I 
117TH CONGRESS 
1ST SESSION H. R. 4903 
To require the Secretary of Energy to establish a grant program to incentivize 
small business participation in demand side management programs, and 
for other purposes. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
JULY 30, 2021 
Mr. WELCH introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee 
on Energy and Commerce 
A BILL 
To require the Secretary of Energy to establish a grant 
program to incentivize small business participation in 
demand side management programs, and for other pur-
poses. 
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 ‘‘Main Street Efficiency 
Act of 2021’’. 
SEC. 2. FINDINGS; PURPOSES. 
(a) FINDINGS.—Congress finds that— 
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(7) three-quarters of electric and natural gas 
utility companies in the United States operate de-
mand side management programs to incentivize cus-
tomers to make energy efficiency improvements; and 
(8) participation rates for small businesses in 
demand side management programs are typically 
very low because small businesses do not have the 
capital to meet the customer contribution that utili-
ties require. 
(b) PURPOSES.—The purposes of this Act are— 
(1) to make small businesses more financially 
viable through energy efficiency improvements that 
lower monthly utility bills; 
(2) to restore and create energy efficiency jobs 
across the United States; 
(3) to provide work and revenue streams for 
small businesses in the energy efficiency sector; 
(4) to ensure that demand side management 
programs for small businesses include participation 
by— 
(A) minority, women, and veteran-owned 
small businesses; 
(B) small businesses in disadvantaged 
neighborhoods; and 
(C) newly created small businesses; 
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(5) to increase small business participation 
rates in demand side management programs; 
(6) to reduce the energy demand and emissions 
of the United States associated with energy use; and 
(7) to improve the indoor environments of small 
businesses across the United States. 
SEC. 3. GRANTS FOR DEMAND SIDE MANAGEMENT PRO-
GRAMS. 
(a) DEFINITIONS.—In this section: 
(1) 
CUSTOMER
CONTRIBUTION.—The 
term 
‘‘customer contribution’’ means the portion of the 
total cost of an activity carried out under a demand 
side management program that an eligible small 
business is responsible for covering to secure invest-
ment from a qualifying utility or program adminis-
trator. 
(2) DEMAND SIDE MANAGEMENT PROGRAM.— 
(A) IN GENERAL.—The term ‘‘demand side 
management program’’ means a program to 
plan, implement, and monitor activities of a 
qualifying utility or program administrator that 
are designed to encourage an eligible small 
business to modify their level or pattern of elec-
tricity or natural gas usage in a manner that 
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reduces the monthly energy costs of that eligi-
ble small business. 
(B) INCLUSIONS.—The term ‘‘demand side 
management program’’ includes any activity 
that— 
(i) improves the efficiency of any end- 
use appliance or equipment that uses elec-
tricity or natural gas; 
(ii) reduces monthly energy usage 
through weatherization, energy efficiency 
retrofitting, or infrastructure improve-
ments; 
(iii) enables or enhances overall en-
ergy or cost savings through digital tech-
nologies; 
(iv) improves the effectiveness of a 
program through digital analytics or en-
gagement; 
(v) improves the demand response ca-
pabilities of a qualifying utility; or 
(vi) supports the deployment of elec-
tric vehicles or energy storage technology. 
(3) DIVERSE
SUPPLIER.—The term ‘‘diverse 
supplier’’ means a service provider or supplier at 
least 51 percent of which is owned, operated, or con-
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trolled by an individual who is a minority, a woman, 
a veteran, disabled, or identifies as lesbian, gay, bi-
sexual, transgender, or queer (also known as 
‘‘LGBTQ’’). 
(4) ELECTRIC
UTILITY.—The term ‘‘electric 
utility’’ has the meaning given the term in section 
3 of the Public Utility Regulatory Policies Act of 
1978 (16 U.S.C. 2602). 
(5) ELIGIBLE SMALL BUSINESS.—The term ‘‘el-
igible small business’’ means a small commercial ac-
count utility customer, as determined by the applica-
ble qualifying utility or program administrator that 
receives a grant under this section, that— 
(A) has a peak demand of less than 300 
kilowatts of electricity in any billing month; and 
(B) uses less than 150,000 therms of nat-
ural gas each year. 
(6) GAS UTILITY.—The term ‘‘gas utility’’ has 
the meaning given the term in section 302 of the 
Public Utility Regulatory Policies Act of 1978 (15 
U.S.C. 3202). 
(7) MINORITY OWNED OR CONTROLLED.—The 
term ‘‘minority owned or controlled’’ means, with re-
spect to an eligible small business, an eligible small 
business— 
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(A)(i) that is privately owned and for-prof-
it; and 
(ii) at least 51 percent of which is owned 
or controlled by individuals who are of Asian- 
Indian, Asian-Pacific, Black, Latino, or Native 
American origin or descent; 
(B)(i) that is publicly owned; and 
(ii) at least 51 percent of the stock of 
which is owned by 1 or more individuals of 
Asian-Indian, Asian-Pacific, Black, Latino, or 
Native American origin or descent; or 
(C)(i) that is a not-for-profit business; 
(ii) at least 51 percent of the governing 
body or board of directors of which is composed 
of and controlled by individuals who are of 
Asian-Indian, Asian-Pacific, Black, Latino, or 
Native American origin or descent; and 
(iii) the management and daily operations 
of which are controlled by individuals described 
in clause (ii). 
(8) 
PROGRAM
ADMINISTRATOR.—The 
term 
‘‘program administrator’’ means a nonutility organi-
zation, such as a State government, contractor, or 
nonprofit organization, that administers a demand 
side management program that is funded by— 
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(A) public benefit charges to utility cus-
tomers, as approved by the governing body of 
the nonutility organization; or 
(B) other targeted funds from qualifying 
utilities or State governments. 
(9) QUALIFYING
UTILITY.—The term ‘‘quali-
fying utility’’ means an entity that— 
(A) is an electric utility or gas utility 
that— 
(i) is owned by investors; 
(ii) is a political subdivision of a State 
or an Indian Tribe, such as a municipally 
owned utility, agency, authority, corpora-
tion, or instrumentality of a State or an 
Indian Tribe; 
(iii) is a rural electric cooperative; or 
(iv) is primarily responsible for car-
rying out a demand side management pro-
gram that is funded by utility ratepayers; 
(B) operates in the United States, a terri-
tory of the United States, or on land owned by 
a federally recognized Indian Tribe; and 
(C) has established a demand side manage-
ment program for eligible small businesses as of 
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the date on which the qualifying utility submits 
an application under subsection (c)(1). 
(10) 
SECRETARY.—The 
term 
‘‘Secretary’’ 
means the Secretary of Energy. 
(b) ESTABLISHMENT.—Not later than 60 days after 
the date of enactment of this Act, the Secretary shall es-
tablish and carry out a program to provide grants to quali-
fying utilities and program administrators in accordance 
with this section. 
(c) APPLICATIONS.— 
(1) IN GENERAL.—To apply for a grant under 
this section, a qualifying utility or program adminis-
trator shall submit to the Secretary an application 
at such time, in such manner, and containing such 
information as the Secretary may require. 
(2) PRIORITY.—In awarding grants under this 
section, the Secretary shall, to the maximum extent 
practicable, give priority to a qualifying utility or 
program administrator that will carry out a demand 
side management program that— 
(A) utilizes diverse suppliers; and 
(B) includes as participants eligible small 
businesses that— 
(i) operate in an underserved, rural, 
or economically disadvantaged community; 
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(ii) are owned and operated by mem-
bers of the Armed Forces who are serving 
on active duty, separated from active duty, 
or retired from active duty; 
(iii) are minority owned or controlled; 
(iv) are owned and operated by so-
cially and economically disadvantaged indi-
viduals; 
(v) have operated for less than 7 
years as of the date on which the quali-
fying utility or program administrator sub-
mits an application for a grant under para-
graph (1); 
(vi) operate in diverse geographic lo-
cations, as determined by the qualifying 
utility or program administrator, as appli-
cable; or 
(vii) are of varying business types. 
(3) DEADLINE FOR SELECTION.—Subject to the 
availability of appropriations and paragraph (4), the 
Secretary shall determine whether to provide a grant 
to a qualifying utility or program administrator that 
submits an application under paragraph (1) not 
later than the date that is 30 days after the date on 
which the application is submitted. 
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(4) DELAYED ISSUANCE OF AWARDS.—The Sec-
retary may not provide grants under this section 
until the date that is 45 days after the date on 
which the Secretary begins to accept applications 
under paragraph (1). 
(d) GRANT FUNDS.— 
(1) USE
OF
FUNDS.—A qualifying utility or 
program administrator that receives a grant under 
this section shall use the grant funds to pay cus-
tomer contributions. 
(2) LIMITATIONS ON GRANT AMOUNTS.— 
(A) MAX GRANT AMOUNT.—The amount of 
a grant awarded under this section to a quali-
fying utility or program administrator that car-
ries out a demand side management program 
shall not exceed the lesser of— 
(i) the amount of funding the quali-
fying utility or program administrator, as 
applicable, commits to spending on the de-
mand side management program for the 
period of the grant; and 
(ii) $100,000,000. 
(B) NO REDUCTION IN UTILITY CONTRIBU-
TIONS.—In providing grants under this section, 
the Secretary shall enter into an agreement 
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with each grant recipient to ensure that each 
grant recipient does not, as a result of receiving 
a grant under this section, reduce the amount 
it spends paying for the costs of activities car-
ried out under a demand side management pro-
gram for the benefit of any of customer classes 
of that grant recipient. 
(C) USE
OF
FUNDS
FOR
ENERGY
EFFI-
CIENT INFRASTRUCTURE.—A qualifying utility 
or program administrator awarded a grant 
under this section shall use not more than 25 
percent of the grant funds to support activities 
relating to the deployment of electric vehicles, 
distributed energy resources, or energy storage 
technology. 
(D) USE
OF
FUNDS
FOR
DEMAND
SIDE 
MANAGEMENT PROGRAM COSTS.—Of the grant 
funds provided under this section to a quali-
fying utility or program administrator, the 
amount used by the qualifying utility or pro-
gram administrator to pay a customer contribu-
tion, or any portion of a customer contribution, 
may not— 
(i) exceed the amount of non-Federal 
funding that the qualifying utility or pro-
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gram administrator, as applicable, spends 
on activities carried out under a demand 
side management program; or 
(ii) represent more than 50 percent of 
the total costs of those activities. 
(E) ADMINISTRATIVE COSTS.— 
(i) IN GENERAL.—A qualifying utility 
or program administrator awarded a grant 
under this section shall use not more than 
10 percent of the grant funds to pay for 
the administrative costs relating to the car-
rying out of activities under a demand side 
management program. 
(ii) RATES.—Nothing in this sub-
section shall affect the ability of a quali-
fying utility or program administrator that 
receives a grant under this section to 
charge a federally approved indirect rate. 
(e) ASSESSMENT AND REPORT.— 
(1) IN
GENERAL.—The Secretary shall carry 
out an annual assessment of the effect of grants 
provided under this section on energy use, economic 
outcomes, the environment, and social outcomes, in-
cluding with respect to— 
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(A) the electricity and natural gas usage 
(in terms of kilowatt hours, kilowatts, and 
therms) of each eligible small business that par-
ticipated in a demand side management pro-
gram carried out by a qualifying utility or pro-
gram administrator that received a grant under 
this section; 
(B) the changes in the level of customer 
contributions; 
(C) the cost to eligible small businesses of 
purchasing electricity and natural gas; 
(D) job creation, wages, benefits, career 
development opportunities, and the diversity of 
the energy efficiency workforce; 
(E) the extent to which— 
(i) qualified utilities and program ad-
ministrators, as applicable, utilize diverse 
suppliers; and 
(ii) minority owned or controlled eligi-
ble small businesses benefit from the pro-
gram; 
(F) the amount of non-Federal invest-
ments made in demand side management pro-
grams; and 
(G) the electric grid, including effects on— 
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(i) load flexibility; 
(ii) cost efficiency; 
(iii) avoidance of new capacity; and 
(iv) any other relevant benefits, as de-
termined by the Secretary. 
(2) USE OF PROGRAM EVALUATION DATA.—To 
the extent practicable, the Secretary shall carry out 
an assessment under paragraph (1) using data that 
includes any data made available through program 
evaluations that are completed by qualifying utilities 
or program administrators in response to the re-
quirements of the governing body of the qualifying 
utility or program administrator. 
(3) REPORT.—Beginning in the first calendar 
year that begins after the date of enactment of this 
Act, and annually thereafter, the Secretary shall, not 
later than April 30 of each year, submit to Congress 
a report on the results of the most recent assess-
ment carried out under paragraph (1). 
(f) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.— 
(1) IN GENERAL.—There is authorized to be 
appropriated to the Secretary to carry out this sec-
tion $6,000,000,000 for fiscal year 2022, to remain 
available until expended. 
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(2) UNUSED
AMOUNTS.—Any amount of a 
grant provided under this section that has not been 
used by a qualifying utility or program adminis-
trator by the date that is 3 years after the date on 
which the grant was provided— 
(A) shall be returned to the Treasury; and 
(B) is authorized to be appropriated to 
carry out this section in addition to the 
amounts authorized to be appropriated under 
paragraph (1). 
Æ 
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