227 
and for rural and urban areas within those regions; 
and 
(5) summarizes the vulnerability of different ge-
ographic regions of the world to global change and 
analyzes the implications of global change for the 
United States, including international assistance, 
population displacement, food and resource avail-
ability, and national security. 
(b) USE OF RELATED REPORTS.—To the extent ap-
propriate, the assessment produced pursuant to this sec-
tion may coordinate with, consider, incorporate, or other-
wise make use of related reports, assessments, or informa-
tion produced by the United States Global Change Re-
search Program, regional, State, and local entities, and 
international organizations, including the World Meteoro-
logical Organization and the Intergovernmental Panel on 
Climate Change. 
SEC. 4618. POLICY ASSESSMENT. 
Not later than 1 year after the date of enactment 
of this Act, and at least once every 4 years thereafter, 
the President shall enter into a joint agreement with the 
National Academy of Public Administration and the Na-
tional Academy of Sciences under which the Academies 
shall—
228 
(1) document current policy options being im-
plemented by Federal, State, and local governments 
to mitigate or adapt to the effects of global and re-
gional climate change; 
(2) evaluate the realized and anticipated effec-
tiveness of those current policy options in meeting 
mitigation and adaptation goals; 
(3) identify and evaluate a range of additional 
policy options and infrastructure for mitigating or 
adapting to the effects of global and regional climate 
change; 
(4) analyze the adoption rates of policies and 
technologies available to reduce the vulnerability of 
society to global change with an evaluation of the 
market and policy obstacles to their adoption in the 
United States; and 
(5) evaluate the distribution of economic costs 
and benefits of these policy options across different 
United States economic sectors. 
SEC. 4619. ANNUAL REPORT. 
Each year at the time of submission to the Congress 
of the President’s budget request, the President shall sub-
mit to the Congress a report on the activities conducted 
pursuant to this part, including—
229 
(1) a description of the activities of the Pro-
gram during the past fiscal year; 
(2) a description of the activities planned in the 
next fiscal year toward achieving the goals of the 
Plan; and 
(3) a description of the groups or categories of 
State, local, and regional decisionmakers identified 
as potential users of the information generated 
through the Program and a description of the activi-
ties used to facilitate consultations with and out-
reach to these groups, coordinated through the work 
of the interagency committee. 
SEC. 4620. RELATION TO OTHER AUTHORITIES. 
The President shall— 
(1) ensure that relevant research, assessment, 
and outreach activities of the National Climate Pro-
gram, established by the National Climate Program 
Act (15 U.S.C. 2901 et seq.), are considered in de-
veloping national global and regional climate change 
research and assessment efforts; and 
(2) facilitate ongoing dialog and information ex-
change with regional, State, and local governments 
and other user communities through programs au-
thorized in the National Climate Program Act (15 
U.S.C. 2901 et seq.).
230 
SEC. 4621. REPEAL. 
The Global Change Research Act of 1990 (15 U.S.C. 
2921 et seq.) is repealed. 
SEC. 4622. GLOBAL CHANGE RESEARCH INFORMATION. 
The President shall establish or designate a Global 
Change Research Information Exchange to make scientific 
research and other information produced through or uti-
lized by the Program which would be useful in preventing, 
mitigating, or adapting to the effects of global change ac-
cessible through electronic means. 
SEC. 4623. ICE SHEET STUDY AND REPORT. 
(a) STUDY.— 
(1) REQUIREMENT.—The Director of the Na-
tional Science Foundation and the Administrator of 
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration 
shall enter into an arrangement with the National 
Academy of Sciences to complete a study of the cur-
rent status of ice sheet melt, as caused by climate 
change, with implications for global sea level rise. 
(2) CONTENTS.—The study shall take into con-
sideration— 
(A) the past research completed related to 
ice sheet melt as reviewed by Working Group I 
of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate 
Change;
231 
(B) additional research completed since the 
fall of 2005 that was not included in the Work-
ing Group I report due to time constraints; and 
(C) the need for an accurate assessment of 
changes in ice sheet spreading, changes in ice 
sheet flow, self-lubrication, the corresponding 
effect on ice sheets, and current modeling capa-
bilities. 
(3) REPORT.—Not later than 18 months after 
the date of enactment of this Act, the National 
Academy of Sciences shall transmit to the Com-
mittee on Science and Technology of the House of 
Representatives and the Committee on Commerce, 
Science, and Transportation of the Senate a report 
on the key findings of the study conducted under 
subsection (a), along with recommendations for addi-
tional research related to ice sheet melt and cor-
responding sea level rise. 
SEC. 4624. HURRICANE FREQUENCY AND INTENSITY STUDY 
AND REPORT. 
(a) STUDY.— 
(1) REQUIREMENT.—The Administrator of the 
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration 
and the Director of the National Science Foundation 
shall enter into an arrangement with the National
232 
Academy of Sciences to complete a study of the cur-
rent state of the science on the potential impacts of 
climate change on patterns of hurricane and typhoon 
development, including storm intensity, track, and 
frequency, and the implications for hurricane-prone 
and typhoon-prone coastal regions. 
(2) CONTENTS.—The study shall take into con-
sideration— 
(A) the past research completed related to 
hurricane and typhoon development, track, and 
intensity as reviewed by Working Groups I and 
II of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate 
Change; 
(B) additional research completed since the 
fall of 2005 that was not included in the Work-
ing Group I and II reports due to time con-
straints; 
(C) the need for accurate assessment of 
potential changes in hurricane and typhoon in-
tensity, track, and frequency and of the current 
modeling and forecasting capabilities and the 
need for improvements in forecasting of these 
parameters; and 
(D) the need for additional research and 
monitoring to improve forecasting of hurricanes
233 
and typhoons and to understand the relation-
ship between climate change and hurricane and 
typhoon development. 
(3) REPORT.—Not later than 18 months after 
the date of enactment of this Act, the National 
Academy of Sciences shall transmit to the Com-
mittee on Science and Technology of the House of 
Representatives and the Committee on Commerce, 
Science, and Transportation of the Senate a report 
on the key findings of the study conducted under 
subsection (a). 
PART 2—CLIMATE AND OTHER GLOBAL CHANGE 
DATA MANAGEMENT 
SEC. 4631. FINDINGS AND PURPOSES. 
(a) FINDINGS.—The Congress makes the following 
findings: 
(1) Federal agencies have a primary mission to 
manage and archive climate and other global change 
data obtained through their research, development, 
or operational activities. 
(2) Maintenance of climate and global change 
data records is essential to present and future stud-
ies of the Earth’s atmosphere, biogeochemical cycles, 
and climate.
234 
(3) Federal capabilities for the management 
and archiving of these data have not kept pace with 
advances in satellite and other observational tech-
nologies that have vastly expanded the type and 
amount of information that can be collected. 
(4) Proposals and plans for expansion of global 
observing networks should include plans for the 
management of data to be collected and budgets re-
flecting the cost of support for management and 
archiving of data. 
(b) PURPOSES.—The purposes of this part are to es-
tablish climate and other global change data management 
and archiving as Federal agency missions, and to establish 
Federal policies for managing and archiving climate and 
other global change data. 
SEC. 4632. DEFINITIONS. 
For purposes of this part— 
(1) the term ‘‘metadata’’ means information de-
scribing the content, quality, condition, and other 
characteristics of climate and other global change 
data, compiled, to the maximum extent possible, con-
sistent with the requirements of the ‘‘Content Stand-
ard for Digital Geospatial Metadata’’ (FGDC–STD– 
001–1998) issued by the Federal Geographic Data
235 
Committee, or any successor standard approved by 
the working group; and 
(2) the term ‘‘working group’’ means the inter-
agency climate and other global change data man-
agement working group established under section 
4633. 
SEC. 4633. INTERAGENCY CLIMATE AND OTHER GLOBAL 
CHANGE 
DATA 
MANAGEMENT 
WORKING 
GROUP. 
(a) ESTABLISHMENT.—The President shall establish 
or designate an interagency climate and other global 
change data management working group to make rec-
ommendations for coordinating Federal climate and other 
global change data management and archiving activities. 
(b) MEMBERSHIP.—The working group shall include 
the Administrator of the National Aeronautics and Space 
Administration, the Administrator of the National Oceanic 
and Atmospheric Administration, the Secretary of Energy, 
the Secretary of Defense, the Director of the National 
Science Foundation, the Director of the United States Ge-
ological Survey, the Archivist of the United States, the 
Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency, 
the Secretary of the Smithsonian Institution, or their des-
ignees, and representatives of any other Federal agencies 
the President considers appropriate.
236 
(c) REPORTS.—Not later than 1 year after the date 
of enactment of this Act, the working group shall transmit 
a report to the Congress containing the elements described 
in subsection (d). Not later than 4 years after the initial 
report under this subsection, and at least once every 4 
years thereafter, the working group shall transmit reports 
updating the previous report. In preparing reports under 
this subsection, the working group shall consult with ex-
pected users of the data collected and archived by the Pro-
gram. 
(d) CONTENTS.—The reports and updates required 
under subsection (c) shall— 
(1) include recommendations for the establish-
ment, maintenance, and accessibility of a catalog 
identifying all available climate and other global 
change data sets; 
(2) identify climate and other global change 
data collections in danger of being lost and rec-
ommend actions to prevent such loss; 
(3) identify gaps in climate and other global 
change data and recommend actions to fill those 
gaps; 
(4) identify effective and compatible procedures 
for climate and other global change data collection, 
management, and retention and make recommenda-
237 
tions for ensuring their use by Federal agencies and 
other appropriate entities; 
(5) develop and propose a coordinated strategy 
for funding and allocating responsibilities among 
Federal agencies for climate and other global change 
data collection, management, and retention; 
(6) make recommendations for ensuring that 
particular attention is paid to the collection, man-
agement, and archiving of metadata; 
(7) make recommendations for ensuring a uni-
fied and coordinated Federal capital investment 
strategy with respect to climate and other global 
change data collection, management, and archiving; 
(8) evaluate the data record from each observ-
ing system and make recommendations to ensure 
that delivered data are free from time-dependent bi-
ases and random errors before they are transferred 
to long-term archives; and 
(9) evaluate optimal design of observation sys-
tem components to ensure a cost-effective, adequate 
set of observations detecting and tracking global 
change.
238 
Subtitle H—H-PRIZE 
SEC. 4701. H-PRIZE. 
Section 1008 of the Energy Policy Act of 2005 (42 
U.S.C. 16396) is amended by adding at the end the fol-
lowing new subsection: 
‘‘(f) H-PRIZE.— 
‘‘(1) PRIZE AUTHORITY.— 
‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—As part of the pro-
gram under this section, the Secretary shall 
carry out a program to competitively award 
cash prizes in conformity with this subsection 
to advance the research, development, dem-
onstration, and commercial application of hy-
drogen energy technologies. 
‘‘(B) ADVERTISING AND SOLICITATION OF 
COMPETITORS.— 
‘‘(i) ADVERTISING.—The Secretary 
shall widely advertise prize competitions 
under this subsection to encourage broad 
participation, including by individuals, uni-
versities (including historically Black col-
leges and universities and other minority 
serving institutions), and large and small 
businesses (including businesses owned or
245 
this clause, the Secretary shall not award 
a prize. 
‘‘(iii) 
TRANSFORMATIONAL
TECH-
NOLOGIES.—To the extent permitted under 
paragraph (1)(E), the Secretary shall an-
nounce one prize competition authorized 
under subparagraph (A)(iii) as soon after 
the date of enactment of this subsection as 
is practicable. A prize offered under this 
clause shall be not less than $10,000,000, 
paid to the winner in a lump sum, and an 
additional amount paid to the winner as a 
match for each dollar of private funding 
raised by the winner for the hydrogen tech-
nology beginning on the date the winner 
was named. The match shall be provided 
for 3 years after the date the prize winner 
is named or until the full amount of the 
prize has been paid out, whichever occurs 
first. A prize winner may elect to have the 
match amount paid to another entity that 
is continuing the development of the win-
ning technology. The Secretary shall an-
nounce the rules for receiving the match in 
the 
notice 
required 
by 
paragraph
246 
(1)(B)(ii). The Secretary shall award a 
prize under this clause only when a reg-
istered participant has met the objective 
criteria established for the prize pursuant 
to subparagraph (C) and announced pursu-
ant to paragraph (1)(B)(ii). Not more than 
$10,000,000 in Federal funds may be used 
for the prize award under this clause. The 
administering entity shall seek to raise 
$40,000,000 toward the matching award 
under this clause. 
‘‘(C) CRITERIA.—In establishing the cri-
teria required by this subsection, the Sec-
retary— 
‘‘(i) shall consult with the Depart-
ment’s Hydrogen Technical and Fuel Cell 
Advisory Committee; 
‘‘(ii) shall consult with other Federal 
agencies, including the National Science 
Foundation; and 
‘‘(iii) may consult with other experts 
such as private organizations, including 
professional societies, industry associa-
tions, and the National Academy of
247 
Sciences and the National Academy of En-
gineering. 
‘‘(D) JUDGES.—For each prize competition 
under this subsection, the Secretary in con-
sultation with the administering entity shall as-
semble a panel of qualified judges to select the 
winner or winners on the basis of the criteria 
established under subparagraph (C). Judges for 
each prize competition shall include individuals 
from outside the Department, including from 
the private sector. A judge, spouse, minor chil-
dren, and members of the judge’s household 
may not— 
‘‘(i) have personal or financial inter-
ests in, or be an employee, officer, director, 
or agent of, any entity that is a registered 
participant in the prize competition for 
which he or she will serve as a judge; or 
‘‘(ii) have a familial or financial rela-
tionship with an individual who is a reg-
istered participant in the prize competition 
for which he or she will serve as a judge. 
‘‘(3) ELIGIBILITY.—To be eligible to win a 
prize under this subsection, an individual or entity—
248 
‘‘(A) shall have complied with all the re-
quirements in accordance with the Federal Reg-
ister 
notice 
required 
under 
paragraph 
(1)(B)(ii); 
‘‘(B) in the case of a private entity, shall 
be incorporated in and maintain a primary 
place of business in the United States, and in 
the case of an individual, whether participating 
singly or in a group, shall be a citizen of, or an 
alien lawfully admitted for permanent residence 
in, the United States; and 
‘‘(C) shall not be a Federal entity, a Fed-
eral employee acting within the scope of his em-
ployment, or an employee of a national labora-
tory acting within the scope of his employment. 
‘‘(4) INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY.—The Federal 
Government shall not, by virtue of offering or 
awarding a prize under this subsection, be entitled 
to any intellectual property rights derived as a con-
sequence of, or direct relation to, the participation 
by a registered participant in a competition author-
ized by this subsection. This paragraph shall not be 
construed to prevent the Federal Government from 
negotiating a license for the use of intellectual prop-
249 
erty developed for a prize competition under this 
subsection. 
‘‘(5) LIABILITY.— 
‘‘(A) WAIVER
OF
LIABILITY.—The Sec-
retary may require registered participants to 
waive claims against the Federal Government 
and the administering entity (except claims for 
willful misconduct) for any injury, death, dam-
age, or loss of property, revenue, or profits aris-
ing from the registered participants’ participa-
tion in a competition under this subsection. The 
Secretary shall give notice of any waiver re-
quired under this subparagraph in the notice 
required by paragraph (1)(B)(ii). The Secretary 
may not require a registered participant to 
waive claims against the administering entity 
arising out of the unauthorized use or disclo-
sure by the administering entity of the reg-
istered participant’s trade secrets or confiden-
tial business information. 
‘‘(B) LIABILITY INSURANCE.— 
‘‘(i) 
REQUIREMENTS.—Registered 
participants in a prize competition under 
this subsection shall be required to obtain 
liability insurance or demonstrate financial