II 

113TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION S. 2879 

To provide for the implementation of a Sustainable Chemistry Program, 

and for other purposes. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

SEPTEMBER 18, 2014 

Mr. COONS (for himself, Ms. COLLINS, Mr. ROCKEFELLER, and Mr. ISAKSON) 

introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred to the 

Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation 

A BILL 

To provide for the implementation of a Sustainable 

Chemistry 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 ‘‘Sustainable Chemistry 

5 Research and Development Act of 2014’’. 

6 SEC. 2. DEFINITIONS. 

7 In this Act— 

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

9 Council’’ means the advisory council established 

10 under section 3(d). 


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1 (2) INTERAGENCY WORKING GROUP.—The term 

2 ‘‘Interagency Working Group’’ means the inter3 agency working group established under section 3(c). 

4 (3) PROGRAM.—The term ‘‘Program’’ means 

5 the Sustainable Chemistry Program described in sec6 tion 3. 

7 (4) SUSTAINABLE CHEMISTRY.—The term 

8 ‘‘sustainable chemistry’’ means the design, develop9 ment, demonstration, and commercialization of high10 quality chemicals and materials, chemical processes 

11 and products, and manufacturing processes that 

12 eliminate or reduce chemical risks to benefit human 

13 health and the environment across the chemical 

14 lifecycle, to the highest extent practicable, through— 

15 (A) increasing the use of more sustainable, 

16 renewable, or recycled substances and mate17 rials; 

18 (B) increasing the use of substitutes for 

19 rare substances; 

20 (C) promoting safe and more efficient 

21 manufacturing; 

22 (D) minimizing lifecycle impacts, including 

23 environmental and health impacts; 

24 (E) optimizing product design and encour25 aging the reduction of waste and the reuse or 


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1 recycling of chemicals and materials to account 

2 for the end of life or the final disposition of the 

3 product; or 

4 (F) increasing the design and use of safe 

5 molecules, chemicals, materials, chemistries, 

6 and chemical processes. 

7 SEC. 3. SUSTAINABLE CHEMISTRY PROGRAM. 

8 (a) IN GENERAL.—The President shall establish an 

9 interagency Sustainable Chemistry Program to promote 

10 and coordinate Federal sustainable chemistry research, 

11 development, demonstration, technology transfer, commer12 cialization, education, and training activities. 

13 (b) PROGRAM ACTIVITIES.—The activities of the Pro14 gram shall be designed to— 

15 (1) provide sustained support for sustainable 

16 chemistry research, development, demonstration, 

17 technology transfer, commercialization, education, 

18 and training through— 

19 (A) merit-based competitive grants to indi20 vidual investigators and teams of investigators, 

21 including, to the extent practicable, young in22 vestigators, for research and development; 

23 (B) grants to fund collaborative research 

24 and development partnerships among univer25 sities, industry, and nonprofit organizations; 


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1 (C) grants, loans, and loan guarantees to 

2 aid in the technology transfer and commer3 cialization of sustainable chemicals, materials, 

4 processes, and products; 

5 (D) incentive prize competitions and chal6 lenges; 

7 (E) coordination of sustainable chemistry 

8 research, development, demonstration, and tech9 nology transfer conducted at Federal labora10 tories and agencies; and 

11 (F) to the extent practicable, encourage12 ment of consideration of sustainable chemistry 

13 in, as appropriate— 

14 (i) the conduct of Federal and State 

15 science and engineering research and de16 velopment; and 

17 (ii) the solicitation and evaluation of 

18 applicable proposals for science and engi19 neering research and development; 

20 (2) examine methods by which the Federal Gov21 ernment can create incentives for consideration and 

22 use of sustainable chemistry processes and products, 

23 including innovative financing mechanisms; 

24 (3) facilitate the adoption of sustainable chem25 istry innovations and methods; 


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1 (4) expand the education and training of under2 graduate and graduate students and professional sci3 entists and engineers, including through partner4 ships with industry, in sustainable chemistry science 

5 and engineering; 

6 (5) collect and disseminate information on sus7 tainable chemistry research, development, and tech8 nology transfer including information on— 

9 (A) incentives and impediments to develop10 ment, manufacturing, and commercialization; 

11 (B) accomplishments; 

12 (C) best practices; and 

13 (D) costs and benefits; 

14 (6) support (including through technical assist15 ance, participation, financial support, or other forms 

16 of support) venues for outreach and dissemination of 

17 sustainable chemistry advances such as symposia, fo18 rums, conferences, and written materials in collabo19 ration with, as appropriate, industry, academia, sci20 entific and professional societies, and other relevant 

21 groups; 

22 (7) support (including through technical assist23 ance, participation, financial support, or other forms 

24 of support) economic, legal, and other appropriate 

25 social science research to identify barriers to comVerDate Sep 11 2014 00:08 Oct 02, 2014 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00005 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S2879.IS S2879

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1 mercialization and methods to advance commer2 cialization of sustainable chemistry; 

3 (8) provide for public input and outreach to be 

4 integrated into the Program by the convening of 

5 public discussions, through mechanisms such as pub6 lic meetings, consensus conferences, and educational 

7 events, as appropriate; and 

8 (9) develop metrics to track the outputs and 

9 outcomes of the Program. 

10 (c) INTERAGENCY WORKING GROUP.— 

11 (1) ESTABLISHMENT.—Not later than 180 days 

12 after the date of enactment of this Act, the Presi13 dent, in consultation with the Office of Science and 

14 Technology Policy, shall establish an Interagency 

15 Working Group that shall include representatives 

16 from the National Science Foundation, the National 

17 Institute of Standards and Technology, the Depart18 ment of Energy, the Environmental Protection 

19 Agency, the Department of Agriculture, the Depart20 ment of Defense, the National Institutes of Health, 

21 and any other agency that the President may des22 ignate to oversee the planning, management, and co23 ordination of the Program. 

24 (2) GOVERNANCE.—The Director of the Na25 tional Science Foundation and the Assistant AdminVerDate Sep 11 2014 00:08 Oct 02, 2014 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00006 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S2879.IS S2879

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1 istrator for Research and Development of the Envi2 ronmental Protection Agency, or their designees, 

3 shall serve as co-chairs of the Interagency Working 

4 Group. 

5 (3) RESPONSIBILITIES.—In overseeing the 

6 planning, management, and coordination of the Pro7 gram, the Interagency Working Group shall— 

8 (A) establish goals and priorities for the 

9 Program, in consultation with the Advisory 

10 Council; 

11 (B) provide for interagency coordination, 

12 including budget coordination, of activities 

13 under the Program; 

14 (C) meet not later than 90 days from its 

15 establishment and periodically thereafter; and 

16 (D) consult with the Advisory Council on a 

17 regular basis. 

18 (d) ADVISORY COUNCIL.— 

19 (1) ESTABLISHMENT.—Not later than 180 days 

20 after the date of the establishment of the Inter21 agency Working Group, the co-chairs of the Inter22 agency Working Group shall establish an Advisory 

23 Council on Sustainable Chemistry that shall make 

24 recommendations to the Interagency Working Group 

25 and provide it with ongoing advice and assistance. 


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1 (2) MEMBERSHIP.—The Advisory Council mem2 bers shall not be employees of the Federal Govern3 ment and shall include a diverse representation of 

4 knowledgeable individuals from the private sector 

5 (including small- and medium-sized enterprises from 

6 across the value chain), academia, State and tribal 

7 governments, and nongovernmental organizations 

8 and others who are in a position to provide exper9 tise. 

10 (3) CONFLICT OF INTEREST.— 

11 (A) IN GENERAL.—The Interagency Work12 ing Group shall make its best efforts to ensure 

13 that— 

14 (i) no individual appointed to serve on 

15 the Advisory Council has a conflict of in16 terest that is relevant to the functions to 

17 be performed, unless such conflict is 

18 promptly and publicly disclosed and the 

19 Interagency Working Group determines 

20 that the conflict is unavoidable; 

21 (ii) the Advisory Council membership 

22 is fairly balanced as determined by the 

23 Interagency Working Group to be appro24 priate for the functions to be performed; 


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1 (iii) any products of the Interagency 

2 Working Group will be the result of the 

3 Interagency Working Group’s independent 

4 judgment; and 

5 (iv) the meetings and proceedings of 

6 the Advisory Council be open and available 

7 to the public. 

8 (B) NOTIFICATION OF CONFLICTS.—The 

9 Interagency Working Group shall require that 

10 individuals nominated or appointed to serve on 

11 the Advisory Council inform the Interagency 

12 Working Group of any conflicts of interest that 

13 are relevant to the functions to be performed. 

14 (C) FACA APPLICABILITY.—All pro15 ceedings and meetings of the Advisory Council 

16 shall be subject to the Federal Advisory Com17 mittee Act (5 U.S.C. App.). 

18 (4) GOVERNANCE.—The co-chairs of the Inter19 agency Working Group— 

20 (A) may appoint new members of the Advi21 sory Council as needed; and 

22 (B) shall appoint the original Chair to 

23 serve a term of 1 year. 

24 (5) APPOINTMENT OF CHAIR.—The Advisory 

25 Council shall appoint a Chair from among the memVerDate Sep 11 2014 00:08 Oct 02, 2014 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00009 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S2879.IS S2879

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1 bers of the Advisory Council after the term of the 

2 original Chair appointed under paragraph (3)(B) ex3 pires. 

4 (e) AGENCY BUDGET REQUESTS.— 

5 (1) IN GENERAL.—Each Federal agency and 

6 department participating in the Program shall, as 

7 part of its annual request for appropriations to the 

8 Office of Management and Budget, submit a report 

9 to the Office of Management and Budget that— 

10 (A) identifies the activities of the agency or 

11 department that contribute directly to the Pro12 gram; and 

13 (B) states the portion of the agency or de14 partment’s request for appropriations that is al15 located to those activities. 

16 (2) ANNUAL BUDGET REQUEST TO CON17 GRESS.—The President shall include in the annual 

18 budget request to Congress a statement of the por19 tion of the annual budget request for each agency or 

20 department that will be allocated to activities under21 taken pursuant to the Program. 

22 (f) REPORT TO CONGRESS.— 

23 (1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 2 years after 

24 the date of enactment of this Act, the Interagency 

25 Working Group shall submit a report to the ComVerDate Sep 11 2014 00:08 Oct 02, 2014 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00010 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S2879.IS S2879

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1 mittee on Science, Space, and Technology and the 

2 Committee on Energy and Commerce of the House 

3 of Representatives and the Committee on Environ4 ment and Public Works and the Committee on Com5 merce, Science, and Transportation of the Senate 

6 that shall include— 

7 (A) a summary of federally funded sustain8 able chemistry research, development, dem9 onstration, technology transfer, commercializa10 tion, education, and training activities; 

11 (B) a summary of the financial resources 

12 allocated to sustainable chemistry initiatives; 

13 (C) an analysis of the progress made to14 ward achieving the goals and priorities of this 

15 Act, and recommendations for future program 

16 activities; 

17 (D) an assessment of the benefits of ex18 panding existing, federally supported regional 

19 innovation and manufacturing hubs to include 

20 sustainable chemistry and the value of directing 

21 the creation of one or more dedicated sustain22 able chemistry centers of excellence or hubs; 

23 and 

24 (E) an evaluation of steps taken and fu25 ture strategies to avoid duplication of efforts, 


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1 streamline interagency coordination, facilitate 

2 information sharing, and spread best practices 

3 between participating agencies in the Program. 

4 (2) SUBMISSION TO GAO.—The Interagency 

5 Working Group shall also submit the report de6 scribed in paragraph (1) to the Government Ac7 countability Office for consideration in future con8 gressional inquiries. 

9 SEC. 4. PARTNERSHIPS IN SUSTAINABLE CHEMISTRY. 

10 (a) AUTHORIZATION.—The Interagency Working 

11 Group shall lead the agencies participating in the Program 

12 to carry out a joint, coordinated program to award grants 

13 to institutions of higher education to establish partner14 ships with companies across the value chain in the chem15 ical industry, including small- and medium-sized enter16 prises, to— 

17 (1) create collaborative research, development, 

18 demonstration, technology transfer, and commer19 cialization programs; and 

20 (2) train students and retrain professional sci21 entists and engineers in the use of sustainable chem22 istry concepts and strategies by methods including— 

23 (A) developing curricular materials and 

24 courses for undergraduate and graduate levels 


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1 and for the professional development of sci2 entists and engineers; and 

3 (B) publicizing the availability of profes4 sional development courses in sustainable chem5 istry and recruiting scientists and engineers to 

6 pursue such courses. 

7 (b) GUIDELINES.—The Interagency Working Group 

8 shall establish guidelines and criteria for— 

9 (1) a partnership between a company in the 

10 chemical industry and an institution of higher edu11 cation eligible for a grant under subsection (a); and 

12 (2) the grant application and awarding process, 

13 which shall include— 

14 (A) competitive, merit-based review of each 

15 grant application; and 

16 (B) cost-sharing from non-Federal sources 

17 by members of the partnerships. 

18 SEC. 5. STUDY OF SUSTAINABLE CHEMISTRY. 

19 The Director of the National Science Foundation 

20 shall enter into an arrangement with the National Re21 search Council to conduct a study that shall— 

22 (1) assess the current status of sustainable 

23 chemistry research in the United States, and suggest 

24 high-priority research and development needs within 

25 sustainable chemistry; 


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1 (2) examine the status of sustainable chemistry 

2 in the education of chemists and chemical engineers 

3 and other relevant professions and identify rec4 ommendations to improve and broaden the imple5 mentation of sustainable chemistry practices in 

6 science and engineering education, including exam7 ining the role of toxicology, chemical hazard and risk 

8 assessment, lifecycle assessment, and environmental 

9 fate and effects in science and engineering edu10 cation; 

11 (3) examine case studies of successful and un12 successful attempts at commercialization and adop13 tion of sustainable chemistry processes and products 

14 in the United States and abroad and recommend re15 search areas, priorities, and public policy options 

16 that would help to overcome identified barriers to 

17 commercialization; and 

18 (4) using available economic analyses, discuss 

19 the potential economic impact of sustainable chem20 istry, including job creation. 

21 SEC. 6. NATIONAL STRATEGY AND IMPLEMENTATION PLAN. 

22 Not later than 2 years after the release of the study 

23 described in section 5, the Interagency Working Group, 

24 in consultation with the Advisory Council, shall produce 

25 a national strategy and accompanying implementation 


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1 plan for sustainable chemistry that provides a framework 

2 for advancing sustainable chemistry research, develop3 ment, technology transfer, commercialization, and edu4 cation and training. 

5 SEC. 7. PRIORITIZATION. 

6 In carrying out this Act, the Interagency Working 

7 Group shall prioritize support for activities that achieve, 

8 to the highest extent practicable, the goals of sustainable 

9 chemistry. 

Æ 


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