II 

108TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION S. 2620 

To provide for the establishment of an Office of High-Performance Green 

Buildings, and for other purposes. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

JULY 8, 2004 

Mr. JEFFORDS (for himself, Mr. LAUTENBERG, Mr. REID, Mr. WYDEN, Mr. 

CARPER, Mr. HARKIN, Mr. LEAHY, and Mrs. CLINTON) introduced the 

following bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Environment and Public Works 

A BILL 

To provide for the establishment of an Office of HighPerformance Green Buildings, 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; TABLE OF CONTENTS. 

4 (a) SHORT TITLE.—This Act may be cited as the 

5 ‘‘High-Performance Green Buildings Act’’. 

6 (b) TABLE OF CONTENTS.—The table of contents of 

7 this Act is as follows: 

Sec. 1. Short title; table of contents. 

Sec. 2. Findings. 

Sec. 3. Definitions. 

TITLE I—OFFICE OF HIGH-PERFORMANCE GREEN BUILDINGS 
2 

•S 2620 IS 

Sec. 101. Oversight. 

Sec. 102. Office of High-Performance Green Buildings. 

Sec. 103. Interagency Steering Committee. 

Sec. 104. Public outreach. 

Sec. 105. Research and development. 

Sec. 106. Budget and life-cycle costing. 

Sec. 107. Authorization of appropriations. 

TITLE II—HEALTHY HIGH-PERFORMANCE SCHOOLS 

Sec. 201. Grants for schools. 

Sec. 202. Federal guidelines for siting of school facilities. 

Sec. 203. Education research program. 

Sec. 204. Authorization of appropriations. 

TITLE III—STRENGTHENING FEDERAL LEADERSHIP 

Sec. 301. General Accounting Office. 

TITLE IV—DEMONSTRATION PROJECT 

Sec. 401. Coordination of goals. 

Sec. 402. Authorization of appropriations. 

1 SEC. 2. FINDINGS. 

2 Congress finds that— 

3 (1) buildings have profound impacts on the en4 vironment, energy use, and health of individuals, and 

5 numerous studies suggest that building environ6 ments affect worker productivity; 

7 (2) buildings in the United States consume 37 

8 percent of the energy, 68 percent of the electricity, 

9 and 12 percent of the potable water used in the 

10 United States, and overall construction of buildings 

11 (including construction of related infrastructure) 

12 consumes 60 percent of all raw materials used in the 

13 economy of the United States (excluding materials 

14 used for food or fuel); 

15 (3) in the United States, buildings generate— 
3 

•S 2620 IS 

1 (A) 40 percent of the nonindustrial waste 

2 stream; 

3 (B) 31 percent of the mercury in municipal 

4 solid waste; and 

5 (C) 35 percent of the carbon dioxide (the 

6 primary greenhouse gas associated with climate 

7 change), 49 percent of the sulfur dioxide, and 

8 25 percent of the nitrogen oxides found in the 

9 air; 

10 (4) buildings contribute to the ‘‘heat island ef11 fect’’ by eliminating vegetative cover and using pav12 ing and roofing materials that absorb heat and raise 

13 ambient temperatures, accelerating the reaction that 

14 forms ground-level ozone; 

15 (5) according to the Environmental Protection 

16 Agency, on average, people in the United States 

17 spend approximately 90 percent of their time in18 doors, where the concentration of pollutants may be 

19 2 to 5 times and, in some cases, 100 times, higher 

20 than pollution concentrations in outdoor air; 

21 (6) the Centers for Disease Control and the En22 vironmental Protection Agency have connected poor 

23 indoor air quality to significantly elevated rates of 

24 mortality; 
4 

•S 2620 IS 

1 (7) health impacts from building materials, 

2 such as adhesives, paints, carpeting, and pressed3 wood products, which may emit pollutants such as 

4 formaldehyde or other volatile organic compounds, 

5 are still uncertain but are believed to be potentially 

6 significant; 

7 (8) according to the Building Owners and Man8 agers Association, because costs relating to employ9 ees, at $130 per square foot annually (including 

10 health insurance costs), are by far the highest busi11 ness costs of a building, as opposed to total energy 

12 costs at $1.81 per square foot, measures to improve 

13 the indoor air quality of a building can be an impor14 tant investment in reducing long-term employee 

15 costs; 

16 (9) the use of energy efficient systems and al17 ternative sources of energy— 

18 (A) reduces building costs; and 

19 (B) improves the security of the United 

20 States by ensuring continuing operations de21 spite any potential interruptions in the primary 

22 energy supply of the United States as a result 

23 of terrorism or other disruptions of the elec24 tricity grid; 
5 

•S 2620 IS 

1 (10) by integrating issues relating to natural 

2 resource use, human health, materials use, transpor3 tation needs, and other concerns into planning the 

4 life cycle of a building, architects, designers, and de5 velopers can construct buildings that— 

6 (A) are healthier for occupants; 

7 (B) reduce environmental impacts; and 

8 (C) are less wasteful of resources; 

9 (11) a well-designed high-performance green 

10 building can be less expensive to build and operate 

11 throughout the lifetime of the building than a build12 ing that is not a high-performance green building; 

13 (12) in 2003, in the document entitled ‘‘The 

14 Federal Commitment to Green Building: Experi15 ences and Expectations’’, the Office of the Federal 

16 Environmental Executive found that ‘‘[t]here is a 

17 mixture of diverse Federal green building mandates 

18 in law, regulation, and Executive Orders, but not 

19 one definitive, clear, and unified policy statement on 

20 environmental design. Many within the Federal gov21 ernment are working on green buildings, but addi22 tional coordination and integration are needed.’’; 

23 (13) a central coordinating Federal authority 

24 for green buildings would increase efficiency of, im-
6 

•S 2620 IS 

1 prove communication between, and reduce duplica2 tion within green building programs; and 

3 (14) the General Services Administration, as 

4 the largest civilian landlord in the United States, 

5 managing more than 8,300 buildings owned or 

6 leased by the United States, is the appropriate agen7 cy to provide Federal agency coordination of green 

8 building programs. 

9 SEC. 3. DEFINITIONS. 

10 In this Act: 

11 (1) ADMINISTRATOR.—The term ‘‘Adminis12 trator’’ means the Administrator of General Serv13 ices. 

14 (2) COMMITTEE.—The term ‘‘Committee’’ 

15 means the steering committee established under sec16 tion 103(a). 

17 (3) HIGH-PERFORMANCE GREEN BUILDING.— 

18 The term ‘‘high-performance green building’’ means 

19 a building the life cycle of which— 

20 (A) increases the efficiency with which the 

21 building— 

22 (i) reduces energy, water, and mate23 rial resource use; 

24 (ii) improves indoor environmental 

25 quality, reduces indoor pollution, improves 
7 

•S 2620 IS 

1 thermal comfort, and improves lighting 

2 and noise environments that affect occu3 pant health and productivity; 

4 (iii) reduces negative impacts on the 

5 environment throughout the life cycle of 

6 the building, including air and water pollu7 tion and waste generation; 

8 (iv) increases the use of environ9 mentally preferable products, including 

10 biobased, recycled content, and nontoxic 

11 products with lower life-cycle impacts; 

12 (v) reduces the negative impacts of 

13 emissions under the Clean Air Act (42 

14 U.S.C. 7401 et seq.); 

15 (vi) integrates systems in the building; 

16 and 

17 (vii) reduces the environmental im18 pacts of transportation through building 

19 location and site design that support a full 

20 range of transportation choices for users of 

21 the building; 

22 (B) considers indoor and outdoor impacts 

23 of the building on human health and the envi24 ronment, including— 
8 

•S 2620 IS 

1 (i) improvements in worker produc2 tivity; 

3 (ii) the life-cycle impacts of building 

4 materials and operations; and 

5 (iii) other factors that the Office con6 siders to be appropriate. 

7 (4) HIGH-PERFORMANCE SCHOOL.—The term 

8 ‘‘high-performance school’’ has the meaning given 

9 the term ‘‘healthy, high-performance school build10 ing’’ in section 5586 of the Elementary and Sec11 ondary Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 7277e). 

12 (5) LIFE CYCLE.—The term ‘‘life cycle’’, with 

13 respect to a high-performance green building, means 

14 all stages of the useful life of the high-performance 

15 green building (including components, equipment, 

16 systems, and controls of the building) beginning at 

17 conception of a green building project and con18 tinuing through siting, design, construction, land19 scaping, commissioning, operation, maintenance, 

20 renovation, deconstruction, and removal of the green 

21 building. 

22 (6) LIFE CYCLE ASSESSMENT.—The term ‘‘life 

23 cycle assessment’’ means a comprehensive system 

24 approach for measuring the environmental perform-
9 

•S 2620 IS 

1 ance of a product or service that includes an analysis 

2 of the environmental impacts of— 

3 (A) each stage in the life of the product or 

4 service (including acquisition of raw materials, 

5 product manufacture, transportation, installa6 tion, operation and maintenance, and waste 

7 management); and 

8 (B) each component of the product or serv9 ice. 

10 (7) LIFE-CYCLE COSTING.—The term ‘‘life-cycle 

11 costing’’, with respect to a high-performance green 

12 building, means an analysis of economic costs of im13 pacts and choices made regarding materials used 

14 and activities carried out with respect to the life 

15 cycle of the high-performance green building. 

16 (8) LOCAL EDUCATIONAL AGENCY.—The term 

17 ‘‘local educational agency’’ has the meaning given 

18 the term in section 9101 of the Elementary and Sec19 ondary Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 7801). 

20 (9) OFFICE.—The term ‘‘Office’’ means the Of21 fice of High-Performance Green Buildings estab22 lished under section 102(a). 
10 

•S 2620 IS 

1 TITLE I—OFFICE OF HIGH-PER2 FORMANCE GREEN BUILD3 INGS 

4 SEC. 101. OVERSIGHT. 

5 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Administrator shall establish 

6 within the General Services Administration, and appoint 

7 an appropriate individual to, a position in the career-re8 served Senior Executive service to— 

9 (1) establish and oversee the Office of High10 Performance Green Buildings in accordance with 

11 section 102; and 

12 (2) carry out other duties as required under 

13 this Act. 

14 (b) COMPENSATION.—The compensation of the indi15 vidual appointed under subsection (a) shall not exceed the 

16 maximum rate of basic pay for the Senior Executive Serv17 ice under section 5382 of title 5, United States Code, in18 cluding any applicable locality-based comparability pay19 ment that may be authorized under section 5304(h)(2)(C) 

20 of that title. 

21 SEC. 102. OFFICE OF HIGH-PERFORMANCE GREEN BUILD22 INGS. 

23 (a) ESTABLISHMENT.—The individual appointed 

24 under section 101(a), in partnership with the Adminis25 trator of the Environmental Protection Agency, the Office 
11 

•S 2620 IS 

1 of the Federal Environmental Executive, the Secretary of 

2 Energy, the Secretary of Commerce, the Secretary of De3 fense, the Secretary of Homeland Security, the Secretary 

4 of Health and Human Services, the Director of the Office 

5 of Management and Budget, and heads of other relevant 

6 Federal agencies, shall establish within the General Serv7 ices Administration an Office of High-Performance Green 

8 Buildings. 

9 (b) DUTIES.—The Office shall— 

10 (1) ensure full coordination and collaboration 

11 with all relevant agencies; 

12 (2) establish a senior-level Federal interagency 

13 steering committee in accordance with section 103; 

14 (3) provide information through— 

15 (A) outreach; 

16 (B) education; 

17 (C) the provision of technical assistance; 

18 and 

19 (D) the development of a national high20 performance green building clearinghouse in ac21 cordance with section 104; 

22 (4) provide for research and development relat23 ing to high-performance green building initiatives 

24 under section 105(a); 
12 

•S 2620 IS 

1 (5) in partnership with the Comptroller Gen2 eral, review and analyze budget and life-cycle costing 

3 issues in accordance with section 106; 

4 (6) complete and submit a report in accordance 

5 with subsection (c); and 

6 (7) carry out implementation plans described in 

7 subsection (d). 

8 (c) REPORT.—Not later than 2 years after the date 

9 of enactment of this Act, and biennially thereafter, the Of10 fice shall submit to Congress and the Comptroller General 

11 a report that— 

12 (1) describes the status of the implementation 

13 of programs under this Act and other Federal pro14 grams in effect as of the date of the report, includ15 ing— 

16 (A) the extent to which the programs are 

17 being carried out in accordance with this Act; 

18 and 

19 (B) the status of funding requests and ap20 propriations for those programs; 

21 (2) identifies steps within the planning, budg22 eting, and construction process of Federal facilities 

23 that inhibit new and existing Federal facilities from 

24 becoming high-performance green buildings, as 

25 measured by— 
13 

•S 2620 IS 

1 (A) a silver rating, as defined by the Lead2 ership in Energy and Environmental Design 

3 Building Rating System standard established by 

4 the United States Green Building Council; or 

5 (B) an improved or higher rating standard 

6 as identified, and reassessed biannually, by the 

7 Committee; 

8 (3) identifies inconsistency of Federal agencies 

9 with Federal law in product acquisition guidelines 

10 and high-performance product guidelines; 

11 (4) recommends language for uniform stand12 ards for use by Federal agencies in environmentally 

13 responsible acquisition; and 

14 (5) includes, for the 2-year period covered by 

15 the report, recommendations to address each of the 

16 matters, and a plan and deadline for implementation 

17 of each of the recommendations, described in para18 graphs (1) through (4). 

19 (d) IMPLEMENTATION PLAN.—The Office, in con20 sultation with the Comptroller General, shall carry out 

21 each plan for implementation of recommendations under 

22 subsection (c)(5). 
14 

•S 2620 IS 

1 SEC. 103. INTERAGENCY STEERING COMMITTEE. 

2 (a) ESTABLISHMENT.—Not later than 180 days after 

3 the date of enactment of this Act, the Office shall establish 

4 within the Office a steering committee. 

5 (b) MEMBERSHIP.—The Committee shall be com6 posed of representatives of, at a minimum— 

7 (1) each agency referred to in section 102(a); 

8 (2) State and local governments; 

9 (3) nongovernmental organizations, including 

10 the United States Green Building Council, the 

11 American Council for an Energy-Efficient Economy, 

12 and the Rocky Mountain Institute; 

13 (4) building design, development, and finance 

14 sectors in the private sector; and 

15 (5) building owners, developers, and equipment 

16 manufacturers, including renewable, control, com17 bined heat and power, and other relevant tech18 nologies, as determined by the Office. 

19 (c) DUTIES.—The Committee shall— 

20 (1) assess Federal activities and compliance 

21 with Federal law applicable to high-performance 

22 green buildings; 

23 (2) make recommendations for expansion of ex24 isting efforts and development of new efforts to sup25 port activities relating to the life cycles of high-per26 formance green buildings by the Federal Govern-
15 

•S 2620 IS 

1 ment, including consideration of the benefits to na2 tional security and implementation of the Americans 

3 with Disabilities Act of 1990 (42 U.S.C. 12101 et 

4 seq.); 

5 (3) evaluate current high-performance green 

6 building standards and recommend improved, high7 er, or supplemental rating standards, as necessary, 

8 that are consistent with the responsibilities of the 

9 Federal Government under this Act and other appli10 cable law; and 

11 (4) provide to the individual appointed under 

12 section 101(a) such recommendations relating to 

13 Federal activities carried out under sections 104 

14 through 106 as are agreed to by a majority of the 

15 members of the Committee. 

16 SEC. 104. PUBLIC OUTREACH. 

17 (a) ESTABLISHMENT.—The Office, in close coordina18 tion with Federal agencies and departments that perform 

19 related functions, shall carry out public outreach— 

20 (1) to inform individuals and entities in the 

21 public sector, including the Federal Government, of 

22 the information and services available through the 

23 Office; and 

24 (2) to determine how to most effectively deliver 

25 that information to the individuals and entities. 
16 

•S 2620 IS 

1 (b) DUTIES.—In carrying out this section, the Office, 

2 in close cooperation with Federal agencies and depart3 ments that perform related functions, shall— 

4 (1) establish and maintain a national high-per5 formance green building clearinghouse on the Inter6 net that— 

7 (A) coordinates and enhances existing 

8 similar efforts; and 

9 (B) provides information relating to high10 performance green buildings, including— 

11 (i) information on, and hyperlinks to 

12 Internet sites that describe, the activities 

13 of the Federal Government; 

14 (ii) hyperlinks to Internet sites relat15 ing to— 

16 (I) State and local governments; 

17 (II) the private sector; and 

18 (III) international activities; and 

19 (iii) information on the exposure of 

20 children to environmental hazards in school 

21 facilities, as provided by the Administrator 

22 of the Environmental Protection Agency; 

23 (2) develop clear guidance and educational ma24 terials for use by Federal agencies in implementing 

25 high-performance green building practices; 
17 

•S 2620 IS 

1 (3) develop and conduct training sessions with 

2 budget specialists and contracting personnel from 

3 Federal agencies and budget examiners to apply life4 cycle cost criteria to actual projects; 

5 (4) provide technical assistance on methods of 

6 using tools and resources to make more cost-effec7 tive, health protective, and environmentally bene8 ficial decisions for constructing high-performance 

9 green buildings; 

10 (5) assist all branches of government at the 

11 Federal, State, and local levels, and any other inter12 ested entity, by providing information on relevant 

13 application processes for certifying a high-perform14 ance green building, including certification and com15 missioning; 

16 (6) assist interested persons, communities, busi17 nesses, and branches of government with technical 

18 information, technical assistance, market research, 

19 or other forms of assistance, information, or advice 

20 that would be useful in planning and constructing 

21 high-performance green buildings, particularly with 

22 respect to tools available to conduct life-cycle cost 

23 assessment; 

24 (7) provide technical training and guidance on 

25 high-performance green buildings; and 
18 

•S 2620 IS 

1 (8) obtain such information from other Federal 

2 offices, agencies and departments as is necessary to 

3 carry out this Act. 

4 SEC. 105. RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT. 

5 (a) ESTABLISHMENT.—The Office shall carry out re6 search and development— 

7 (1) to survey and coordinate existing research 

8 and studies; 

9 (2) to recommend new areas for research; and 

10 (3) to promote the development and dissemina11 tion of high performance green building tools. 

12 (b) DUTIES.—In carrying out this section, the Office 

13 shall— 

14 (1) ensure interagency coordination of relevant 

15 research; 

16 (2) develop and direct a Federal high-perform17 ance green building research plan that identifies in18 formation needs and research that should be ad19 dressed and provides measurement tools— 

20 (A) to quantify the relationships between 

21 human health and occupant productivity and 

22 each of— 

23 (i) pollutant emissions from materials 

24 and products in the building; 

25 (ii) natural day lighting; 
19 

•S 2620 IS 

1 (iii) ventilation choices and tech2 nologies; 

3 (iv) heating and cooling choices and 

4 technologies; 

5 (v) moisture control and mold; 

6 (vi) maintenance, cleaning, and pest 

7 control activities; 

8 (vii) acoustics; and 

9 (viii) other issues relating to the 

10 health, comfort, productivity, and perform11 ance of occupants of the building; 

12 (B) to monitor and assess the life-cycle 

13 performance of public facilities (including dem14 onstration projects) built as high-performance 

15 green buildings, including through consideration 

16 of the report required under section 

17 401(b)(1)(D); and 

18 (C) to quantify, review, and standardize 

19 techniques for use in performing life cycle as20 sessments; 

21 (3) assist the budget and life-cycle costing func22 tions of the Office under section 106 in the develop23 ment and implementation of performance-based 

24 standards and life-cycle cost measures, including the 

25 development of performance measure tools and soft-
20 

•S 2620 IS 

1 ware for use by Federal agencies and other inter2 ested entities; and 

3 (4) support other research initiatives deter4 mined by the Office to contribute to mainstreaming 

5 of high-performance planning, design, construction, 

6 and operation and management of buildings. 

7 SEC. 106. BUDGET AND LIFE-CYCLE COSTING. 

8 (a) ESTABLISHMENT.—The Office, in coordination 

9 with the Office of Management and Budget and relevant 

10 agencies, shall carry out budget and life-cycle costing for 

11 green buildings. 

12 (b) DUTIES.—In carrying out this section, the Office 

13 shall— 

14 (1) consult, as necessary, the report of the Of15 fice of the Federal Environmental Executive entitled 

16 ‘‘The Federal Commitment to Buildings: Experi17 ences and Expectations’’ and dated September 2003; 

18 (2) be responsible for— 

19 (A) examining policy of the Office of Man20 agement and Budget relating to life-cycle cost21 ing for Federal capital investments; 

22 (B) assisting in the development of clear 

23 guidance and implementation of life-cycle cost 

24 policy with budget offices of other Federal 
21 

•S 2620 IS 

1 agencies by establishing a consistent standard of 

2 life-cycle cost practices for Federal agencies; 

3 (C) identifying tools that could support the 

4 use of life-cycle costing to assist sound Federal 

5 budget decisionmaking; and 

6 (D) examining— 

7 (i) the practicability of linking high 

8 performance green building life cycle 

9 stages with Federal budgets; 

10 (ii) the effect that such a link would 

11 have in reducing barriers to the construc12 tion of high-performance green buildings 

13 and renovation of existing buildings; and 

14 (iii) means by which to incorporate 

15 the short-term and long-term cost savings 

16 that accrue from high-performance green 

17 buildings. 

18 SEC. 107. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS. 

19 There are authorized to be appropriated to carry out 

20 this title $2,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2005 through 

21 2010. 
22 

•S 2620 IS 

1 TITLE II—HEALTHY HIGH2 PERFORMANCE SCHOOLS 

3 SEC. 201. GRANTS FOR SCHOOLS. 

4 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Administrator of the Envi5 ronmental Protection Agency may provide grants to State 

6 educational agencies and local educational agencies for use 

7 in— 

8 (1) providing intensive technical assistance for 

9 and assisting the implementation of the Tools for 

10 Schools Program of the Environmental Protection 

11 Agency; and 

12 (2) development of State-level school environ13 mental quality plans, in partnership with the Envi14 ronmental Protection Agency, that may include— 

15 (A) standards for school building design, 

16 construction, and renovation; 

17 (B) identification of ongoing school build18 ing environmental problems in the State; 

19 (C) proposals for the systematic improve20 ment (including benchmarks and timelines) of 

21 environmental conditions in schools throughout 

22 the State, including with respect to— 

23 (i) school building siting, construction, 

24 and maintenance; 

25 (ii) indoor air quality; 
23 

•S 2620 IS 

1 (iii) pest control; 

2 (iv) radon contamination; 

3 (v) lead contamination; 

4 (vi) environmentally preferable pur5 chasing of products for instruction and 

6 maintenance; 

7 (vii) hazard identification and remedi8 ation; and 

9 (viii) maximization of transportation 

10 choices for students, staff, and other mem11 bers of the community; and 

12 (D) recommendations for improvements in 

13 the capacity of the State to track child and 

14 adult health complaints relating to schools. 

15 (b) COST SHARING.— 

16 (1) FEDERAL SHARE.—The Federal share of 

17 the cost of a project or activity carried out using 

18 funds from a grant under subsection (a) shall not 

19 exceed 90 percent. 

20 (2) NON-FEDERAL SHARE.—The non-Federal 

21 share of the cost of a project or activity carried out 

22 using funds from a grant under subsection (a) may 

23 be provided in the form of cash or in-kind goods and 

24 services, including goods and services used to create 

25 prototypical designs. 
24 

•S 2620 IS 

1 (c) GRANT PRIORITY.— 

2 (1) IN GENERAL.—In providing grants under 

3 this section for use in carrying out the program re4 ferred to in subsection (a)(1), the Administrator of 

5 the Environmental Protection Agency shall give pri6 ority to school districts that have a demonstrated 

7 need for environmental improvement. 

8 (2) RESPONSIBILITY OF SCHOOL DISTRICTS

9 AND STATE EDUCATIONAL AGENCIES.— 

10 (A) SCHOOL DISTRICTS.—Not later than 2 

11 years after the date of enactment of this Act, 

12 and annually thereafter, each school district 

13 that receives funds from the Administrator of 

14 the Environmental Protection Agency to carry 

15 out a program described in subsection (a) shall 

16 submit to the State educational agency with ju17 risdiction over the school district a report that 

18 includes— 

19 (i) a list of schools in the districts 

20 that, as of the date of the report, have ac21 cepted funds or other assistance from the 

22 Environmental Protection Agency for use 

23 in carrying out this section; and 

24 (ii) an evaluation of the impact of the 

25 funds, including— 
25 

•S 2620 IS 

1 (I) general data regarding meas2 ures of student health and attendance 

3 rates before and after the interven4 tion; and 

5 (II) descriptions of toxic or haz6 ardous cleaning, maintenance, or in7 structional products eliminated or re8 duced in use as part of the promotion 

9 or remediation of the indoor air qual10 ity of schools within the school dis11 trict; and 

12 (iii) basic information on the potential 

13 influence of other factors (such as the in14 stallation of carpet and HVAC systems 

15 and similar activities) on air quality. 

16 (B) STATE EDUCATIONAL AGENCY RE17 PORTS.—Not later than 180 days after the date 

18 on which each State educational agency has re19 ceived the annual reports under subparagraph 

20 (A) from all participating school districts, the 

21 State educational agency shall submit to the 

22 Administrator of the Environmental Protection 

23 Agency and Congress a consolidated report of 

24 all information received from the school dis25 tricts. 
26 

•S 2620 IS 

1 SEC. 202. FEDERAL GUIDELINES FOR SITING OF SCHOOL 

2 FACILITIES. 

3 (a) IN GENERAL.—Using as a model guidelines such 

4 as those of the ‘‘Child Proofing Our Communities’’ School 

5 Siting Committee of the State of California, the Adminis6 trator of the Environmental Protection Agency shall de7 velop school site acquisition guidelines. 

8 (b) VULNERABILITY.—The guidelines should contain 

9 an analysis of means by which to account for the special 

10 vulnerability of children to chemical exposures in any case 

11 in which the potential for contamination at a potential 

12 school site is assessed. 

13 (c) ACCESSIBILITY.—The guidelines shall include an 

14 analysis of means by which to maximize transportation 

15 choices for students, staff, and other members of the com16 munity. 

17 SEC. 203. EDUCATION RESEARCH PROGRAM. 

18 The Administrator of the Environmental Protection 

19 Agency, in partnership with the Secretary of Education, 

20 shall carry out an education research program that— 

21 (1) describes the status and findings of Federal 

22 research initiatives established under this Act and 

23 other Federal law with respect to education, includ24 ing relevant updates on trends in the field, such as 

25 the impact of school facility environments on— 
27 

•S 2620 IS 

1 (A) student and staff health, safety, and 

2 productivity; 

3 (B) students with disabilities or special 

4 needs; and 

5 (C) student learning capacity; 

6 (2) provides technical assistance on siting, de7 sign, management, and operation of school facilities, 

8 including facilities used by students with disabilities 

9 or special needs; 

10 (3) once the relevant metrics have been identi11 fied or developed in accordance with section 105, 

12 quantifies the relationships between— 

13 (A) human health, occupant productivity, 

14 and student performance; and 

15 (B) with respect to school facilities, each 

16 of— 

17 (i) pollutant emissions from materials 

18 and products; 

19 (ii) natural day lighting; 

20 (iii) ventilation choices and tech21 nologies; 

22 (iv) heating and cooling choices and 

23 technologies; 

24 (v) moisture control and mold; 
28 

•S 2620 IS 

1 (vi) maintenance, cleaning, and pest 

2 control activities; 

3 (vii) acoustics; and 

4 (viii) other issues relating to the 

5 health, comfort, productivity, and perform6 ance of occupants of the school facilities; 

7 (4) cooperates with federally funded pediatric 

8 environmental health research centers to assist in 

9 on-site school environmental investigations; 

10 (5) assists States and State entities in better 

11 understanding and improving the environmental 

12 health of children; and 

13 (6) provides to the Office a biennial report of 

14 all activities carried out under this section. 

15 SEC. 204. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS. 

16 There is authorized to be appropriated to carry out 

17 this title $10,000,000 for the period of fiscal years 2005 

18 through 2010. 

19 TITLE III—STRENGTHENING 

20 FEDERAL LEADERSHIP 

21 SEC. 301. GENERAL ACCOUNTING OFFICE. 

22 (a) RESTRUCTURING OF CAPITAL BUDGETS.—Not 

23 later than 180 days after the date of submission of the 

24 report under 102(c), the Comptroller General shall— 

25 (1) review the current budget process; and 
29 

•S 2620 IS 

1 (2) develop and submit to Congress an imple2 mentation plan for life-cycle costing that— 

3 (A) identifies and incorporates the short4 term and long-term cost savings that accrue 

5 from high-performance green buildings; and 

6 (B) includes recommendations for— 

7 (i) restructuring of budgets to require 

8 the use of complete energy- and environ9 mental-cost accounting; 

10 (ii) the use of operations expenditures 

11 in budget-related decisions while simulta12 neously incorporating productivity and 

13 health measures (as those measures can be 

14 quantified by the Office, with the assist15 ance of universities and national labora16 tories); and 

17 (iii) means by which Federal agencies 

18 may be permitted to retain and reuse all 

19 identified savings accrued as a result of 

20 the use of high-performance life cycle cost21 ing for future high-performance green 

22 building initiatives. 

23 (b) AUDITS.—The Comptroller General may conduct 

24 periodic audits of a Federal project over the life of the 

25 project to inspect whether— 
30 

•S 2620 IS 

1 (1) the design stage of high performance green 

2 building measures were achieved; and 

3 (2) the high performance building data were 

4 collected and reported to the Office. 

5 TITLE IV—DEMONSTRATION 

6 PROJECT 

7 SEC. 401. COORDINATION OF GOALS. 

8 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Office shall establish guide9 lines for a demonstration project conducted as a public10 private partnership to contribute to the research goals of 

11 the Office. 

12 (b) PROJECTS.—In accordance with guidelines estab13 lished by the Office under subsection (a) and the duties 

14 of the Office described in section 101(b), the individual 

15 appointed under section 101(a) shall carry out— 

16 (1) for each of fiscal years 2005 through 2008, 

17 a demonstration project, in a Federal building se18 lected by the Office in accordance with the criteria 

19 described in subsection (c)(1), that— 

20 (A) provides for the evaluation and, as 

21 practicable, use of the information obtained 

22 through the conduct of projects and activities 

23 under this Act; 

24 (B) requires at least 1 project or activity 

25 referred to in subparagraph (A) to achieve a 
31 

•S 2620 IS 

1 platinum rating, as defined by the Leadership 

2 in Energy and Environmental Design Building 

3 Rating System standard established by the 

4 United States Green Building Council (or 

5 equivalent rating), for each fiscal year; and 

6 (C) requires the submission to the Office 

7 of an annual report describing recommenda8 tions for the use of information gathered as a 

9 result of programs carried out under this Act; 

10 and 

11 (2) a demonstration project involving at least 4 

12 universities, that, as determined by the Office in ac13 cordance with subsection (c)(2), have appropriate re14 search capability and relevant projects to meet the 

15 goals of the demonstration project established by the 

16 Office. 

17 (c) CRITERIA.— 

18 (1) FEDERAL BUILDINGS.—With respect to the 

19 Federal building at which a demonstration project 

20 under this section is conducted, the Federal building 

21 shall— 

22 (A) be an appropriate model for a project 

23 involving— 
32 

•S 2620 IS 

1 (i) location and design that promote 

2 access to the Federal building through 

3 walking, biking, and mass transit; 

4 (ii) construction or renovation to meet 

5 high indoor environmental criteria; 

6 (iii) deployment, and assessment of ef7 fectiveness, of high performance tech8 nologies; 

9 (iv) analysis of life cycles of all mate10 rials, components, and systems in the 

11 building; and 

12 (v) assessment of beneficial impacts 

13 on public health and the health of individ14 uals that enter or work in the building; 

15 and 

16 (B) possess sufficient technological and or17 ganizational adaptability. 

18 (2) UNIVERSITIES.—With respect to the 4 uni19 versities at which a demonstration project under this 

20 section is conducted— 

21 (A) the universities should be selected 

22 based on— 

23 (i) successful and established public24 private research and development partner25 ships; 
33 

•S 2620 IS 

1 (ii) demonstrated capabilities to con2 struct or renovate buildings that meet high 

3 indoor environmental qualities; 

4 (iii) organizational flexibility; 

5 (iv) technological adaptability; 

6 (v) energy and environmental effec7 tiveness throughout the life cycles of all 

8 materials, components, and systems de9 ployed within the building; and 

10 (vi) the demonstrated capacity of at 

11 least 1 university to replicate lessons 

12 learned among nearby or sister univer13 sities, preferably by participation in groups 

14 or consortia that promote sustainability; 

15 (B) each university shall be located in a 

16 different climatic region of the United States, 

17 each of which regions shall have, as determined 

18 by the Office— 

19 (i) a hot, dry climate; 

20 (ii) a hot, humid climate; 

21 (iii) a cold climate; or 

22 (iv) a mild climate; 

23 (C) each university shall agree that the fo24 cuses of the project shall be— 
34 

•S 2620 IS 

1 (i) the effectiveness of various high 

2 performance technologies in each of the 4 

3 climatic regions of the United States de4 scribed in subparagraph (B); 

5 (ii) the identification of the most ef6 fective ways to use high performance build7 ing and landscape technologies to engage 

8 and educate undergraduate and graduate 

9 students; and 

10 (iii) quantifiable and nonquantifiable 

11 beneficial impacts on public health and 

12 worker and student performance. 

13 SEC. 402. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS. 

14 (a) FEDERAL DEMONSTRATION PROJECT.—There is 

15 authorized to be appropriated to carry out the Federal 

16 demonstration project described in section 401(b)(1) 

17 $5,000,000 for the period of fiscal years 2005 through 

18 2010. 

19 (b) UNIVERSITY DEMONSTRATION PROJECTS.— 

20 There is authorized to be appropriated to carry out the 

21 university demonstration projects described in section 

22 401(b)(2) $10,000,000 for the period of fiscal years 2005 

23 through 2010. 

Æ