Energy Efficiency Program for Consumer Products: Public Meeting and Availability of the Framework Document for General Service Fluorescent Lamps and Incandescent Reflector Lamps, 56678-56679 [2011-23245]

Agencies

• DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY

[Federal Register Volume 76, Number 178 (Wednesday, September 14, 2011)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Pages 56678-56679]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2011-23245]


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DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY

10 CFR Part 430

[Docket No. EERE-2011-BT-STD-0006]
RIN 1904-AC43


Energy Efficiency Program for Consumer Products: Public Meeting 
and Availability of the Framework Document for General Service 
Fluorescent Lamps and Incandescent Reflector Lamps

AGENCY: Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy, Department of 
Energy.

ACTION: Notice of public meeting and availability of the Framework 
Document.

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SUMMARY: The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE or the Department) is 
initiating the rulemaking and data collection process to consider 
establishing amended energy conservation standards for certain general 
service fluorescent lamps (GSFLs) and incandescent reflector lamps 
(IRLs). Accordingly, DOE will hold a public meeting to discuss and 
receive comments on its planned analytical approach and the issues it 
will address in this rulemaking proceeding. DOE welcomes written 
comments from the public on this rulemaking. To inform stakeholders and 
to facilitate this process, DOE has prepared a framework document which 
details the analytical approach and identifies several issues on which 
DOE is particularly interested in receiving comment. The framework 
document is posted at: https://www.eere.energy.gov/buildings/appliance_standards/residential/incandescent_lamps.html.

DATES: The Department will hold a public meeting on October 4, 2011, 
from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. in Washington, DC for both this rulemaking on 
GSFL and IRL standards and the rulemaking on test procedures for GSFLs, 
general service incandescent lamps (GSILs), and IRLs. Any person 
requesting to speak at the public meeting should submit such request 
along with a signed original and an electronic copy of the statement to 
be given at the public meeting before 4 p.m., October 4, 2011. Written 
comments on the framework document are welcome, especially following 
the public meeting, and should be submitted by October 31, 2011.

ADDRESSES: The public meeting will be held at the U.S. Department of 
Energy, Forrestal Building, Room 1E-245, 1000 Independence Avenue, SW., 
Washington, DC 20585-0121. Please note that foreign nationals 
participating in the public meeting are subject to advance security 
screening procedures. If a foreign national wishes to participate in 
the public meeting, please inform DOE of this fact as soon as possible 
by contacting Ms. Brenda Edwards at (202) 586-2945 so that the 
necessary procedures can be completed. Please also note that those 
wishing to bring laptops to the meeting will be required to obtain a 
property pass. Visitors should avoid bringing laptops, or allow an 
extra 45 minutes.
    Stakeholders may submit comments, identified by docket number EERE-
2011-BT-STD-0006 and/or Regulation Identifier Number (RIN) 1904-AC43, 
by any of the following methods:
     Federal eRulemaking Portal: https://www.regulations.gov. 
Follow the instructions for submitting comments.
     E-mail: GSFL-IRL_2011-STD-0006@ee.doe.gov. Include EERE-
2011-BT-STD-0006 and/or RIN 1904-AC43 in the subject line of the 
message.
     Mail: Ms. Brenda Edwards, U.S. Department of Energy, 
Building Technologies Program, Mailstop EE-2J, Framework Document for 
General Service Fluorescent Lamps and Incandescent Reflector Lamps, 
EERE-2011-BT-STD-0006 and/or RIN 1904-AC43, 1000 Independence Avenue, 
SW., Washington, DC 20585-0121. Please submit one signed paper 
original.
     Hand Delivery/Courier: Ms. Brenda Edwards, U.S. Department 
of Energy, Building Technologies Program, Sixth Floor, 950 L'Enfant 
Plaza, SW., Washington, DC 20024. Please submit one signed paper 
original.
    Instructions: All submissions received must include the agency name 
and docket number or RIN number for this rulemaking.
    Docket: The docket for this rulemaking is available for review at 
https://www.regulations.gov, and will include Federal Register notices, 
framework documents, public meeting attendee lists and transcripts, 
comments, and other supporting documents/materials. All documents in 
the docket are listed in the https://www.regulations.gov index. Not all 
documents listed in the index may be publicly available, however, such 
as information that is exempt from public disclosure.
    A link to the docket web page can be found at: https://www.eere.energy.gov/buildings/appliance_standards/residential/incandescent_lamps.html. This web page contains a link to the docket 
for this notice on regulations.gov. The regulations.gov web page 
contains instructions on how to access all documents, including public 
comments, in the docket.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Dr. Tina Kaarsberg, U.S. Department of Energy, Office of Energy 
Efficiency and Renewable Energy, Building Technologies, EE-2J, 1000 
Independence Avenue, SW., Washington, DC 20585-0121. Telephone: (202) 
287-1393. E-mail: Tina.Kaarsberg@ee.doe.gov.

Ms. Elizabeth Kohl, U.S. Department of Energy, Office of the General 
Counsel, GC-71, 1000 Independence Avenue, SW., Washington, DC 20585-
0121. Telephone: (202) 586-7796. E-mail: Elizabeth.Kohl@hq.doe.gov.

    For information on how to submit or review public comments and on 
how to participate in the public meeting, contact Ms. Brenda Edwards, 
U.S. Department of Energy, Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable 
Energy, Building Technologies Program, EE-2J, 1000 Independence Avenue, 
SW., Washington, DC, 20585-0121. Telephone (202) 586-2945. E-mail: 
Brenda.Edwards@ee.doe.gov.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Title III of Energy Policy and Conservation 
Act (EPCA) (42 U.S.C. 6291 et seq.) sets forth a variety of provisions 
designed to improve energy efficiency. Part B of Title III (42 U.S.C. 
6291-6309) established the ``Energy Conservation Program for Consumer 
Products Other Than Automobiles,'' which includes major household 
appliances.\1\ Subsequent amendments expanded Title III of EPCA to 
include additional consumer products and certain commercial and 
industrial equipment, including certain fluorescent and incandescent 
lamps--the products that are the focus of this document. In particular, 
amendments to EPCA in the Energy Policy Act of 1992 (EPAct 1992), 
Public Law 102-486, established energy conservation standards for 
certain classes of GSFLs and IRLs, and required DOE to conduct two 
rulemaking cycles to determine whether these standards should be 
amended. (42 U.S.C. 6291(1), 6295(i)(1) and (3)-(4)) EPCA also 
authorized DOE to adopt standards for additional GSFLs if such 
standards were warranted. (42 U.S.C. 6295(i)(5))
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    \1\ Part B was re-designated part A on codification in the U.S. 
Code for editorial reasons.
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    DOE completed the first cycle of amendments by publishing a final 
rule in the Federal Register in July 2009 (hereafter referred to as the 
2009 Lamps

[[Page 56679]]

Rule). 74 FR 34080 (July 14, 2009). The 2009 Lamps rule addressed two 
statutory directives under 42 U.S.C. 6295(i) by amending existing GSFL 
and IRL energy conservation standards. (42 U.S.C. 6295(i)(3)) and 
adopting standards for additional GSFLs (42 U.S.C. 6295(i)(5)). This 
rule also amended the definition of ``colored fluorescent lamp'' and 
``rated wattage'' and adopted test procedures applicable to the newly 
covered GSFL. Information regarding the 2009 Lamps Rule can be found on 
DOE's Web site at: https://www.eere.energy.gov/buildings/appliance_standards/residential/incandescent_lamps.html.
    EPAct 1992 amendments to EPCA added as covered products certain 
IRLs with wattages of 40 watts (W) or higher, and established energy 
conservation standards for these IRLs. In defining the term 
``incandescent reflector lamp,'' EPAct 1992 excluded lamps with 
elliptical reflector (ER) and bulged reflector (BR) bulb shapes, and 
with diameters of 2.75 inches or less. Therefore, such IRLs were 
neither included as covered products nor subject to EPCA's standards 
for IRLs.
    Section 322(a)(1) of the Energy Independence and Security Act of 
2007 (EISA 2007) subsequently amended EPCA to expand the Act's 
definition of ``incandescent reflector lamp'' to include lamps with a 
diameter between 2.25 and 2.75 inches, as well as lamps with ER, BR, 
bulged parabolic aluminized reflector (BPAR), or similar bulb shapes. 
(42 U.S.C. 6291(30)(C)(ii) and (F)) Section 322(b) of EISA 2007, in 
amending EPCA to set forth revised standards for IRLs in new section 
325(i)(1)(C), exempted from these standards the following categories of 
IRLs: (1) Lamps rated 50 watts or less that are ER30, BR30, BR40, or 
ER40; (2) lamps rated 65 watts that are BR30, BR40, or ER40 lamps; and 
(3) R20 incandescent reflector lamps rated 45 watts or less. (42 U.S.C. 
6295(i)(C)) DOE refers to these three categories of lamps collectively 
as certain reflector (R), ER and BR IRLs.
    DOE has concluded, for the reasons that follow, that it has the 
authority under EPCA to adopt standards for these R, ER, and BR IRLs, 
and that these lamps are covered by the directive in 42 U.S.C. 
6295(i)(3) to amend EPCA's standards for IRLs. First, by amending the 
definition of ``incandescent reflector lamp'' (42 U.S.C. 
6291(30)(C)(ii) and (F)), EISA 2007 effectively brought these R, ER and 
BR IRLs into the Federal energy conservation standards program as 
covered products, thereby subjecting them to DOE's regulatory 
authority. Second, although 42 U.S.C. 6295(i)(1)(C) exempts these R, ER 
and BR IRLs from the standards specified in 42 U.S.C. 6295(i)(1)(B), 
EPCA directs that DOE amend the standards laid out in 42 U.S.C 
6295(i)(1), which includes subparagraph (C). As a result, the statutory 
text exempted these bulbs only from the standards specified in 42 
U.S.C. 6295(i)(1), not from future regulation. Consequently, DOE is 
considering energy conservation standards for these R, ER and BR IRLs. 
DOE initiated a new rulemaking for these products by publishing a 
framework document and publishing a notice announcing its availability. 
75 FR 23191 (May 3, 2010). DOE held a public meeting on May 26, 2010 to 
seek input from interested parties on its methodologies, assumptions, 
and data sources.
    To initiate the second rulemaking cycle to consider amended energy 
conservation standards for GSFLs and IRLs (other than the certain R, ER 
and BR IRLs discussed in the preceding paragraphs), DOE has prepared a 
framework document to explain the issues, analyses, and processes it 
anticipates using for the development of potential energy efficiency 
standards for certain GSFLs and IRLs. The framework document is 
available at https://www.eere.energy.gov/buildings/appliance_standards/residential/incandescent_lamps.html.
    In a separate rulemaking proceeding, DOE is also considering 
amendments to the test procedures used for determining the performance 
of GSFLs and IRLs. DOEs proposed amendments to the test procedures for 
GSFLs and IRLs are published elsewhere in today's Federal Register.
    As noted in DATES, DOE will hold a public meeting on October 4, 
2011 in Washington, DC to discuss the analyses presented and issues 
identified in the framework document prepared for the development of 
potential GSFL and IRL energy efficiency standards. At the public 
meeting, the Department will make a number of presentations, invite 
discussion on the rulemaking process as it applies to the covered 
products, and solicit comments, data, and information from participants 
and other interested parties. The Department encourages those who wish 
to participate in the public meeting to obtain the framework document 
and to be prepared to discuss its contents.
    Public meeting participants need not limit their comments to the 
issues identified in the framework document. The Department is also 
interested in receiving views concerning other relevant issues that 
participants believe would affect energy conservation standards for 
these products or the applicable test procedures. Furthermore, the 
Department welcomes all interested parties, regardless of whether they 
participate in the public meeting, to submit in writing by the date 
specified in the DATES section, comments and information on matters 
addressed in the framework document and on other matters relevant to 
consideration of standards for GSFL and IRL.
    The public meeting will be conducted in an informal, facilitated, 
conference style. There shall be no discussion of proprietary 
information, costs or prices, market shares, or other commercial 
matters regulated by U.S. antitrust laws. A court reporter will record 
the proceedings of the public meeting, after which a transcript will be 
made available on DOE's Web site at https://www.eere.energy.gov/buildings/appliance_standards/residential/incandescent_lamps.html.
    After the public meeting and the close of the comment period on the 
framework document, DOE will begin collecting data, conducting the 
analyses as discussed in the framework document and at the public 
meeting, and reviewing the comments received.
    DOE considers public participation to be a very important part of 
the process for setting energy conservation standards. DOE actively 
encourages the participation and interaction of the public during the 
comment period in each stage of the rulemaking process. Beginning with 
the framework document, and during each subsequent public meeting and 
comment period, interactions with and between members of the public 
provide a balanced discussion of the issues to assist DOE in the 
standards rulemaking process. Accordingly, anyone who would like to 
participate in the public meeting, receive meeting materials, or be 
added to the DOE mailing list to receive future notices and information 
regarding this rulemaking on GSFL and IRL, should contact Ms. Brenda 
Edwards at (202) 586-2945, or via e-mail at: Brenda.Edwards@ee.doe.gov.

     Issued in Washington, DC, on September 6, 2011.
Kathleen B. Hogan,
Deputy Assistant Secretary for Energy Efficiency, Office of Technology 
Development, Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy.
[FR Doc. 2011-23245 Filed 9-13-11; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6450-01-P