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[Congressional Bills 111th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 3226 Introduced in Senate (IS)]

111th CONGRESS
  2d Session
                                S. 3226

  To require the Secretary of Energy to take actions to stimulate the 
emergence of an offshore wind power industry in the United States, and 
                          for other purposes.

_______________________________________________________________________

                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                             April 19, 2010

Mr. Brown of Ohio (for himself, Mr. Carper, Ms. Collins, Ms. Snowe, and 
 Mr. Kaufman) introduced the following bill; which was read twice and 
       referred to the Committee on Energy and Natural Resources

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL

 
  To require the Secretary of Energy to take actions to stimulate the 
emergence of an offshore wind power industry in the United States, and 
                          for other purposes.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Program for Offshore Wind Energy 
Research and Development Act of 2010'' or the ``POWERED Act of 2010''.

SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

    Congress finds that--
            (1) as of the date of enactment of this Act, there are no 
        installed offshore wind power projects in the United States;
            (2) according to the Eastern Wind Integration and 
        Transmission Study, high penetrations of wind generation are 
        technically feasible with the expansion of transmission 
        infrastructure; and
            (3) to generate 20 percent of the electricity generation of 
        the United States from wind by 2030, as described in the report 
        entitled ``20 Percent Wind Energy by 2030'' and prepared by the 
        Secretary, technological advances for offshore wind power will 
        be required to enable cost reduction and performance 
        improvement.

SEC. 3. DEFINITIONS.

    In this Act:
            (1) Offshore wind power.--The term ``offshore wind power'' 
        means the generation of electricity from the deployment of wind 
        turbines in the Great Lakes and other inland navigable waters 
        or in coastal waters of the United States, including the 
        territorial sea, the exclusive economic zone, and the outer 
        Continental Shelf.
            (2) Program.--The term ``Program'' means the Offshore Wind 
        Power Research and Development Program established under 
        section 5.
            (3) Roadmap.--The term ``roadmap'' means an integrated plan 
        for achieving a substantial economically self-supporting 
        offshore wind power industry in the United States during the 
        near-term period of up to 2 years, the mid-term period of up to 
        7 years, and long-term period of up to 10 years beginning on 
        the date of enactment of this Act.
            (4) Secretary.--The term ``Secretary'' means the Secretary 
        of Energy.

SEC. 4. ROADMAP TO AN OFFSHORE WIND POWER FUTURE.

    (a) In General.--Not later than 120 days after the date of 
enactment of this Act, in accordance with subsection (c), the Secretary 
shall initiate the development of a comprehensive roadmap to assist and 
coordinate offshore wind power implementation efforts.
    (b) Components.--At a minimum, the roadmap shall include--
            (1) a compilation and synthesis of the previous analyses 
        that have been conducted in the United States examining the 
        potential for offshore wind power;
            (2)(A) an assessment of the technological advances and 
        research needed to make offshore wind power turbines more cost 
        competitive (both in initial installation and in ongoing 
        maintenance); and
            (B) recommendations on Federal support to promote research 
        and demonstration projects (including deepwater facilities) to 
        achieve the advances;
            (3)(A) an assessment of the various policy supports that 
        would promote the United States marketplace for offshore wind 
        power energy, taking into consideration best practices from 
        international programs, including--
                    (i) feed-in tariff programs;
                    (ii) grid access policies;
                    (iii) support to improve the transmission capacity 
                of the electrical grid to absorb power from large 
                offshore wind energy projects;
                    (iv) policies for streamlining project approval and 
                contractual agreements; and
                    (v) domestic content requirements for wind farm 
                developers; and
            (B) recommendations on Federal and State policies that 
        should be enacted to prudently promote offshore wind power in 
        the United States;
            (4)(A) an assessment of the offshore wind power permitting 
        system (including the requirements for securing permits for 
        both inland and coastal waters); and
            (B) recommendations on appropriate administrative and 
        regulatory changes to encourage and streamline offshore wind 
        power development in the United States while responsibly 
        safeguarding the public interests and environmental 
        considerations;
            (5) an assessment of the resources that will be required to 
        develop the infrastructure necessary to build offshore wind 
        power farms, including--
                    (A)(i) an assessment of the suitability of the 
                United States fleet for installation of offshore wind 
                power turbines and associated foundations and 
                transmission lines; and
                    (ii) an examination of the costs and technology for 
                alternative designs of ships and barges that may need 
                to be constructed (including potential domestic 
                suppliers of the ships and barges);
                    (B) an assessment of dock, crane, and laydown 
                requirements for building offshore wind power and the 
                capabilities of United States ports relative to those 
                requirements (including associated costs of any 
                necessary expansions); and
                    (C)(i) an assessment of specific skill-sets of 
                personnel needed to install and maintain offshore wind 
                power in the United States;
                    (ii) an estimate of the required quantities of 
                workers required to keep pace with the anticipated 
                expansion of the domestic offshore wind power market; 
                and
                    (iii) a description of training and curricula 
                required to produce the necessary workforce;
            (6) an assessment of--
                    (A) the manner in which winter ice flows affect 
                offshore wind power turbine towers; and
                    (B) the necessary technology (including costs) to 
                mitigate any potential negative impacts;
            (7) an assessment of the various domestic manufacturing 
        entities that can be involved in supplying offshore wind power 
        turbines and components, including the necessary capital 
        required to convert the existing operations of the entities to 
        support the offshore wind power industry;
            (8) an assessment of--
                    (A) the energy storage requirements that may be 
                needed to establish offshore wind installations; and
                    (B) the supply chain availability of current 
                technologies to meet the energy storage requirements; 
                and
            (9) an assessment of--
                    (A) freshwater offshore wind potential; and
                    (B) deepwater offshore wind potential, including--
                            (i) designs of floating offshore wind 
                        turbine systems;
                            (ii) manufacturing and deployment 
                        logistics; and
                            (iii) suitable locations for demonstration 
                        projects.
    (c) Consultation Requirements.--In carrying out subsection (b), the 
Secretary shall--
            (1) in consultation with the Secretary of the Interior, 
        carry out subsection (b)(4); and
            (2) in consultation with the Secretary of Commerce, carry 
        out subsection (b)(6).
    (d) Report.--Not later than 180 days after the enactment of this 
Act, the Secretary shall submit a report that describes the roadmap and 
makes any recommendations to--
            (1) the Committee on Energy and Natural Resources of the 
        Senate;
            (2) the Committee on Environment and Public Works of the 
        Senate;
            (3) the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation 
        of the Senate;
            (4) the Committee on Energy and Commerce of the House of 
        Representatives;
            (5) the Committee on Natural Resources of the House of 
        Representatives; and
            (6) the Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure of 
        the House of Representatives.

SEC. 5. OFFSHORE WIND POWER RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT PROGRAM.

    (a) In General.--Not later than 120 days after the date of 
enactment of this Act, in accordance with subsection (e), the Secretary 
shall establish the Offshore Wind Power Research and Development 
Program to assist and coordinate offshore wind power analysis and 
offshore wind power implementation efforts consistent with the roadmap 
developed under section 4.
    (b) Research, Development, and Demonstration Centers.--
            (1) In general.--Under the Program, in accordance with 
        paragraph (2), the Secretary shall award, on a competitive 
        basis with an emphasis on technical merit, grants to academic 
        institutions or industry-academic consortia to establish 2 or 
        more national offshore wind centers.
            (2) Selection.--In selecting academic institutions or 
        industry-academic consortia, the Secretary shall ensure that--
                    (A) not less than 1 national offshore wind center 
                focuses on transitional depth and deepwater floating 
                offshore wind energy technologies; and
                    (B) not less than 1 national offshore wind center 
                focuses on shallow water offshore wind energy 
                technologies.
    (c) Grants.--
            (1) In general.--Under the Program, the Secretary shall 
        award grants to States, academic institutions, and industry-
        academic consortia to conduct coordinated, cohesive offshore 
        wind power analysis, research, and development projects 
        consistent with the roadmap developed under section 4.
            (2) Use of department of energy investments.--In carrying 
        out paragraph (1), the Secretary shall, to the maximum extent 
        practicable, leverage investments of the Department of Energy 
        relating to the activities described in that paragraph.
    (d) Scope of Activities To Be Proposed.--The Secretary shall 
request proposals for projects under this section for carrying out 1 or 
more of the following activities:
            (1) Development of alternative State policies for orderly 
        use of offshore wind power in State power planning, including 
        State incentives for development.
            (2) Quantitative estimation of the offshore wind power 
        resource, including--
                    (A) wind directions and strengths (including wind 
                speed frequency distribution at technologically 
                significant heights, analyzed with the wind speed 
                average and turbulence intensity);
                    (B) bathymetry;
                    (C) waves and currents;
                    (D) seasonal air and water temperature 
                distributions;
                    (E) potential ice formation in the water and on the 
                blades;
                    (F) marine and lacustrine geology studies;
                    (G) the earthquake potential of the area;
                    (H) potential points for grid connection according 
                to current and future grid power evacuation and wind 
                farm power; and
                    (I) exclusion of competing uses.
            (3) Analysis of offshore wind power to formulate 
        recommendations for interconnection of offshore sites to each 
        other and to the mainland.
            (4) Development of plans for integration of the wind 
        resource into the electric grid, including--
                    (A) grid transmission and distribution topology;
                    (B) systems analysis for reliable and efficient 
                large-scale wind power integration;
                    (C) multilevel automatic control management of the 
                power system;
                    (D) voltage and frequency regulation;
                    (E) a plan to coordinate new offshore wind farms 
                with existing classical generators;
                    (F) energy storage for managing the variability in 
                power production and load demand; and
                    (G) load demand and wind speed prediction.
            (5) Analysis of the potential wildlife and ecological 
        effects, which may include on-site field study of possible 
        wildlife impacts and any visual effects to adjacent 
        communities.
            (6) Study of infrastructure needs, academic programs at 
        institutions of higher education, training, employment, and 
        other economic impacts of permitted and potential offshore wind 
        power projects.
            (7) Development of an advanced concept offshore wind 
        turbine generator that would use alternative designs not being 
        implemented, such as new wind turbine blade, drivetrain, and 
        electrical generator configurations.
            (8) Optimization of the configuration of wind turbines in 
        offshore arrays to improve overall efficiency.
            (9) Development of advanced materials, manufacturing 
        techniques, and deployment strategies that could reduce 
        installation and operation costs including advanced blade 
        manufacturing activity (including automation, materials, and 
        the assembly of large-scale components) to stimulate the 
        development of the blade manufacturing capacity of the United 
        States.
            (10) Design, demonstration, and deployment of advanced 
        foundations, anchors, moorings, and other components that 
        reduce costs and can sustain severe water and ice flow 
        conditions for application in shallow water, transitional 
        depths, and deep offshore water.
            (11) Research focused on improving the reliability of wind 
        turbine subsystems and components critical to offshore 
        locations.
            (12) Development of floating platforms, anchors, and 
        mooring technologies that extend the water depth of 
        installations that--
                    (A) increase available site locations; and
                    (B) reduce the effect of the view from the shore.
            (13) Development of advanced control systems for offshore 
        wind turbines, gravity and floating foundations, and combining 
        hydrodynamics and aerodynamics, including mechanical loads 
        attenuation, high power quality, optimum reliability, and 
        health monitoring.
            (14) Research on the design of large blades, including 
        efficient airfoils, de-icing systems, structural analysis, 
        materials, and appropriate control systems for load 
        attenuation.
            (15) Design and development of new deployment vessels that 
        reduce the cost of installation and maintenance of offshore 
        wind turbines and submarine cables.
            (16) Development of advanced power electronics and 
        alternating current or direct current electrical systems to 
        connect offshore wind farms to each other and the mainland 
        electrical grid.
            (17) Full-scale testing and establishment of experimental 
        offshore wind farms and other projects--
                    (A) to demonstrate advanced offshore wind 
                components and systems; and
                    (B) to validate technology and performance issues 
                relating to the components.
    (e) Consultation Requirements.--In carrying out subsection (d), the 
Secretary shall--
            (1) in consultation with the Secretary of the Interior, 
        carry out--
                    (A) subsection (d)(2)(G); and
                    (B) subsection (d)(5); and
            (2) in consultation with the Secretary of Commerce, carry 
        out subparagraphs (A) through (F), (H), and (I) of subsection 
        (d)(2).
    (f) Proposal Review and Selection Criteria.--The Secretary shall 
review applications, and rank and award proposals that--
            (1) contain a written plan by each participating State 
        government, academic institution, or academic-industry 
        consortia describing the manner in which the information 
        developed will be used for, and integrated into, decisions 
        regarding offshore wind power;
            (2) include as part of the proposal activity, the training 
        of professionals in analysis of offshore wind power to enhance 
        the national offshore wind power analysis capability;
            (3) propose to carry out 1 or more of the activities 
        described in subsection (d) and provide evidence of a proven 
        capability to carry out the activities, as demonstrated 
        through--
                    (A) prior research, publications, patents, and 
                advising of government and industry regarding offshore 
                wind power research; or
                    (B) in the absence of that experience, demonstrated 
                capability in general wind power research or other 
                fields that may be transferred to offshore wind power;
            (4) have scientific merit in the fields of science, 
        engineering, or social science required to carry out the 
        activities described in subsection (d);
            (5) supplement efforts carried out as of the date of 
        enactment of this Act by the Secretary of the Interior, the 
        Secretary of Commerce, and the heads of other applicable 
        Federal agencies to address data needs for the development of 
        offshore wind power as identified in consultation with the 
        heads of the applicable Federal agencies;
            (6) are consistent with a preference for proposals that are 
        identified in the roadmap as strongly contributing to near-term 
        and mid-term development targets; and
            (7) have a term of not less than 1 year and not more than 4 
        years.
    (g) Reports.--A State, academic institution, or industry-academic 
consortia that receives a grant under this section shall submit a 
report that describes the findings of the research and development 
conducted with the grant to--
            (1) the Secretary;
            (2) the Secretary of Commerce;
            (3) the Secretary of the Interior; and
            (4) the Chief of Engineers.
    (h) Authorization of Appropriations.--There is authorized to be 
appropriated to carry out this section $75,000,000 for each of fiscal 
years 2011 through 2015.

SEC. 6. USE OF RENEWABLE ENERGY TO COMPLY WITH FEDERAL RENEWABLE 
              ELECTRICITY STANDARD.

    Section 610(c)(2) of the Public Utility Regulatory Policies Act of 
1978 (as added by section 132 of the American Clean Energy and 
Leadership Act of 2009) is amended--
            (1) in subparagraph (H), by striking ``and'' after the 
        semicolon at the end;
            (2) in subparagraph (I)(iv), by striking the period at the 
        end and inserting ``; and''; and
            (3) by adding at the end the following:
                    ``(J) allow triple credits for generation of energy 
                from offshore wind power.''.

SEC. 7. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.

    There are authorized to be appropriated to carry out this Act such 
sums as are necessary.
                                 <all>
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