An act to provide for a research, development, and demonstration program to achieve early technology applications for ocean thermal energy conversion systems, and for other purposes.
Latest action. public lawWhat a bill becomes when enacted, numbered by Congress and order of enactment: Public Law 119-4 is the 4th law of the 119th Congress.Read the full definition (opens a new tab) 96-310.
(House agreed to Senate amendments with amendments) Ocean Thermal Energy Conversion Research, Development, and Demonstration Act - Directs the Secretary of Energy to prepare a comprehensive program management plan of research, development, and demonstration of ocean thermal energy conversion (OTEC) systems. Directs the Secretary to submit to Congress annually the most recent revision of the plan giving justification for any changes. States that any comments and recommendations of the Technical Panel (established under this Act) shall be included in the annual report to Congress. Directs the Secretary to initiate research or accelerate existing research in areas in which the lack of knowledge limits development of OTEC in order to achieve the purposes of this Act. Authorizes the Secretary to initiate a program to design, construct, and operate well instrumented OTEC facilities of sufficient size to demonstrate the technical feasibility of utilizing the various forms of OTEC to displace nonrenewable fuels. Provides for the competitive selection of at least two independent parallel pilot demonstration projects. Establishes goals for the demonstration program which shall include: (1) the demonstration of OTEC technical feasibility through multiple pilot demonstration plants with a combined capacity of at least 100 megawatts of electrical capacity or energy product equivalent by 1986; (2) the delivery of baseload electricity to utilities located on land or the production of commercially attractive quantities of energy product; and (3) the continuous operation of each pilot demonstration facility for a sufficient period of time to collect and analyze system performance and reliability data. Directs the Secretary to prepare a comprehensive technology application and market development plan that will permit the realization of the national goal set forth in this Act of 10,000 megawatts of electrical capacity or energy product equivalent from OTEC systems by 1999. Directs the Secretary to set priorities consistent with several criteria including: (1) the realization of competitive energy costs for OTEC; (2) private cost-sharing; (3) the promotion of OTEC in areas vulnerable to interruptions in the supply of fossil fuel; (4) preference for and priority to persons and domestic firms whose base of operations is in the United States; and (5) preference for projects in which the respondents certify their intent to become an integral part of the industrial infrastructure. Establishes the Technical Panel of the Energy Research Advisory Board to advise the Board on the conduct of the OTEC program and submit annual reports on the OTEC program to the Board. Directs the Board to submit such report, with any comments, to the Secretary. Authorizes appropriations for operating expenses for fiscal years 1981 and 1982. Authorizes appropriations for the conceptual and preliminary design of demonstration plants with a combined capacity of at least 100 megawatts electrical or energy product equivalent.
Written by analysts at the Congressional Research Service and published on Congress.gov, not by Civibrief. Summarized at the "House agreed to Senate amendment with amendment" stage on July 2, 1980. It describes the bill, it is not the legal text.
Public Law 96-310.
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The record's latest action, on July 17, 1980: Public Law 96-310.
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In the 96th Congress (1979-80), 613 of the 12,581 bills and joint resolutions introduced became law, about 4.9 percent. That count covers every measure at every stage, including the many that never left committee.
This one has no outstanding steps listed above.
Has anyone actually voted on it?
No. No roll call in this Congress cites this measure. That is the ordinary outcome: most measures never reach a recorded floor vote, and a committee ends most of them simply by not acting.
A vote is not the only thing that happens to a measure. Hearings, markups, and referrals are all recorded actions, and none of them is a vote of the full chamber.
Who is behind it?
DON FUQUA (D-FL) introduced it on May 30, 1980, and 34 members have since signed on as cosponsors.
They come from both major parties: 22 Democrats, 11 Republicans, 1 independent.
Cosponsoring is a formal signature on the text. It is not a commitment to vote for the measure, it does not bind anyone's party, and a long list of cosponsors is a measure of attention rather than of prospects.
How long has it been in play?
It was introduced on May 30, 1980, 16904 days ago. The most recent recorded action was 16856 days ago, on July 17, 1980.
Measures do not carry over. Anything the 96th Congress has not finished by January 3, 1981 dies when the term ends, and has to be introduced again from the start in the next Congress.
Every answer above is assembled from this measure's own record on Congress.gov and from published counts of what Congress has passed before. Civibrief does not predict outcomes and takes no position on any measure.
Vote history
- HousePublic Law 96-310.
- SenateNot stated in the latest action
- PresidentNot stated in the latest action