Sec. 2878. Pilot program on use of mass timber in military construction projects
437 words·~2 min read·
/bill/117/hr/7900/eh/section-2878·A research copy — for the controlling text, always check the official state or federal source. Not legal advice.
The Secretary of each of the military departments shall carry out a pilot program to evaluate how the use of mass timber as the primary construction material in military construction projects affects the environmental sustainability, infrastructure resilience, cost effectiveness, and construction timeliness of such projects. The Secretary of a military department may carry out a military construction project under the pilot program using the authorities available to the Secretary of Defense under section 2914 of title 10, United States Code, regarding military construction projects for energy resilience, energy security, and energy conservation.
Each Secretary of a military department shall carry out at least one military construction project under the pilot program. The pilot program shall be conducted at military installations in the United States— that are identified as vulnerable to extreme weather events; and for which a military construction project is authorized but a request for proposal has not been released. In selecting military construction projects for the pilot program, the Secretaries of the military departments shall coordinate to ensure that at least one of the projects involves the construction of military unaccompanied housing.
Not later than 180 days after the date of the enactment of this Act, and every 180 days thereafter until December 31, 2025, the Secretaries of the military departments shall jointly submit to the congressional defense committees a report on the progress of the pilot program. Each report required under paragraph
(1)shall include each of the following: A description of the status of the military construction projects selected to be conducted under the pilot program. An explanation of the reasons for the selection of such military construction projects. An analysis of the projected or actual carbon footprint, including stored carbon in building materials, resilience to extreme weather events, construction timeliness, and cost effectiveness, of the military construction projects conducted under the pilot program using mass timber as compared to other materials historically used in military construction. Any updated guidance the Under Secretary of Defense for Acquisition and Sustainment has released in relation to the procurement policy for future military construction projects based on comparable benefits realized from use of mass timber, including guidance on prioritizing sustainable materials in establishing evaluation criteria for military construction project contracts when technically feasible. In this section, the term mass timber means any of the following: Cross-laminated timber. Nail-laminated timber. Glue-laminated timber. Laminated strand lumber. Laminated veneer lumber, The authority of the Secretary of a military department to carry out a military construction project under this section shall expire on September 30, 2025. Any construction commenced under the pilot program before such date may continue until completion.