114 STAT. 434 PUBLIC LAW 106-224-JUNE 20, 2000 (1) IN GENERAL. — To be eligible for a grant, contract, or assistance under this section, an applicant shall be— (A) an institution of higher education; (B) a national laboratory; (C) a Federal research agency; (D) a State research agency; (E) a private sector entity; (F) a nonprofit organization; or (G) a consortium of two or more entities described in subparagraphs (A) through (F). (2) ADMINISTRATION. —After consultation with the Board, the points of contact shall— Publication. (A) publish annually one or more joint requests for proposals for grants, contracts, and assistance under this section; (B) establish a priority in grants, contracts, and assistance under this section for research that— (i) demonstrates potential for significant advances in biomass processing; (ii) demonstrates potential to substantially further scale-sensitive nationgd objectives such as— (I) sustainable resource supply; (II) reduced greenhouse gas emissions; (III) healthier rural economies; and (IV) improved strategic security and trade balances; and (iii) would improve knowledge of important biomass processing systems that demonstrate potential for commercial applications; (C) require that grants, contracts, and assistance under this section be awarded competitively, on the basis of merit, after the establishment of procedures that provide for scientific peer review by an independent panel of scientific and technical peers; and (D) give preference to applications that— (i) involve a consortia of experts from multiple institutions; and (ii) encourage the integration of disciplines and application of the best techniced resources, (d) USES OF GRANTS, CONTRACTS, AND ASSISTANCE. —^A grant, contract, or assistance under this section may be used to conduct— (1) research on process technology for overcoming the recalcitrance of biomass, including research on key mechanisms, advanced technologies, and demonstration test beds for— (A) feedstock pretreatment and hydrolysis of cellulose and hemicellulose, including new technologies for— (i) enhanced sugar yields; (ii) lower overall chemical use; (iii) less costly materials; and (iv) cost reduction; (B) development of novel organisms and other approaches to substantially lower the cost of cellulase enzymes and enzymatic hydrolysis, including dedicated cellulase production and consolidated Coprocessing strategies; and (C) approaches other than enzymatic hydrolysis for overcoming the recalcitrance of cellulosic biomass;
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