I 

117TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION H. R. 6680 

To establish the Integrated Blue Economy and Blue Energy Technologies 

Program, and a Blue Economy Center of Excellence, to support research 

and development of blue energy technologies. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

FEBRUARY 9, 2022 

Mr. KILMER (for himself and Mr. NEWHOUSE) introduced the following bill; 

which was referred to the Committee on Science, Space, and Technology 

A BILL 

To establish the Integrated Blue Economy and Blue Energy 

Technologies Program, and a Blue Economy Center of 

Excellence, to support research and development of blue 

energy technologies. 

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 ‘‘Blue Energy Innova5 tion Act of 2022’’. 


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1 SEC. 2. INTEGRATED BLUE ECONOMY AND BLUE ENERGY 

2 TECHNOLOGIES PROGRAM. 

3 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary of Energy shall es4 tablish and carry out a program, to be known as the ‘‘Inte5 grated Blue Economy and Blue Energy Technologies Pro6 gram’’, under which the Secretary of Energy shall provide 

7 funding for research and development of blue energy tech8 nologies for purposes of— 

9 (1) decarbonizing activities that contribute to 

10 the blue economy, including— 

11 (A) improving port and other maritime 

12 transportation infrastructure; 

13 (B) producing marine algae for use as a 

14 biofuel, and for other applications; and 

15 (C) operating ocean- and water-based tour16 ism industries; 

17 (2) increasing blue energy generation capacity 

18 while reducing the cost to produce such energy; 

19 (3) improving performance of blue energy tech20 nologies; 

21 (4) capturing, removing, and sequestering 

22 greenhouse gases, including carbon dioxide and 

23 methane, generated or emitted in an aquatic envi24 ronment; 

25 (5) developing new blue energy market opportu26 nities; 


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1 (6) promoting job creation in the blue economy 

2 and blue energy sectors; 

3 (7) supporting the development of a skilled, di4 verse, and inclusive blue economy and blue energy 

5 workforce; 

6 (8) remediating and improving coastal and 

7 aquatic ecosystems; and 

8 (9) addressing technical and development chal9 lenges that are unique to operating in marine and 

10 freshwater environments, including by— 

11 (A) developing tools, sensors, and models 

12 to collect and represent baseline information on 

13 metocean, geotechnical, geophysical, and bio14 logical conditions in marine and freshwater en15 vironments; 

16 (B) advancing social science related to 

17 community and industry engagement to inform 

18 future development; 

19 (C) conducting feasibility analyses for en20 ergy storage and microgrid deployments; 

21 (D) planning for power transmission and 

22 distribution; 

23 (E) advancing technologies for anchoring 

24 and mooring systems; 


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1 (F) addressing challenges of integrating 

2 with the bulk-power system, especially in deep 

3 water environments; 

4 (G) deploying energy storage and charging 

5 infrastructure; and 

6 (H) developing advanced materials capable 

7 of enduring harsh environmental conditions. 

8 (b) CROSSCUT BUDGET.—In carrying out the Inte9 grated Blue Economy and Blue Energy Technologies Pro10 gram, the Secretary of Energy shall prepare a crosscut 

11 budget based on the research and development activities 

12 conducted by relevant Department of Energy offices, in13 cluding the following: 

14 (1) The Office of Energy Efficiency and Renew15 able Energy. 

16 (2) The Office of Science. 

17 (3) The Office of Electricity. 

18 (4) The Office of Cybersecurity, Energy Secu19 rity, and Emergency Response. 

20 (5) The Advanced Research Projects Agency— 

21 Energy. 

22 (6) The Office of Clean Energy Demonstra23 tions. 

24 (c) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.— 


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1 (1) IN GENERAL.—There is authorized to be 

2 appropriated $75,000,000 for each of fiscal years 

3 2022 through 2032 to carry out this section. 

4 (2) SUPPLEMENT AND NOT SUPPLANT.—The 

5 amounts authorized to be appropriated under this 

6 subsection shall supplement, and not supplant, any 

7 other amounts made available to the Department of 

8 Energy. 

9 SEC. 3. BLUE ECONOMY CENTER OF EXCELLENCE. 

10 (a) ESTABLISHMENT.—The Secretary of Energy 

11 shall establish a Blue Economy Center of Excellence to 

12 support the Integrated Blue Economy and Blue Energy 

13 Technologies Program established in section 2. 

14 (b) LOCATION.—The Blue Economy Center of Excel15 lence shall be co-located at an existing National Labora16 tory that— 

17 (1) is working to develop blue energy tech18 nologies; 

19 (2) hosts a blue energy research and develop20 ment program; 

21 (3) is able to investigate and resolve environ22 mental and policy-related questions associated with 

23 the generation of blue energy; and 

24 (4) has direct access to natural ocean-based re25 sources and test sites. 


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1 (c) FACILITIES.—The Secretary of Energy may con2 struct new facilities or expand and upgrade existing facili3 ties to establish the Blue Economy Center of Excellence 

4 under subsection (a). 

5 (d) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There is 

6 authorized to be appropriated $90,000,000 to carry out 

7 this section and such amount is authorized to remain 

8 available until expended. 

9 SEC. 4. INTERAGENCY COORDINATION, REPORTING, AND 

10 OVERSIGHT. 

11 (a) COORDINATION.—In carrying out this Act, the 

12 Secretary of Energy shall coordinate with— 

13 (1) other Federal agencies that share mission 

14 objectives with the Integrated Blue Economy and 

15 Blue Energy Technologies Program, including the 

16 Maritime Administration of the Department of 

17 Transportation, the National Science Foundation, 

18 the Economic Development Administration of the 

19 Department of Commerce, the Bureau of Ocean En20 ergy Management, the National Marine Fisheries 

21 Service, the United States Army Corps of Engineers, 

22 the Bureau of Reclamation, the National Oceanic 

23 and Atmospheric Administration, and the National 

24 Institute of Standards and Technology; and 


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1 (2) State and Tribal government agencies, insti2 tutions of higher education, nonprofit research insti3 tutions, and National Laboratories. 

4 (b) ANNUAL BUDGET MATERIALS.—The Secretary of 

5 Energy shall include in the Department of Energy’s an6 nual budget materials submitted to the Office of Manage7 ment and Budget pursuant to section 1105 of title 31, 

8 United States Code, a report on— 

9 (1) with respect to the fiscal year preceding the 

10 fiscal year for which such budget materials are sub11 mitted, the amount of funds obligated and expended 

12 for research and development of blue energy tech13 nologies across all line offices and programs of the 

14 Department of Energy; and 

15 (2) the projected expenditures necessary to fill 

16 any gaps in funding for research and development of 

17 blue energy technologies across all line offices and 

18 programs of the Department of Energy. 

19 SEC. 5. DEFINITIONS. 

20 In this Act: 

21 (1) BLUE ECONOMY.—The term ‘‘blue econ22 omy’’ means the sustainable use of ocean and aquat23 ic resources to grow the economy, improve liveli24 hoods, and create jobs in a manner that preserves 

25 the health of ocean and aquatic ecosystems. 


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1 (2) BLUE ENERGY TECHNOLOGY.—The term 

2 ‘‘blue energy technology’’ means any technology 

3 that— 

4 (A)(i) derives or generates energy from a 

5 renewable energy resource; or 

6 (ii) captures, removes, and sequesters 

7 greenhouse gases; and 

8 (B) is located in an aquatic environment. 

9 (3) BULK-POWER SYSTEM.—The term ‘‘bulk10 power system’’ has the meaning given such term in 

11 section 215(a) of the Federal Power Act (16 U.S.C. 

12 824o(a)). 

13 (4) NATIONAL LABORATORY.—The term ‘‘Na14 tional Laboratory’’ has the meaning given such term 

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

16 U.S.C. 15801). 

17 (5) RENEWABLE ENERGY RESOURCE.—The 

18 term ‘‘renewable energy resource’’ has the meaning 

19 given such term in section 403 of the Energy Secu20 rity Act (42 U.S.C. 7372). 

Æ 


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