42 U.S.C. § 5510: Dissemination of information…

Summary

The Secretary must make sure that clear and complete information about solar heating and cooling demonstrations and projects is shared with federal, state, and local governments, the building industry, scientists, and the public during and after the programs. The information must be shared in a coordinated way with other federal agencies named by law, like NIST, the Department of Energy, the Patent and Trademark Office, and other appropriate offices. The Secretary must also study how building codes, zoning, tax rules, and other laws affect use of solar heating and cooling, decide what changes or incentives might help, and find ways to get those changes made. The Secretary must create and run a Solar Heating and Cooling Information Data Bank, using help from agencies like NASA, Commerce, and Energy, to collect and share technical reports, building design guidance, materials data, climate data, and device performance. The bank must serve governments, universities and nonprofits, and private people when appropriate, and use existing federal databases when possible. Every federal officer and agency involved must report yearly to the President and Congress on their activities and give recommendations; the Secretary must also send a special annual summary of all federal activities.

Title 42, §5510

The Public Health and Welfare, Source: USLM XML via OLRC

(a)Coordination by Secretary with other Federal agencies in dissemination to Federal, State, and local authorities, etc.

The Secretary shall take all possible steps to assure that full and complete information with respect to the demonstrations and other activities conducted under this subchapter is made available to Federal, State, and local authorities, the building industry and related segments of the economy, the scientific and technical community, and the public at large, both during and after the close of the programs under this subchapter, with the objective of promoting and facilitating to the maximum extent feasible the early and widespread practical use of solar energy for the heating and cooling of buildings throughout the United States. In accordance with regulations prescribed under section 5514 of this title such information shall be disseminated on a coordinated basis by the Secretary, the Administrator, the Director of the National Institute of Standards and Technology, the Secretary of Energy, the Under Secretary of Commerce for Intellectual Property and Director of the United States Patent and Trademark Office, and other appropriate Federal offices and agencies.

(b)Studies, investigations and modifications of building codes, zoning ordinances, etc., to promote use of solar energy in buildings

In addition, the Secretary shall—

(1)study and investigate the effect of building codes, zoning ordinances, tax regulations, and other laws, codes, ordinances, and practices upon the practical use of solar energy for the heating and cooling of buildings;

(2)determine the extent to which such laws, codes, ordinances, and practices should be changed to permit or facilitate such use, and the methods by which any such changes may best be brought about; and

(3)study the necessity of a program of incentives to accelerate the commercial application of solar heating and cooling technology.

(c)Establishment and operation of Solar Heating and Cooling Information Data Bank; retrieval and dissemination services; compilation of information for use by governmental agencies, nonprofit organizations and private persons; utilization of existing information

(1)In carrying out his functions under subsections (a) and (b) the Secretary, utilizing the capabilities of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration, the Department of Commerce, and the Secretary of Energy to the maximum extent possible, shall establish and operate a Solar Heating and Cooling Information Data Bank (hereinafter in this subsection referred to as the “bank”) for the purpose of collecting, reviewing, processing, and disseminating solar heating and cooling information and data in a timely and accurate manner in support of the objectives of this subchapter.

(2)Information and data compiled in the bank shall include—

(A)technical information (including reports, journal articles, dissertions, monographs, and project descriptions) on solar energy research, development, and applications;

(B)technical information on the design, construction, and maintenance of buildings compatible with solar heating and cooling concepts;

(C)physical and chemical properties of the materials required for solar heating and cooling;

(D)climatic conditions in appropriate areas of the United States, including those areas where the demonstrations are to be located; and

(E)engineering performance of devices utilized in solar heating and cooling or to be employed in the demonstrations.

(3)In accordance with regulations prescribed under section 5514 of this title, the Secretary shall provide retrieval and dissemination services to cover the solar heating and cooling information described under paragraph (2) for—

(A)Federal, State, and local government organizations that are active in the area of energy resources (and their contractors);

(B)universities, colleges, and other nonprofit organizations; and

(C)private persons, upon request, in appropriate cases.

(4)In carrying out his functions under this subsection, the Secretary shall utilize, when feasible, the existing data base of scientific and technical information in Federal agencies, adding to such data base any information described in paragraph (2) which does not already reside in such base.

(d)Annual reports to President and Congress by officers and agencies; contents; special annual report by Secretary

Each Federal officer and agency having functions under this subchapter shall include in his or its annual report to the President and the Congress a full and complete description of his or its activities (current and projected) under this subchapter, along with his or its recommendations for legislative, administrative, or other action to improve the programs under this subchapter or to achieve the objectives of this subchapter more promptly and effectively. In addition, the Secretary shall submit annually to the President and the Congress a special report summarizing in appropriate detail all of the activities (current and projected) of the various Federal officers and agencies having functions under this subchapter, with the objective of presenting a comprehensive overall view of such programs.

Notes & Related Subsidiaries

Editorial Notes

Amendments

1999—Subsec. (a). Pub. L. 106–113 substituted “Under Secretary of Commerce for Intellectual Property and Director of the United States Patent and Trademark Office” for “Commissioner of the Patent Office”. 1988—Subsec. (a). Pub. L. 100–418 substituted “National Institute of Standards and Technology” for “National Bureau of Standards”.

Statutory Notes and Related Subsidiaries

Effective Date

of 1999 AmendmentAmendment by Pub. L. 106–113 effective 4 months after Nov. 29, 1999, see section 1000(a)(9) [title IV, § 4731] of Pub. L. 106–113, set out as a note under section 1 of Title 35, Patents. Termination of Reporting RequirementsFor termination, effective May 15, 2000, of provisions of law requiring submittal to Congress of any annual, semiannual, or other regular periodic report listed in House Document No. 103–7 (in which a report required under subsec. (d) of this section is listed in item 12 on page 102), see section 3003 of Pub. L. 104–66, as amended, set out as a note under section 1113 of Title 31, Money and Finance.

Transfer of Functions

“Secretary of Energy” substituted for “Director”, meaning Director of National Science Foundation, in subsec. (a) and for “National Science Foundation” in subsec. (c) pursuant to section 104(f) and 301(h) of Pub. L. 93–438, which are classified to section 5814(f) and 5871(h) of this title and which transferred functions of National Science Foundation relating to or utilized in connection with solar heating and cooling development to Administrator of Energy Research and Development Administration, and pursuant to section 301(a), 703, and 707 of Pub. L. 95–91, which are classified to section 7151(a), 7293, and 7297 of this title and which terminated Energy Research and Development Administration and transferred its functions and functions of Administrator thereof (with certain exceptions) to Secretary of Energy.

§5510 Dissemination of Information to Promote Practical Use of Solar Heating and Cooling Technologies