S. 893

Energy Productivity Innovation Challenge Act of 2015 or the EPIC Act of 2015

This bill requires the Department of Energy (DOE) to establish a voluntary electric and thermal energy productivity challenge grant program for providing support to states for:

• advancing industrial energy efficiency, waste heat recovery, combined heat and power, and waste heat-to-power utilization;
• advancing energy efficiency construction and retrofits for commercial buildings, schools, hospitals, and residential buildings;
• expanding residential policies and programs designed to implement best practice policies and tools for residential retrofit programs that reduce administrative and delivery costs for energy efficiency projects, encourage streamlining and automation to support contractor engagement, and implement systems that encourage private investment and market innovation;
• establishing or expanding incentives in the electric utility sector to enhance demand response and energy efficiency; and
• promoting state activities involving both facilities and vehicle fleets than can be a model for other action to promote energy efficiency.

DOE must: (1) provide subsequent grants for activities to assist energy policy innovation in the states and to promote the goal of doubling electric and thermal energy productivity by January 1, 2030, and (2) invite Indian tribes to participate in the productivity challenge grant program.

As an offset to the cost of this bill, the bill amends the Energy Independence and Security Act of 2007 to reduce the authorized amount of appropriations for FY2016-FY2017 for the Zero Net Energy Commercial Buildings Initiative.