I 

111TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION H. R. 5019 

To provide for the establishment of the Home Star Retrofit Rebate Program, 

and for other purposes. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

APRIL 14, 2010 

Mr. WELCH (for himself, Mr. EHLERS, Mr. MARKEY of Massachusetts, Mr. 

WAXMAN, and Mr. CARDOZA) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Energy and Commerce, and in addition to 

the Committee on Ways and Means, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions 

as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned 

A BILL 

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, 

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

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

5 Retrofit Act of 2010’’. 

6 SEC. 2. DEFINITIONS. 

7 In this Act: 


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1 (1) ACCREDITED CONTRACTOR.—The term ‘‘ac2 credited contractor’’ means a qualified contractor 

3 that is accredited— 

4 (A) by the BPI; or 

5 (B) under other standards approved by the 

6 Secretary, in consultation with the Adminis7 trator. 

8 (2) ADMINISTRATOR.—The term ‘‘Adminis9 trator’’ means the Administrator of the Environ10 mental Protection Agency. 

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

12 Performance Institute. 

13 (4) CERTIFIED WORKFORCE.—The term ‘‘cer14 tified workforce’’ means a residential energy effi15 ciency construction workforce in which all employees 

16 performing installation work are certified in the ap17 propriate job skills under— 

18 (A) an applicable third party skills stand19 ard established by— 

20 (i) BPI; 

21 (ii) North American Technician Excel22 lence; 

23 (iii) the Laborers’ International Union 

24 of North America; or 


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1 (B) other standards approved by the Sec2 retary, in consultation with the Secretary of 

3 Labor and the Administrator. 

4 (5) CONDITIONED SPACE.—The term ‘‘condi5 tioned space’’ means the area of a home that is— 

6 (A) intended for habitation; and 

7 (B) intentionally heated or cooled. 

8 (6) DOE.—The term ‘‘DOE’’ means the De9 partment of Energy. 

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

11 utility’’ means any person, State agency, rural elec12 tric cooperative, municipality, or other governmental 

13 entity that delivers or sells electric energy at retail, 

14 including nonregulated utilities and utilities that are 

15 subject to State regulation and Federal power mar16 keting administrations. 

17 (8) EPA.—The term ‘‘EPA’’ means the Envi18 ronmental Protection Agency. 

19 (9) FEDERAL REBATE PROCESSING SYSTEM.— 

20 The term ‘‘Federal Rebate Processing System’’ 

21 means the Federal Rebate Processing System estab22 lished under section 3(b). 

23 (10) GOLD STAR HOME ENERGY RETROFIT PRO24 GRAM.—The term ‘‘Gold Star Home Energy Retrofit 


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1 Program’’ means the Gold Star Home Energy Ret2 rofit Program established under section 6. 

3 (11) HOME.—The term ‘‘home’’ means a prin4 cipal residential dwelling unit in a building with no 

5 more than 4 dwelling units that— 

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

7 (B) was constructed before the date of en8 actment of this Act. 

9 (12) HOME STAR LOAN PROGRAM.—The term 

10 ‘‘Home Star Loan Program’’ means the Home Star 

11 Energy Efficiency Loan Program established under 

12 section 12. 

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

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

15 Indian Self-Determination and Education Assistance 

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

17 (14) NATIONAL HOME PERFORMANCE COUN18 CIL.—The term ‘‘National Home Performance Coun19 cil’’ means the National Home Performance Council, 

20 Inc. 

21 (15) NATURAL GAS UTILITY.—The term ‘‘nat22 ural gas utility’’ means any person or State agency 

23 that transports, distributes, or sells natural gas at 

24 retail, including nonregulated utilities and utilities 

25 that are subject to State regulation. 


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1 (16) QUALIFIED CONTRACTOR.—The term 

2 ‘‘qualified contractor’’ means a residential energy ef3 ficiency contractor meeting minimum applicable re4 quirements as determined under section 3(c). 

5 (17) QUALITY ASSURANCE PROGRAM.— 

6 (A) IN GENERAL.—The term ‘‘quality as7 surance program’’ means a program authorized 

8 under this Act to oversee the delivery of home 

9 efficiency retrofit programs to ensure that work 

10 is performed in accordance with standards and 

11 criteria established under this Act. 

12 (B) INCLUSIONS.—For purposes of sub13 paragraph (A), delivery of retrofit programs in14 cludes field inspections required under this Act, 

15 with the consent of participating consumers and 

16 without delaying rebate payments to partici17 pating contractors and vendors. 

18 (18) QUALITY ASSURANCE PROVIDER.— 

19 (A) IN GENERAL.—The term ‘‘quality as20 surance provider’’ means any entity that is au21 thorized pursuant to this Act to perform field 

22 inspections and other measures required to con23 firm the compliance of retrofit work with the 

24 requirements of this Act. 


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1 (B) CERTIFICATION REQUIREMENT.—To 

2 be considered a quality assurance provider 

3 under this paragraph, an entity shall be cer4 tified through— 

5 (i) the International Code Council; 

6 (ii) the BPI; 

7 (iii) the RESNET; 

8 (iv) a State; 

9 (v) a State-approved residential en10 ergy efficiency retrofit program; or 

11 (vi) any other entity designated for 

12 such purpose by the Secretary, in consulta13 tion with the Administrator. 

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

15 aggregator’’ means an entity that meets the require16 ments of section 4. 

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 5. 

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


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1 (A) a State; 

2 (B) the District of Columbia; 

3 (C) the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico; 

4 (D) Guam; 

5 (E) American Samoa; 

6 (F) the United States Virgin Islands; 

7 (G) the Northern Mariana Islands; and 

8 (H) any other commonwealth, territory, or 

9 possession of the United States. 

10 SEC. 3. HOME STAR RETROFIT REBATE PROGRAM. 

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

12 Home Star Retrofit Rebate Program. 

13 (b) FEDERAL REBATE PROCESSING SYSTEM.— 

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

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

16 consultation with the Secretary of the Treasury and 

17 the Administrator, shall— 

18 (A) establish a Federal Rebate Processing 

19 System which shall serve as a database and in20 formation technology system to allow rebate 

21 aggregators to submit claims for reimbursement 

22 using standard data protocols; 

23 (B) establish a national retrofit website 

24 that provides information on the Home Star 

25 Retrofit Rebate Program, including how to deVerDate Nov 24 2008 01:52 Apr 15, 2010 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00007 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H5019.IH H5019

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1 termine whether particular energy efficiency 

2 measures are eligible for rebate and how to par3 ticipate in the program; and 

4 (C) publish model forms and data proto5 cols for use by contractors, vendors, and quality 

6 assurance providers to comply with the require7 ments of this Act. 

8 (2) MODEL CERTIFICATION FORMS.—In car9 rying out this section, the Secretary shall consider 

10 the model certification forms developed by the Na11 tional Home Performance Council. 

12 (c) QUALIFIED CONTRACTOR REQUIREMENTS.—A 

13 qualified contractor may perform retrofit work for which 

14 rebates are authorized under this Act only if it executes 

15 a Home Star participation agreement with a rebate 

16 aggregator affirming that it meets applicable require17 ments, including— 

18 (1) all applicable State contractor licensing re19 quirements or, with respect to a State that has no 

20 such requirements, any appropriate comparable re21 quirements established under paragraph (6); 

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

23 for general liability, and for such other purposes and 

24 in such other amounts as may be required by the 

25 State; 


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1 (3) agreeing to provide warranties to home2 owners that completed work will— 

3 (A) be free of significant defects; 

4 (B) be installed in accordance with the 

5 specifications of the manufacturer; and 

6 (C) perform properly for a period of at 

7 least 1 year after the date of completion of the 

8 work; 

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

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

11 all rebates received under this Act with respect to 

12 the home; 

13 (5) agreeing to provide to the homeowner a no14 tice of— 

15 (A) the amount of the rebate the con16 tractor intends to apply for with respect to the 

17 eligible work under this Act, before a contract 

18 is executed between the contractor and a home19 owner covering the eligible work; and 

20 (B) the means by which the rebate will be 

21 passed through as a discount to the homeowner; 

22 and 

23 (6) any other appropriate requirements as de24 termined by the Secretary, in consultation with the 

25 Administrator. 


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1 (d) ADMINISTRATIVE AND TECHNICAL SUPPORT.— 

2 Subject to section 13 (b) and (c), beginning not later than 

3 30 days after the date of enactment of this Act, the Sec4 retary shall provide such administrative and technical sup5 port to rebate aggregators and States as is necessary to 

6 carry out this Act. 

7 (e) ADMINISTRATION.— 

8 (1) APPOINTMENT OF PERSONNEL.—Notwith9 standing the provisions of title 5, United States 

10 Code, governing appointments in the competitive 

11 service and General Schedule classifications and pay 

12 rates, the Secretary may appoint such professional 

13 and administrative personnel as the Secretary con14 siders necessary to carry out this Act. 

15 (2) RATE OF PAY.—The rate of pay for a per16 son appointed under paragraph (1) shall not exceed 

17 the maximum rate payable for GS–15 of the General 

18 Schedule under chapter 53 of title 5, United States 

19 Code. 

20 (3) CONSULTANTS.—Notwithstanding section 

21 303 of the Federal Property and Administrative 

22 Services Act of 1949 (41 U.S.C. 253), the Secretary 

23 may retain such consultants on a noncompetitive 

24 basis as the Secretary considers necessary to carry 

25 out this Act. 


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1 (4) CONTRACTING.—In carrying out this Act, 

2 the Secretary may waive all or part of any provision 

3 of the Competition in Contracting Act of 1984 (Pub4 lic Law 98–369; 98 Stat. 1175), an amendment 

5 made by that Act, or the Federal Acquisition Regu6 lation on a determination that circumstances make 

7 compliance with the provisions contrary to the public 

8 interest. 

9 (5) REGULATIONS.— 

10 (A) IN GENERAL.—Notwithstanding sec11 tion 553 of title 5, United States Code, the Sec12 retary may issue regulations that the Secretary, 

13 in the sole discretion of the Secretary, deter14 mines necessary to— 

15 (i) establish; 

16 (ii) achieve full operational status 

17 within 60 days after the date of enactment 

18 of this Act for; or 

19 (iii) carry out, 

20 the Home Star Retrofit Rebate Program. 

21 (B) TIMING.—If the Secretary determines 

22 that regulations described in subparagraph (A) 

23 are necessary, the regulations shall be issued 

24 not later than 60 days after such determina25 tion. 


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1 (6) INFORMATION COLLECTION.—Chapter 35 of 

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

3 information collection requirement necessary for the 

4 implementation of the Home Star Retrofit Rebate 

5 Program. 

6 (7) EFFECTIVE PERIOD.—Paragraphs (1), (3), 

7 (4), (5), and (6) shall be effective only for fiscal 

8 years 2010 and 2011. 

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

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

11 prepare and transmit to Congress a State-by-State anal12 ysis and review the distribution of Home Star retrofit re13 bates under this Act. 

14 (g) ADJUSTMENT OF REBATE AMOUNTS.—Effective 

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

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

17 than 30 days public notice, prospectively adjust the rebate 

18 amounts provided for under this Act as necessary to opti19 mize the overall energy efficiency resulting from the Silver 

20 Star Home Energy Retrofit Program and the Gold Star 

21 Home Energy Retrofit Program. 

22 (h) INDIAN TRIBE PARTICIPATION.— 

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

24 days after the date of enactment of this Act, may in25 dicate to the Secretary its intention to act in place 


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1 of a State for purposes of carrying out the respon2 sibilities of the State under this Act with respect to 

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

4 Secretary shall treat the Indian tribe as the State 

5 for purposes of carrying out this Act with respect to 

6 those tribal lands. 

7 (2) TRANSITION OF RESPONSIBILITIES.—The 

8 Secretary may permit an Indian tribe, after the expi9 ration of 30 days after the date of enactment of this 

10 Act, to assume the responsibilities of a State under 

11 this Act with respect to its tribal lands if the Sec12 retary finds that such assumption of responsibilities 

13 will not disrupt the ongoing administration of the 

14 program under this Act. 

15 (3) COOPERATION.—An Indian tribe may co16 operate with a State or the Secretary to ensure that 

17 all of the requirements of this Act are carried out 

18 with respect to the tribal lands. 

19 (i) IMPLEMENTATION BY SECRETARY.— 

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

21 to the Secretary within 30 days after the date of en22 actment of this Act that it is prepared to carry out 

23 section 7, or if at any later time the Secretary deter24 mines that a State is no longer prepared to carry 

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1 sumes such responsibilities under subsection (h) the 

2 Secretary shall assume the responsibilities of that 

3 State with respect to carrying out section 7. 

4 (2) TRANSITION OF RESPONSIBILITIES.—The 

5 Secretary may permit a State, after the Secretary 

6 has assumed the responsibilities of that State under 

7 paragraph (1), to assume the responsibilities as8 signed to States under section 7 with respect to that 

9 State if the Secretary finds that such assumption of 

10 responsibilities will not disrupt the ongoing adminis11 tration of the program under this Act. 

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

13 both section 5 and section 6 with respect to the same 

14 home. 

15 (k) FORMS FOR CERTIFICATION AND QUALITY AS16 SURANCE.— 

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

18 the date of enactment of this Act, the Secretary 

19 shall make available on the website established 

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

21 forms for compliance with quality assurance require22 ments under this Act, to be submitted by— 

23 (A) each qualified contractor, accredited 

24 contractor, and quality assurance provider on 


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1 completion of an eligible home energy retrofit; 

2 and 

3 (B) each quality assurance provider on 

4 completion of field verification required under 

5 this section. 

6 (2) NATIONAL HOME PERFORMANCE COUN7 CIL.—The Secretary, States, and Indian tribes shall 

8 consider and may use model certification forms de9 veloped by the National Home Performance Council 

10 to ensure compliance with quality assurance require11 ments under this Act. 

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

13 receives a grant under this Act is encouraged to form part14 nerships with utilities, energy service companies, and other 

15 entities— 

16 (1) to assist in marketing the Home Star Ret17 rofit Rebate Program; 

18 (2) to facilitate consumer financing; 

19 (3) to assist in implementation of the Silver 

20 Star Home Energy Retrofit Program and the Gold 

21 Star Home Energy Retrofit Program, including in22 stallation of qualified energy retrofit measures; and 

23 (4) to assist in implementing quality assurance 

24 programs. 


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1 (m) COORDINATION OF REBATE AND EXISTING

2 STATE-SPONSORED PROGRAMS.— 

3 (1) IN GENERAL.—A State shall, to the max4 imum extent practicable, prevent duplication through 

5 coordination of a program authorized under this Act 

6 with— 

7 (A) the Energy Star appliance rebates pro8 gram authorized under section 124 of the En9 ergy Policy Act of 2005 (42 U.S.C. 15821), 

10 and any other Federal programs that provide 

11 funds to States for home or appliance energy 

12 efficiency purposes; and 

13 (B) comparable programs planned or oper14 ated by States, political subdivisions, electric 

15 and natural gas utilities, Federal power mar16 keting administrations, and Indian tribes. 

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

18 subsection, a State shall— 

19 (A) give priority to— 

20 (i) comprehensive retrofit programs in 

21 existence on the date of enactment of this 

22 Act, including programs under the super23 vision of State utility regulators; and 


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1 (ii) using funds made available under 

2 this Act to enhance and extend existing 

3 programs; and 

4 (B) seek to enhance and extend existing 

5 programs by coordinating with administrators 

6 of the programs. 

7 (n) HEALTH AND SAFETY REQUIREMENTS.—Noth8 ing in this Act shall relieve any contractor from the obliga9 tion to comply with applicable Federal, State, and local 

10 health and safety code requirements. 

11 SEC. 4. REBATE AGGREGATORS. 

12 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall develop a net13 work of rebate aggregators that can facilitate the delivery 

14 of rebates to participating contractors and vendors, to re15 imburse those contractors and vendors for discounts pro16 vided to homeowners for energy efficiency retrofit work. 

17 The Secretary shall approve or deny an application from 

18 a person seeking to become a rebate aggregator not later 

19 than 30 days after receiving such application. 

20 (b) AVAILABILITY.—Not later than 90 days after the 

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

22 that rebate aggregation services are available to all home23 owners in the United States at the lowest reasonable cost. 

24 (c) RESPONSIBILITIES.—Rebate aggregators shall— 


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1 (1) review each proposed rebate application for 

2 completeness and accuracy; 

3 (2) review all measures for which rebates are 

4 sought for eligibility in accordance with this Act; 

5 (3) provide data to the Secretary for inclusion 

6 in the database maintained through the Federal Re7 bate Processing System, consistent with data proto8 cols established by the Secretary; 

9 (4) not later than 30 days after the date of re10 ceipt, distribute funds received from the Secretary to 

11 contractors, vendors, or other persons in accordance 

12 with approved claims for reimbursement made to the 

13 Federal Rebate Processing System; 

14 (5) maintain appropriate accounting for rebate 

15 applications processed, and their disposition; 

16 (6) review contractor qualifications and accredi17 tation and retain documentation of such qualifica18 tion and accreditation, as required for contractors to 

19 be authorized to perform residential energy effi20 ciency retrofit work under this Act; and 

21 (7) maintain information regarding contractors’ 

22 fulfillment of the requirements of section 3(c). 

23 (d) ELIGIBILITY.—To be eligible to apply to the Sec24 retary for approval as a rebate aggregator, an entity— 

25 (1) shall be— 


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1 (A) a Home Performance with Energy 

2 Star partner; 

3 (B) an entity administering a residential 

4 energy efficiency retrofit program established or 

5 approved by a State; 

6 (C) a Federal power marketing administra7 tion; 

8 (D) an electric utility or a natural gas util9 ity administering or offering a residential en10 ergy efficiency retrofit program; or 

11 (E) an entity— 

12 (i) with corporate status or status as 

13 a State or local government; 

14 (ii) who can demonstrate adequate fi15 nancial capability to manage a rebate 

16 aggregator program, as evidenced by au17 dited financial records; and 

18 (iii) whose participation in the pro19 gram, in the judgment of the Secretary, 

20 would not disrupt existing residential ret21 rofit programs in the States that are car22 rying out the Home Star Retrofit Rebate 

23 Program under this Act; 

24 (2) must be able to demonstrate— 


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1 (A) a relationship with 1 or more inde2 pendent quality assurance providers that is suf3 ficient to meet the volume of contracting serv4 ices delivered; 

5 (B) the capability to provide such elec6 tronic data as is required by the Secretary to 

7 the Federal Rebate Processing System; and 

8 (C) a financial system that is capable of 

9 tracking the distribution of rebates to partici10 pating contractors and vendors; and 

11 (3) shall include in its application the amount 

12 it proposes to charge for the review and processing 

13 of a rebate under this Act. 

14 (e) PUBLIC UTILITY COMMISSION EFFICIENCY TAR15 GETS.—The Secretary shall— 

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

17 utilities participating as rebate aggregators to count 

18 the energy savings from their participation toward 

19 State-level energy savings targets; and 

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

21 of these guidelines for the purposes and duration of 

22 the Home Star Retrofit Rebate Program. 

23 SEC. 5. SILVER STAR HOME ENERGY RETROFIT PROGRAM. 

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

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


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1 Retrofit Program rebate shall be awarded, subject to the 

2 maximum amount limitations under subsection (d)(4), to 

3 participating contractors and vendors, to reimburse them 

4 for discounts provided to the owner of the home for the 

5 retrofit work, for the installation of energy savings meas6 ures— 

7 (1) selected from the list of energy savings 

8 measures described in subsection (b); 

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

10 Act in the home by a qualified contractor; and 

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

12 (b) ENERGY SAVINGS MEASURES.—Subject to sub13 section (c), a rebate shall be awarded under subsection 

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

15 measures for a home energy retrofit that meet technical 

16 standards established under this section: 

17 (1) Whole house air-sealing measures, in ac18 cordance with BPI standards or other procedures 

19 approved by the Secretary. 

20 (2) Attic insulation measures that— 

21 (A) include sealing of air leakage between 

22 the attic and the conditioned space, in accord23 ance with BPI standards or the attic portions 

24 of the DOE or EPA thermal bypass checklist or 

25 other procedures approved by the Secretary; 


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1 (B) add at least R–19 insulation to exist2 ing insulation; 

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

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

5 49 insulation in DOE climate zones 5 through 

6 8, including existing insulation, within the lim7 its of structural capacity; and 

8 (D) cover at least— 

9 (i) 100 percent of an accessible attic; 

10 or 

11 (ii) 75 percent of a total conditioned 

12 space floor area. 

13 (3) Duct seal or replacement that— 

14 (A) is installed in accordance with BPI 

15 standards or other procedures approved by the 

16 Secretary; and 

17 (B) in the case of duct replacement, re18 places at least 50 percent of a distribution sys19 tem of the home. 

20 (4) Wall insulation that— 

21 (A) is installed in accordance with BPI 

22 standards or other procedures approved by the 

23 Secretary; 

24 (B) is to full-stud thickness; and 


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

2 external wall area of the home. 

3 (5) Crawl space insulation or basement wall 

4 and rim joist insulation that is installed in accord5 ance with BPI standards or other procedures ap6 proved by the Secretary and— 

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

8 space or basement wall and adds at least— 

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

10 of continuous insulation to existing crawl 

11 space insulation; or 

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

13 of continuous insulation to basement walls; 

14 and 

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

16 R–10 of new continuous or R–13 of cavity insu17 lation. 

18 (6) Window replacement that replaces at least 

19 8 exterior windows or skylights, or 75 percent of the 

20 exterior windows and skylights in a home, whichever 

21 is less, with windows or skylights that— 

22 (A) are certified by the National Fenestra23 tion Rating Council; and 


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1 (B) comply with criteria applicable to win2 dows and skylights under section 25(c) of the 

3 Internal Revenue Code of 1986. 

4 (7) Door replacement that replaces at least 1 

5 exterior door with doors that comply with criteria 

6 applicable to doors under section 25(c) of the Inter7 nal Revenue Code of 1986. 

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

9 (i) a natural gas or propane furnace with 

10 a furnace that has an AFUE rating of 92 or 

11 greater; 

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

13 boiler that has an AFUE rating of 90 or great14 er; 

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

16 an AFUE rating of 86 or greater and that uses 

17 an electrically commutated blower motor; 

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

19 AFUE rating of 86 or greater and that has 

20 temperature reset or thermal purge controls; or 

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

22 or stove, if— 

23 (I) the new system— 

24 (aa) meets at least 75 percent of 

25 the heating demands of the home; 


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1 (bb) has a distribution system 

2 (such as ducts or vents) that allows 

3 heat to reach all or most parts of the 

4 home; and 

5 (cc) in the case of a wood stove, 

6 replaces an existing wood stove; and 

7 (II) an independent test laboratory 

8 approved by the Secretary certifies that 

9 the new system— 

10 (aa) has thermal efficiency (lower 

11 heating value) of at least 75 percent 

12 for stoves and 80 percent for furnaces 

13 and boilers; and 

14 (bb) has particulate emissions of 

15 less than 4.5 grams per hour for 

16 stoves. 

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 conditioner or heat pump replacement 

23 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 conditioner, 

3 SEER 16 and EER 13; and 

4 (ii) in the case of a heat pump, SEER 

5 15, EER 12.5, and HSPF 8.5. 

6 (10) Heating or cooling system replacement 

7 with an Energy Star qualified geothermal heat pump 

8 that meets Tier 2 efficiency requirements and that 

9 is installed in accordance with ANSI/ACCA Stand10 ard 5 QI–2007. 

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

12 electric water heater with— 

13 (A) a natural gas or propane storage water 

14 heater with an energy factor of 0.80 or more or 

15 a thermal efficiency of 90 percent or more; 

16 (B) a tankless natural gas or propane 

17 water heater with an energy factor of at least 

18 .82; 

19 (C) a natural gas or propane storage water 

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

21 (D) an indirect water heater with an insu22 lated storage tank that— 

23 (i) has a storage capacity of at least 

24 30 gallons and is insulated to at least R– 

25 16; and 


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1 (ii) is installed in conjunction with a 

2 qualifying boiler described in paragraph 

3 (8); 

4 (E) an electric water heater with an energy 

5 factor of 2.0 or more; 

6 (F) an electric tankless water heater with 

7 an efficiency factor of .96 or more, that oper8 ates on not greater than 25 kilowatts; 

9 (G) a solar hot water system that— 

10 (i) is certified by the Solar Rating and 

11 Certification Corporation; or 

12 (ii) meets technical standards estab13 lished by the State of Hawaii; or 

14 (H) a water heater installed in conjunction 

15 with a qualifying geothermal heat pump de16 scribed in paragraph (10) that provides domes17 tic water heating through the use of a 

18 desuperheater or demand water heating capa19 bility. 

20 (12) Storm windows that— 

21 (A) are installed on at least 5 existing sin22 gle-glazed windows that do not have storm win23 dows; 


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1 (B) are installed in a home listed on or eli2 gible for listing in the National Register of His3 toric Places; and 

4 (C) comply with any procedures that the 

5 Secretary may set for storm windows and their 

6 installation. 

7 (c) INSTALLATION COSTS.—Measures described in 

8 paragraphs (1) through (12) of subsection (b) shall in9 clude expenditures for labor and other installation-related 

10 costs properly allocable to the onsite preparation, assem11 bly, or original installation of the component. 

12 (d) AMOUNT OF REBATE.— 

13 (1) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in para14 graphs (2) through (4), the amount of a rebate pro15 vided under subsection (a) shall be $1,000 per meas16 ure for the installation of energy savings measures 

17 described in subsection (b). 

18 (2) HIGHER REBATE AMOUNT.—Except as pro19 vided in paragraph (4), the amount of a rebate pro20 vided under subsection (a) shall be $1,500 per meas21 ure for— 

22 (A) attic insulation and air sealing de23 scribed in subsection (b) (1) or (2); and 

24 (B) wall insulation described in subsection 

25 (b)(4). 


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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 for the installation of 

5 up to a maximum of 2 Energy Star doors de6 scribed in subsection (b)(7) for each home; 

7 (B) $250 for a maximum of 1 natural gas 

8 or propane storage water heater described in 

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

10 (C) $250 for rim joist insulation described 

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

12 (D) $50 for each storm window described 

13 in subsection (b)(11), with a minimum of 5 

14 storm windows and a maximum of 12; and 

15 (E) $250 each for a maximum of 4 electric 

16 tankless water heaters described in subsection 

17 (b)(10)(F) for each home. 

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

19 rebates provided for a home under this section shall 

20 not exceed the lower of— 

21 (A) $3,000; 

22 (B) 50 percent of the total cost of the in23 stalled measures; or 

24 (C) if the Secretary finds that the net 

25 value to the homeowner of the rebates, as a 


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1 function of the discount the contractor or ven2 dor provides to the homeowner for the installed 

3 measures, is less than the amount of the re4 bates, the actual net value to the homeowner. 

5 (e) VERIFICATION AND CORRECTION OF WORK.— 

6 (1) REIMBURSEMENT.—On submission of a 

7 claim by a rebate aggregator to the Federal Rebate 

8 Processing System, the Secretary shall provide reim9 bursement to the rebate aggregator for energy-effi10 ciency measures installed in a home, subject to para11 graphs (2) and (3). 

12 (2) VERIFICATION.— 

13 (A) PERCENTAGE OF RETROFITS

14 VERIFIED.— 

15 (i) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided 

16 in clause (ii), not less than— 

17 (I) 20 percent of the retrofits 

18 performed by each qualified con19 tractor under this section with respect 

20 to a rebate described in subsection (a) 

21 shall be randomly subject to field 

22 verification by an independent quality 

23 assurance provider of all work associ24 ated with the retrofit; and 


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1 (II) in the case of a qualified 

2 contractor that always uses a certified 

3 workforce, 10 percent of the retrofits 

4 performed by that contractor under 

5 this section with respect to a rebate 

6 described in subsection (a) shall be 

7 randomly subject to field verification 

8 by an independent quality assurance 

9 provider of all work associated with 

10 the retrofit. 

11 (ii) EXCEPTIONS.—In the case of a 

12 qualified contractor whose previous retrofit 

13 work— 

14 (I) the Secretary or the State has 

15 found to fail to comply with the re16 quirements of this section, the Sec17 retary may establish a higher percent18 age of the retrofits performed by that 

19 contractor under this section with re20 spect to a rebate described in sub21 section (a) to be subject to field 

22 verification by an independent quality 

23 assurance provider; and 

24 (II) the Secretary or the State 

25 has found to successfully comply with 


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1 the requirements of this section, the 

2 Secretary may establish a lower per3 centage of the retrofits performed by 

4 that contractor under this section 

5 with respect to a rebate described in 

6 subsection (a) to be subject to field 

7 verification by an independent quality 

8 assurance provider. 

9 (B) HOMEOWNER COMPLAINT.—A home10 owner may make a complaint under the quality 

11 assurance program that compliance with the 

12 quality assurance requirements of this Act has 

13 not been achieved. The quality assurance pro14 gram shall provide that, upon receiving such a 

15 complaint, an independent quality assurance 

16 provider shall conduct field verification on the 

17 retrofit work performed by the contractor. 

18 Verifications under this subparagraph shall be 

19 in addition to those conducted under subpara20 graph (A), and shall be corrected in accordance 

21 with paragraph (3). 

22 (3) CORRECTION.—Rebates under subsection 

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

24 (A) The installed measures will comply 

25 with the specifications and quality standards 


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1 under this section if a field verification by a 

2 quality assurance provider finds that corrective 

3 work is needed. Such compliance shall be 

4 achieved by the installing accredited contractor 

5 not later than 14 days after the date of notifi6 cation of a defect pursuant to a warranty, pro7 vided at no additional cost to the homeowner. 

8 (B) A subsequent quality assurance visit 

9 shall be conducted to evaluate the remedy not 

10 later than 7 days after notification that the de11 fect has been corrected. 

12 (C) The quality assurance provider shall 

13 notify the contractor of the disposition of such 

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

15 visit. 

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

17 for a discount from a contractor or vendor for which 

18 a rebate is provided under subsection (a), a home19 owner shall agree to permit such access to the home 

20 as is necessary to verify and correct retrofit work. 

21 (f) PRODUCTS PURCHASED WITHOUT INSTALLATION

22 SERVICES.— 

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

24 Retrofit Program rebate shall be awarded for attic, 


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1 wall, and crawl space insulation and air-sealing 

2 products that— 

3 (A) qualify for a tax credit under section 

4 25C of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, but 

5 with respect to which no claim for such a tax 

6 credit has been made; 

7 (B) are purchased by a homeowner for in8 stallation by the homeowner in a home identi9 fied by its address by the homeowner; and 

10 (C) 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 6. 

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. 6. 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 (c), to participating accredited contractors and 

5 vendors, to reimburse them for discounts provided to the 

6 owner of the home for the retrofit work, for retrofits that 

7 achieve whole home energy savings carried out after the 

8 date of enactment of this Act in accordance with this sec9 tion. 

10 (b) ENERGY SAVINGS.— 

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

12 energy consumption under this section shall be de13 termined by a comparison of the simulated energy 

14 consumption of the home before and after the ret15 rofit of the home. 

16 (2) DOCUMENTATION.—The percent improve17 ment in energy consumption of a home under this 

18 section shall be documented through— 

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

20 software program that has been approved as a 

21 commercial alternative under the Weatheriza22 tion Assistance Program for Low-Income Per23 sons established under part A of title IV of the 

24 Energy Conservation and Production Act (42 

25 U.S.C. 6861 et seq.); or 


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1 (ii) a equivalent performance test estab2 lished by the Secretary, in consultation with the 

3 Administrator; or 

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

5 software program that has been approved under 

6 RESNET Publication No. 06–001 (or a suc7 cessor publication approved by the Secretary); 

8 (ii) an equivalent performance test estab9 lished by the Secretary, in consultation with the 

10 Administrator; 

11 (iii) a State-certified equivalent rating net12 work, as specified by IRS Notice 2008–35; or 

13 (iv) a HERS rating system approved or re14 quired by the law of the State in which the 

15 home is located. 

16 (3) MONITORING.—The Secretary— 

17 (A) shall continuously monitor the software 

18 programs used for determining rebates under 

19 this section; and 

20 (B) may disallow the use of software pro21 grams that improperly assess energy savings. 

22 (4) ASSUMPTIONS AND TESTING.—The Sec23 retary may— 

24 (A) establish simulation software program 

25 assumptions for carrying out paragraph (2); 


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1 (B) require compliance with software pro2 gram performance tests covering— 

3 (i) mechanical system performance; 

4 (ii) duct distribution system efficiency; 

5 (iii) hot water performance; or 

6 (iv) other measures; and 

7 (C) require the simulation of pre-retrofit 

8 energy usage to be determined by metered pre9 retrofit energy usage. 

10 (5) RECOMMENDED MEASURES.—Software pro11 grams used under this subsection shall have the abil12 ity at a minimum to assess the savings associated 

13 with all the measures for which rebates are specifi14 cally provided under the Silver Star Home Energy 

15 Retrofit Program. 

16 (c) AMOUNT OF REBATE.—Subject to subsection 

17 (d)(2), the amount of a rebate provided under this section 

18 shall be— 

19 (1) $3,000 for a 20-percent reduction in whole 

20 home energy consumption; and 

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

22 percent reduction up to the lower of— 

23 (A) $8,000; or 

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

25 (d) VERIFICATION AND CORRECTION OF WORK.— 


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1 (1) REIMBURSEMENT.—On submission of a 

2 claim by a rebate aggregator to the Federal Rebate 

3 Processing System, the Secretary shall provide reim4 bursement to the rebate aggregator for energy-effi5 ciency measures installed in a home, subject to para6 graphs (2) and (3). 

7 (2) VERIFICATION.— 

8 (A) IN GENERAL.—Subject to subpara9 graph (B), all work conducted in a home as 

10 part of a whole-home retrofit by an accredited 

11 contractor under this section shall be subject to 

12 random field verification by an independent 

13 quality assurance provider at a rate of— 

14 (i) 15 percent; or 

15 (ii) in the case of work performed by 

16 an accredited contractor always using a 

17 certified workforce, 10 percent. 

18 (B) VERIFICATION NOT REQUIRED.—A 

19 home shall not be subject to field verification 

20 under subparagraph (A) if— 

21 (i) a post-retrofit home energy rating 

22 is conducted by an entity that is an eligible 

23 certifier in accordance with— 


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1 (I) RESNET Publication No. 

2 06–001 (or a successor publication 

3 approved by the Secretary); 

4 (II) a State-certified equivalent 

5 rating network, as specified in IRS 

6 Notice 2008–35; or 

7 (III) a HERS rating system re8 quired by the law of the State in 

9 which the home is located; 

10 (ii) the eligible certifier is independent 

11 of the accredited contractor in accordance 

12 with RESNET Publication No. 06–001 (or 

13 a successor publication approved by the 

14 Secretary); and 

15 (iii) the rating includes field 

16 verification of all measures for which re17 bates are being provided. 

18 (C) HOMEOWNER COMPLAINT.—A home19 owner may make a complaint under the quality 

20 assurance program that compliance with the 

21 quality assurance requirements of this Act has 

22 not been achieved. The quality assurance pro23 gram shall provide that, upon receiving such a 

24 complaint, an independent quality assurance 

25 provider shall conduct field verification on the 


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1 retrofit work performed by the contractor. 

2 Verifications under this subparagraph shall be 

3 in addition to those conducted under subpara4 graph (A), and shall be corrected in accordance 

5 with paragraph (3). 

6 (D) ACCESS TO HOME.—In order to be eli7 gible for a discount from a contractor or vendor 

8 for which a rebate is provided under this sec9 tion, a homeowner shall agree to permit such 

10 access to the home as is necessary to verify and 

11 correct retrofit work. 

12 (3) CORRECTION.—Rebates under this section 

13 shall be made subject to the following conditions: 

14 (A) The installed measures will comply 

15 with manufacturer and applicable code stand16 ards and the specifications and quality stand17 ards under this section if a field verification by 

18 an independent quality assurance provider finds 

19 that corrective work is needed. Such compliance 

20 shall be achieved by the installing accredited 

21 contractor not later than 14 days after the date 

22 of notification of a defect pursuant to a war23 ranty, provided at no additional cost to the 

24 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 (e) REVIEW.— 

10 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall deter11 mine whether information submitted to the Federal 

12 Rebate Processing System with respect to a rebate 

13 was complete, and on the basis of that information 

14 and other information available to the Secretary, 

15 shall determine whether the requirements of this sec16 tion were met in all respects. 

17 (2) INCORRECT PAYMENT.—On a determination 

18 of the Secretary under paragraph (1) that a pay19 ment was made incorrectly to a party, or that suffi20 cient information was not submitted to the Federal 

21 Rebate Processing System to enable such determina22 tion, the Secretary— 

23 (A) may— 

24 (i) recoup the amount of the incorrect 

25 payment; or 


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1 (ii) withhold the amount of the incor2 rect payment from a payment made to the 

3 party pursuant to a subsequent request; 

4 and 

5 (B) shall, to the extent the Secretary de6 termines the benefit of the rebate was not 

7 passed through to the homeowner through a 

8 discount on the price of the retrofit work, order 

9 the contractor or vendor to pay the amount of 

10 rebate benefit not previously passed through to 

11 the homeowner. 

12 SEC. 7. QUALITY ASSURANCE. 

13 (a) QUALITY ASSURANCE FRAMEWORK.— 

14 (1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 180 days 

15 after the date that the Secretary initially provides 

16 funds to a State under this Act, the State shall sub17 mit to the Secretary a plan to implement a quality 

18 assurance program that covers all residential energy 

19 efficiency retrofit work sponsored or provided under 

20 this Act. 

21 (2) IMPLEMENTATION.—The State shall— 

22 (A) develop a quality assurance framework 

23 in consultation with industry stakeholders, in24 cluding representatives of efficiency program 


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1 managers, contractors, and environmental, en2 ergy efficiency, and labor organizations; and 

3 (B) implement the quality assurance 

4 framework not later than 90 days after the plan 

5 is submitted to the Secretary under paragraph 

6 (1). 

7 (3) COMPONENTS.—The quality assurance 

8 framework established under this subsection shall in9 clude— 

10 (A) maintenance of a list of such qualified 

11 contractors and accredited contractors; 

12 (B) minimum standards for such qualified 

13 contractors or accredited contractors; 

14 (C) requirements for maintenance and de15 livery to the Federal Rebate Processing System 

16 of information needed to verify compliance and 

17 ensure appropriate compensation for quality as18 surance providers; 

19 (D) targets and realistic plans for— 

20 (i) the recruitment of minority or 

21 women-owned small business enterprises; 

22 (ii) the employment of graduates of 

23 training programs that primarily serve low24 income populations with a median income 

25 that is below 200 percent of the poverty 


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1 line (as defined in section 673(2) of the 

2 Community Services Block Grant Act (42 

3 U.S.C. 9902(2), including any revision re4 quired by that section) by participating 

5 contractors; 

6 (E) a plan to link workforce training for 

7 energy efficiency retrofits with training for the 

8 broader range of skills and occupations in con9 struction or emerging clean energy industries; 

10 and 

11 (F) maintenance of a list of qualified qual12 ity assurance providers and minimum standards 

13 for such quality assurance providers. 

14 (4) NONCOMPLIANCE.—If the Secretary deter15 mines that a State has not taken the steps required 

16 under this subsection, the Secretary shall provide to 

17 the State a period of at least 90 days to comply be18 fore suspending the participation of the State in the 

19 Home Star Retrofit Rebate Program. 

20 (b) QUALITY ASSURANCE PROGRAMS.— 

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

22 quality assurance program— 

23 (A) as part of a State energy conservation 

24 plan established under part D of title III of the 


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

2 6321 et seq.); 

3 (B) to be managed by the office or the des4 ignee of the office— 

5 (i) that is responsible for the develop6 ment of the plan under section 362 of that 

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

8 (ii) to the maximum extent prac9 ticable, that is conducting an existing en10 ergy efficiency program; and 

11 (C) in the case of a grant made to an In12 dian tribe, to be managed by an entity des13 ignated by the Indian tribe to carry out a qual14 ity assurance program or a national quality as15 surance program manager. 

16 (2) NONCOMPLIANCE.—If the Secretary deter17 mines that a State has not provided or cannot pro18 vide adequate oversight over a quality assurance pro19 gram to ensure compliance with this Act, the Sec20 retary may— 

21 (A) withhold further quality assurance 

22 funds from the State; and 

23 (B) require that quality assurance pro24 viders operating in the State be overseen by a 


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1 national quality assurance program manager se2 lected by the Secretary. 

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

4 grant under this Act may implement a quality assur5 ance program through the State or an independent 

6 quality assurance provider designated by the State, 

7 including— 

8 (A) an energy service company; 

9 (B) an electric utility; 

10 (C) a natural gas utility; 

11 (D) an independent administrator des12 ignated by the State; or 

13 (E) a unit of local government. 

14 SEC. 8. REPORT. 

15 (a) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 1 year after the 

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

17 to the Committee on Energy and Natural Resources of 

18 the Senate and the Committee on Energy and Commerce 

19 of the House of Representatives a report on this Act. 

20 (b) CONTENTS.—The report shall include a descrip21 tion of— 

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

23 this Act; 


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1 (2) the direct and indirect employment created 

2 as a result of the programs supported under this 

3 Act; 

4 (3) the specific entities implementing the en5 ergy efficiency programs; 

6 (4) the beneficiaries who received the efficiency 

7 improvements; 

8 (5) the manner in which funds provided under 

9 this Act were used; 

10 (6) the sources (such as mortgage lenders, util11 ity companies, and local governments) and types of 

12 financing used by the beneficiaries to finance the 

13 retrofit expenses that were not covered by rebates 

14 provided under this Act; and 

15 (7) the results of verification requirements; and 

16 (8) any other information the Secretary con17 siders appropriate. 

18 (c) REQUIRED INFORMATION.— 

19 (1) REQUIREMENT.—Rebate aggregators and 

20 States participating in the Home Star Retrofit Re21 bate Program shall provide to the Secretary such in22 formation as the Secretary requires to prepare the 

23 report required under this section. 

24 (2) NONCOMPLIANCE.—If the Secretary deter25 mines that a rebate aggregator or State has not proVerDate Nov 24 2008 01:52 Apr 15, 2010 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00048 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H5019.IH H5019

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1 vided the information required under paragraph (1), 

2 the Secretary shall provide to the rebate aggregator 

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

4 necessary information, subject to withholding of 

5 funds or reduction of future grant amounts. 

6 SEC. 9. TREATMENT OF REBATES. 

7 (a) IN GENERAL.—For purposes of the Internal Rev8 enue Code of 1986, rebates received under this Act— 

9 (1) shall not be considered taxable income to a 

10 homeowner; and 

11 (2) shall reduce any credit allowed under sec12 tion 25C or 25D of that Code for eligible work per13 formed in the home of the homeowner by the 

14 amount of any rebate provided under this Act for 

15 the eligible work. 

16 (b) NOTICE.—A participating contractor shall pro17 vide notice to a homeowner of the provisions of subsection 

18 (a) before eligible work is performed in the home of the 

19 homeowner. 

20 SEC. 10. PUBLIC INFORMATION CAMPAIGN. 

21 Not later than 60 days after the date of enactment 

22 of this Act, the Administrator, in consultation with the 

23 States and the Secretary, shall develop and implement a 

24 public education campaign that describes— 

25 (1) the benefits of home energy retrofits; and 


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1 (2) the availability of rebates for the installa2 tion of qualifying energy savings measures under the 

3 Silver Star Home Energy Retrofit Program and for 

4 whole home energy savings under the Gold Star 

5 Home Energy Retrofit Program. 

6 SEC. 11. PENALTIES. 

7 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary may— 

8 (1) assess and compromise a civil penalty 

9 against a person who violates this Act (or any regu10 lation issued under this Act); and 

11 (2) require from any entity the records and in12 spections necessary to enforce this Act. 

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

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

15 higher of— 

16 (1) $15,000 for each violation; or 

17 (2) 3 times the value of any associated rebate 

18 under this Act. 

19 SEC. 12. HOME STAR ENERGY EFFICIENCY LOAN PROGRAM. 

20 (a) DEFINITIONS.—In this section: 

21 (1) ELIGIBLE PARTICIPANT.—The term ‘‘eligi22 ble participant’’ means a homeowner who receives fi23 nancial assistance from a qualified financing entity 

24 to carry out qualifying energy savings measures 

25 under the Silver Star Home Energy Retrofit ProVerDate Nov 24 2008 01:52 Apr 15, 2010 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00050 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H5019.IH H5019

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1 gram or whole home energy savings under the Gold 

2 Star Home Energy Retrofit Program. 

3 (2) QUALIFIED FINANCING ENTITY.—The term 

4 ‘‘qualified financing entity’’ means a State, political 

5 subdivision of a State, tribal government, electric 

6 utility, natural gas utility, nonprofit or community7 based organization, energy service company, retailer, 

8 or any other entity that— 

9 (A) meets the eligibility requirements of 

10 this section; and 

11 (B) is designated by the Governor of a 

12 State in accordance with subsection (e)(1). 

13 (3) QUALIFIED LOAN PROGRAM MECHANISM.— 

14 The term ‘‘qualified loan program mechanism’’ 

15 means a mechanism for the establishment and oper16 ation of a loan program that is— 

17 (A) administered by a qualified financing 

18 entity; and 

19 (B) principally funded— 

20 (i) by funds provided by or overseen 

21 by a State; or 

22 (ii) through the energy loan program 

23 of the Federal National Mortgage Associa24 tion. 


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1 (b) ESTABLISHMENT.—The Secretary shall establish 

2 a Home Star Energy Efficiency Loan Program under 

3 which the Secretary shall make funds available to States 

4 to support financial assistance provided by qualified fi5 nancing entities for the installation of qualifying energy 

6 savings measures under the Silver Star Home Energy Ret7 rofit Program or whole home energy savings under the 

8 Gold Star Home Energy Retrofit Program. 

9 (c) ELIGIBILITY OF QUALIFIED FINANCING ENTI10 TIES.—To be eligible to participate in the Home Star 

11 Loan Program, a qualified financing entity shall— 

12 (1) offer a financing product under which eligi13 ble participants may pay over time for the cost to 

14 the eligible participant (after all applicable Federal, 

15 State, local, and other rebates or incentives are ap16 plied) of installations described in subsection (b); 

17 (2) require all financed installations to be per18 formed by contractors in a manner that meets min19 imum standards provided under sections 5 and 6; 

20 and 

21 (3) establish standard underwriting criteria to 

22 determine the eligibility of Home Star Loan Pro23 gram applicants, which criteria shall be consistent 

24 with— 


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1 (A) with respect to unsecured consumer 

2 loan programs, standard underwriting criteria 

3 used under the energy loan program of the 

4 Federal National Mortgage Association; or 

5 (B) with respect to secured loans or other 

6 forms of financial assistance, commercially rec7 ognized best practices applicable to the form of 

8 financial assistance being provided (as deter9 mined by the designated entity administering 

10 the Home Star Loan Program in the State). 

11 (d) ALLOCATION.—In making funds available to 

12 States for each fiscal year under this section, the Sec13 retary shall use the formula used to allocate funds to 

14 States to carry out State energy conservation plans estab15 lished under part D of title III of the Energy Policy and 

16 Conservation Act (42 U.S.C. 6321 et seq.). 

17 (e) QUALIFIED FINANCING ENTITIES.—Before mak18 ing funds available to a State under this section, the Sec19 retary shall require the Governor of the State to provide 

20 to the Secretary a letter of assurance that the State— 

21 (1) has 1 or more qualified financing entities 

22 that meet the requirements of this section; 

23 (2) has established a qualified loan program 

24 mechanism that— 


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1 (A) will use a quality assurance program 

2 established under this Act or another appro3 priate methodology to ensure energy savings; 

4 (B) incorporates an effective repayment 

5 mechanism, which may include— 

6 (i) on-utility-bill repayment; 

7 (ii) tax assessment or other form of 

8 property assessment financing; 

9 (iii) municipal service charges; 

10 (iv) energy or energy efficiency serv11 ices contracts; 

12 (v) energy efficiency power purchase 

13 agreements; 

14 (vi) unsecured loans applying the un15 derwriting requirements of the energy loan 

16 program of the Federal National Mortgage 

17 Association; or 

18 (vii) alternative contractual repayment 

19 mechanisms that have been demonstrated 

20 to have appropriate risk mitigation fea21 tures; and 

22 (3) will provide, in a timely manner, all infor23 mation regarding the administration of the Home 

24 Star Loan Program as the Secretary may require to 


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1 permit the Secretary to meet the program evaluation 

2 requirements of subsection (h). 

3 (f) USE OF FUNDS.—Funds made available to States 

4 for carrying out the Home Star Loan Program may be 

5 used to support financing mechanisms offered by qualified 

6 financing entities to eligible participants, including— 

7 (1) interest rate reductions to interest rates as 

8 low as 0 percent; 

9 (2) loan loss reserves or other forms of credit 

10 enhancement; 

11 (3) revolving loan funds from which qualified fi12 nancing entities may offer direct loans; or 

13 (4) other debt instruments (excluding 

14 securitization instruments) necessary— 

15 (A) to use available funds to obtain appro16 priate leverage through private investment; and 

17 (B) to support widespread deployment of 

18 energy efficiency programs. 

19 (g) USE OF REPAID FUNDS.—In the case of a revolv20 ing loan fund described in subsection (f)(3), a qualified 

21 financing entity may use funds repaid by eligible partici22 pants under the Home Star Loan Program to provide fi23 nancial assistance for additional eligible participants for 

24 installations described in subsection (b) in a manner that 

25 is consistent with this section. 


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1 (h) PROGRAM EVALUATION.—Not later than 1 year 

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

3 submit to Congress a program evaluation that describes— 

4 (1) how many eligible participants have partici5 pated in the Home Star Loan Program; 

6 (2) how many jobs have been created through 

7 the Home Star Loan Program, directly and indi8 rectly; 

9 (3) what steps could be taken to promote fur10 ther deployment of energy efficiency retrofits; 

11 (4) the quantity of verifiable energy savings, 

12 homeowner energy bill savings, and other benefits of 

13 the Home Star Loan Program; and 

14 (5) the performance of the programs carried 

15 out by qualified financing entities under this section, 

16 including information on the rate of default and re17 payment. 

18 SEC. 13. FUNDING. 

19 (a) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.— 

20 (1) IN GENERAL.—Subject to subsection (j), 

21 there are authorized to be appropriated to carry out 

22 this Act $6,000,000,000 for the period of fiscal 

23 years 2010 and 2011, to remain available until ex24 pended. 


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1 (2) MAINTENANCE OF FUNDING.—Funds pro2 vided under this section shall supplement and not 

3 supplant any prior or planned Federal and State 

4 funding provided to carry out energy efficiency pro5 grams. To the extent the Secretary finds that a 

6 State has supplanted other such programs with 

7 funding under this section, the Secretary may with8 hold an equivalent amount of funding from alloca9 tions for the State under this Act. 

10 (b) GRANTS TO STATES.— 

11 (1) IN GENERAL.—Except as otherwise pro12 vided in this subsection, of the amount provided 

13 under subsection (a), not more than 9 percent is au14 thorized to be appropriated to the Secretary for pro15 viding grants to States, to be used for— 

16 (A) administrative costs of carrying out 

17 this Act; 

18 (B) development of quality assurance 

19 frameworks; 

20 (C) oversight of quality assurance pro21 grams; 

22 (D) establishment and delivery of financing 

23 mechanisms, in accordance with paragraph (2); 

24 and 


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1 (E) coordination with existing residential 

2 retrofit programs and infrastructure develop3 ment to assist deployment of the Home Star 

4 Retrofit Rebate Program. 

5 (2) FINANCING.—Of the amounts allocated to 

6 the States under paragraph (1), not less than 60 

7 percent shall be used to carry out section 12. 

8 (3) DISTRIBUTION TO STATES.— 

9 (A) PROVISION OF FUNDS.—Not later than 

10 30 days after the date of enactment of this Act, 

11 the Secretary shall provide to the State energy 

12 offices, or such other State entities as are des13 ignated by the Governor, of States that are car14 rying out responsibilities under section 7, 25 

15 percent of the funds described in paragraph (1). 

16 (B) ALLOCATION.—Funds described in 

17 subparagraph (A) shall be made available in ac18 cordance with the allocation formula for State 

19 energy conservation plans established under 

20 part D of title III of the Energy Policy and 

21 Conservation Act (42 U.S.C. 6321 et seq.). 

22 (4) WITHHOLDING OF FUNDS.—To the extent 

23 that the Secretary assumes the responsibilities of a 

24 State under section 3(i), the Secretary shall withhold 

25 the portion of the funds otherwise transferrable to 


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1 the State under this section that are attributable to 

2 those State responsibilities. 

3 (5) INDIAN TRIBES.— 

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

5 in place of a State for purposes of carrying out 

6 the responsibilities of the State under this Act 

7 with respect to its tribal lands pursuant to sec8 tion 3(h), the Secretary shall transfer to that 

9 Indian tribe, instead of the State, the propor10 tionate share of funds otherwise transferrable 

11 to the State under this section. 

12 (B) PROPORTIONATE SHARE.—For pur13 poses of subparagraph (A), the proportionate 

14 share shall be calculated on the basis of the 

15 percentage of the population of the State that 

16 resides within the tribal lands. 

17 (c) QUALITY ASSURANCE COSTS.— 

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

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

20 authorized to be appropriated to the Secretary to be 

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

22 with information provided by the State offices or en23 tities described in subsection (b)(3)(B) with respect 

24 to services provided by quality assurance providers. 


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1 (2) DISTRIBUTION TO QUALITY ASSURANCE

2 PROVIDERS OR REBATE AGGREGATORS.—The Sec3 retary shall use funds provided under this subsection 

4 to compensate quality assurance providers and re5 bate aggregators for services provided under this 

6 Act. 

7 (3) COMPENSATION.—The amount of com8 pensation provided under this subsection shall be— 

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

10 Energy Retrofit Program— 

11 (I) not more than $25 to rebate 

12 aggregators per rebate review and proc13 essing under the program; and 

14 (II) $150 to quality assurance pro15 viders for each field inspection conducted 

16 under the program; and 

17 (ii) in the case of the Gold Star Home En18 ergy Retrofit Program— 

19 (I) not more than $35 to rebate 

20 aggregators for each rebate review and 

21 processing under the program; and 

22 (II) $300 to quality assurance pro23 viders for each field inspection conducted 

24 under the program; or 


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1 (B) such other amounts as the Secretary 

2 considers necessary to carry out the quality as3 surance provisions of this Act to optimize the 

4 overall energy efficiency resulting from the Sil5 ver Star Home Energy Retrofit Program and 

6 the Gold Star Home Energy Retrofit Program. 

7 (d) TRACKING OF REBATES AND EXPENDITURES.— 

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

9 than 2.5 percent are authorized to be appropriated to the 

10 Secretary to be used for costs associated with tracking re11 bates and expenditures through the Federal Rebate Proc12 essing System under this Act, and related administrative 

13 costs incurred by the Secretary. 

14 (e) PUBLIC EDUCATION AND COORDINATION.—Of 

15 the amount provided under subsection (a), not more than 

16 0.2 percent are authorized to be appropriated to the Ad17 ministrator to be used for costs associated with public edu18 cation and coordination with the Federal Energy Star pro19 gram. 

20 (f) SILVER STAR HOME ENERGY RETROFIT PRO21 GRAM.— 

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

23 under subsection (a), after subtracting the amounts 

24 authorized in subsections (b), (d), and (e) of this 

25 section, two-thirds of the remainder are authorized 


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1 to be appropriated to the Secretary to be used to 

2 provide rebates and other payments authorized 

3 under the Silver Star Home Energy Retrofit Pro4 gram. 

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 5(f). 

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

12 after subtracting the amounts authorized in subsections 

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

14 is authorized to be appropriated to the Secretary to be 

15 used to provide rebates and other payments authorized 

16 under the Gold Star Home Energy Retrofit Program. 

17 (h) 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. 

Æ 


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