IIB 

111TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION H. R. 5019 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

MAY 7, 2010 

Received; read twice and referred to the Committee on Finance 

AN ACT 

To provide for the establishment of the Home Star Retrofit 

Rebate Program, 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, 


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1 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

2 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Home Star Energy 

3 Retrofit Act of 2010’’. 

4 SEC. 2. DEFINITIONS. 

5 In this Act: 

6 (1) ACCREDITED CONTRACTOR.—The term ‘‘ac7 credited contractor’’ means a qualified contractor— 

8 (A) that is accredited— 

9 (i) by the BPI; or 

10 (ii) under other standards that the 

11 Secretary shall approve or deny not later 

12 than 30 days after submittal, in consulta13 tion with the Administrator; and 

14 (B) effective 1 year after the date of enact15 ment of this Act, that uses a certified work16 force. 

17 (2) ADMINISTRATOR.—The term ‘‘Adminis18 trator’’ means the Administrator of the Environ19 mental Protection Agency. 

20 (3) BPI.—The term ‘‘BPI’’ means the Building 

21 Performance Institute. 

22 (4) CERTIFIED WORKFORCE.—The term ‘‘cer23 tified workforce’’ means a residential energy effi24 ciency construction workforce in which all employees 

25 performing installation work are certified in the ap26 propriate job skills under— 


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1 (A) an applicable third party skills stand2 ard established by— 

3 (i) BPI; 

4 (ii) North American Technician Excel5 lence; 

6 (iii) the Laborers’ International Union 

7 of North America; 

8 (B) an applicable third party skills stand9 ard established in the State in which the work 

10 is to be performed, pursuant to a program oper11 ated by the Home Builders Institute in connec12 tion with Ferris State University, to be effective 

13 30 days after notice is provided by those orga14 nizations to the Secretary that such program 

15 has been established in such State, except to 

16 the extent that the Secretary determines within 

17 30 days of such notice that the standard or cer18 tification is incomplete; or 

19 (C) other standards that the Secretary 

20 shall approve or deny not later than 30 days 

21 after submittal, in consultation with the Sec22 retary of Labor and the Administrator. 

23 (5) CONDITIONED SPACE.—The term ‘‘condi24 tioned space’’ means the area of a home that is— 

25 (A) intended for habitation; and 


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1 (B) intentionally heated or cooled. 

2 (6) DOE.—The term ‘‘DOE’’ means the De3 partment of Energy. 

4 (7) ELECTRIC UTILITY.—The term ‘‘electric 

5 utility’’ means any person, State agency, rural elec6 tric cooperative, municipality, or other governmental 

7 entity that delivers or sells electric energy at retail 

8 or wholesale, including nonregulated utilities and 

9 utilities that are subject to State regulation and 

10 Federal power marketing administrations. 

11 (8) EPA.—The term ‘‘EPA’’ means the Envi12 ronmental Protection Agency. 

13 (9) FEDERAL REBATE PROCESSING SYSTEM.— 

14 The term ‘‘Federal Rebate Processing System’’ 

15 means the Federal Rebate Processing System estab16 lished under section 101(b). 

17 (10) GOLD STAR HOME ENERGY RETROFIT PRO18 GRAM.—The term ‘‘Gold Star Home Energy Retrofit 

19 Program’’ means the Gold Star Home Energy Ret20 rofit Program established under section 104. 

21 (11) HOME.—The term ‘‘home’’ means a prin22 cipal residential dwelling unit in a building with no 

23 more than 4 dwelling units that— 

24 (A) is located in the United States; and 


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1 (B) was constructed before the date of en2 actment of this Act. 

3 (12) INDIAN TRIBE.—The term ‘‘Indian tribe’’ 

4 has the meaning given the term in section 4 of the 

5 Indian Self-Determination and Education Assistance 

6 Act (25 U.S.C. 450b). 

7 (13) NATIONAL HOME PERFORMANCE COUN8 CIL.—The term ‘‘National Home Performance Coun9 cil’’ means the National Home Performance Council, 

10 Inc. 

11 (14) NATURAL GAS UTILITY.—The term ‘‘nat12 ural gas utility’’ means any person or State agency 

13 that transports, distributes, or sells natural gas at 

14 retail, including nonregulated utilities and utilities 

15 that are subject to State regulation. 

16 (15) QUALIFIED CONTRACTOR.—The term 

17 ‘‘qualified contractor’’ means a residential energy ef18 ficiency contractor meeting minimum applicable re19 quirements as determined under section 101(c). 

20 (16) QUALITY ASSURANCE FRAMEWORK.—The 

21 term ‘‘quality assurance framework’’ means a policy 

22 structure adopted by a State to develop high stand23 ards for ensuring quality in ongoing energy effi24 ciency retrofit activities in which the State has a 

25 role, including operation of the quality assurance 


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1 program, while creating significant employment op2 portunities, in particular for targeted workers. 

3 (17) QUALITY ASSURANCE PROGRAM.— 

4 (A) IN GENERAL.—The term ‘‘quality as5 surance program’’ means a program authorized 

6 under this Act to oversee the delivery of home 

7 efficiency retrofit programs to ensure that work 

8 is performed in accordance with standards and 

9 criteria established under this Act. 

10 (B) INCLUSIONS.—For purposes of sub11 paragraph (A), delivery of retrofit programs in12 cludes field inspections required under this Act, 

13 with the consent of participating consumers and 

14 without delaying rebate payments to partici15 pating contractors and vendors. 

16 (18) QUALITY ASSURANCE PROVIDER.— 

17 (A) IN GENERAL.—The term ‘‘quality as18 surance provider’’ means any entity that is au19 thorized pursuant to this Act to perform field 

20 inspections and other measures required to con21 firm the compliance of retrofit work with the 

22 requirements of this Act. 

23 (B) CERTIFICATION REQUIREMENT.—To 

24 be considered a quality assurance provider 


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1 under this paragraph, an entity shall be cer2 tified through— 

3 (i) the International Code Council; 

4 (ii) the BPI; 

5 (iii) the RESNET; 

6 (iv) a State; 

7 (v) a State-approved residential en8 ergy efficiency retrofit program; or 

9 (vi) any other entity that is accredited 

10 under standards that the Secretary shall 

11 approve or deny not later than 30 days 

12 after submittal, in consultation with the 

13 Administrator. 

14 (19) REBATE AGGREGATOR.—The term ‘‘rebate 

15 aggregator’’ means an entity that meets the require16 ments of section 102. 

17 (20) RESNET.—The term ‘‘RESNET’’ means 

18 the Residential Energy Services Network. 

19 (21) SECRETARY.—The term ‘‘Secretary’’ 

20 means the Secretary of Energy. 

21 (22) SILVER STAR HOME ENERGY RETROFIT

22 PROGRAM.—The term ‘‘Silver Star Home Energy 

23 Retrofit Program’’ means the Silver Star Home En24 ergy Retrofit Program established under section 

25 103. 


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1 (23) STATE.—The term ‘‘State’’ means— 

2 (A) a State; 

3 (B) the District of Columbia; 

4 (C) the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico; 

5 (D) Guam; 

6 (E) American Samoa; 

7 (F) the United States Virgin Islands; 

8 (G) the Northern Mariana Islands; and 

9 (H) any other commonwealth, territory, or 

10 possession of the United States. 

11 (24) TARGETED WORKER.—The term ‘‘targeted 

12 worker’’ means an individual who is unemployed or 

13 underemployed and of an employable age and a resi14 dent of an area with high or chronic unemployment 

15 and low median household incomes, as defined by 

16 the Secretary in consultation with the Secretary of 

17 Labor. 

18 (25) WATER UTILITY.—The term ‘‘water util19 ity’’ means any State or local agency that delivers 

20 or sells water at wholesale or retail through an engi21 neered distribution system. 


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1 TITLE I—HOME STAR RETROFIT 

2 REBATE PROGRAM 

3 SEC. 101. HOME STAR RETROFIT REBATE PROGRAM. 

4 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall establish the 

5 Home Star Retrofit Rebate Program. 

6 (b) FEDERAL REBATE PROCESSING SYSTEM.— 

7 (1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 30 days after 

8 the date of enactment of this Act, the Secretary, in 

9 consultation with the Secretary of the Treasury and 

10 the Administrator, shall— 

11 (A) establish a Federal Rebate Processing 

12 System which shall serve as a database and in13 formation technology system to allow— 

14 (i) rebate aggregators to submit 

15 claims for reimbursement using standard 

16 data protocols; 

17 (ii) quality assurance reports to be 

18 identified with the work for which rebates 

19 are claimed; and 

20 (iii) any Home Star loans to be linked 

21 to the work for which they are made; 

22 (B) establish a national retrofit website 

23 that provides information on the Home Star 

24 Retrofit Rebate Program, including how to de25 termine whether particular energy efficiency 


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1 measures are eligible for rebate and how to par2 ticipate in the program; 

3 (C) establish a means by which a State 

4 may obtain confidential access to records of 

5 work performed in that State from the data6 base; and 

7 (D) publish model forms and data proto8 cols for use by contractors, vendors, and quality 

9 assurance providers to comply with the require10 ments of this title. 

11 (2) MODEL CERTIFICATION FORMS.—In car12 rying out this section, the Secretary shall consider 

13 the model certification forms developed by the Na14 tional Home Performance Council. 

15 (c) QUALIFIED CONTRACTOR REQUIREMENTS.—A 

16 qualified contractor may perform retrofit work for which 

17 rebates are authorized under this title only if it affirms, 

18 in each Home Star rebate application submitted to a re19 bate aggregator, that it meets applicable requirements, in20 cluding— 

21 (1) all applicable State contractor licensing re22 quirements or, with respect to a State that has no 

23 such requirements, any appropriate comparable re24 quirements established under paragraph (6); 


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1 (2) insurance coverage of at least $1,000,000 

2 for general liability, and for such other purposes and 

3 in such other amounts as may be required by the 

4 State; 

5 (3) agreeing to provide warranties to home6 owners that completed work will— 

7 (A) be free of significant defects; 

8 (B) be installed in accordance with the 

9 specifications of the manufacturer; and 

10 (C) perform properly for a period of at 

11 least 1 year after the date of completion of the 

12 work; 

13 (4) agreeing to pass through to the owner of a 

14 home, through a discount, the full economic value of 

15 all rebates received under this title with respect to 

16 the home; 

17 (5) agreeing to provide to the homeowner a no18 tice of the amount of the rebate the contractor in19 tends to apply for on the homeowner’s behalf with 

20 respect to the eligible work under this title, before 

21 a contract is executed between the contractor and a 

22 homeowner covering the eligible work; 

23 (6) agreeing to cooperate with and comply with 

24 the requirements of the quality assurance provider 

25 assigned to inspect any work done, subject to any 


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1 appeals or dispute resolution process described in 

2 section 105(b)(4); 

3 (7) certifying that no employee has been con4 victed of, or pleaded guilty to, a crime of child mo5 lestation, rape, or any other form of sexual assault; 

6 (8) all requirements of an applicable State qual7 ity assurance framework by and after the date that 

8 is 1 year after the date of enactment of this Act; 

9 and 

10 (9) any other appropriate requirements as de11 termined by the Secretary, in consultation with the 

12 Administrator. 

13 (d) ADMINISTRATIVE AND TECHNICAL SUPPORT.— 

14 Subject to section 109(b) and (c), beginning not later than 

15 30 days after the date of enactment of this Act, the Sec16 retary shall provide such administrative and technical sup17 port to rebate aggregators and States as is necessary to 

18 carry out this title. 

19 (e) ADMINISTRATION.— 

20 (1) APPOINTMENT OF PERSONNEL.—Notwith21 standing the provisions of title 5, United States 

22 Code, governing appointments in the competitive 

23 service and General Schedule classifications and pay 

24 rates, the Secretary may appoint and set basic rates 

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1 sonnel as the Secretary considers necessary to carry 

2 out this title. Such authority shall not apply to posi3 tions in the Senior Executive Service. The number 

4 of personnel appointed under this paragraph shall 

5 not exceed 30 full-time equivalent employees. The 

6 terms of appointment of all personnel appointed 

7 under this paragraph shall expire upon the termi8 nation of the programs established under this title. 

9 (2) RATE OF PAY.—The basic rate of pay for 

10 a person appointed under paragraph (1) shall not 

11 exceed the maximum rate of basic pay payable for 

12 GS–15 of the General Schedule under section 5332 

13 of title 5, United States Code. 

14 (3) REGULATIONS.— 

15 (A) IN GENERAL.—Notwithstanding sec16 tion 553 of title 5, United States Code, the Sec17 retary may issue regulations that the Secretary, 

18 in the sole discretion of the Secretary, deter19 mines necessary to— 

20 (i) establish; 

21 (ii) achieve full operational status 

22 within 60 days after the date of enactment 

23 of this Act for; or 

24 (iii) carry out, 

25 the Home Star Retrofit Rebate Program. 


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1 (B) TIMING.—If the Secretary determines 

2 that regulations described in subparagraph (A) 

3 are necessary, the regulations shall be issued 

4 not later than 60 days after such determina5 tion. 

6 (C) EXCEPTION.—(i) The Secretary shall 

7 not utilize the authority provided under this 

8 paragraph to— 

9 (I) develop, adopt, or implement a 

10 public labeling system that rates and com11 pares the energy performance of one home 

12 with another; or 

13 (II) require the public disclosure of an 

14 energy performance evaluation or rating 

15 developed for any specific home. 

16 (ii) Nothing in this subparagraph shall 

17 preclude— 

18 (I) the computation, collection, or use, 

19 by the Secretary, rebate aggregators, qual20 ity assurance providers, or States for the 

21 purposes of carrying out sections 104 and 

22 105, of information on the rating and com23 parison of the energy performance of 

24 homes with and without energy efficiency 


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1 features or on energy performance evalua2 tion or rating; 

3 (II) the use and publication of aggre4 gate data (without identifying individual 

5 homes or participants) based on informa6 tion referred to in subclause (I) to deter7 mine or demonstrate the performance of 

8 the Home Star program; or 

9 (III) the provision of information re10 ferred to in subclause (I) with respect to a 

11 specific home— 

12 (aa) to the State, homeowner, 

13 quality assurance provider, rebate 

14 aggregator, or contractor performing 

15 retrofit work on that home, or an en16 tity providing Home Star services, as 

17 necessary to enable carrying out this 

18 title; or 

19 (bb) for purposes of prosecuting 

20 fraud and abuse. 

21 (4) INFORMATION COLLECTION.—Chapter 35 of 

22 title 44, United States Code, shall not apply to any 

23 information collection requirement necessary for the 

24 implementation of the Home Star Retrofit Rebate 

25 Program. 


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1 (5) EFFECTIVE PERIOD.—(A) Paragraph (1) 

2 shall be effective only until December 31, 2010, ex3 cept with respect to personnel appointed to support 

4 the quality assurance and enforcement of the pro5 grams established under this title, for which appoint6 ments may be made under paragraph (1) until the 

7 termination of the programs established under this 

8 title pursuant to section 111(i). 

9 (B) Paragraphs (3) and (4) shall be effective 

10 only until the date that is 2 years after the date of 

11 enactment of this Act, except with respect to regula12 tions and information collection relating to the qual13 ity assurance and enforcement of the programs es14 tablished under this title. 

15 (f) PROGRAM REVIEW.—Not later than 180 days 

16 after the date of enactment of this Act, the Secretary shall 

17 prepare and transmit to Congress a State-by-State anal18 ysis and review the distribution of Home Star retrofit re19 bates under this title. 

20 (g) ADJUSTMENT OF REBATE AMOUNTS.—Effective 

21 beginning on the date that is 180 days after the date of 

22 enactment of this Act, the Secretary may, after not less 

23 than 30 days public notice, prospectively adjust the rebate 

24 amounts provided for under this title as necessary to opti25 mize the overall energy efficiency resulting from the Silver 


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1 Star Home Energy Retrofit Program and the Gold Star 

2 Home Energy Retrofit Program. 

3 (h) INDIAN TRIBE PARTICIPATION.— 

4 (1) IN GENERAL.—An Indian tribe, within 30 

5 days after the date of enactment of this Act, may in6 dicate to the Secretary its intention to act in place 

7 of a State for purposes of carrying out the respon8 sibilities of the State under this title with respect to 

9 its tribal lands. If the Indian tribe so indicates, the 

10 Secretary shall treat the Indian tribe as the State 

11 for purposes of carrying out this title with respect 

12 to those tribal lands. 

13 (2) TRANSITION OF RESPONSIBILITIES.—The 

14 Secretary may permit an Indian tribe, after the expi15 ration of 30 days after the date of enactment of this 

16 Act, to assume the responsibilities of a State under 

17 this title with respect to its tribal lands if the Sec18 retary finds that such assumption of responsibilities 

19 will not disrupt the ongoing administration of the 

20 program under this title. 

21 (3) COOPERATION.—An Indian tribe may co22 operate with a State or the Secretary to ensure that 

23 all of the requirements of this title are carried out 

24 with respect to the tribal lands. 

25 (i) IMPLEMENTATION BY SECRETARY.— 


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1 (1) IN GENERAL.—If a State has not indicated 

2 to the Secretary within 30 days after the date of en3 actment of this Act that it is prepared to carry out 

4 section 105 or 108, or if at any later time the Sec5 retary determines that a State is no longer prepared 

6 to carry out section 105 or 108, to the extent that 

7 no Indian tribe assumes such responsibilities under 

8 subsection (h) the Secretary shall assume the re9 sponsibilities of that State with respect to carrying 

10 out section 105 or 108. 

11 (2) TRANSITION OF RESPONSIBILITIES.—The 

12 Secretary may permit a State, after the Secretary 

13 has assumed the responsibilities of that State under 

14 paragraph (1), to assume the responsibilities as15 signed to States under section 105 or 108 with re16 spect to that State if the Secretary finds that such 

17 assumption of responsibilities will not disrupt the 

18 ongoing administration of the program under this 

19 title. 

20 (j) LIMITATION.—Rebates may not be provided under 

21 both section 103 and section 104 with respect to the same 

22 home unless the energy savings measures installed pursu23 ant to section 103 are excluded from the calculations per24 formed for purposes of section 104 and the total amount 


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1 of rebates paid for the home does not exceed the maximum 

2 rebate available pursuant to section 104. 

3 (k) FORMS FOR CERTIFICATION AND QUALITY AS4 SURANCE.— 

5 (1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 30 days after 

6 the date of enactment of this Act, the Secretary 

7 shall make available on the website established 

8 under subsection (b)(1)(B), model certification 

9 forms for compliance with quality assurance require10 ments under this title, to be submitted by— 

11 (A) each qualified contractor, accredited 

12 contractor, and quality assurance provider on 

13 completion of an eligible home energy retrofit; 

14 and 

15 (B) each quality assurance provider on 

16 completion of field verification required under 

17 this title. 

18 (2) NATIONAL HOME PERFORMANCE COUN19 CIL.—The Secretary, States, and Indian tribes shall 

20 consider and may use model certification forms de21 veloped by the National Home Performance Council 

22 to ensure compliance with quality assurance require23 ments under this title. 

24 (l) PUBLIC-PRIVATE PARTNERSHIPS.—A State that 

25 receives a grant under this title is encouraged to form 


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1 partnerships with utilities, energy service companies, and 

2 other entities— 

3 (1) to assist in marketing the Home Star Ret4 rofit Rebate Program; 

5 (2) to facilitate consumer financing; 

6 (3) to assist in implementation of the Silver 

7 Star Home Energy Retrofit Program and the Gold 

8 Star Home Energy Retrofit Program, including in9 stallation of qualified energy retrofit measures; and 

10 (4) to assist in implementing quality assurance 

11 programs. 

12 (m) COORDINATION OF REBATE AND EXISTING

13 STATE-SPONSORED PROGRAMS.— 

14 (1) IN GENERAL.—A State shall, to the max15 imum extent practicable, prevent duplication through 

16 coordination of a program authorized under this title 

17 with— 

18 (A) the Energy Star appliance rebates pro19 gram authorized under section 124 of the En20 ergy Policy Act of 2005 (42 U.S.C. 15821), 

21 and any other Federal programs that provide 

22 funds to States for home or appliance energy 

23 efficiency purposes; and 

24 (B) comparable programs planned or oper25 ated by States, political subdivisions, electric 


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1 and natural gas utilities, Federal power mar2 keting administrations, and Indian tribes. 

3 (2) EXISTING PROGRAMS.—In carrying out this 

4 subsection, a State shall— 

5 (A) give priority to— 

6 (i) comprehensive retrofit programs in 

7 existence on the date of enactment of this 

8 Act, including programs under the super9 vision of State utility regulators; and 

10 (ii) using funds made available under 

11 this title to enhance and extend existing 

12 programs; and 

13 (B) seek to enhance and extend existing 

14 programs by coordinating with administrators 

15 of the programs. 

16 (n) HEALTH AND SAFETY REQUIREMENTS.—Noth17 ing in this title shall relieve any contractor from the obli18 gation to comply with applicable Federal, State, and local 

19 health and safety code requirements. 

20 (o) INFORMATION HOTLINES.— 

21 (1) CONTRACTORS.—The Secretary shall estab22 lish and publicize a telephone hotline for contractors 

23 to call to obtain information about the programs 

24 under this Act. 


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1 (2) HOMEOWNERS.—The Secretary shall estab2 lish and publicize a telephone hotline for home3 owners to call to obtain information about the pro4 grams under this Act. 

5 (p) ONLINE CHAT FUNCTION.—The Secretary shall 

6 determine the feasibility and effectiveness of establishing 

7 an online chat function through the website established 

8 for the Home Star Retrofit Rebate Program, and may es9 tablish such a function as appropriate. 

10 (q) DISASTER AREAS.—The Secretary shall ensure 

11 that a home in an area declared affected by a major dis12 aster declared by the President under section 401 of the 

13 Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency Assist14 ance Act (42 U.S.C. 5170) is not denied assistance under 

15 the Home Star Retrofit Rebate Program solely because 

16 there is no equipment or system to replace due to the dis17 aster. 

18 (r) INCOME THRESHOLD.—Homeowners with a gross 

19 annual household income of more than $250,000 shall not 

20 be eligible for a rebate under this title. 

21 SEC. 102. REBATE AGGREGATORS. 

22 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall develop a net23 work of rebate aggregators that can facilitate the delivery 

24 of rebates to homeowners to reimburse the homeowners 

25 for work provided by participating contractors and venVerDate Mar 15 2010 21:39 May 07, 2010 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00022 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H5019.RFS H5019

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1 dors for energy efficiency retrofit work. The Secretary 

2 shall approve or deny an application from a person seeking 

3 to become a rebate aggregator not later than 30 days after 

4 receiving such application. The Secretary may disqualify 

5 any rebate aggregator, in one or more particular States, 

6 that fails to meet its obligations under this title in a timely 

7 and competent manner. The Secretary shall consult with 

8 States operating existing residential energy efficiency and 

9 retrofit programs on how best to coordinate the Home 

10 Star Retrofit Rebate Program with such existing pro11 grams, including the designation of rebate aggregators. 

12 (b) AVAILABILITY.—Not later than 60 days after the 

13 date of enactment of this Act, the Secretary shall identify 

14 a sufficient number of rebate aggregators in each State 

15 to ensure that rebate applications can be accepted from 

16 all qualified contractors. Not later than 90 days after such 

17 date of enactment, the Secretary shall ensure that rebate 

18 aggregation services are available to all homeowners in the 

19 United States at the lowest reasonable cost. 

20 (c) RESPONSIBILITIES.—Rebate aggregators shall— 

21 (1) review each proposed rebate application for 

22 completeness and accuracy; 

23 (2) review all measures for which rebates are 

24 sought for eligibility in accordance with this title; 


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1 (3) not later than 10 days after receipt of a 

2 complete rebate application, provide data to the Sec3 retary for inclusion in the database maintained 

4 through the Federal Rebate Processing System, con5 sistent with data protocols established by the Sec6 retary; 

7 (4) not later than 10 days after the date of re8 ceipt, distribute funds received from the Secretary to 

9 contractors, vendors, or other persons in accordance 

10 with approved claims for reimbursement made to the 

11 Federal Rebate Processing System; 

12 (5) maintain appropriate accounting for rebate 

13 applications processed, and their disposition; 

14 (6) review contractor qualifications and accredi15 tation and retain documentation of such qualifica16 tion and accreditation, as required for contractors to 

17 be authorized to perform residential energy effi18 ciency retrofit work under this title; and 

19 (7) maintain information regarding contractors’ 

20 fulfillment of the requirements of section 101(c). 

21 (d) ELIGIBILITY.—To be eligible to apply to the Sec22 retary for approval as a rebate aggregator, an entity— 

23 (1) shall be— 

24 (A) a Home Performance with Energy 

25 Star partner; 


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1 (B) an entity administering a residential 

2 energy efficiency retrofit program established or 

3 approved by a State; 

4 (C) a Federal power marketing administra5 tion or the Tennessee Valley Authority; 

6 (D) an Armed Forces exchange service in 

7 the United States that offers for sale energy 

8 savings measures described in section 103; 

9 (E) an electric utility, natural gas utility, 

10 or water utility administering or offering a resi11 dential energy efficiency retrofit program; or 

12 (F) an entity— 

13 (i) with corporate status or status as 

14 a State or local government; 

15 (ii) who can demonstrate adequate fi16 nancial capability to manage a rebate 

17 aggregator program, as evidenced by au18 dited financial records; 

19 (iii) whose participation in the pro20 gram, in the judgment of the Secretary, 

21 would facilitate coordination with, and not 

22 disrupt, existing residential retrofit pro23 grams in the States that are carrying out 

24 the Home Star Retrofit Rebate Program 

25 under this title; and 


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1 (iv) whose operational facilities, em2 ployees, electronic recordkeeping hardware 

3 and facilities, and conventional records 

4 used to carry out the responsibilities of a 

5 rebate aggregator are located wholly within 

6 the United States, to the extent consistent 

7 with the international obligations of the 

8 United States. 

9 (2) must be able to demonstrate— 

10 (A) a relationship with 1 or more inde11 pendent quality assurance providers that is suf12 ficient to meet the volume of contracting serv13 ices delivered; 

14 (B) the capability to provide such elec15 tronic data as is required by the Secretary to 

16 the Federal Rebate Processing System; and 

17 (C) a financial system that is capable of 

18 tracking the distribution of rebates to partici19 pating contractors and vendors; and 

20 (3) shall include in its application the amount 

21 it proposes to charge for the review and processing 

22 of a rebate under this title. 

23 (e) PROMPT PROCESSING OF REBATES.—Within 10 

24 days after receiving an application for a rebate consistent 

25 with this title, a rebate aggregator shall submit a claim 


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1 for that rebate to the Federal Rebate Processing System. 

2 Within 10 days after the Federal Rebate Processing Sys3 tem receives such a submission from a rebate aggregator, 

4 the Secretary shall provide the funds to the rebate 

5 aggregator necessary to pay such rebates to the qualified 

6 contractor or vendor who applied for them and to com7 pensate the rebate aggregator for its services in accord8 ance with this title. Within 10 days of being provided such 

9 funds, the rebate aggregator shall pay the rebates to the 

10 rebate applicant. 

11 (f) PUBLIC UTILITY COMMISSION EFFICIENCY TAR12 GETS.—The Secretary shall— 

13 (1) develop guidelines for States to use to allow 

14 utilities participating as rebate aggregators to count 

15 the energy savings from their participation toward 

16 State-level energy savings targets; and 

17 (2) work with States to assist in the adoption 

18 of these guidelines for the purposes and duration of 

19 the Home Star Retrofit Rebate Program. 

20 SEC. 103. SILVER STAR HOME ENERGY RETROFIT PRO21 GRAM. 

22 (a) IN GENERAL.—During the first year after the 

23 date of enactment of this Act, a Silver Star Home Energy 

24 Retrofit Program rebate shall be awarded, subject to the 

25 maximum amount limitations under subsection (d)(4) and 


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1 to the availability of funding pursuant to section 109, to 

2 homeowners to reimburse the homeowners for work pro3 vided by participating contractors and vendors, for the in4 stallation of energy savings measures— 

5 (1) selected from the list of energy savings 

6 measures described in subsection (b); 

7 (2) installed after the date of enactment of this 

8 Act in the home by a qualified contractor; and 

9 (3) carried out in compliance with this section. 

10 (b) ENERGY SAVINGS MEASURES.—Subject to sub11 section (c), a rebate shall be awarded under subsection 

12 (a) for the installation of the following energy savings 

13 measures for a home energy retrofit that meet technical 

14 standards established under this section: 

15 (1) Whole house air sealing measures, including 

16 interior and exterior measures, utilizing sealants, 

17 caulks, insulating foams, gaskets, weather-stripping, 

18 mastics, and other building materials in accordance 

19 with BPI standards or other procedures approved by 

20 the Secretary. 

21 (2) Attic insulation measures that— 

22 (A) include sealing of air leakage between 

23 the attic and the conditioned space, in accord24 ance with BPI standards or the attic portions 


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1 of the DOE or EPA thermal bypass checklist or 

2 other procedures approved by the Secretary; 

3 (B) add at least R–19 insulation to exist4 ing insulation; 

5 (C) result in at least R–38 insulation in 

6 DOE climate zones 1 through 4 and at least R– 

7 49 insulation in DOE climate zones 5 through 

8 8, including existing insulation, within the lim9 its of structural capacity, except that a State, 

10 with the approval of the Secretary, may des11 ignate climate zone subregions as a function of 

12 varying elevation; and 

13 (D) cover at least— 

14 (i) 100 percent of an accessible attic; 

15 or 

16 (ii) 75 percent of the total conditioned 

17 footprint of the house. 

18 (3) Duct sealing or replacement and sealing 

19 that— 

20 (A) is installed in accordance with BPI 

21 standards or other procedures approved by the 

22 Secretary; and 

23 (B) in the case of duct replacement and 

24 sealing, replaces and seals at least 50 percent 

25 of a distribution system of the home. 


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1 (4) Wall insulation that— 

2 (A) is installed in accordance with BPI 

3 standards or other procedures approved by the 

4 Secretary; 

5 (B) is to full-stud thickness or adds at 

6 least R–10 of continuous insulation; and 

7 (C) covers at least 75 percent of the total 

8 external wall area of the home. 

9 (5) Crawl space insulation or basement wall 

10 and rim joist insulation that is installed in accord11 ance with BPI standards or other procedures ap12 proved by the Secretary and— 

13 (A) covers at least 500 square feet of crawl 

14 space or basement wall and adds at least— 

15 (i) R–19 of cavity insulation or R–15 

16 of continuous insulation to existing crawl 

17 space insulation; or 

18 (ii) R–13 of cavity insulation or R–10 

19 of continuous insulation to basement walls; 

20 and 

21 (B) fully covers the rim joist with at least 

22 R–10 of new continuous or R–13 of cavity insu23 lation. 

24 (6) Window replacement that replaces at least 

25 8 exterior windows, or 75 percent of the exterior 


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1 windows in a home, whichever is less, with windows 

2 that— 

3 (A) are certified by the National Fenestra4 tion Rating Council; and 

5 (B) comply with criteria applicable to win6 dows under section 25(c) of the Internal Rev7 enue Code of 1986 or, in areas above 5,000 feet 

8 elevation, have a U-factor of at least 0.35 when 

9 replacing windows that are single-glazed or double-glazed with an internal air space of 1 10 ⁄4 inch 

11 or less. 

12 (7) Door or skylight replacement that replaces 

13 at least 1 exterior door or skylight with doors or 

14 skylights that comply with the 2010 Energy Star 

15 specification for doors or skylights. 

16 (8)(A) Heating system replacement of— 

17 (i) a natural gas or propane furnace with 

18 a furnace that has— 

19 (I) an AFUE rating of 92 or greater; 

20 or 

21 (II) an AFUE rating of 95 or greater; 

22 (ii) a natural gas or propane boiler with a 

23 boiler that has an AFUE rating of 90 or great24 er; 


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1 (iii) an oil furnace with a furnace that has 

2 an AFUE rating of 86 or greater and that uses 

3 an electrically commutated blower motor; 

4 (iv) an oil boiler with a boiler that has an 

5 AFUE rating of 86 or greater and that has 

6 temperature reset or thermal purge controls; or 

7 (v) a wood or pellet furnace, boiler, or 

8 stove, if— 

9 (I) the new system— 

10 (aa) meets at least 75 per11 cent of the heating demands of 

12 the home; and 

13 (bb) in the case of a wood 

14 stove, but not a pellet stove, re15 places an existing wood stove, 

16 but not a pellet stove, and is cer17 tified by the Administrator; 

18 (II) the home has a distribution 

19 system (such as ducts, vents, blowers, 

20 or affixed fans) that allows heat to 

21 reach all or most parts of the home; 

22 (III) in the case where an old 

23 wood stove is being replaced, a vouch24 er is provided by the installer or other 

25 responsible party certifying that the 


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1 old wood stove has been removed and 

2 rendered inoperable or recycled at an 

3 appropriate recycling facility; and 

4 (IV) an accredited independent 

5 laboratory recognized by the Adminis6 trator certifies that the new system— 

7 (aa) has thermal efficiency 

8 (lower heating value) of at least 

9 75 percent for wood and pellet 

10 stoves, and at least 80 percent 

11 for furnaces and boilers; and 

12 (bb) has particulate emis13 sions of less than 3.0 grams per 

14 hour for stoves, and less than 

15 0.32 lbs/mmBTU for outdoor 

16 furnaces and boilers. 

17 (B) A rebate may be provided under this sec18 tion for the replacement of a furnace or boiler de19 scribed in clauses (i) through (iv) of subparagraph 

20 (A) only if the new furnace or boiler is installed in 

21 accordance with ANSI/ACCA Standard 5 QI–2007. 

22 (9) Air-source air conditioner or air-source heat 

23 pump replacement with a new unit that— 

24 (A) is installed in accordance with ANSI/ 

25 ACCA Standard 5 QI–2007; and 


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1 (B) meets or exceeds— 

2 (i) in the case of an air-source air 

3 conditioner— 

4 (I) SEER 16 and EER 13; or 

5 (II) SEER 18 and EER 15; and 

6 (ii) in the case of an air-source heat 

7 pump, SEER 15, EER 12.5, and HSPF 

8 8.5. 

9 (10) Heating or cooling system replacement 

10 with an Energy Star qualified geothermal heat pump 

11 that meets Tier 2 efficiency requirements and that 

12 is installed in accordance with ANSI/ACCA Stand13 ard 5 QI–2007. 

14 (11) Replacement of a natural gas, propane, or 

15 electric water heater with— 

16 (A) a natural gas or propane condensing 

17 storage water heater with an energy factor of 

18 0.80 or more, or a natural gas or propane stor19 age or tankless water heater with thermal effi20 ciency of 90 percent or more; 

21 (B) a tankless natural gas or propane 

22 water heater with an energy factor of at least 

23 .82; 

24 (C) a natural gas or propane storage water 

25 heater with an energy factor of at least .67; 


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1 (D) an indirect water heater with an insu2 lated storage tank that— 

3 (i) has a storage capacity of at least 

4 30 gallons and is insulated to at least R– 

5 16; and 

6 (ii) is installed in conjunction with a 

7 qualifying boiler described in paragraph 

8 (8); 

9 (E) an electric water heater with an energy 

10 factor of 2.0 or more; 

11 (F) an electric tankless water heater with 

12 an energy factor or thermal efficiency, as appli13 cable, of .96 or more or a thermal efficiency of 

14 96 percent or more, that operates on not great15 er than 25 kilowatts; 

16 (G) a solar hot water system that— 

17 (i) is certified by the Solar Rating and 

18 Certification Corporation; or 

19 (ii) meets technical standards estab20 lished by the State of Hawaii; or 

21 (H) a water heater installed in conjunction 

22 with a qualifying geothermal heat pump de23 scribed in paragraph (10) that provides domes24 tic water heating through the use of— 

25 (i) a desuperheater; or 


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1 (ii) year-round demand water heating 

2 capability. 

3 (12) Storm windows or doors that— 

4 (A) are installed on at least 5 existing 

5 doors or existing single-glazed windows; and 

6 (B) comply with any procedures that the 

7 Secretary may set for storm windows or doors 

8 and their installation. 

9 (13) Window film that is installed on at least 

10 8 exterior windows, doors, or skylights, or 75 per11 cent of the total exterior square footage of glass in 

12 a home, whichever is more, with window films that— 

13 (A) are certified by the National Fenestra14 tion Rating Council; and 

15 (B) have— 

16 (i) a solar heat gain coefficient of 

17 0.43 or less with a visible light-to-solar 

18 heat gain coefficient of at least 1.1 for in19 stallations in 2009 International Energy 

20 Conservation Code climate zones 1–3; or 

21 (ii) a solar heat gain coefficient of 

22 0.43 or less with a visible light light-to23 solar heat gain coefficient of at least 1.1 

24 and a U-factor of 0.40 or less as installed 


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1 in 2009 International Energy Conservation 

2 Code climate zones 4–8. 

3 (c) INSTALLATION COSTS.—Measures described in 

4 paragraphs (1) through (13) of subsection (b) shall in5 clude expenditures for labor and other installation-related 

6 costs, including venting system modification and conden7 sate disposal, properly allocable to the onsite preparation, 

8 assembly, or original installation of the component. 

9 (d) AMOUNT OF REBATE.— 

10 (1) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in para11 graphs (2) through (4), the amount of a rebate pro12 vided under subsection (a) shall be $1,000 per meas13 ure for the installation of energy savings measures 

14 described in subsection (b). 

15 (2) HIGHER REBATE AMOUNT.—Except as pro16 vided in paragraph (4), the amount of a rebate pro17 vided under subsection (a) shall be $1,500 per meas18 ure for— 

19 (A) attic insulation and air sealing de20 scribed in subsection (b)(1) or (2); 

21 (B) wall insulation described in subsection 

22 (b)(4); and 

23 (C) an air-source air conditioner described 

24 in subsection (b)(9)(B)(i)(II). 


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1 (3) LOWER REBATE AMOUNT.—Except as pro2 vided in paragraph (4), the amount of a rebate pro3 vided under subsection (a) shall be— 

4 (A) $125 per door and per skylight for the 

5 installation of up to a maximum of 2 Energy 

6 Star doors and 2 Energy Star skylights de7 scribed in subsection (b)(7) for each home; 

8 (B) $400 for a maximum of 1 natural gas 

9 or propane storage water heater described in 

10 subsection (b)(11)(C) for each home; 

11 (C) $750 for a water heater described in 

12 subsection (b)(11)(B); 

13 (D) $250 for rim joist insulation described 

14 in subsection (b)(5)(B); 

15 (E) $50 for each storm window or door de16 scribed in subsection (b)(12), with a minimum 

17 of 5 storm windows or doors and a maximum 

18 of 12; 

19 (F) $250 each for a maximum of 4 electric 

20 tankless water heaters described in subsection 

21 (b)(11)(F) for each home; 

22 (G) $500 for window film described in sub23 section (b)(13); 

24 (H) $750 for heating system replacement 

25 described in subsection (b)(8)(A)(i)(I); 


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1 (I) $500 for a wood or pellet stove that 

2 has a heating capacity of at least 28,000 Btu 

3 per hour and meets all of the requirements of 

4 subsection (b)(8)(A)(v), except for the require5 ments of subclause (I)(aa) and subclause (II); 

6 and 

7 (J) $500 for a for a desuperheater as de8 scribed in subsection (b)(11)(H)(i). 

9 (4) MAXIMUM AMOUNT.—The total amount of 

10 rebates provided for a home under this section shall 

11 not exceed the lower of— 

12 (A) $3,000; 

13 (B) 50 percent of the total cost of the in14 stalled measures; or 

15 (C) if the Secretary finds that the net 

16 value to the homeowner of the rebates is less 

17 than the amount of the rebates, the actual net 

18 value to the homeowner. 

19 (e) VERIFICATION AND CORRECTION OF WORK.— 

20 (1) REIMBURSEMENT.—On submission of a 

21 claim by a rebate aggregator to the Federal Rebate 

22 Processing System, the Secretary shall provide reim23 bursement to the rebate aggregator for energy-effi24 ciency measures installed in a home, subject to para25 graphs (2) and (3). 


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1 (2) VERIFICATION.— 

2 (A) PERCENTAGE OF RETROFITS

3 VERIFIED.— 

4 (i) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided 

5 in clause (ii), not less than— 

6 (I) 20 percent of the retrofits 

7 performed by each qualified con8 tractor under this section with respect 

9 to a rebate described in subsection (a) 

10 shall be randomly subject to field 

11 verification by an independent quality 

12 assurance provider of all work associ13 ated with the retrofit; and 

14 (II) in the case of a qualified 

15 contractor that uses a certified work16 force, 10 percent of the retrofits per17 formed by that contractor under this 

18 section with respect to a rebate de19 scribed in subsection (a) shall be ran20 domly subject to field verification by 

21 an independent quality assurance pro22 vider of all work associated with the 

23 retrofit. 


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1 (ii) EXCEPTIONS.—In the case of a 

2 qualified contractor whose previous retrofit 

3 work— 

4 (I) the Secretary has found to 

5 fail to comply with the requirements 

6 of this section, the Secretary may es7 tablish a higher percentage of the ret8 rofits performed by that contractor 

9 under this section with respect to a 

10 rebate described in subsection (a) to 

11 be subject to field verification by an 

12 independent quality assurance pro13 vider; and 

14 (II) the Secretary has found to 

15 successfully comply with the require16 ments of this section, the Secretary 

17 may establish a lower percentage of 

18 the retrofits performed by that con19 tractor under this section with respect 

20 to a rebate described in subsection (a) 

21 to be subject to field verification by an 

22 independent quality assurance pro23 vider. 

24 (B) HOMEOWNER COMPLAINT.—Not later 

25 than 1 year after the completion of a project for 


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1 which rebates are sought, a homeowner may 

2 make a complaint under the quality assurance 

3 program that compliance with the required 

4 specifications for each measure or standards for 

5 installation have not been achieved. The quality 

6 assurance program shall provide that, upon re7 ceiving such a complaint, an independent qual8 ity assurance provider shall conduct field 

9 verification on the retrofit work performed by 

10 the contractor. Verifications under this sub11 paragraph shall be in addition to those con12 ducted under subparagraph (A), and shall be 

13 corrected in accordance with paragraph (3). 

14 (3) CORRECTION.—Rebates under subsection 

15 (a) shall be made subject to the following conditions: 

16 (A) The installed measures will comply 

17 with the specifications and quality standards 

18 under this section if a field verification by a 

19 quality assurance provider finds that corrective 

20 work is needed. Such compliance shall be 

21 achieved by the installing accredited contractor 

22 not later than 14 days after the date of notifi23 cation of a defect pursuant to a warranty, pro24 vided at no additional cost to the homeowner. 


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1 (B) A subsequent quality assurance visit 

2 shall be conducted to evaluate the remedy not 

3 later than 7 days after notification that the de4 fect has been corrected. 

5 (C) The quality assurance provider shall 

6 notify the contractor of the disposition of such 

7 visit not later than 7 days after the date of the 

8 visit. 

9 (4) ACCESS TO HOME.—In order to be eligible 

10 for a rebate, a homeowner shall agree to permit such 

11 access to the home, upon reasonable notice and at 

12 a mutually convenient time, as is necessary to verify 

13 and correct retrofit work. 

14 (f) PRODUCTS PURCHASED WITHOUT INSTALLATION

15 SERVICES.— 

16 (1) IN GENERAL.—A Silver Star Home Energy 

17 Retrofit Program rebate shall be awarded for attic, 

18 wall, and crawl space insulation and air-sealing 

19 products that— 

20 (A)(i) in the case of insulation, qualify as 

21 of the date of enactment of this Act for a tax 

22 credit under section 25C of the Internal Rev23 enue Code of 1986; and 

24 (ii) in the case of air sealing products, are 

25 sealants, caulks, insulating foams, gaskets, 


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1 weather-stripping, mastics, or other air sealing 

2 products described in subsection (b)(1); 

3 (B) are purchased by a homeowner for in4 stallation by the homeowner in a home identi5 fied by its address by the homeowner; 

6 (C) are accompanied by educational mate7 rials on proper installation of the products, in8 cluding materials emphasizing the importance 

9 of air sealing when insulating; and 

10 (D) are identified and attributed to that 

11 home in a rebate submission by the vendor to 

12 a rebate aggregator. 

13 (2) LIMITATION.—No rebate may be provided 

14 under this subsection with respect to insulation or 

15 products that are employed in energy-efficiency 

16 measures with respect to which a rebate is provided 

17 under this section or section 104. 

18 (3) AMOUNT OF REBATE.—A rebate under this 

19 subsection shall be awarded for 50 percent of the 

20 total cost of the products described in paragraph 

21 (1), not to exceed $250 per home. 

22 (g) REVIEW.— 

23 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall deter24 mine whether information submitted to the Federal 

25 Rebate Processing System with respect to a rebate 


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1 was complete, and on the basis of that information 

2 and other information available to the Secretary, 

3 shall determine whether the requirements of this sec4 tion were met in all respects. 

5 (2) INCORRECT PAYMENT.—On a determination 

6 of the Secretary under paragraph (1) that a pay7 ment was made incorrectly to a party, or that suffi8 cient information was not submitted to the Federal 

9 Rebate Processing System to enable such determina10 tion, the Secretary— 

11 (A) may— 

12 (i) recoup the amount of the incorrect 

13 payment; or 

14 (ii) withhold the amount of the incor15 rect payment from a payment made to the 

16 party pursuant to a subsequent request; 

17 and 

18 (B) shall, to the extent the Secretary de19 termines the benefit of the rebate was not 

20 passed through to the homeowner through a 

21 discount on the price of the retrofit work, order 

22 the contractor or vendor to pay the amount of 

23 rebate benefit not previously passed through to 

24 the homeowner. 


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1 SEC. 104. GOLD STAR HOME ENERGY RETROFIT PROGRAM. 

2 (a) IN GENERAL.—A Gold Star Home Energy Ret3 rofit Program rebate shall be awarded, subject to sub4 section (b) and the availability of funds pursuant to sec5 tion 109, to homeowners to reimburse the homeowners for 

6 work provided by participating accredited contractors and 

7 vendors for retrofits that achieve whole home energy sav8 ings carried out after the date of enactment of this Act 

9 in accordance with this section. 

10 (b) ELIGIBLE MEASURES.—Rebates may be provided 

11 under this section for— 

12 (1) any measure listed as eligible for Silver Star 

13 rebates in section 103; and 

14 (2) any other energy-saving measure, such as 

15 home energy management systems, high-efficiency 

16 appliances, highly reflective roofing, awnings, can17 opies, and similar external fenestration attachments, 

18 automatic boiler water temperature controllers, en19 ergy-efficient wood products, insulated vinyl siding, 

20 and mechanical air circulation and heat exchangers 

21 in a passive-solar home— 

22 (A) that can be demonstrated, when in23 stalled and operated as intended, to improve en24 ergy efficiency; and 

25 (B) for which an energy efficiency con26 tribution can be determined with confidence. 


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1 (c) ENERGY SAVINGS.— 

2 (1) IN GENERAL.—Reductions in whole home 

3 energy consumption under this section shall be de4 termined by a comparison of the simulated energy 

5 consumption of the home before and after the ret6 rofit of the home. 

7 (2) DOCUMENTATION.—The percent improve8 ment in energy consumption of a home under this 

9 section shall be documented through— 

10 (A)(i) the use of a whole home simulation 

11 software program that has been approved under 

12 the Weatherization Assistance Program for 

13 Low-Income Persons established under part A 

14 of title IV of the Energy Conservation and Pro15 duction Act (42 U.S.C. 6861 et seq.); or 

16 (ii) a equivalent performance test estab17 lished by the Secretary, in consultation with the 

18 Administrator; or 

19 (B)(i) the use of a whole home simulation 

20 software program that has been approved under 

21 RESNET Publication No. 06–001 (or a suc22 cessor publication approved by the Secretary); 

23 (ii) an equivalent performance test estab24 lished by the Secretary, in consultation with the 

25 Administrator; 


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1 (iii) a State-certified equivalent rating net2 work, as specified by IRS Notice 2008–35; or 

3 (iv) a HERS rating system approved or re4 quired by the law of the State in which the 

5 home is located. 

6 (3) MONITORING.—The Secretary— 

7 (A) shall continuously monitor the software 

8 programs used for determining rebates under 

9 this section; and 

10 (B) may disallow the use of software pro11 grams that improperly assess energy savings. 

12 (4) ASSUMPTIONS AND TESTING.—The Sec13 retary may— 

14 (A) establish simulation software program 

15 assumptions for carrying out paragraph (2); 

16 (B) require compliance with software pro17 gram performance tests covering— 

18 (i) mechanical system performance; 

19 (ii) duct distribution system efficiency; 

20 (iii) hot water performance; or 

21 (iv) other measures; and 

22 (C) require the simulation of pre-retrofit 

23 energy usage to be determined by verified pre24 retrofit energy usage. 


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1 (5) RECOMMENDED MEASURES.—Software pro2 grams used under this subsection shall have the abil3 ity at a minimum to assess the savings associated 

4 with all the measures for which rebates are specifi5 cally provided under the Silver Star Home Energy 

6 Retrofit Program. 

7 (d) AMOUNT OF REBATE.—Subject to subsection 

8 (e)(2), the amount of a rebate provided under this section 

9 shall be— 

10 (1) $3,000 for a 20-percent reduction in whole 

11 home energy consumption; and 

12 (2) an additional $1,000 for each additional 5- 

13 percent reduction up to the lower of— 

14 (A) $8,000; or 

15 (B) 50 percent of the total retrofit cost. 

16 (e) VERIFICATION AND CORRECTION OF WORK.— 

17 (1) REIMBURSEMENT.—On submission of a 

18 claim by a rebate aggregator to the Federal Rebate 

19 Processing System, the Secretary shall provide reim20 bursement to the rebate aggregator for energy-effi21 ciency measures installed in a home, subject to para22 graphs (2) and (3). 

23 (2) VERIFICATION.— 

24 (A) IN GENERAL.—Subject to subpara25 graph (B), all work and energy savings projecVerDate Mar 15 2010 21:39 May 07, 2010 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00049 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H5019.RFS H5019

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1 tions conducted with respect to a home as part 

2 of a whole-home retrofit by an accredited con3 tractor under this section shall be subject to 

4 random field verification by an independent 

5 quality assurance provider at a rate of— 

6 (i) 15 percent; or 

7 (ii) in the case of work performed by 

8 an accredited contractor using a certified 

9 workforce, 10 percent. 

10 (B) VERIFICATION NOT REQUIRED.—A 

11 home shall not be subject to field verification 

12 under subparagraph (A) if— 

13 (i) a post-retrofit home energy rating 

14 is conducted by an entity that is an eligible 

15 certifier in accordance with— 

16 (I) RESNET Publication No. 

17 06–001 (or a successor publication 

18 approved by the Secretary); 

19 (II) a State-certified equivalent 

20 rating network, as specified in IRS 

21 Notice 2008–35; or 

22 (III) a HERS rating system re23 quired by the law of the State in 

24 which the home is located; 


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1 (ii) the eligible certifier is independent 

2 of the accredited contractor in accordance 

3 with RESNET Publication No. 06–001 (or 

4 a successor publication approved by the 

5 Secretary); and 

6 (iii) the rating includes field 

7 verification of all measures for which re8 bates are being provided. 

9 (C) HOMEOWNER COMPLAINT.—Not later 

10 than 1 year after completion of a project for 

11 which rebates are sought, a homeowner may 

12 make a complaint under the quality assurance 

13 program that compliance with the quality assur14 ance requirements of this title has not been 

15 achieved. The quality assurance program shall 

16 provide that, upon receiving such a complaint, 

17 an independent quality assurance provider shall 

18 conduct field verification on the retrofit work 

19 performed by the contractor. Verifications 

20 under this subparagraph shall be in addition to 

21 those conducted under subparagraph (A), and 

22 shall be corrected in accordance with paragraph 

23 (3). 

24 (D) ACCESS TO HOME.—In order to be eli25 gible for a rebate, a homeowner shall agree to 


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1 permit such access to the home, upon reason2 able notice and at a mutually convenient time, 

3 as is necessary to verify and correct retrofit 

4 work. 

5 (3) CORRECTION.—Rebates under this section 

6 shall be made subject to the following conditions: 

7 (A) If a field verification by an inde8 pendent quality assurance provider finds that 

9 corrective work is needed, the accredited con10 tractor will correct the work so the installed 

11 measures comply with manufacturer and appli12 cable code standards, and reasonably deter13 mined energy savings projections indicate com14 pliance with the specifications and quality 

15 standards under this title. Such compliance 

16 shall be achieved not later than 14 days after 

17 the date of notification of a defect pursuant to 

18 a warranty, provided at no additional cost to 

19 the homeowner. 

20 (B) A subsequent quality assurance visit 

21 shall be conducted to evaluate the remedy not 

22 later than 7 days after notification that the de23 fect has been corrected. 

24 (C) The quality assurance provider shall 

25 notify the contractor of the disposition of such 


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1 visit not later than 7 days after the date of the 

2 visit. 

3 (f) REVIEW.— 

4 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall deter5 mine whether information submitted to the Federal 

6 Rebate Processing System with respect to a rebate 

7 was complete, and on the basis of that information 

8 and other information available to the Secretary, 

9 shall determine whether the requirements of this sec10 tion were met in all respects. 

11 (2) INCORRECT PAYMENT.—On a determination 

12 of the Secretary under paragraph (1) that a pay13 ment was made incorrectly to a party, or that suffi14 cient information was not submitted to the Federal 

15 Rebate Processing System to enable such determina16 tion, the Secretary may— 

17 (A) recoup the amount of the incorrect 

18 payment; or 

19 (B) withhold the amount of the incorrect 

20 payment from a payment made to the party 

21 pursuant to a subsequent request. 

22 (g) ACCREDITATION SCHOLARSHIPS.—The Secretary 

23 may provide up to 0.3 percent of the funding available 

24 for carrying out this section for need-based scholarships 

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1 tractors. In providing such scholarships, the Secretary 

2 shall factor in the number of accredited contractors in the 

3 State and their proportion to the State’s population. 

4 (h) EXCLUSION.—For purposes of this section, en5 ergy savings measures shall not include the installation or 

6 replacement of pool heaters. 

7 SEC. 105. QUALITY ASSURANCE. 

8 (a) QUALITY ASSURANCE FRAMEWORK.— 

9 (1) IN GENERAL.—States that elect to carry 

10 out a quality assurance program pursuant to sub11 section (b) shall plan, develop, and implement a 

12 quality assurance framework. The Secretary shall 

13 promptly solicit the submission of model State qual14 ity assurance framework plans consistent with the 

15 requirements of this section and, not later than 60 

16 days after the date of enactment of this Act, shall 

17 approve one or more such model plans that incor18 porate nationally consistent high standards for op19 tional use by States. Not later than 180 days after 

20 the date of enactment of this Act, each State elect21 ing to develop a quality assurance framework shall 

22 submit its plan to the Secretary, who shall then ap23 prove or reject such plan within 30 days, providing 

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1 jected. If a State’s plan is rejected, that State may 

2 resubmit its plan within 30 days. 

3 (2) IMPLEMENTATION.—A State shall— 

4 (A) develop a quality assurance framework 

5 in consultation with industry stakeholders, in6 cluding representatives of efficiency program 

7 managers, contractors, community and work8 force organizations, and environmental, energy 

9 efficiency, and labor organizations; and 

10 (B) implement the quality assurance 

11 framework not later than 1 year after the date 

12 of enactment of this Act. 

13 (3) COMPONENTS.—The quality assurance 

14 framework established under this subsection shall in15 clude— 

16 (A) minimum standards for accredited con17 tractors, including— 

18 (i) compliance with applicable Fed19 eral, State, and local laws; 

20 (ii) use of a certified workforce; 

21 (iii) maintenance of records needed to 

22 verify compliance; and 

23 (iv) use of independent contractors 

24 only when appropriately classified as such 

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1 tion 530(d) of the Revenue Act of 1978 

2 and relevant State law; 

3 (B) maintenance of a list of accredited 

4 contractors; 

5 (C) requirements for maintenance and de6 livery to the Federal Rebate Processing System 

7 of information needed to verify compliance and 

8 ensure appropriate compensation for quality as9 surance providers; 

10 (D) targets and realistic plans for— 

11 (i) the recruitment of minority, vet12 eran, and women-owned small business en13 terprises; 

14 (ii) the employment of graduates of 

15 training programs that primarily serve tar16 geted workers; and 

17 (iii) the employment of targeted work18 ers; 

19 (E) a plan to link workforce training for 

20 energy efficiency retrofits with training for the 

21 broader range of skills and occupations in con22 struction or emerging clean energy industries; 

23 (F) to the extent practicable, a plan to in24 corporate existing clean energy and energy effi25 ciency coursework, worker training programs, 


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1 and worker certification programs at commu2 nity colleges; 

3 (G) quarterly reports to the Secretary on 

4 the progress of implementation of the quality 

5 assurance framework and its success in meeting 

6 its targets and plans; and 

7 (H) maintenance of a list of qualified qual8 ity assurance providers and minimum standards 

9 for such quality assurance providers. 

10 (4) NONCOMPLIANCE.—If the Secretary deter11 mines that a State that has elected to implement a 

12 quality assurance program, but has failed to plan, 

13 develop, or implement a quality assurance frame14 work in accordance with this section, the Secretary 

15 shall suspend further grants for State administra16 tion pursuant to section 109(b)(1). 

17 (b) QUALITY ASSURANCE PROGRAMS.— 

18 (1) IN GENERAL.—A State may carry out a 

19 quality assurance program— 

20 (A) as part of a State energy conservation 

21 plan established under part D of title III of the 

22 Energy Policy and Conservation Act (42 U.S.C. 

23 6321 et seq.); 

24 (B) to be managed by the office or the des25 ignee of the office— 


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1 (i) that is responsible for the develop2 ment of the plan under section 362 of that 

3 Act (42 U.S.C. 6322); and 

4 (ii) to the maximum extent prac5 ticable, that is conducting an existing en6 ergy efficiency program; and 

7 (C) in the case of a grant made to an In8 dian tribe, to be managed by an entity des9 ignated by the Indian tribe to carry out a qual10 ity assurance program or a national quality as11 surance program manager. 

12 (2) NONCOMPLIANCE.—If the Secretary deter13 mines that a State has not provided or cannot pro14 vide adequate oversight over a quality assurance pro15 gram to ensure compliance with this title, the Sec16 retary may— 

17 (A) withhold further quality assurance 

18 funds from the State; and 

19 (B) require that quality assurance pro20 viders operating in the State be overseen by a 

21 national quality assurance program manager se22 lected by the Secretary. 

23 (3) IMPLEMENTATION.—A State that receives a 

24 grant under this title may implement a quality as25 surance program through the State or an indeVerDate Mar 15 2010 21:39 May 07, 2010 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00058 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H5019.RFS H5019

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1 pendent quality assurance provider designated by 

2 the State, including— 

3 (A) an energy service company; 

4 (B) an electric utility; 

5 (C) a natural gas utility; 

6 (D) an independent administrator des7 ignated by the State; or 

8 (E) a unit of local government. 

9 (4) APPEALS AND DISPUTE RESOLUTION PROC10 ESS.—A quality assurance program established 

11 under this subsection shall include an expedited and 

12 final appeals and dispute resolution process. 

13 SEC. 106. REPORTS. 

14 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall submit to the 

15 Committee on Energy and Natural Resources of the Sen16 ate and the Committee on Energy and Commerce of the 

17 House of Representatives a report on this title— 

18 (1) not later than 1 year after the date of en19 actment of this Act; and 

20 (2) not later than the earlier of— 

21 (A) 2 years after the date of enactment of 

22 this Act; or 

23 (B) December 31, 2012. 

24 (b) CONTENTS.—The report shall include a descrip25 tion of— 


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1 (1) the energy savings produced as a result of 

2 this title; 

3 (2) the direct and indirect employment created 

4 as a result of the programs supported under this 

5 title; 

6 (3) the specific entities implementing the en7 ergy efficiency programs; 

8 (4) the beneficiaries who received the efficiency 

9 improvements; 

10 (5) the manner in which funds provided under 

11 this title were used; 

12 (6) the sources (such as mortgage lenders, util13 ity companies, and local governments) and types of 

14 financing used by the beneficiaries to finance the 

15 retrofit expenses that were not covered by rebates 

16 provided under this title; 

17 (7) the results of verification requirements; and 

18 (8) any other information the Secretary con19 siders appropriate. 

20 (c) REQUIRED INFORMATION.— 

21 (1) REQUIREMENT.—Rebate aggregators and 

22 States participating in the Home Star Retrofit Re23 bate Program shall provide to the Secretary such in24 formation as the Secretary requires to prepare the 

25 report required under this section. 


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1 (2) NONCOMPLIANCE.—If the Secretary deter2 mines that a rebate aggregator or State has not pro3 vided the information required under paragraph (1), 

4 the Secretary shall provide to the rebate aggregator 

5 or State a period of at least 90 days to provide the 

6 necessary information, subject to withholding of 

7 funds or reduction of future grant amounts. 

8 (d) COMPTROLLER GENERAL STUDY.—Not later 

9 than 2 years after the date of enactment of this Act, the 

10 Comptroller General shall submit to Congress a report on 

11 the results of a study of— 

12 (1) how much money can reasonably be esti13 mated to be saved by American consumers as a re14 sult of the energy efficiency measures undertaken 

15 pursuant to this title; 

16 (2) how much energy can reasonably be esti17 mated to be saved as a result of the energy effi18 ciency measures undertaken pursuant to this title; 

19 and 

20 (3) whether the savings from the energy effi21 ciency measures undertaken pursuant to this title 

22 are greater than the cost of the implementation of 

23 this title. 


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1 SEC. 107. HEATING AND COOLING EFFICIENCY STUDY. 

2 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall submit to the 

3 Committee on Energy and Natural Resources of the Sen4 ate and the Committee on Energy and Commerce of the 

5 House of Representatives a study not later than 1 year 

6 after the date of enactment of this Act. 

7 (b) CONTENTS.—The study shall include a descrip8 tion of— 

9 (1) the efficiency through the life-cycle of air 

10 conditioning and heat pump products eligible under 

11 section 103; and 

12 (2) a comparison of the efficiency through the 

13 life-cycle of air conditioning and heat pump products 

14 eligible under section 103 to the efficiency through 

15 the life-cycle of air conditioning and heat pump 

16 products not eligible under section 103. 

17 SEC. 108. PENALTIES. 

18 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary may— 

19 (1) assess and compromise a civil penalty 

20 against a person who violates this title (or any regu21 lation issued under this title); and 

22 (2) require from any entity the records and in23 spections necessary to enforce this title. 

24 (b) CIVIL PENALTY.—A civil penalty assessed under 

25 subsection (a) shall be in an amount not greater than the 

26 higher of— 


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1 (1) $15,000 for each violation; or 

2 (2) 3 times the value of any associated rebate 

3 under this title. 

4 SEC. 109. FUNDING. 

5 (a) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.— 

6 (1) IN GENERAL.—Subject to subsection (i), 

7 there are authorized to be appropriated to carry out 

8 this title $6,000,000,000 for the period of fiscal 

9 years 2010 and 2011, to remain available until ex10 pended. 

11 (2) MAINTENANCE OF FUNDING.—Funds pro12 vided under this section shall supplement and not 

13 supplant any prior or planned Federal and State 

14 funding provided to carry out energy efficiency pro15 grams. To the extent the Secretary finds that a 

16 State has supplanted other such programs with 

17 funding under this section, the Secretary may with18 hold an equivalent amount of funding from alloca19 tions for the State under this title. 

20 (b) GRANTS TO STATES.— 

21 (1) DISTRIBUTION TO STATES.— 

22 (A) IN GENERAL.—Except as otherwise 

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1 thorized to be appropriated to the Secretary for 

2 providing grants to States, to be used for— 

3 (i) administrative costs of carrying 

4 out this title; 

5 (ii) development and implementation 

6 of quality assurance frameworks; 

7 (iii) oversight of quality assurance 

8 programs; 

9 (iv) establishment and delivery of fi10 nancing mechanisms, in accordance with 

11 paragraph (2); and 

12 (v) coordination with existing residen13 tial retrofit programs and infrastructure 

14 development to assist deployment of the 

15 Home Star Retrofit Rebate Program. 

16 (B) DISTRIBUTION.— 

17 (i) PROVISION OF FUNDS.—Not later 

18 than 30 days after the date of enactment 

19 of this Act, the Secretary shall provide to 

20 the State energy offices, or such other 

21 State entities as are designated by the 

22 Governor, of States that are carrying out 

23 responsibilities under section 105, 25 per24 cent of the funds described in subpara25 graph (A). 


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1 (ii) ALLOCATION.—Funds described 

2 in clause (i) shall be made available in ac3 cordance with the allocation formula for 

4 State energy conservation plans established 

5 under part D of title III of the Energy 

6 Policy and Conservation Act (42 U.S.C. 

7 6321 et seq.). 

8 (iii) FUND ALLOCATION PROCESS.— 

9 The Secretary shall allocate the remaining 

10 75 percent of the funds described in clause 

11 (i) in a manner that may vary from the 

12 formula described in clause (ii) as nec13 essary to best support the objectives of 

14 achieving energy efficiency gains, employ15 ment of underemployed workers, and im16 plementing quality assurance programs 

17 and frameworks in participating States. 

18 (2) FINANCING.— 

19 (A) IN GENERAL.—Except as otherwise 

20 provided in this subsection, of the amount pro21 vided under subsection (a), 5.4 percent is au22 thorized to be appropriated to the Secretary for 

23 carrying out section 109. 

24 (B) DISTRIBUTION.— 


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1 (i) PROVISION OF FUNDS.—Not later 

2 than 90 days after the date of enactment 

3 of this Act, the Secretary shall provide to 

4 the State energy offices, or such other 

5 State entities as are designated by the 

6 Governor, of States that are carrying out 

7 responsibilities under section 105, 75 per8 cent of the funds described in subpara9 graph (A). 

10 (ii) ALLOCATION.—Funds described 

11 in clause (i) shall be made available in ac12 cordance with the allocation formula for 

13 State energy conservation plans established 

14 under part D of title III of the Energy 

15 Policy and Conservation Act (42 U.S.C. 

16 6321 et seq.). 

17 (iii) FUND ALLOCATION PROCESS.— 

18 The Secretary shall allocate the remaining 

19 25 percent of the funds described in clause 

20 (i) in a manner that may vary from the 

21 formula described in clause (ii) and reward 

22 those States that make the best progress 

23 in providing loans to low-income areas pur24 suant to section 109(c)(4). 


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1 (3) WITHHOLDING OF FUNDS.—To the extent 

2 that the Secretary assumes the responsibilities of a 

3 State under section 101(i), the Secretary shall with4 hold the portion of the funds otherwise transferrable 

5 to the State under this section that are attributable 

6 to those State responsibilities. 

7 (4) INDIAN TRIBES.— 

8 (A) IN GENERAL.—If an Indian tribe acts 

9 in place of a State for purposes of carrying out 

10 the responsibilities of the State under this title 

11 with respect to its tribal lands pursuant to sec12 tion 101(h), the Secretary shall transfer to that 

13 Indian tribe, instead of the State, the propor14 tionate share of funds otherwise transferrable 

15 to the State under this section. 

16 (B) PROPORTIONATE SHARE.—For pur17 poses of subparagraph (A), the proportionate 

18 share shall be calculated on the basis of the 

19 percentage of the population of the State that 

20 resides within the tribal lands. 

21 (c) QUALITY ASSURANCE AND REBATE AGGREGA22 TION COSTS.— 

23 (1) IN GENERAL.—Of the amount provided 

24 under subsection (a), not more than 5 percent are 

25 authorized to be appropriated to the Secretary to be 


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1 used as provided in paragraph (2), in accordance 

2 with information provided by the State offices or en3 tities described in subsection (b)(1)(B)(ii) with re4 spect to services provided by quality assurance pro5 viders and rebate aggregators. 

6 (2) DISTRIBUTION TO QUALITY ASSURANCE

7 PROVIDERS OR REBATE AGGREGATORS.—The Sec8 retary shall use funds provided under this subsection 

9 to compensate quality assurance providers and re10 bate aggregators for services provided under this 

11 title. 

12 (3) COMPENSATION.—The amount of com13 pensation provided under this subsection shall be— 

14 (A)(i) in the case of the Silver Star Home 

15 Energy Retrofit Program— 

16 (I) not more than $25 to rebate 

17 aggregators per rebate review and proc18 essing under the program; and 

19 (II) $150 to quality assurance pro20 viders for each field inspection conducted 

21 under the program; and 

22 (ii) in the case of the Gold Star Home En23 ergy Retrofit Program— 


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1 (I) not more than $35 to rebate 

2 aggregators for each rebate review and 

3 processing under the program; and 

4 (II) $300 to quality assurance pro5 viders for each field inspection conducted 

6 under the program; or 

7 (B) such other amounts as the Secretary 

8 considers necessary to carry out the quality as9 surance provisions of this title to optimize the 

10 overall energy efficiency resulting from the Sil11 ver Star Home Energy Retrofit Program and 

12 the Gold Star Home Energy Retrofit Program. 

13 (d) TRACKING OF REBATES AND EXPENDITURES.— 

14 Of the amount provided under subsection (a), not more 

15 than 2.5 percent are authorized to be appropriated to the 

16 Secretary to be used for costs associated with tracking re17 bates and expenditures through the Federal Rebate Proc18 essing System under this title, technical assistance to 

19 States, and related administrative costs incurred by the 

20 Secretary. 

21 (e) SILVER STAR HOME ENERGY RETROFIT PRO22 GRAM.— 

23 (1) IN GENERAL.—Of the amount provided 

24 under subsection (a), after subtracting the amounts 

25 authorized in subsections (b) and (d) of this section, 


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1 two-thirds of the remainder are authorized to be ap2 propriated to the Secretary to be used to provide re3 bates and other payments authorized under the Sil4 ver Star Home Energy Retrofit Program. 

5 (2) PRODUCTS PURCHASED WITHOUT INSTAL6 LATION SERVICES.—Of the amounts appropriated 

7 pursuant to this subsection for the Silver Star pro8 gram, 7.5 percent shall be made available for rebates 

9 under section 103(f). 

10 (f) GOLD STAR HOME ENERGY RETROFIT PRO11 GRAM.—Of the amount provided under subsection (a), 

12 after subtracting the amounts authorized in subsections 

13 (b) and (d) of this section, one-third of the remainder is 

14 authorized to be appropriated to the Secretary to be used 

15 to provide rebates and other payments authorized under 

16 the Gold Star Home Energy Retrofit Program. 

17 (g) RETURN OF UNDISBURSED FUNDS.— 

18 (1) SILVER STAR HOME ENERGY RETROFIT

19 PROGRAM.—If the Secretary has not disbursed all 

20 the funds available for rebates under the Silver Star 

21 Home Energy Retrofit Program by the date that is 

22 1 year after the date of enactment of this Act, any 

23 undisbursed funds shall be made available to the 

24 Gold Star Home Energy Retrofit Program. 


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1 (2) GOLD STAR HOME ENERGY RETROFIT PRO2 GRAM.—If the Secretary has not disbursed all the 

3 funds available for rebates under the Gold Star 

4 Home Energy Retrofit Program by the date that is 

5 2 years after the date of enactment of this Act, any 

6 undisbursed funds shall be returned to the Treasury. 

7 (3) HOME STAR ENERGY EFFICIENCY LOAN

8 PROGRAM.—If a State, or the Secretary acting in 

9 lieu of a State program, has not disbursed or pro10 vided in the form of loans all the funds available for 

11 such loans under the Home Star Energy Efficiency 

12 Loan Program by the date that is 2 years after the 

13 date of enactment of this title, any undisbursed 

14 funds shall be returned to the Treasury. 

15 (h) SUNSET.—With the exception of the provisions 

16 of section 102(c)(5), (6), and (7), section 109, this sub17 section, and the relevant definitions in section 2 to those 

18 provisions, this title shall cease to be effective after De19 cember 31, 2012. Nothing in this subsection shall prevent 

20 a State from continuing to implement a quality assurance 

21 framework established pursuant to section 105. 

22 (i) PROHIBITION ON EARMARKS.—None of the funds 

23 appropriated pursuant to this section may be used for a 

24 Congressional earmark as defined in clause 9(e) of rule 

25 XXI of the Rules of the House of Representatives. 


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1 (j) ADMINISTRATIVE EXPENSE PROHIBITION.—No 

2 funds provided under this title shall be used for the pur3 poses of conducting travel to gambling or gaming estab4 lishments in connection with official duties related to this 

5 title. 

6 SEC. 110. NOISE ABATEMENT STUDY. 

7 Not later than 1 year after the date of enactment 

8 of this Act, the Secretary, in consultation with the Sec9 retary of Health and Human Services, shall submit to the 

10 Committee on Energy and Natural Resources of the Sen11 ate and the Committee on Energy and Commerce of the 

12 House of Representatives a study of the effects of the en13 ergy savings measures made as a result of this Act on 

14 noise abatement. 

15 TITLE II—ENERGY EFFICIENT 

16 MANUFACTURED AND MOD17 ULAR HOMES 

18 SEC. 201. ENERGY EFFICIENT MANUFACTURED AND MOD19 ULAR HOMES. 

20 (a) DEFINITIONS.—In this section: 

21 (1) MANUFACTURED HOME.—The term ‘‘manu22 factured home’’ has the meaning given such term in 

23 section 603 of the National Manufactured Housing 

24 Construction and Safety Standards Act of 1974 (42 

25 U.S.C. 5402). 


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1 (2) ENERGY STAR QUALIFIED MANUFACTURED

2 HOME.—The term ‘‘Energy Star qualified manufac3 tured home’’ means a manufactured home that has 

4 been designed, produced, and installed in accordance 

5 with Energy Star’s guidelines by an Energy Star 

6 certified plant. 

7 (3) MODULAR HOME.—The term ‘‘modular 

8 home’’ means a structure that is— 

9 (A) designed and manufactured to comply 

10 with applicable national, State, and local build11 ing codes and regulations; 

12 (B) transportable in one or more sections; 

13 (C) not constructed on a permanent chas14 sis; and 

15 (D) designed to be used as a dwelling on 

16 permanent foundations when connected to re17 quired utilities, including the plumbing, heating, 

18 air conditioning, and electrical systems con19 tained therein. 

20 (4) ENERGY STAR QUALIFIED MODULAR

21 HOME.—The term ‘‘Energy Star qualified modular 

22 home’’ means a modular home that has been de23 signed, produced, and installed in accordance with 

24 Energy Star’s guidelines. 


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1 (b) PURPOSE.—The purpose of this section is to as2 sist low-income households residing in manufactured 

3 homes constructed prior to 1976 to save energy and en4 ergy expenditures by providing funding for the purchase 

5 of new Energy Star qualified manufactured homes or new 

6 Energy Star qualified modular homes. 

7 (c) GRANTS TO STATE AGENCIES.— 

8 (1) GRANTS.—The Secretary may make grants 

9 to State agencies responsible for developing State 

10 energy conservation plans under section 362 of the 

11 Energy Policy and Conservation Act (42 U.S.C. 

12 6322) (or such other existing State agency that ex13 ercises similar functions as the Governor of a State 

14 may designate), to provide owners of manufactured 

15 homes constructed prior to 1976 funding to use to 

16 purchase new Energy Star qualified manufactured 

17 homes or new Energy Star qualified modular homes. 

18 (2) ALLOCATION OF GRANTS.—Grants under 

19 paragraph (1) shall be distributed to State agencies 

20 in States on the basis of their proportionate share 

21 of all manufactured homes constructed prior to 1976 

22 that are occupied as primary residences in the 

23 United States, based on the most recent and accu24 rate data available. 

25 (3) FUNDING.— 


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1 (A) PRIMARY RESIDENCE REQUIRE2 MENT.—Funding described under paragraph 

3 (1) may only be made to an owner of a manu4 factured home constructed prior to 1976 that 

5 has been used by the owner as a primary resi6 dence on a year-round basis for at least the pre7 vious 12 months. 

8 (B) DESTRUCTION AND REPLACEMENT.— 

9 Funding described under paragraph (1) may be 

10 provided only if the manufactured home con11 structed prior to 1976 will be— 

12 (i) destroyed (including appropriate 

13 recycling); and 

14 (ii) replaced, in an appropriate area, 

15 as determined by the applicable State 

16 agency, with an Energy Star qualified 

17 manufactured home or Energy Star quali18 fied modular home. 

19 (C) LIMITATION.—Funding described 

20 under paragraph (1) may not be provided to 

21 any owner of a manufactured home constructed 

22 prior to 1976 that was or is a member of a 

23 household for which any member of the house24 hold was provided funding pursuant to this sec25 tion. 


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1 (D) ELIGIBLE HOUSEHOLDS.—To be eligi2 ble to receive funding described under para3 graph (1), an owner of a manufactured home 

4 constructed prior to 1976 shall demonstrate to 

5 the applicable State agency that the total in6 come of all members the owner’s household does 

7 not exceed 80 percent of the area median in8 come in the applicable area, as determined by 

9 the Secretary. 

10 (E) LEASES.—To be eligible to receive 

11 funding described under paragraph (1), an 

12 owner of a manufactured home constructed 

13 prior to 1976 who intends to place the new En14 ergy Star qualified manufactured home or new 

15 Energy Star qualified modular home on prop16 erty leased from another person shall hold a 

17 lease to such property of at least 3 years in du18 ration. 

19 (4) FUNDING AMOUNT.—Funding provided by 

20 State agencies under this subsection shall not exceed 

21 $7,500 per manufactured home or modular home 

22 from any funds appropriated pursuant to this sec23 tion. 

24 (5) USE OF STATE FUNDS.—A State agency 

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1 ment the amount of such funding under paragraph 

2 (4) by any amount such agency approves if such ad3 ditional amount is from State funds and other 

4 sources, including private donations and grants or 

5 loans from charitable foundations. 

6 (6) STATE PROGRAMS.—A State agency con7 ducting a program that has the purpose of replacing 

8 manufactured homes constructed prior to 1976 with 

9 Energy Star qualified manufactured homes or En10 ergy Star qualified modular homes may use funds 

11 provided under this section to support such a pro12 gram, provided such funding does not exceed the 

13 funding limitation amount under paragraph (4). 

14 (7) ADMINISTRATION.— 

15 (A) CONTROLS AND PROCEDURES.—Each 

16 State agency receiving funds under this section 

17 shall establish fiscal controls and accounting 

18 procedures sufficient, as determined by the Sec19 retary, to ensure proper accounting for dis20 bursements made from such funds and fund 

21 balances. Such procedures shall conform to gen22 erally accepted Government accounting prin23 ciples. 

24 (B) COORDINATION WITH OTHER STATE

25 AGENCIES.—A State agency receiving funds 


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1 under this section may coordinate its efforts, 

2 and share funds for administration, with other 

3 State agencies or nonprofit organizations in4 volved in low-income housing programs. 

5 (C) ADMINISTRATIVE EXPENSES.—A State 

6 agency receiving funds under this section may 

7 expend not more than 10 percent of such funds 

8 for administrative expenses. 

9 (d) DECOMMISSIONING.—A person receiving funding 

10 under subsection (c) may also be provided not to exceed 

11 $2,500 for the decommissioning of the manufactured 

12 home being replaced. 

13 (e) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.— 

14 (1) IN GENERAL.—There are authorized to be 

15 appropriated to the Secretary to carry out this sec16 tion $200,000,000 for fiscal year 2010 and 

17 $400,000,000 for fiscal year 2011, to remain avail18 able until expended. 

19 (2) ADMINISTRATIVE EXPENSES.—Of the 

20 amounts available each fiscal year to carry out this 

21 section, the Secretary may expend not more than 5 

22 percent to pay administrative expenses. 

23 (3) PROHIBITION ON EARMARKS.—None of the 

24 funds appropriated pursuant to this subsection may 

25 be used for a Congressional earmark as defined in 


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1 clause 9(e) of rule XXI of the Rules of the House 

2 of Representatives. 

3 TITLE III—WASTE, FRAUD, AND 

4 ABUSE 

5 SEC. 301. REPORT. 

6 The Department of Energy’s Inspector General shall 

7 submit a report to Congress measuring the amount of 

8 waste, fraud, and abuse occurring in programs created by 

9 this Act, which shall include recommendations to prevent 

10 additional waste, fraud, and abuse. This report shall be 

11 submitted before July 1, 2012. 

12 TITLE IV—DEFICIT NEUTRALITY 

13 SEC. 401. SUNSET. 

14 The provisions of this Act shall be suspended and 

15 shall not apply if this Act will have a negative net effect 

16 on the national budget deficit of the United States. 

Passed the House of Representatives May 6, 2010. 

Attest: LORRAINE C. MILLER, 

Clerk. 


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