Technology demonstration grant program

(a) In general The Secretary shall establish a smart city or community regional demonstration grant program under which the Secretary shall conduct demonstration projects focused on advanced smart city or community technologies and systems in a variety of communities, including small- and medium-sized cities and rural and Tribal communities. (b) Goals The goals of the program established under subsection (a) are— (1) to demonstrate— (A) potential benefits of concentrated investments in smart city or community technologies that are repeatable and scalable across cities of different sizes; and (B) the efficiency, equity, reliability, and resilience of civic infrastructure and services; (2) to facilitate the adoption of advanced smart city or community technologies and collaboration between small- and medium- to large-sized cities; and (3) to demonstrate protocols and standards that allow for the measurement and validation of the cost savings and performance improvements associated with the installation and use of smart city or community technologies and practices. (c) Demonstration projects (1) Eligibility Subject to paragraph (2), a unit of local government shall be eligible to receive a grant for a demonstration project under this section. (2) Application; Cooperation To qualify for a demonstration project under this section, a unit of local government shall— (A) submit to the Secretary an application for a grant for a demonstration project at such time and containing such information as the Secretary may require; and (B) agree to follow applicable best practices identified by the Secretaries, in consultation with industry entities and institutions of higher education, to evaluate the effectiveness of the implemented smart city or community technologies to ensure that— (i) technologies and interoperability can be assessed; (ii) best practices can be shared; and (iii) data can be shared in a public, interoperable, and transparent format. (3) Federal share of cost of technology investments The Secretary— (A) subject to subparagraph (B), shall provide to a unit of local government selected under this section for the conduct of a demonstration project a grant in an amount equal to not more than 50 percent of the total cost of technology investments to incorporate and assess qualifying smart city or community technologies in the applicable jurisdiction; and (B) may waive the cost-share requirement of subparagraph (A) as the Secretary determines to be appropriate. (d) Requirement In conducting demonstration projects under this section, the Secretary shall— (1) develop competitive, technology-neutral requirements; (2) seek to award grants and distribute benefits from smart city technologies in an equitable manner; (3) seek to leverage ongoing or existing civic infrastructure investments; and (4) take into consideration the non-Federal cost share as a competitive criterion in applicant selection in order to leverage non-Federal investment. (e) Public availability of data and reports The Secretary shall ensure that reports, public data sets, schematics, diagrams, and other works created using a grant provided under this section are— (1) available on a royalty-free, non-exclusive basis; and (2) open to the public to reproduce, publish, or otherwise use, without cost. (f) Authorization of appropriations There is authorized to be appropriated to the Secretary to carry out subsection (c) $100,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2026 through 2030.