IB 
Union Calendar No. 136 
111TH CONGRESS 
1ST SESSION H. R. 3165 
[Report No. 111–248] 
To provide for a program of wind energy research, development, and 
demonstration, and for other purposes. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
JULY 9, 2009 
Mr. TONKO introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee 
on Science and Technology 
SEPTEMBER 8, 2009 
Additional sponsors: Mr. LUJA´N, Mrs. MALONEY, Mr. WEXLER, Mr. INSLEE, 
Mr. DOGGETT, Mr. ISRAEL, Mr. BARTLETT, Mr. COURTNEY, Mr. 
GRIJALVA, Mr. CHANDLER, Ms. GIFFORDS, and Mr. CONNOLLY of Vir-
ginia 
SEPTEMBER 8, 2009 
Reported with an amendment, committed to the Committee of the Whole 
House on the State of the Union, and ordered to be printed 
[Strike out all after the enacting clause and insert the part printed in italic] 
[For text of introduced bill, see copy of bill as introduced on July 9, 2009] 
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A BILL 
To provide for a program of wind energy research, 
development, and demonstration, and for other purposes. 
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Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 
This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Wind Energy Research 
and Development Act of 2009’’. 
SEC. 2. WIND ENERGY RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT PRO-
GRAM. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary of Energy shall 
carry out a program of research and development to— 
(1) improve the energy efficiency, reliability, and 
capacity of wind turbines; 
(2) optimize the design and adaptability of wind 
energy systems to the broadest practical range of at-
mospheric conditions; and 
(3) reduce the cost of construction, generation, 
and maintenance of wind energy systems. 
(b) PROGRAM.—The program under this section shall 
focus on research and development of— 
(1) new materials and designs to make larger, 
lighter, less expensive, and more reliable rotor blades; 
(2) technologies to improve gearbox performance 
and reliability; 
(3) automation, materials, and assembly of 
large-scale components to reduce manufacturing costs; 
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(4) low-cost transportable towers greater than 
100 meters in height to capitalize on improved wind 
conditions at higher elevations; 
(5) advanced computational modeling tools to 
improve— 
(A) the reliability of aeroelastic simulations 
of wind energy systems; 
(B) understanding of the interaction be-
tween each wind turbine component; 
(C) siting of wind energy systems to maxi-
mize efficiency and minimize variable genera-
tion; 
(D) integration of wind energy systems into 
the existing electric grid to ensure reliability; 
and 
(E) understanding of the wake effect be-
tween upwind and downwind turbine operations; 
(6) advanced control systems and blade sensors 
to improve performance and reliability under a wide 
variety of wind conditions; 
(7) advanced generators, including— 
(A) medium-speed and low-speed generators; 
(B) direct-drive technology; and 
(C) the use of advanced magnets in gener-
ator rotors; 
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(8) wind technology for offshore applications; 
(9) methods to assess and mitigate the effects of 
wind energy systems on radar and electromagnetic 
fields; 
(10) wind turbines with a maximum electric 
power production capacity of 100 kilowatts or less; 
(11) technical processes to enable— 
(A) scalability of transmission from re-
motely located renewable resource rich areas; and 
(B) optimization of advanced infrastructure 
design, including high voltage transmission; and 
(12) other research areas as determined by the 
Secretary. 
SEC. 3. WIND ENERGY DEMONSTRATION PROGRAM. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary of Energy shall con-
duct a wind energy demonstration program. In carrying 
out this section, the Secretary shall ensure that— 
(1) the program is of sufficient size and geo-
graphic diversity to measure wind energy system per-
formance under the full productive range of wind con-
ditions in the United States; 
(2) demonstration projects carried out under this 
program are— 
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(A) conducted in collaboration with indus-
try and, as appropriate, with academic institu-
tions; and 
(B) located in various geographic areas rep-
resenting various wind class regimes; and 
(3) data collected from demonstration projects 
carried out under this program is useful for carrying 
out section 2(b). 
(b) COST-SHARING.—The Secretary shall carry out the 
program under this section in compliance with section 
988(a) through (d) and section 989 of the Energy Policy 
Act of 2005 (42 U.S.C. 16352(a) through (d) and 16353). 
SEC. 4. EQUAL OPPORTUNITY. 
In carrying out this Act, the Secretary of Energy 
shall— 
(1) coordinate with the Office of Minority Eco-
nomic Impact and with the Office of Small and Dis-
advantaged Business Utilization; and 
(2) provide special consideration to applications 
submitted by institutions, businesses, or entities con-
taining majority representation by individuals iden-
tified in section 33 or 34 of the Science and Engi-
neering Equal Opportunities Act (42 U.S.C. 1885a or 
1885b). 
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SEC. 5. COMPETITIVE AWARDS. 
Awards under section 2 and section 3 shall be made 
on a competitive basis with an emphasis on technical merit. 
SEC. 6. COORDINATION AND NONDUPLICATION. 
To the maximum extent practicable the Secretary of 
Energy shall coordinate activities under this Act with other 
programs of the Department of Energy and other Federal 
research programs. 
SEC. 7. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS. 
There are authorized to be appropriated to the Sec-
retary of Energy to carry out this Act $200,000,000 for each 
of the fiscal years 2010 through 2014. 
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