(g) WILDLIFE IMPACT MITIGATION.—In carrying out 
the activities described in subsection (c), the program estab-
lished under subsection (a) shall support wildlife impact 
mitigation technologies and strategies, including the use of 
distributed solar technologies, to reduce the potential nega-
tive impacts of solar energy systems on wildlife, including 
bird species and local flora and fauna. 
(h) STEWARDSHIP OF NATIONAL LABORATORY RE-
SOURCES.—In awarding grants and entering into contracts 
and cooperative agreements under this Act, the Secretary 
shall steward relevant capabilities and programs of the Na-
tional Laboratories. 
(i) CONFORMING REPEALS.—The following provisions 
of law are hereby repealed: 
(1) The Solar Energy Research, Development, 
and Demonstration Act of 1974 (42 U.S.C. 5551 et 
seq.), except for section 10. 
(2) The Solar Photovoltaic Energy Research, De-
velopment, and Demonstration Act of 1978 (42 U.S.C. 
5581 et seq.). 
(3) Paragraphs (2) and (3) of section 4(a) of the 
Renewable Energy and Energy Efficiency Technology 
Competitiveness Act of 1989 (42 U.S.C. 12003(a)). 
(4) Subparagraph (A) of section 931(a)(2) of the 
Energy Policy Act of 2005 (42 U.S.C. 16231(a)(2)). 
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(5) Sections 606 and 607 of the Energy Inde-
pendence and Security Act of 2007 (42 U.S.C. 17174 
and 17175). 
(j) DEFINITIONS.—In this Act: 
(1) The term ‘‘eligible entity’’ means any of the 
following entities: 
(A) An institution of higher education. 
(B) A National Laboratory. 
(C) A Federal research agency. 
(D) A State research agency. 
(E) A nonprofit research organization. 
(F) An industrial entity or a multi-institu-
tional consortium thereof. 
(2) The term ‘‘institution of higher education’’ 
has the meaning given such term in section 101 of the 
Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1001). 
(3) The term ‘‘National Laboratory’’ has the 
meaning given such term in section 2(3) of the En-
ergy Policy Act of 2005 (42 U.S.C. 15801(3)). 
(4) The term ‘‘photovoltaic device’’ includes pho-
tovoltaic cells and the electronic and electrical compo-
nents of such devices. 
(5) The term ‘‘Secretary’’ means the Secretary of 
Energy. 
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SEC. 3. SOLAR ENERGY TECHNOLOGY DEMONSTRATION 
PROJECTS. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—In carrying out the program estab-
lished under section 2(a), the Secretary shall award grants 
on a competitive, merit-reviewed basis to eligible entities 
for demonstration projects to advance the development of 
solar energy technologies and systems production. 
(b) PRIORITY.—In awarding grants under subsection 
(a), the Secretary shall give priority to projects that— 
(1) are located in geographically diverse regions 
of the United States; 
(2) can be replicated in a variety of regions and 
climates; 
(3) 
demonstrate 
technologies 
that 
address 
intermittency, variability, storage challenges, behind- 
the-meter operations, and independent operational ca-
pability; 
(4) coordinate solar technologies with other dis-
tributed and large-scale energy resources; 
(5) facilitate identification of optimum ap-
proaches among competing solar energy technologies; 
(6) include business commercialization plans 
that have the potential for production of solar energy 
equipment at high volumes; 
(7) support the development of advanced manu-
facturing technologies that have the potential to im-
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prove United States competitiveness in the inter-
national solar energy manufacturing sector; 
(8) provide the greatest potential to reduce en-
ergy costs, as well as promote accessibility and com-
munity implementation of demonstrated technologies, 
for consumers; 
(9) increase disclosure and transparency of in-
formation to all market participants to help in mak-
ing optimal decisions; 
(10) promote overall electric infrastructure reli-
ability and resilience should grid functions be dis-
rupted or damaged; 
(11) promote solar energy in low-income commu-
nities and those disproportionately burdened by envi-
ronmental pollution; and 
(12) satisfy any other criteria that the Secretary 
determines appropriate. 
(c) USE OF FUNDS.—Grants under this section may 
be used, to the extent that funding is not otherwise available 
through other Federal programs or power purchase agree-
ments, for— 
(1) any necessary site engineering study; 
(2) an economic assessment of site-specific condi-
tions; 
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(3) appropriate feasibility studies to determine 
whether the demonstration can be replicated; 
(4) installation of equipment, service, and sup-
port; 
(5) operation for at least the minimum amount 
of time required to fully assess the project’s results 
and objectives, as determined by a peer-reviewed proc-
ess; and 
(6) validation of technical, economic, and envi-
ronmental assumptions and documentation of lessons 
learned. 
(d) SOLICITATION.—Not later than 90 days after the 
date of enactment of this Act and annually thereafter, the 
Secretary shall conduct a national solicitation for applica-
tions for grants under this section. 
SEC. 4. NEXT GENERATION SOLAR ENERGY MANUFAC-
TURING INITIATIVE. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—In carrying out the program estab-
lished under section 2(a), the Secretary shall conduct re-
search, development, and demonstration projects, in accord-
ance with section 2(b), to advance new solar energy manu-
facturing technologies and techniques, including those that 
manufacture solar cells, hardware, and enabling devices. 
(b) STRATEGIC VISION REPORT.— 
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(1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than September 1, 
2020, the Secretary shall submit to the Committee on 
Science, Space, and Technology of the House of Rep-
resentatives, the Committee on Energy and Natural 
Resources of the Senate, and any other committees of 
Congress deemed appropriate by the Secretary a re-
port on the results of a study that examines the viable 
market opportunities available for solar energy tech-
nology manufacturing in the United States, including 
solar cells, hardware, and enabling technologies. 
(2) REPORT REQUIREMENTS.—The report under 
paragraph (1) shall include— 
(A) a description of— 
(i) the ability to competitively manu-
facture solar technology in the United 
States, including the manufacture of— 
(I) new and advanced materials, 
such as cells made with new, cost-effec-
tive, high efficiency materials; 
(II) solar module equipment and 
enabling technologies, including smart 
inverters, sensors, and tracking equip-
ment; 
(III) innovative solar module de-
signs and applications, including those 
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(3) reduce energy, water, and material inputs; 
(4) establish alternative supply chains for mate-
rials and components; and 
(5) take advantage of rapid prototyping, small 
batch manufacturing, and roll-to-roll processing. 
(d) PROGRAM EVALUATION.—Beginning not later than 
3 years after the completion of the report under subsection 
(b), and every 4 years thereafter, the Secretary shall pro-
vide, and make available to the public and the relevant au-
thorizing and appropriations committees of Congress, an 
independent review of the program authorized under this 
section to evaluate its progress toward meeting the policy 
recommendations and targets determined in the report. 
SEC. 5. PHOTOVOLTAIC DEVICE RECYCLING RESEARCH, DE-
VELOPMENT, AND DEMONSTRATION. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—In carrying out the program, the 
Secretary shall conduct research, development, and dem-
onstration projects, in accordance with section 2(b), to cre-
ate innovative and practical approaches to increase reuse 
and recycling of photovoltaic devices. 
(b) PURPOSE.—The Secretary shall award grants and 
enter into contracts and cooperative agreements under sub-
section (a) for projects that address— 
(1) technology to increase the efficiency of photo-
voltaic device recycling and maximize the recovery of 
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valuable raw materials for use in new products while 
minimizing the life-cycle environmental impacts such 
as greenhouse gas emissions and water usage; 
(2) expanded uses for materials from recycled 
photovoltaic devices; 
(3) development and demonstration of environ-
mentally responsible alternatives to the use of haz-
ardous materials in photovoltaic devices and the pro-
duction of such devices; 
(4) development of methods to separate and re-
move hazardous materials from photovoltaic devices 
and to recycle or dispose of those materials in a safe 
manner; 
(5) product design and construction to facilitate 
disassembly and recycling of photovoltaic devices; 
(6) tools and methods to aid in assessing the en-
vironmental impacts of the production of photovoltaic 
devices and photovoltaic device recycling and dis-
posal; 
(7) product design and construction and other 
tools and techniques to extend the life cycle of photo-
voltaic devices, including methods to promote their 
safe reuse; 
(8) strategies to increase consumer acceptance 
and practice of recycling of photovoltaic devices; and 
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(9) processes to reduce the costs and environ-
mental impact of disposal of toxic materials used in 
photovoltaic devices. 
(c) APPLICATIONS.—An eligible entity seeking a grant, 
contract, or cooperative agreement under this section shall 
submit to the Secretary an application that includes a de-
scription of— 
(1) the project that will be undertaken and the 
contributions of each participating entity; 
(2) the applicability of the project to increasing 
reuse and recycling of photovoltaic devices with the 
least environmental impacts as measured by life-cycle 
analyses, and the potential for incorporating the re-
search results into industry practice; and 
(3) how the project will promote collaboration 
among scientists and engineers from different dis-
ciplines, such as electrical engineering, materials 
science, and social science. 
(d) DISSEMINATION
OF RESULTS.—The Secretary 
shall publish the results of projects supported under this sec-
tion through— 
(1) development of best practices or training ma-
terials for use in the photovoltaics manufacturing, de-
sign, installation, refurbishing, or recycling indus-
tries; 
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(2) dissemination at industry conferences; 
(3) coordination with information dissemination 
programs relating to recycling of electronic devices in 
general; 
(4) demonstration projects; and 
(5) educational materials for the public produced 
in conjunction with State, Tribal, and local govern-
ments or nonprofit organizations on the problems and 
solutions related to reuse and recycling of photovoltaic 
devices. 
(e) PHOTOVOLTAIC MATERIALS PHYSICAL PROPERTY 
DATABASE.— 
(1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than September 1, 
2021, the Secretary shall establish a comprehensive 
physical property database of materials for use in 
photovoltaic devices. Such database shall include— 
(A) identification of materials used in pho-
tovoltaic devices; 
(B) 
a 
list 
of 
commercially 
available 
amounts of these materials and their country of 
origin; 
(C) amounts of these materials projected to 
be available through mining or recycling of pho-
tovoltaic and other electronic devices; and 
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(D) a list of other significant uses for each 
of these materials. 
(2) PRIORITIES.—Not later than September 1, 
2020, the Secretary, working with private industry, 
shall develop a plan to establish priorities and re-
quirements for the database under this subsection, in-
cluding the protection of proprietary information, 
trade secrets, and other confidential business informa-
tion. 
(3) COORDINATION.—The Secretary shall coordi-
nate with the Director of the National Institute of 
Standards and Technology, the Administrator of the 
Environmental Protection Agency, and the Adminis-
trator of the Department of Interior to facilitate the 
incorporation of the database under this subsection 
with any existing database for materials involved in 
electronic manufacturing and recycling. 
SEC. 6. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS. 
There are authorized to be appropriated to the Sec-
retary to carry out this Act— 
(1) $270,000,000 for fiscal year 2020; 
(2) $283,500,000 for fiscal year 2021; 
(3) $297,675,000 for fiscal year 2022; 
(4) $312,558,750 for fiscal year 2023; and 
(5) $328,186,688 for fiscal year 2024. 
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