Title 42, The Public Health and WelfareRelease 119-110

§8258b Survey of Energy Saving Potential

Title 42 › CHAPTER 91 — NATIONAL ENERGY CONSERVATION POLICY › SUBCHAPTER III — FEDERAL ENERGY INITIATIVE › Part B — Federal Energy Management › § 8258b

Last updated Sep 22, 2026|Official source

Summary

The Secretary must run an energy survey with the Interagency Energy Management Task Force to find the biggest cost‑effective energy savings in a representative sample of federal buildings around the country, suggest energy efficiency and renewable upgrades, and point out obstacles that could stop agencies from meeting energy goals. Within 180 days after October 24, 1992, the Secretary must send a plan for doing this to the Senate Committees on Energy and Natural Resources and Governmental Affairs and to the House Committees on Energy and Commerce, Government Operations, and Public Works and Transportation. The survey must cover buildings that use most federal building energy in different climates and types (for example: housing, storage, offices, services, schools, research and development, industrial sites, prisons, and hospitals). An improvement counts as cost‑effective if the value of the energy it saves over the building’s remaining life or lease term is greater than the cost of the improvement, measured by the life‑cycle costing method in section 8254. The Secretary must use Department of Energy staff or people chosen by the agencies that use the buildings, and those workers must be detailed without any cut to their pay or benefits. When the project is finished, the Secretary must send a report of findings and conclusions to the same Senate and House committees and to the agencies that own the buildings. The report must include an analysis of the probability that each agency will meet the energy reduction goals in section 8253(a).

Full Legal Text

Title 42, §8258b

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

(a)In general
The Secretary shall, in consultation with the Interagency Energy Management Task Force established under section 8257 of this title, carry out an energy survey for the purposes of— (1)
(2)making recommendations for cost effective energy efficiency and renewable energy improvements in those buildings and in other similar Federal buildings; and
(3)identifying barriers which may prevent an agency’s ability to comply with section 8253 of this title and other energy management goals.
(b)Implementation
(1)The Secretary shall transmit to the Committee on Energy and Natural Resources and the Committee on Governmental Affairs of the Senate and the Committee on Energy and Commerce, the Committee on Government Operations, and the Committee on Public Works and Transportation of the House of Representatives, within 180 days after October 24, 1992, a plan for implementing this section.
(2)The Secretary shall designate buildings to be surveyed in the project so as to obtain a sample of the buildings of the types and in the climates that is representative of buildings owned or leased by Federal agencies in the United States that consume the major portion of the energy consumed in Federal buildings. Such sample shall include, where appropriate, the following types of Federal facility space:
(A)Housing.
(B)Storage.
(C)Office.
(D)Services.
(E)Schools.
(F)Research and Development.
(G)Industrial.
(H)Prisons.
(I)Hospitals.
(3)For purposes of this section, an improvement shall be considered cost effective if the cost of the energy saved or displaced by the improvement exceeds the cost of the improvement over the remaining life of a Federal building or the remaining term of a lease of a building leased by the Federal Government as determined by the life cycle costing methodology developed under section 8254 of this title.
(c)Personnel
(1)In carrying out this section, the Secretary shall utilize personnel who are—
(A)employees of the Department of Energy; or
(B)selected by the agencies utilizing the buildings which are being surveyed under this section.
(2)Such personnel shall be detailed for the purpose of carrying out this section without any reduction of salary or benefits.
(d)Report
As soon as practicable after the completion of the project carried out under this section, the Secretary shall transmit a report of the findings and conclusions of the project to the Committee on Energy and Natural Resources and the Committee on Governmental Affairs of the Senate, the Committee on Energy and Commerce, the Committee on Government Operations, and the Committee on Public Works and Transportation of the House of Representatives, and the agencies who own the buildings involved in such project. Such report shall include an analysis of the probability of each agency achieving each of the energy reduction goals established under section 8253(a) of this title.

Legislative History

Notes & Related Subsidiaries

Editorial Notes

Prior Provisions

A prior section 550 of Pub. L. 95–619 was classified to section 8260 of this title prior to the general amendment of this part by Pub. L. 100–615.

Amendments

2005—Subsec. (d). Pub. L. 109–58 substituted “each of the energy reduction goals” for “the 20 percent reduction goal”.

Statutory Notes and Related Subsidiaries

Change of Name

Committee on Governmental Affairs of Senate changed to Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs of Senate, effective Jan. 4, 2005, by Senate Resolution No. 445, One Hundred Eighth Congress, Oct. 9, 2004. Committee on Energy and Commerce of House of Representatives treated as referring to Committee on Commerce of House of Representatives by section 1(a) of Pub. L. 104–14, set out as a note preceding section 21 of Title 2, The Congress. Committee on Commerce of House of Representatives changed to Committee on Energy and Commerce of House of Representatives, and jurisdiction over matters relating to securities and exchanges and insurance generally transferred to Committee on Financial Services of House of Representatives by House Resolution No. 5, One Hundred Seventh Congress, Jan. 3, 2001. Committee on Government Operations of House of Representatives treated as referring to Committee on Government Reform and Oversight of House of Representatives by section 1(a) of Pub. L. 104–14, set out as a note preceding section 21 of Title 2. Committee on Government Reform and Oversight of House of Representatives changed to Committee on Government Reform of House of Representatives by House Resolution No. 5, One Hundred Sixth Congress, Jan. 6, 1999. Committee on Government Reform of House of Representatives changed to Committee on Oversight and Government Reform of House of Representatives by House Resolution No. 6, One Hundred Tenth Congress, Jan. 5, 2007. Committee on Oversight and Government Reform of House of Representatives changed to Committee on Oversight and Reform of House of Representatives by House Resolution No. 6, One Hundred Sixteenth Congress, Jan. 9, 2019. Committee on Oversight and Reform of House of Representatives changed to Committee on Oversight and Accountability of House of Representatives by House Resolution No. 5, One Hundred Eighteenth Congress, Jan. 9, 2023. Committee on Public Works and Transportation of House of Representatives treated as referring to Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure of House of Representatives by section 1(a) of Pub. L. 104–14, set out as a note preceding section 21 of Title 2.

Reference

Citations & Metadata

Citation

42 U.S.C. § 8258b

Title 42, The Public Health and Welfare

Last Updated

Sep 22, 2026

Release point: 119-110