 (B) QUALIFIED FUNDING AND RE13 SOURCES.—No funds or other resources expended

14 either before the start of a project under the pro15 gram or outside the scope of work covered by the

16 funding method determined under paragraph (1)

17 shall be credited toward the non-Federal share of

18 the cost of the project.

19 (c) TRAINING.—

20 (1) IN GENERAL.—Federal departments, agen21 cies, and commissions shall, to the extent practicable,

22 use grants to fund training activities by organiza23 tions outside the Federal Government.

24 (2) NATIONAL LABORATORIES.—In the case of a

25 training activity conducted by a national laboratory,
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1 a funding method other than a grant may be used if

2 such a funding method would be more administra3 tively convenient.

4 (3) FEDERAL SHARE.—The Federal Government

5 may fund 100 percent of the cost of the training ac6 tivities of the program.

7 (d) SELECTION.—All projects funded under con8 tracts, grants, or cooperative agreements established

9 under this program shall, to the maximum extent

10 practicable, be selected in an open, competitive proc11 ess using such selection criteria as the Secretary,

12 through his program management, and in consulta13 tion with the departments, agencies, and commissions

14 referred to in section 5(b), determines to be appro15 priate. Any such selection process shall weigh the ben16 efits to the border region.

17 (e) ACCOUNTING STANDARDS.—

18 (1) WAIVER.—To facilitate participation in the

19 program, Federal departments, agencies, and commis20 sions may waive any requirements for Government

21 accounting standards by organizations that have not

22 established such standards.

23 (2) GAAP.—Generally accepted accounting prin24 ciples shall be sufficient for projects under the pro25 gram.
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1 (f) NO CONSTRUCTION.—No program funds may be

2 used for construction.

3 SEC. 10. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.

4 There is authorized to be appropriated to carry out

5 this Act $10,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2000 through

6 2004.

Amend the title so as to read: ‘‘To authorize the

Secretary of Energy to establish a multiagency program

to alleviate the problems caused by rapid economic development along the United States-Mexico border, particularly those associated with public health and environmental security, to support the Materials Corridor Partnership Initiative, and to promote energy efficient, environmentally sound economic development along that border through the development and use of new technology,

particularly hazardous waste and materials technology.’’.