Reducing Federal Energy Dollars Act of 2011

Bill: 112-s-963
Sponsor: Sen. Carper, Thomas R. [D-DE]
Introduced: 2011-05-12 in the Senate
Policy area: Energy
Subjects: Administrative law and regulatory procedures
Air quality
Alternative and renewable resources
Building construction
Climate change and greenhouse gases
Computers and information technology
Congressional oversight
Department of Energy
Energy efficiency and conservation
Government buildings, facilities, and property
Government information and archives
Lighting, heating, cooling
Performance measurement
Public contracts and procurement
Solid waste and recycling
Water quality
Water use and supply

Summary:
action_date: 2011-05-12
text: 
Reducing Federal Energy Dollars Act of 2011 - Amends the National Energy Conservation Policy Act to: (1) require each energy manager, with respect to property owned or operated by or constructed or manufactured and leased to the federal government, to submit information obtained under energy and water evaluations to a web-based tracking system; and (2) require each agency to use whole building smart meters for all federal buildings with a gross square footage of 30,000 square feet or more and smart submeters for subsystems that use 30% or more of whole building energy. Expands the definition of "energy saving" to include: (1) a reduction in the cost of energy, water, or wastewater treatment used in federally owned buildings or facilities or buildings or facilities at which agencies pay for utilities; (2) the increased efficient use of nonbuilding applications; and (3) the savings realized from reduced fuel use.
 
Requires the Secretary of Energy (DOE) to make available on a publicly available website a report summarizing the energy and water use and high-performance attributes of federal buildings.
 
Amends the Energy Conservation and Production Act to specify which energy efficiency standards go into effect if the Secretary elects not to update the federal building energy efficiency performance standard when the ASHRAE Standard or the International Energy Conservation Code is updated. 
 
Requires: (1) the Secretary to promulgate regulations that establish methods and procedures for use by agencies to implement the identification of all potential locations at federal facilities for renewable energy projects; and (2) agencies to complete their reports that identify such locations.
 
Requires the Secretary to issue guidance for agencies to employ advanced tools allowing energy savings through the use of computer hardware, energy efficiency software, and power management tools.
 
Amends the Energy Policy Act of 2005 to require renewable energy produced at a federal facility, on federal land, or on Indian land to be calculated separately from renewable energy used. Authorizes such energy to be used individually or in combination to comply with federal purchase requirements. 
 
Authorizes the Administrator of General Services (GSA) to use appropriated funds to update project designs to meet applicable federal building energy efficiency standards.
 
Requires the Administrator and the Secretary to incorporate commissioning and recommissioning standards of the National Energy Conservation Policy Act for all real property that: (1) is more than $10,000,000 in value; (2) has more than 50,000 square feet; or (3) has energy intensity of more than $2 per square foot and an area of more than 10,000 square feet (or energy expenditures greater than $20,000 per year).


Legislative actions:
action_date: 2011-06-09
text: Committee on Energy and Natural Resources. Hearings held. Hearings printed: S.Hrg. 112-273.
action_date: 2011-05-12
text: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Energy and Natural Resources.
action_date: 2011-05-12
text: Introduced in Senate