II 

110TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION S. 3233 

To promote development of a 21st century energy system to increase United 

States competitiveness in the world energy technology marketplace, and 

for other purposes. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

JULY 8, 2008 

Mr. BINGAMAN introduced the following bill; which was read twice and 

referred to the Committee on Energy and Natural Resources 

A BILL 

To promote development of a 21st century energy system 

to increase United States competitiveness in the world 

energy technology marketplace, and for other purposes. 

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 ‘‘21st Century Energy 

5 Technology Deployment Act’’. 

6 SEC. 2. PURPOSE. 

7 The purpose of this Act is to promote the domestic 

8 development and deployment of the advanced, clean en9 ergy technologies required for the 21st century through 


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1 the establishment of a 21st Century Energy Deployment 

2 Corporation that will provide for an attractive investment 

3 environment through— 

4 (1) the development of a stable secondary mar5 ket for clean energy technology deployment loans; 

6 and 

7 (2) the cooperation and support of the private 

8 capital market in order to promote access to afford9 able debt financing for accelerated deployment of ad10 vanced clean energy technologies and first-of-a-kind 

11 commercial deployments. 

12 SEC. 3. DEFINITIONS. 

13 In this Act: 

14 (1) ADVISORY COUNCIL.—The term ‘‘Advisory 

15 Council’’ means the Energy Technology Advisory 

16 Council of the Corporation. 

17 (2) BOARD OF DIRECTORS.—The term ‘‘Board 

18 of Directors’’ means the Board of Directors of the 

19 Corporation. 

20 (3) BREAKTHROUGH TECHNOLOGY.—The term 

21 ‘‘breakthrough technology’’ means a clean energy 

22 technology that— 

23 (A) receives a high rating according to the 

24 criteria established by the Advisory Council for 

25 meeting the objectives of this Act; but 


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1 (B) has been impeded in the development 

2 of the technology due to perceived high tech3 nical risk by the commercial financial sector. 

4 (4) CLEAN ENERGY TECHNOLOGY.—The term 

5 ‘‘clean energy technology’’ means a technology re6 lated to the production, use, transmission, control, 

7 or conservation of energy that will contribute to 

8 meeting objectives of the United States— 

9 (A) to reduce the need for additional en10 ergy supplies by using existing energy supplies 

11 with greater efficiency or by transmitting en12 ergy with greater effectiveness through United 

13 States energy infrastructure; 

14 (B) to diversify the sources of energy sup15 ply of the United States to include supplies that 

16 are environmentally sustainable; or 

17 (C) to stabilize atmospheric greenhouse 

18 gas levels thorough reduction, avoidance, and 

19 sequestration of energy-related emissions. 

20 (5) CORPORATION.—The term ‘‘Corporation’’ 

21 means the 21st Century Energy Deployment Cor22 poration established by section 5. 

23 (6) NATIONAL LABORATORY.—The term ‘‘Na24 tional Laboratory’’ has the meaning given the term 


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1 in section 2 of the Energy Policy Act of 2005 (42 

2 U.S.C. 15801). 

3 (7) NOVEL TECHNOLOGY.—The term ‘‘novel 

4 technology’’ means a clean energy technology that, 

5 as determined by the Advisory Council or the Sec6 retary— 

7 (A) has been sufficiently demonstrated; 

8 and 

9 (B) has not been widely deployed on a 

10 commercial scale. 

11 (8) SECRETARY.—The term ‘‘Secretary’’ means 

12 the Secretary of Energy. 

13 (9) SECURITY.—The term ‘‘security’’ has the 

14 meaning given the term in section 2 of the Securities 

15 Act of 1933 (15 U.S.C. 77b). 

16 (10) STATE.—The term ‘‘State’’ means— 

17 (A) a State; 

18 (B) the District of Columbia; 

19 (C) the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico; 

20 and 

21 (D) any other territory or possession of the 

22 United States. 

23 (11) TECHNOLOGY RISK.—The term ‘‘tech24 nology risk’’ means risk of project failure generally 


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1 considered by lenders due to the lack of operating 

2 applications of the technology. 

3 SEC. 4. ENERGY TECHNOLOGY DEPLOYMENT GOALS. 

4 (a) GOALS.—Not later than 1 year after the date of 

5 enactment of this Act, the Secretary, after consultation 

6 with the Advisory Council, shall develop and publish 

7 near-, medium-, and long-term goals for the deployment 

8 of clean energy technologies through the Corporation to 

9 establish or promote— 

10 (1) sufficient electric generating capacity using 

11 clean energy technologies to meet the energy needs 

12 of the United States; 

13 (2) clean energy technologies in vehicles and 

14 fuels that will end the reliance of the United States 

15 on foreign sources of energy and insulate consumers 

16 from the price shocks of world energy markets; 

17 (3) a domestic commercialization and manufac18 turing capacity that will establish the United States 

19 as a world leader in clean energy technologies across 

20 multiple sectors; 

21 (4) installation of sufficient infrastructure to 

22 allow for the cost-effective deployment of clean en23 ergy technologies in each region of the United 

24 States; 


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1 (5) the transformation of the building stock of 

2 the United States to zero net energy consumption; 

3 (6) the recovery, use, and prevention of waste 

4 energy in the industrial sector; 

5 (7) domestic manufacturing of clean energy 

6 technologies on a scale that is sufficient to make the 

7 cost to the consumer less than current technologies; 

8 (8) domestic production of raw materials (such 

9 as steel, cement, and iron) using clean energy tech10 nologies so that the United States will become a 

11 world leader in sustainable production of the mate12 rials; 

13 (9) a robust, efficient, and interactive electricity 

14 transmission grid that will allow for the implementa15 tion of clean energy technologies, distributed genera16 tion, and demand-response in each State; and 

17 (10) such other goals as the Secretary and Ad18 visory Council determine to be consistent with the 

19 purposes of this Act. 

20 (b) PERFORMANCE TARGETS.—Taking into account 

21 the goals established under subsection (a), the Advisory 

22 Council shall publish 5- and 10-year numerical targets, 

23 and annual interim targets, to guide and measure the per24 formance of the Corporation toward supporting the deVerDate Aug 31 2005 06:56 Jul 09, 2008 Jkt 069200 PO 00000 Frm 00006 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S3233.IS S3233

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1 ployment of clean energy technologies and achieving other 

2 goals developed under that subsection. 

3 (c) INITIAL TARGETS.—Until the first publication by 

4 the Advisory Council of targets under subsection (b), in 

5 establishing the deployment priorities of the Corporation, 

6 the Corporation shall consider deploying— 

7 (1) commercial-scale carbon capture and stor8 age from electricity generation capturing at least 

9 10,000,000 short tons per year by 2015; 

10 (2) solar photovoltaic systems with a power pro11 duction cost of 14 cents per kilowatt-hour; 

12 (3) concentrated solar power systems with a 

13 power production cost of 6 cents per kilowatt-hour; 

14 (4) wind power systems greater than 100 kilo15 watts with a power production cost of— 

16 (A) 3.6 cents per kilowatt-hour by 2012 

17 for land-based sites with average wind speeds of 

18 13 miles per hour; and 

19 (B) 5 cents per kilowatt-hour by 2015 for 

20 offshore wind systems with average wind speeds 

21 of 15 miles per hour; 

22 (5) new enhanced geothermal systems genera23 tion capacity with a power production cost of 5 cents 

24 per kilowatt-hour by 2023; 


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1 (6) technologies to realize a 20 percent im2 provement in energy intensity by energy-intensive in3 dustries by 2020; and 

4 (7) advanced energy systems to achieve net-zero 

5 energy use in new residential and commercial build6 ings by 2025 through a 60 percent-reduction in 

7 building energy use. 

8 (d) PORTFOLIO REQUIREMENT.—To the extent prac9 ticable and consistent with the purpose of this Act, not 

10 less than 75 percent of the support provided by the Cor11 poration under this section shall be for breakthrough tech12 nologies. 

13 (e) REVISIONS.— 

14 (1) GOALS.—The Secretary shall revise the 

15 goals established under subsection (a), from time to 

16 time as appropriate, to account for advances in tech17 nology and changes in energy policy. 

18 (2) PERFORMANCE TARGETS.—The Advisory 

19 Council shall revise the performance targets under 

20 subsection (b), from time to time as appropriate, to 

21 account for advances in technology and changes in 

22 energy policy. 

23 SEC. 5. 21ST CENTURY ENERGY DEPLOYMENT CORPORA24 TION. 

25 (a) ESTABLISHMENT.— 


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1 (1) IN GENERAL.—There is established the 21st 

2 Century Energy Deployment Corporation, which 

3 shall be a body corporate under the direction of a 

4 Board of Directors. 

5 (2) BOARD OF DIRECTORS.—Subject to other 

6 provisions of law (including regulations), the Board 

7 of Directors shall determine the general policies that 

8 govern the operations of the Corporation. 

9 (3) OFFICES.— 

10 (A) PRINCIPAL OFFICE.—The Corporation 

11 shall— 

12 (i) maintain the principal office of the 

13 Corporation in the District of Columbia; 

14 and 

15 (ii) for purposes of venue in civil ac16 tions, be considered to be a resident of the 

17 District of Columbia. 

18 (B) OTHER AGENCIES AND OFFICES.—The 

19 Corporation may establish other agencies or of20 fices in such other places as the Corporation 

21 considers necessary or appropriate for the con22 duct of the business of the Corporation. 

23 (b) BOARD OF DIRECTORS.— 

24 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Board of Directors shall 

25 consist of— 


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1 (A) the Secretary, who shall serve an ex2 officio member of the Board; and 

3 (B) 9 members who shall— 

4 (i) be appointed by the President for 

5 staggered 4-year terms, as determined by 

6 the President; and 

7 (ii) have experience in banking or fi8 nancial services relevant to the operations 

9 of the Corporation, including— 

10 (I) at least 1 individual with sub11 stantial experience in the development 

12 of energy projects; 

13 (II) at least 1 individual with ex14 perience in the electric utility indus15 try; and 

16 (III) at least 1 individual with 

17 experience in the banking industry. 

18 (2) REMOVAL.—Any appointed member of the 

19 Board of Directors may be removed from office by 

20 the President for good cause. 

21 (3) VACANCIES.—Any appointive seat on the 

22 Board of Directors that becomes vacant shall be 

23 filled by appointment by the President, but only for 

24 the unexpired portion of the term. 


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1 (4) COMPENSATION; TRAVEL EXPENSES.—A 

2 member of the Board of Directors shall not be com3 pensated for service on the Board of Directors but 

4 shall be allowed travel expenses, including per diem 

5 in lieu of subsistence, at rates authorized for an em6 ployee of an agency under subchapter I of chapter 

7 57 of title 5, United States Code, while away from 

8 the home or regular place of business of the member 

9 in the performance of the duties of the Board of Di10 rectors. 

11 (c) ENERGY TECHNOLOGY ADVISORY COUNCIL.— 

12 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Corporation shall have 

13 an Energy Technology Advisory Council consisting 

14 of— 

15 (A) 5 members selected by the Secretary; 

16 and 

17 (B) 3 members selected by the Board of 

18 Directors. 

19 (2) QUALIFICATIONS.—The members of the Ad20 visory Council shall— 

21 (A) have relevant scientific expertise; and 

22 (B) include representatives of— 

23 (i) the academic community; 

24 (ii) the private research community; 

25 and 


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1 (iii) National Laboratories. 

2 (3) DUTIES.—The Advisory Council shall— 

3 (A) develop a rating system for projects 

4 and clean energy technologies to determine how 

5 well the projects and clean energy technologies 

6 address the purpose of this Act and establish a 

7 priority for the projects and clean energy tech8 nologies for financial assistance under this Act, 

9 taking into account— 

10 (i) the extent to which a project or 

11 clean energy technology will enhance the 

12 energy security of the United States; 

13 (ii) the potential the project or clean 

14 energy technology has to enhance the com15 petitiveness of the United States in pro16 viding energy technologies likely to be in 

17 demand throughout the world; 

18 (iii) the potential benefits of the 

19 project or clean energy technology in avert20 ing climate change; and 

21 (iv) the potential of the technology, 

22 once deployed, to become financially self23 sustaining; 

24 (B) advise on the technological approaches 

25 that should be supported by the Corporation to 


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1 meet the technology deployment goals estab2 lished by the Secretary; and 

3 (C) set risk and default rate targets for in4 dividual technologies, such that the maximum 

5 practicable ratio of breakthrough technologies 

6 to novel technologies is developed. 

7 (4) TERM.— 

8 (A) IN GENERAL.—Members of the Advi9 sory Council shall have 3-year staggered terms, 

10 as determined by the Secretary and the Board 

11 of Directors. 

12 (B) REAPPOINTMENT.—A member of the 

13 Advisory Council may be reappointed. 

14 (5) COMPENSATION.—A member of the Advi15 sory Council shall serve without compensation but 

16 shall be allowed travel expenses, including per diem 

17 in lieu of subsistence, at rates authorized for an em18 ployee of an agency under subchapter I of chapter 

19 57 of title 5, United States Code, while away from 

20 the home or regular place of business of the member 

21 in the performance of the duties of the Advisory 

22 Council. 


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1 SEC. 6. CLEAN ENERGY TECHNOLOGY DEPLOYMENT 

2 SECURITIZATION. 

3 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Corporation may purchase, 

4 and make commitments to purchase, any debt instrument 

5 associated with the deployment of clean energy tech6 nologies. 

7 (b) DISPOSITION OF DEBT OR INTEREST.—The Cor8 poration may hold and deal with, and sell or otherwise 

9 dispose of, pursuant to commitments or otherwise, any 

10 debt described in subsection (a) or interest in the debt. 

11 (c) PRICING.— 

12 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Corporation may estab13 lish requirements, and impose charges or fees, which 

14 may be regarded as elements of pricing, for different 

15 classes of sellers or services. 

16 (2) CLASSIFICATION OF SELLERS.—For the 

17 purpose of paragraph (1), the Corporation may clas18 sify sellers as necessary to promote transparency 

19 and liquidity and properly characterize the risk of 

20 default. 

21 (d) ELIGIBILITY.—The Corporation shall establish 

22 criteria and mechanisms such that, to the maximum ex23 tent practicable, sellers will be able to determine the eligi24 bility of loans for resale at the time of initial lending. 

25 (e) AGGREGATION OF SMALL SCALE PROJECTS.— 

26 The Corporation shall work with Federal, State, local, and 


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1 private sector entities to develop debt instruments that ag2 gregate projects for clean energy technology deployments 

3 on a residential or small commercial scale. 

4 (f) SECURITIZATION.— 

5 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Corporation may lend 

6 on the security of, and make commitments to lend 

7 on the security of, any debt that the Corporation is 

8 authorized to purchase under this section. 

9 (2) AUTHORIZED ACTIONS.—On such terms 

10 and conditions as the Corporation may prescribe, the 

11 Corporation may— 

12 (A) borrow; 

13 (B) give security; 

14 (C) pay interest or other return; and 

15 (D) issue notes, debentures, bonds, or 

16 other obligations or securities. 

17 (g) LENDING ACTIVITIES.— 

18 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Corporation shall deter19 mine— 

20 (A) the volume of the lending activities of 

21 the Corporation; and 

22 (B) the type of loan ratios, risk profiles, 

23 interest rates, maturities, and charges or fees in 

24 the secondary market operations of the Cor25 poration. 


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1 (2) OBJECTIVES.—Determinations under para2 graph (1) shall be consistent with the objectives of— 

3 (A) providing an attractive investment en4 vironment for clean energy technologies; 

5 (B) making the operations of the Corpora6 tion self-supporting over the long term; and 

7 (C) meeting the targets established by the 

8 Advisory Council. 

9 (h) NO FEDERAL GUARANTEE.—The Corporation 

10 shall insert appropriate language in all of the obligations 

11 and securities of the Corporation issued under this section 

12 that clearly indicates that the obligations and securities 

13 (together with the interest)— 

14 (1) are not guaranteed by the United States; 

15 and 

16 (2) do not constitute a debt or obligation of the 

17 United States or any agency or instrumentality 

18 other than the Corporation. 

19 (i) EXEMPT SECURITIES.—All securities issued or 

20 guaranteed by the Corporation shall, to the same extent 

21 as securities that are direct obligations of or obligations 

22 guaranteed as to principal or interest by the United 

23 States, be considered to be exempt securities within the 

24 meaning of the laws administered by the Securities and 

25 Exchange Commission. 


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1 (j) OTHER AUTHORIZED PROGRAMS.— 

2 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary may contract 

3 with the Corporation to provide financial services 

4 and program management for grant, loan, and other 

5 credit enhancement programs authorized under any 

6 other provision of law. 

7 (2) ADMINISTRATION.—In administering any 

8 other program under contract with the Secretary, 

9 the Corporation shall, to the maximum extent prac10 ticable (as determined by the Corporation)— 

11 (A) administer the program in a manner 

12 that is consistent with the terms and conditions 

13 of this Act; and 

14 (B) minimize the administrative costs to 

15 the Federal Government. 

16 SEC. 7. FEDERAL OWNERSHIP OF OBLIGATIONS. 

17 (a) IN GENERAL.—In order to maintain sufficient li18 quidity, the Corporation may issue notes, debentures, 

19 bonds, or other obligations for purchase by the Secretary 

20 of the Treasury. 

21 (b) PUBLIC DEBT TRANSACTIONS.—For the purpose 

22 of subsection (a)— 

23 (1) the Secretary of the Treasury may use as 

24 a public debt transaction the proceeds of the sale of 


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1 any securities issued under chapter 31 of title 31, 

2 United States Code; and 

3 (2) the purposes for which securities may be 

4 issued under that chapter are extended to include 

5 any purchase under this subsection. 

6 (c) MAXIMUM OUTSTANDING HOLDING.—The Sec7 retary of the Treasury shall not purchase any obligations 

8 under this section if the purchase would increase the ag9 gregate principal amount of the outstanding holdings of 

10 obligations under this section by the Secretary to an 

11 amount that is greater than $1,500,000,000. 

12 (d) RATE OF RETURN.—Each purchase of obligations 

13 by the Secretary of the Treasury under this section shall 

14 be on terms and conditions established to yield a rate of 

15 return determined by the Secretary to be appropriate, tak16 ing into account the current average rate on outstanding 

17 marketable obligations of the United States as of the last 

18 day of the month preceding the purchase. 

19 (e) SALE OF OBLIGATIONS.—The Secretary of the 

20 Treasury may at any time sell, on terms and conditions 

21 and at prices determined by the Secretary, any of the obli22 gations acquired by the Secretary under this section. 

23 (f) PUBLIC DEBT TRANSACTIONS.—All redemptions, 

24 purchases, and sales by the Secretary of the Treasury of 


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1 obligations under this section shall be treated as public 

2 debt transactions of the United States. 

3 SEC. 8. GENERAL PROVISIONS. 

4 (a) IMMUNITY FROM IMPAIRMENT, LIMITATION, OR

5 RESTRICTION.— 

6 (1) IN GENERAL.—All rights and remedies of 

7 the Corporation (including any rights and remedies 

8 of the Corporation on, under, or with respect to any 

9 mortgage or any obligation secured by a mortgage) 

10 shall be immune from impairment, limitation, or re11 striction by or under— 

12 (A) any law (other than a law enacted by 

13 Congress expressly in limitation of this para14 graph) that becomes effective after the acquisi15 tion by the Corporation of the subject or prop16 erty on, under, or with respect to which the 

17 right or remedy arises or exists or would so 

18 arise or exist in the absence of the law; or 

19 (B) any administrative or other action that 

20 becomes effective after the acquisition. 

21 (2) STATE LAW.—The Corporation may con22 duct the business of the Corporation without regard 

23 to any qualification or law of any State relating to 

24 incorporation. 


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1 (b) POWERS.—Subject to subsection (c), the Corpora2 tion shall have all the powers of a private corporation in3 corporated under the District of Columbia Business Cor4 poration Act (D.C. Code, sec. 29 et seq.). 

5 (c) ADMINISTRATION.— 

6 (1) PERFORMANCE-BASED COMPENSATION.—A 

7 significant portion of potential compensation of all 

8 executive officers of the Corporation shall be based 

9 on the performance of the Corporation, all without 

10 regard to any other law except as may be provided 

11 by the Corporation or by a law enacted after the 

12 date of enactment of this Act that expressly limits 

13 this paragraph. 

14 (2) USE OF OTHER AGENCIES.—With the con15 sent of a department, establishment, or instrumen16 tality (including any field office), the Corporation 

17 may— 

18 (A) use and act through any department, 

19 establishment, or instrumentality; 

20 (B) use, and pay compensation for, infor21 mation, services, facilities, and personnel of the 

22 department, establishment, or instrumentality. 

23 (d) FINANCIAL MATTERS.— 


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1 (1) INVESTMENTS.—Funds of the Corporation 

2 may be invested in such investments as the Board 

3 of Directors may prescribe. 

4 (2) FISCAL AGENTS.— 

5 (A) IN GENERAL.—Any Federal Reserve 

6 bank or any bank as to which at the time of the 

7 designation of the bank by the Corporation 

8 there is outstanding a designation by the Sec9 retary of the Treasury as a general or other de10 pository of public money, may be designated by 

11 the Corporation as a depositary or custodian or 

12 as a fiscal or other agent of the Corporation. 

13 (B) DEPOSITARY OF PUBLIC MONEY.—If 

14 designated for that purpose by the Secretary of 

15 the Treasury, the Corporation— 

16 (i) shall be a depositary of public 

17 money, under such regulations as may be 

18 promulgated by the Secretary of the Treas19 ury; 

20 (ii) may also be employed as a fiscal 

21 or other agent of the United States; and 

22 (iii) shall perform all such reasonable 

23 duties of such depositary or agent as may 

24 be required. 

25 (e) TAXATION.— 


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1 (1) IN GENERAL.—Subject to paragraph (2), 

2 the Corporation (including the franchise, activities, 

3 capital, reserves, surplus, and income of the Cor4 poration) shall be exempt from all taxation imposed 

5 by any State or local political subdivision of a State. 

6 (2) REAL PROPERTY.—Any real property of the 

7 Corporation shall be subject to taxation by a State 

8 or political subdivision of a State to the same extent 

9 according to the value of the real property as other 

10 real property is taxed. 

11 (f) JURISDICTION.—Notwithstanding section 1349 of 

12 title 28, United States Code, or any other provision of 

13 law— 

14 (1) the Corporation shall be considered an 

15 agency covered by sections 1345 and 1442 of title 

16 28, United States Code; 

17 (2) all civil actions to which the Corporation is 

18 a party shall be considered to arise under the laws 

19 of the United States, and the district courts of the 

20 United States shall have original jurisdiction of all 

21 such actions, without regard to amount or value; 

22 and 

23 (3) any civil or other action, case or controversy 

24 in a court of a State, or in any court other than a 

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1 poration is a party may at any time before trial be 

2 removed by the Corporation, without the giving of 

3 any bond or security and by following any procedure 

4 for removal of causes in effect at the time of the re5 moval— 

6 (A) to the district court of the United 

7 States for the district and division embracing 

8 the place in which the same is pending; or 

9 (B) if there is no such district court, to the 

10 district court of the United States for the dis11 trict in which the principal office of the Cor12 poration is located. 

13 (g) ANNUAL REPORTS.—Not later than 1 year after 

14 incorporation of the Corporation and annually thereafter, 

15 the Corporation shall submit to the Committee on Energy 

16 and Natural Resources of the Senate and the Committee 

17 on Energy and Commerce in the House a report that in18 cludes— 

19 (1) a description of— 

20 (A) the technologies supported by activities 

21 of the Corporation and how the activities ad22 vance the purposes of this Act; 

23 (B) the performance of the Corporation on 

24 meeting the goals established by the Secretary; 


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1 (C) the comparability of the compensation 

2 policies of the Corporation with the compensa3 tion policies of other similar businesses; 

4 (D) in the aggregate, the percentage of 

5 total cash compensation and payments under 

6 employee benefit plans (which shall be defined 

7 in a manner consistent with the proxy state8 ment of the Corporation for the annual meeting 

9 of shareholders for the preceding year) earned 

10 by executive officers of the Corporation during 

11 the preceding year that was based on the per12 formance of the Corporation; and 

13 (E) the comparability of the financial per14 formance of the Corporation with the perform15 ance of other similar businesses; and 

16 (2) the proxy statement of the Corporation for 

17 the annual meeting of shareholders for the preceding 

18 year. 

19 (h) AUDITS BY THE COMPTROLLER GENERAL.— 

20 (1) IN GENERAL.—The programs, activities, re21 ceipts, expenditures, and financial transactions of 

22 the Corporation shall be subject to audit by the 

23 Comptroller General of the United States under 

24 such rules and regulations as may be prescribed by 

25 the Comptroller General. 


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1 (2) ACCESS.—The representatives of the Gov2 ernment Accountability Office shall— 

3 (A) have access to the personnel and to all 

4 books, accounts, documents, records (including 

5 electronic records), reports, files, and all other 

6 papers, automated data, things, or property be7 longing to, under the control of, or in use by 

8 the Corporation and necessary to facilitate the 

9 audit; 

10 (B) be afforded full facilities for verifying 

11 transactions with the balances or securities held 

12 by depositories, fiscal agents, and custodians; 

13 (C) be authorized to obtain and duplicate 

14 any such books, accounts, documents, records, 

15 working papers, automated data and files, or 

16 other information relevant to the audit without 

17 cost to the Comptroller General; and 

18 (D) have the right of access of the Comp19 troller General to such information be enforce20 able pursuant to section 716(c) of title 31, 

21 United States Code. 

22 (3) REPORT.— 

23 (A) IN GENERAL.—The Comptroller Gen24 eral shall submit to Congress a report on each 

25 audit conducted under this subsection. 


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1 (B) CONTENTS.—The report shall include 

2 a description of— 

3 (i) the scope of the audit; 

4 (ii) any surplus or deficit; 

5 (iii) income and expenses; 

6 (iv) sources and application of funds; 

7 (v) such comments and information as 

8 is necessary to inform Congress of the fi9 nancial operations and condition of the 

10 Corporation; and 

11 (vi) any recommendations as the 

12 Comptroller General considers appropriate. 

13 (4) ASSISTANCE AND COST.— 

14 (A) IN GENERAL.—For the purpose of con15 ducting an audit under this subsection, the 

16 Comptroller General may, in the discretion of 

17 the Comptroller General, employ by contract, 

18 without regard to section 3709 of the Revised 

19 Statutes (41 U.S.C. 5), professional services of 

20 firms and organizations of certified public ac21 countants for temporary periods or for special 

22 purposes. 

23 (B) REIMBURSEMENT.—On the request of 

24 the Comptroller General, the Corporation shall 

25 reimburse the General Accountability Office for 


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1 the full cost of any audit conducted by the 

2 Comptroller General under this subsection. 

3 (i) ANNUAL INDEPENDENT AUDIT.— 

4 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Corporation shall have 

5 an annual independent audit made of the financial 

6 statements of the Corporation by an independent 

7 public accountant in accordance with generally ac8 cepted auditing standards. 

9 (2) CONTENT.—In conducting an audit under 

10 this subsection, the independent public accountant 

11 shall determine and report on whether the financial 

12 statements of the Corporation— 

13 (A) are presented fairly in accordance with 

14 generally accepted accounting principles; and 

15 (B) to the extent determined necessary by 

16 the Director, comply with any disclosure re17 quirements imposed under this Act. 

18 SEC. 9. OVERSIGHT BY THE SECRETARY. 

19 (a) DUTIES.—The Secretary shall— 

20 (1) oversee the operations of the Corporation; 

21 and 

22 (2) ensure that— 

23 (A) the Corporation operates in a safe and 

24 sound manner, including maintenance of ade25 quate capital and internal controls; 


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1 (B) the operations and activities of the 

2 Corporation foster liquid, efficient, competitive, 

3 and resilient energy finance markets; 

4 (C) the Corporation carries out the statu5 tory mission of the Corporation only through 

6 activities that are authorized under and con7 sistent with this Act; and 

8 (D) the activities of the Corporation and 

9 the manner in which the Corporation is oper10 ated is consistent with the public interest. 

11 (b) FINANCIAL REPORTS.— 

12 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Corporation shall sub13 mit to the Secretary annual and quarterly reports of 

14 the financial condition and operations of the Cor15 poration which shall be in such form, contain such 

16 information, and be submitted on such dates as the 

17 Secretary shall require. 

18 (2) CONTENTS OF ANNUAL REPORTS.—Each 

19 annual report shall include— 

20 (A) financial statements prepared in ac21 cordance with generally accepted accounting 

22 principles; 

23 (B) any supplemental information or alter24 native presentation that the Secretary may re25 quire; and 


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1 (C) an assessment (as of the end of the 

2 most recent fiscal year of the Corporation), 

3 signed by the chief executive officer and chief 

4 accounting or financial officer of the Corpora5 tion, of— 

6 (i) the effectiveness of the internal 

7 control structure and procedures of the 

8 Corporation; and 

9 (ii) the compliance of the Corporation 

10 with designated safety and soundness laws. 

11 (3) SPECIAL REPORTS.—The Secretary may re12 quire the Corporation to submit other reports on the 

13 condition (including financial condition), manage14 ment, activities, or operations of the Corporation, as 

15 the Secretary considers appropriate. 

16 (4) ACCURACY.—Each report of financial condi17 tion shall contain a declaration by the president, vice 

18 president, treasurer, or any other officer designated 

19 by the Board of Directors of the Corporation to 

20 make the declaration, that the report is true and 

21 correct to the best of the knowledge and belief of the 

22 officer. 

23 (c) MANAGEMENT AND OPERATION STANDARDS.— 

24 The Secretary shall establish standards, by regulation or 

25 guideline, for the Corporation relating to— 


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1 (1) the adequacy of internal controls and infor2 mation systems; 

3 (2) the independence and adequacy of internal 

4 audit systems; 

5 (3) the management of market risk, including 

6 standards to provide for systems that measure, mon7 itor, and control market risks and, as warranted, to 

8 establish limitations on market risk; 

9 (4) risk management processes, including the 

10 adequacy of oversight by senior management and the 

11 Board of Directors and of processes and policies to 

12 measure, monitor, and control material risks, includ13 ing reputational risks, and for adequate, well-tested 

14 business resumption plans in the case of disruptive 

15 events; 

16 (5) the management of credit and counterparty 

17 risk, including systems to identify concentrations of 

18 credit risk and prudential limits to restrict the expo19 sure of the Corporation to a single counterparty or 

20 groups of related counterparties; 

21 (6) the maintenance of adequate records, in ac22 cordance with consistent accounting policies and 

23 practices to enable the Secretary to evaluate the fi24 nancial condition of the Corporation; and 


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1 (7) such other operational and management 

2 standards as the Secretary determines to be appro3 priate. 

4 (d) FAILURE TO MEET STANDARDS.— 

5 (1) IN GENERAL.—If the Secretary determines 

6 that the Corporation fails to meet any standard es7 tablished under subsection (c), the Secretary may re8 quire the Corporation to submit an acceptable plan 

9 to the Secretary within a reasonable time that speci10 fies the actions that the Corporation will take to cor11 rect the deficiency. 

12 (2) REQUIRED ORDER ON FAILURE TO SUBMIT

13 OR IMPLEMENT PLAN.—If the Corporation fails to 

14 submit an acceptable plan within the time specified 

15 by the Secretary or fails in any material respect to 

16 implement a plan accepted by the Secretary, the 

17 Secretary shall, by order, require the Corporation to 

18 correct the deficiency. 

19 (e) PROHIBITION AND WITHHOLDING OF EXECUTIVE

20 COMPENSATION.— 

21 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall prohibit 

22 the Corporation from providing compensation to any 

23 executive officer that is not reasonable and com24 parable with compensation for employment in other 

25 similar businesses (including other publicly held fiVerDate Aug 31 2005 06:56 Jul 09, 2008 Jkt 069200 PO 00000 Frm 00031 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S3233.IS S3233

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1 nancial institutions or major financial services com2 panies) involving similar duties and responsibilities. 

3 (2) FACTORS.—In making any determination 

4 under paragraph (1), the Secretary may take into 

5 consideration any factors the Secretary considers rel6 evant, including any wrongdoing on the part of the 

7 executive officer. 

8 (3) WITHHOLDING OF COMPENSATION.—In car9 rying out paragraph (1), the Secretary may require 

10 the Corporation to withhold any payment, transfer, 

11 or disbursement of compensation to an executive of12 ficer, or to place such compensation in an escrow ac13 count, during the review of reasonableness and com14 parability of compensation. 

15 (4) PROHIBITION OF SETTING COMPENSA16 TION.—In carrying out paragraph (1), the Secretary 

17 may not prescribe or set a specific level or range of 

18 compensation. 

19 SEC. 10. ISSUANCE OF COMMON STOCK TO EXPAND OPER20 ATIONS. 

21 (a) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 5 years after the 

22 date of enactment of this Act, the Corporation may pre23 pare a strategic plan for issuing common stock to raise 

24 the capital needed to expand the operations of the Cor25 poration in carrying out this Act. 


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1 (b) CONSIDERATION OF ALTERNATIVES FOR GOV2 ERNANCE.—The strategic plan shall include consideration 

3 of alternatives for restructuring the Board of Directors to 

4 allow for a majority of the Members to be selected by vot5 ing common stockholders. 

6 (c) EVALUATION AND RECOMMENDATION.—The 

7 strategic plan shall— 

8 (1) evaluate the relative merits of the alter9 natives considered; and 

10 (2) include the recommendation of the Corpora11 tion on a proposed alternative. 

12 (d) TRANSMITTAL.—On completion of the strategic 

13 plan, the Corporation shall submit copies of the strategic 

14 plan to the President and Congress, along with any rec15 ommendations for legislative changes required to imple16 ment the plan. 

17 (e) IMPLEMENTATION.—Subject to subsections (f) 

18 and (g), subsequent to submitting a strategic plan pursu19 ant to this section, the Corporation may implement the 

20 strategic plan. 

21 (f) REQUIREMENT FOR PRESIDENTIAL APPROVAL.— 

22 The Corporation may not implement the strategic plan 

23 without the approval of the President. 

24 (g) NOTIFICATION OF CONGRESS.— 


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1 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Corporation shall notify 

2 Congress of any intent to implement the strategic 

3 plan if the Corporation determines, in consultation 

4 with the Secretary and other appropriate agencies of 

5 the United States, that no further legislation is re6 quired for the implementation. 

7 (2) IMPLEMENTATION.—The Corporation may 

8 not implement the strategic plan under this sub9 section earlier than 60 days after notification of 

10 Congress. 

Æ 


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