I 
110TH CONGRESS 
1ST SESSION H. R. 3031 
To promote the construction of green buildings in the United States, and 
for other purposes. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
JULY 12, 2007 
Mr. INSLEE (for himself, Mr. WEINER, Ms. SCHAKOWSKY, and Mr. GRIJALVA) 
introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on En-
ergy and Commerce, and in addition to the Committees on Transpor-
tation and Infrastructure, Education and Labor, Oversight and Govern-
ment Reform, Financial Services, and Ways and Means, for a period to 
be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consider-
ation of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee 
concerned 
A BILL 
To promote the construction of green buildings in the United 
States, and for other purposes. 
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 ‘‘Advanced Design in 
Energy for Living Efficiently Act of 2007’’. 
SEC. 2. FINDINGS. 
The Congress finds that— 
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(1) green building design practices have a posi-
tive effect on the reduction of greenhouse gases, the 
health of the environment, increases in productivity 
of workers, and improved water supply for commu-
nities; 
(2) buildings account for 38 percent of carbon 
dioxide emissions per year; 
(3) buildings consume approximately 40 percent 
of the energy and 70 percent of the electricity in the 
United States per year; 
(4) an upfront investment of 2 percent in green 
building design, on average, results in life cycle sav-
ings of 20 percent of the total operation costs of a 
building; 
(5) case studies show examples of a 2 to 16 
percent increase in productivity in buildings that in-
corporate green building design; 
(6) students with the most daylight in their 
classrooms progressed 20 percent faster on mathe-
matics tests and 26 percent faster on reading tests 
in one year than those with the least day lighting; 
(7) the development of a research agenda for 
green building design must consider whole building 
performance, and such development should be found-
ed on achievable and measurable performance goals; 
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(8) the tools and knowledge are currently avail-
able to meet the goals of this Act; and 
(9) green building design is a national priority, 
and can reduce the long-term operating costs for in-
dividuals and enhance their ability to repay the 
mortgage. 
SEC. 3. DEFINITIONS. 
For purposes of this Act— 
(1) the term ‘‘Administrator’’ means the Ad-
ministrator of the Environmental Protection Agency; 
(2) the term ‘‘green building’’ means a building 
that uses sustainable design principles to reduce the 
use of nonrenewable resources, minimize environ-
mental impact, and relate people with the natural 
environment; 
(3) the term ‘‘institution of higher education’’ 
has the meaning given that term in section 101 of 
the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 
1001); and 
(4) the term ‘‘State’’ means one of the several 
States, the District of Columbia, the Commonwealth 
of Puerto Rico, the United States Virgin Islands, 
Guam, American Samoa, the Commonwealth of the 
Northern Mariana Islands, or any other common-
wealth, territory, or possession of the United States. 
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SEC. 4. COORDINATING AGENCY. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—The Administrator shall serve as 
the coordinating agency for Federal information on green 
building design and practices, including information re-
garding construction, use, and decommissioning of green 
buildings, and shall obtain from all Federal agencies any 
information relating thereto that is not protected from dis-
closure by law. 
(b) AVAILABILITY OF INFORMATION.—The Adminis-
trator, in consultation with the National Institute of 
Building Sciences, shall make the information obtained 
under subsection (a) readily available to the building in-
dustry and consumers. 
SEC. 5. PUBLIC EDUCATION AND TRAINING. 
(a) PUBLIC EDUCATION.—The Administrator, in co-
ordination with the National Institute of Building Sciences 
and in conjunction with private-sector building-related en-
tities, shall establish a program to create and distribute 
informational materials to increase the knowledge of the 
general public about green building design principles. 
(b) GREEN BUILDING TRAINING.—Not later than 6 
months after the date of enactment of this Act, the Ad-
ministrator shall provide for the establishment of criteria 
for appropriate education and training of architects, engi-
neers, and developers in green building design and applica-
tion. 
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