Energy Conservation Program: Certification of Commercial and Industrial HVAC, Refrigeration and Water Heating Equipment, 72763-72766 [2012-29486]
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72763
Proposed Rules
Federal Register
Vol. 77, No. 235
Thursday, December 6, 2012
This section of the FEDERAL REGISTER
contains notices to the public of the proposed
issuance of rules and regulations. The
purpose of these notices is to give interested
persons an opportunity to participate in the
rule making prior to the adoption of the final
rules.
DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY
10 CFR Parts 429 and 431
[Docket Number: EERE–2012–BT–CE–0048]
RIN 1904–AC90
Energy Conservation Program:
Certification of Commercial and
Industrial HVAC, Refrigeration and
Water Heating Equipment
Office of Energy Efficiency and
Renewable Energy, Department of
Energy.
ACTION: Notice of proposed rulemaking.
AGENCY:
The U.S. Department of
Energy (DOE or the ‘‘Department’’)
proposes to amend the compliance dates
for revisions to its certification
regulations for certain commercial and
industrial equipment covered under the
Energy Policy and Conservation Act of
1975, as amended (EPCA or the ‘‘Act’’).
Specifically, DOE is proposing a 12month extension to the compliance date
for the certification provisions of
commercial refrigeration equipment;
commercial heating, ventilating, airconditioning (HVAC) equipment; and
commercial water heating equipment.
DOE is proposing to retain a December
31, 2012 certification date for automatic
commercial ice makers. Lastly, DOE is
proposing a correction in the packaged
terminal equipment standards table,
which would impact standard-size
packaged terminal air conditioners and
packaged terminal heat pumps with a
cooling capacity of 15,000 Btu/h.
DATES: DOE will accept comments, data,
and information regarding the notice of
proposed rulemaking (NOPR)
postmarked no later than December 21,
2012.
ADDRESSES: Interested persons are
encouraged to submit comments using
the Federal eRulemaking Portal at
www.regulations.gov. Follow the
instructions for submitting comments.
Alternatively, interested persons may
submit comments, identified by docket
number EERE–2012–BT–CE–0048, by
any of the following methods:
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SUMMARY:
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• Email: to
CCENOPR2012CE0048@ee.doe.gov.
Include EERE–2012–BT–CE–0048 in the
subject line of the message.
• Mail: Ms. Brenda Edwards, U.S.
Department of Energy, Building
Technologies Program, Mailstop EE–2J,
Revisions to Energy Efficiency
Enforcement Regulations, EERE–2012–
BT–CE–0048, 1000 Independence
Avenue SW., Washington, DC 20585–
0121. Phone: (202) 586–2945. Please
submit one signed paper original.
• Hand Delivery/Courier: Ms. Brenda
Edwards, U.S. Department of Energy,
Building Technologies Program, 6th
Floor, 950 L’Enfant Plaza SW.,
Washington, DC 20024. Phone: (202)
586–2945. Please submit one signed
paper original.
Instructions: All submissions received
must include the agency name and
docket number or RIN for this
rulemaking.
Docket: For access to the docket to
read background documents, or
comments received, go to the Federal
eRulemaking Portal at
www.regulations.gov.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Ms.
Ashley Armstrong, 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: 202–586–6590. Email:
Ashley.Armstrong@ee.doe.gov; and Ms.
Laura Barhydt, U.S. Department of
Energy, Office of the General Counsel,
Forrestal Building, GC–32, 1000
Independence Avenue SW.,
Washington, DC 20585. Telephone:
(202) 287–5772. Email:
Laura.Barhydt@hq.doe.gov.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: On March
7, 2011, DOE published a final rule in
the Federal Register that, among other
things, modified the requirements
regarding manufacturer submission of
compliance statements and certification
reports to DOE (hereafter referred to as
the March 2011 Final Rule) (76 FR
12421). These certification provisions
are central to the Department’s
regulatory framework for ensuring that
covered products and equipment sold in
the Unites States comply with existing
Federal energy conservation standards
and associated regulations.
The March 2011 Final Rule imposed
new reporting requirements, including a
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requirement that manufacturers submit
annual reports to the Department
certifying compliance of their basic
models with applicable standards. It
also revised the types of information
manufacturers must provide in that
submission. The Department
emphasized that manufacturers could
use their discretion in grouping
individual models as a certified ‘‘basic
model’’ such that the certified rating for
the basic model matched the
represented rating for all included
models. See 76 FR 12428–12429 for
more information. This reflected a basic
requirement of the Department’s
longstanding self-certification
compliance regime—that efficiency
certifications and representations must
be supported by either testing or an
approved alternative method of
estimating efficiency.
The March 2011 Final Rule provided
for the revised certification provisions
to be effective on July 5, 2011. Certain
manufacturers of particular types of
commercial and industrial equipment 1
stated that, for a variety of reasons, they
would be unable to meet that deadline.
As a result, the Department extended
the compliance date for certification of
commercial refrigeration equipment;
commercial HVAC equipment;
commercial WH equipment; and walkin coolers and freezers. See 76 FR 38287
(hereafter referred to as the June 30
Final Rule). DOE also acknowledged in
the June 30 Final Rule that numerous
manufacturers for certain types of
commercial equipment appear to have
been making representations of
efficiency and determining compliance
with the applicable energy conservation
standards without testing products in
accordance with all of the provisions of
the DOE test procedures, which include
sampling plans and certification testing
tolerances.
In the June 30 Final Rule, DOE stated
that it believed 18 months would be
sufficient to provide manufacturers with
the time necessary to develop the data
and supporting documentation needed
1 These products included commercial warm air
furnaces, commercial packaged boilers, and
commercial air conditioners and heat pumps
(collectively referred to as commercial HVAC
equipment); commercial refrigeration equipment;
commercial water heaters, commercial hot water
supply boilers, and unfired hot water storage tanks
(collectively referred to as commercial WH
equipment); walk-in coolers; walk-in freezers; and
automatic commercial ice makers.
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to populate the certification reports and
certify compliance with DOE’s
regulations, including the existing
testing and sampling procedures. DOE
also emphasized that all covered
equipment must meet the applicable
energy conservation standard and that
all testing procedures and sampling
provisions were unaffected by the final
rule.
On May 24, 2012, DOE issued a
proposed rule to revise and expand its
regulations regarding alternative
efficiency determination methods
(AEDMs). AEDMs reduce testing
burdens by allowing manufacturers to
use computer simulations, mathematical
models, and other alternative methods
to determine the amount of energy used
or efficiency by a particular basic
model. AEDM provisions for
commercial HVAC equipment and
commercial WH equipment already
exist, but DOE has proposed to revise
those regulations and to allow
manufacturers of commercial
refrigeration equipment to use AEDMs.
DOE has not yet finalized the AEDM
rulemaking.
In an October 2012, letter to the
Secretary of Energy, the Air
Conditioning, Heating and Refrigeration
Institute (AHRI) requested another
certification compliance date extension.
AHRI wrote, the ‘‘AEDM is a critical
element of the DOE certification process
as it will help manufacturers comply
with the regulations without having to
test every basic model they offer.’’
(AHRI, No. 1 at pp. 1–2) As a result, in
its letter AHRI requested that the
compliance date for certification be
extended a minimum of 18 months from
the date of publication of the AEDM
final rule.
The Department agrees that it may
address some of the concerns raised by
manufacturers’ by completing the
AEDM rulemaking. The Department is
also reviewing the recommendations of
the Convenor regarding the feasibility of
a negotiated rulemaking to revise the
certification requirements for
commercial HVAC equipment and
commercial refrigeration equipment.2
As such, the Department agrees with
AHRI that further extension of the
December 31, 2012 compliance date
may be warranted for commercial
refrigeration equipment; commercial
HVAC equipment; and commercial WH
2 The U.S. Department of Energy Convening
Report on the Feasibility of a Negotiated
Rulemaking to Revise the Certification Program for
Commercial Heating, Ventilating, Air Conditioning,
and Commercial Refrigeration Equipment can be
found at https://www.eere.energy.gov/buildings/
appliance_standards/pdfs/
convening_report_hvac_cre.pdf.
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equipment. However, as all
manufacturers should have at least some
valid test data upon which to develop
a substantiated AEDM, DOE does not
believe that an extension for the length
of time after finalization of an AEDM
rule requested by AHRI would be
necessary. Further, the potential for
issues raised by manufacturers to be
addressed through a negotiated
rulemaking also suggests that the time
requested by AHRI may be longer than
necessary. Accordingly, the Department
is proposing a 12-month delay in the
compliance date for submission of a
certification report for commercial
refrigeration equipment, commercial
HVAC equipment, and commercial WH
equipment. However, DOE is requesting
comment on its assumption regarding
the existence of test data. We also seek
comment on whether a longer or shorter
period of time would be more
appropriate.
If the Department adopts in a final
rule a delayed compliance date for
submission of certification reports, DOE
will also implement an enforcement
policy to encourage voluntary
certifications. Specifically, during the
interim period, DOE would not perform
random assessment tests (as defined at
10 CFR 429.104) of basic models of
commercial HVAC, refrigeration, or WH
equipment that are voluntarily certified
in accordance with DOE’s regulations
set forth in 10 CFR Parts 429 and 431.
This approach would acknowledge the
efforts of manufacturers that have been
working toward completing the
necessary testing to develop certified
ratings in accordance with the
December 31, 2012 deadline. Even
under this approach, DOE would
continue to conduct enforcement testing
of any basic model pursuant to 10 CFR
429.110 when it has a reason to believe
a given basic model may be noncompliant with the applicable Federal
standard.
The preamble to the June 30 Final
Rule stated that the compliance date for
submitting a certification report for
automatic commercial ice makers
(ACIM) was also extended; however, the
regulatory text did not extend the
compliance date for that product (76 FR
38287). DOE has not enforced the
certification requirements for ACIM.
Information available to DOE does not
suggest any issues with the compliance
date for ACIMs; therefore, DOE is
proposing to modify the regulatory text
to require submission of a certification
report for each basic model of ACIM by
December 31, 2012, as contemplated by
the June 30 Final Rule. DOE requests
comment, however, regarding whether
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the compliance date for ACIM
certification should also be extended.
The compliance dates for certification
requirements for walk-in coolers and
freezers, distribution transformers, and
metal halide lamp ballasts have passed,
and manufacturers of those products are
now submitting certification reports.
The proposed regulatory text would
reflect that these products are now
required to be certified by removing the
delayed compliance dates.
Lastly, the Department is proposing to
correct a technical drafting error for
packaged terminal air conditioners and
heat pumps that was implemented in
the reprinting of Table 5 in 10 CFR
431.97 in a final rule published on May
16, 2012 (77 FR 28994). More
specifically, DOE adopted changes to
the applicable energy conservation
standards for standard size and nonstandard size packaged terminal air
conditioners and heat pumps with a
cooling capacity of 15,000 Btu/h. DOE is
proposing to correct this error in today’s
proposed rule and adopt the original
standards for standard size and nonstandard size packaged terminal air
conditioners and heat pumps with a
cooling capacity of 15,000 Btu/h as
presented in a final rule evaluating and
originally adopting the amended energy
conservation for this equipment
published on April 7, 2008 (73 FR
18915).
Further Information on Submitting
Comments
Under 10 CFR 1004.11, any person
submitting information that he or she
believes to be confidential and exempt
by law from public disclosure should
submit two copies: one copy of the
document including all the information
believed to be confidential, and one
copy of the document with the
information believed to be confidential
deleted. DOE will make its own
determination about the confidential
status of the information and treat it
according to its determination.
Factors of interest to DOE when
evaluating requests to treat submitted
information as confidential include (1)
A description of the items, (2) whether
and why such items are customarily
treated as confidential within the
industry, (3) whether the information is
generally known by or available from
other sources, (4) whether the
information has previously been made
available to others without obligation
concerning its confidentiality, (5) an
explanation of the competitive injury to
the submitting person which would
result from public disclosure, (6) when
such information might lose its
confidential character due to the
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Federal Register / Vol. 77, No. 235 / Thursday, December 6, 2012 / Proposed Rules
passage of time, and (7) why disclosure
of the information would be contrary to
the public interest.
I. Procedural Issues and Regulatory
Review
A. Review Under Executive Order 12866
This proposed rule has been
determined not to be a ‘‘significant
regulatory action’’ under section 3(f) of
Executive Order 12866. Accordingly,
this action was not subject to review
under the Executive Order by the Office
of Information and Regulatory Affairs
(OIRA) in the Office of Management and
Budget (OMB).
B. Review Under the Regulatory
Flexibility Act
The Regulatory Flexibility Act (5
U.S.C. 601 et seq.) requires preparation
of an initial regulatory flexibility
analysis (IFRA) for any rule that by law
must be proposed for public comment,
unless the agency certifies that the rule,
if promulgated, will not have a
significant economic impact on a
substantial number of small entities. As
required by Executive Order 13272,
‘‘Proper Consideration of Small Entities
in Agency Rulemaking,’’ (67 FR 53461,
August 16, 2002), DOE published
procedures and policies on February 19,
2003, to ensure that the potential
impacts of its rules on small entities are
properly considered during the DOE
rulemaking process (68 FR 7990). DOE
has made its procedures and policies
available on the Office of the General
Counsel’s Web site: https://
www.energy.gov/gc.
DOE reviewed this proposed rule
under the provisions of the Regulatory
Flexibility Act and the procedures and
policies published on February 19,
2003. This proposed rule would merely
extend the compliance date of a
rulemaking already promulgated. To the
extent such action has any economic
impact it would be positive in that it
would allow regulated parties
additional time to come into
compliance. DOE did undertake a full
regulatory flexibility analysis of the
original CCE rulemaking. That analysis
considered the impacts of that
rulemaking on small entities. As a
result, DOE certifies that, if adopted,
this proposed rule would not have a
significant economic impact on a
substantial number of small entities.
C. Review Under the National
Environmental Policy Act
DOE has determined that this rule
falls into a class of actions that are
categorically excluded from review
under the National Environmental
Policy Act of 1969 (42 U.S.C. 4321 et
seq.) and DOE’s implementing
regulations at 10 CFR part 1021.
Specifically, this rule amends an
existing rule without changing its
environmental effect and, therefore, is
covered by the Categorical Exclusion in
10 CFR part 1021, subpart D, paragraph
A5. Accordingly, neither an
environmental assessment nor an
environmental impact statement is
required.
II. Approval of the Office of the
Secretary
The Secretary of Energy has approved
publication of today’s NOPR.
List of Subjects in 10 CFR Parts 429 and
431
Administrative practice and
procedure, Energy conservation,
Commercial equipment, Reporting and
recordkeeping requirements.
Issued in Washington, DC, on November
28, 2012.
Kathleen B. Hogan,
Deputy Assistant Secretary for Energy
Efficiency, Energy Efficiency and Renewable
Energy.
For the reasons stated in the
preamble, DOE is proposing to amend
chapter II, subchapter D, of title 10 of
the Code of Federal Regulations, to read
as set forth below:
PART 429—CERTIFICATION,
COMPLIANCE, AND ENFORCEMENT
FOR CONSUMER PRODUCTS AND
COMMERCIAL AND INDUSTRIAL
EQUIPMENT
1. The authority citation for part 429
continues to read as follows:
Authority: 42 U.S.C. 6291–6317.
2. In § 429.12, revise paragraph (i) to
read as follows:
§ 429.12 General requirements applicable
to certification reports.
*
*
*
*
*
(i) Compliance dates. For any product
subject to an applicable energy
conservation standard for which the
compliance date has not yet occurred, a
certification report must be submitted
not later than the compliance date for
the applicable energy conservation
standard. The covered products are
subject to the stated compliance dates
for certification as follows:
(1) Automatic commercial ice makers,
December 31, 2012;
(2) Commercial refrigeration
equipment, December 31, 2013;
(3) Commercial heating, ventilating,
and air-conditioning equipment,
December 31, 2013; and
(4) Commercial water heating
equipment, December 31, 2013.
PART 431—ENERGY EFFICIENCY
PROGRAM FOR CERTAIN
COMMERCIAL AND INDUSTRIAL
EQUIPMENT
3. The authority citation for part 431
continues to read as follows:
Authority: 42 U.S.C. 6291–6317.
4. In § 431.97, paragraph (c), revise
Table 5 to read as follows:
§ 431.97 Energy efficiency standards and
their compliance dates.
*
*
*
(c) * * *
*
*
TABLE 5 TO § 431.97—UPDATED MINIMUM EFFICIENCY STANDARDS FOR PTAC AND PTHP
Equipment
type
Cooling capacity
Sub-category
Efficiency level
PTAC .......
Standard Size .........
<7,000 Btu/h ...........................................
≥7,000 Btu/h and ≤ 15,000 Btu/h ...........
>15,000 Btu/h .........................................
<7,000 Btu/h ...........................................
≥7,000 Btu/h and ≤ 15,000 Btu/h ...........
>15,000 Btu/h .........................................
<7,000 Btu/h ...........................................
EER = 11.7 .............................................
EER = 13.8¥(0.3 × Cap1) ......................
EER = 9.3 ...............................................
EER = 9.4 ...............................................
EER = 10.9¥(0.213 × Cap1) ..................
EER = 7.7 ...............................................
EER = 11.9 .............................................
COP = 3.3
EER = 14.0 ¥ (0.3 × Cap1)
COP = 3.7 ¥ (0.052 × Cap1)
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Non-Standard Size
PTHP .......
Standard Size .........
≥7,000 Btu/h and ≤ 15,000 Btu/h ...........
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06DEP1
Compliance date:
Products
manufactured on and
after
October
October
October
October
October
October
October
8,
8,
8,
7,
7,
7,
8,
2012.
2012.
2012.
2010.
2010.
2010.
2012.
October 8, 2012.
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Federal Register / Vol. 77, No. 235 / Thursday, December 6, 2012 / Proposed Rules
TABLE 5 TO § 431.97—UPDATED MINIMUM EFFICIENCY STANDARDS FOR PTAC AND PTHP—Continued
Equipment
type
Cooling capacity
Sub-category
>15,000 Btu/h .........................................
Non-Standard Size
Efficiency level
EER = 9.5
COP = 2.9 ...............................................
EER = 9.3 ...............................................
COP = 2.7
EER = 10.8 ¥ (0.213 × Cap1) ...............
COP = 2.9 ¥ (0.026 × Cap1)
EER = 7.6 ...............................................
COP = 2.5
<7,000 Btu/h ...........................................
≥7,000 Btu/h and ≤15,000 Btu/h .............
>15,000 Btu/h .........................................
1 ‘‘Cap’’
*
October 8, 2012.
October 7, 2010.
October 7, 2010.
October 7, 2010.
means cooling capacity in thousand Btu/h at 95 °F outdoor dry-bulb temperature.
*
*
*
*
[FR Doc. 2012–29486 Filed 12–5–12; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6450–01–P
SMALL BUSINESS ADMINISTRATION
13 CFR Part 121
RIN 3245–AG44
Small Business Size Standards:
Support Activities for Mining
U.S. Small Business
Administration.
ACTION: Proposed rule.
AGENCY:
The U.S. Small Business
Administration (SBA) proposes to
increase small business size standards
for three industries in North American
Industry Classification System (NAICS)
Subsector 213, Support Activities for
Mining, within NAICS Sector 21,
Mining, Quarrying, and Oil and Gas
Extraction. NAICS Sector 21 contains
four industries with receipts based
standards and 19 industries with
employee based size standards. As part
of its ongoing comprehensive review of
all size standards, in this proposed rule,
SBA has evaluated the four industries
that have the receipts based size
standards in NAICS Sector 21 to
determine whether they should be
retained or revised. SBA will review the
19 industries that have the employee
based standards in NAICS Sector 21 at
a later date. This proposed rule is one
of a series of proposed rules that will
review size standards of industries
grouped by NAICS Sector. SBA has
issued a White Paper entitled ‘‘Size
Standards Methodology’’ and published
a notice in the October 21, 2009 issue
of the Federal Register to advise the
public that ‘‘Size Standards
Methodology’’ is available on its Web
site at www.sba.gov/size for public
review and comments. The ‘‘Size
Standards Methodology’’ White Paper
explains how SBA establishes, reviews,
SUMMARY:
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Compliance date:
Products
manufactured on and
after
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and modifies its receipts based and
employee based small business size
standards. In this proposed rule, SBA
has applied its methodology in
determining changes to receipts based
size standards in NAICS Sector 21,
Mining, Quarrying, and Oil and Gas
Extraction.
DATES: SBA must receive comments to
this proposed rule on or before February
4, 2013.
ADDRESSES: Identify your comments by
RIN 3245–AG44 and submit them by
one of the following methods: (1)
Federal eRulemaking Portal:
www.regulations.gov, following the
instructions for submitting comments;
or (2) Mail/Hand Delivery/Courier:
Khem R. Sharma, Ph.D., Chief, Size
Standards Division, 409 Third Street
SW., Mail Code 6530, Washington, DC
20416. SBA will not accept comments to
this proposed rule submitted by email.
SBA will post all comments to this
proposed rule on www.regulations.gov.
If you wish to submit confidential
business information (CBI) as defined in
the User Notice at www.regulations.gov,
you must submit such information to
U.S. Small Business Administration,
Khem R. Sharma, Ph.D., Chief, Size
Standards Division, 409 Third Street
SW., Mail Code 6530, Washington, DC
20416, or send an email to
sizestandards@sba.gov. You should
highlight the information that you
consider to be CBI and explain why you
believe SBA should hold this
information as confidential. SBA will
review your information and determine
whether it will make the information
public or not.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
Khem R. Sharma, Ph.D., Chief, Size
Standards Division, phone: (202) 205–
6618 or sizestandards@sba.gov.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: To
determine eligibility for Federal small
business assistance, SBA establishes
small business size definitions (referred
to as size standards) for private sector
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industries in the United States. SBA
uses two primary measures of business
size—average annual receipts and
average number of employees. SBA uses
financial assets, electric output, and
refining capacity to measure the size of
a few specialized industries. In
addition, SBA’s Small Business
Investment Company (SBIC), Certified
Development Company (504), and 7(a)
Loan Programs use either the industry
based size standards or net worth and
net income based alternative size
standards to determine eligibility for
those programs. At the beginning of the
current comprehensive size standards
review, there were 41 different size
standards covering 1,141 NAICS
industries and 18 sub-industry activities
(‘‘exceptions’’ in SBA’s table of size
standards). Thirty-one of these size
levels were based on average annual
receipts, seven were based on average
number of employees, and three were
based on other measures.
Over the years, SBA has received
comments that its size standards have
not kept up with changes in the
economy, in particular the changes in
the Federal contracting marketplace and
industry structure. The last time SBA
conducted a comprehensive review of
all size standards was during the late
1970s and early 1980s. Since then, most
reviews of size standards were limited
to a few specific industries in response
to requests from the public and Federal
agencies. At least once every five years,
SBA also reviews the effect of inflation
on its size standards and makes
necessary adjustments to its monetary
based size standards. SBA’s latest
inflation adjustment to size standards
was published in the Federal Register
on July 18, 2008 (73 FR 41237).
Because of changes in the Federal
marketplace and industry structure
since the last comprehensive size
standards review, SBA recognizes that
current data may no longer support
some of its existing size standards.
Accordingly, in 2007, SBA began a
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]]>Agencies
[Federal Register Volume 77, Number 235 (Thursday, December 6, 2012)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Pages 72763-72766]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2012-29486]
========================================================================
Proposed Rules
Federal Register
________________________________________________________________________
This section of the FEDERAL REGISTER contains notices to the public of
the proposed issuance of rules and regulations. The purpose of these
notices is to give interested persons an opportunity to participate in
the rule making prior to the adoption of the final rules.
========================================================================
Federal Register / Vol. 77, No. 235 / Thursday, December 6, 2012 /
Proposed Rules
[[Page 72763]]
DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY
10 CFR Parts 429 and 431
[Docket Number: EERE-2012-BT-CE-0048]
RIN 1904-AC90
Energy Conservation Program: Certification of Commercial and
Industrial HVAC, Refrigeration and Water Heating Equipment
AGENCY: Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy, Department of
Energy.
ACTION: Notice of proposed rulemaking.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
SUMMARY: The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE or the ``Department'')
proposes to amend the compliance dates for revisions to its
certification regulations for certain commercial and industrial
equipment covered under the Energy Policy and Conservation Act of 1975,
as amended (EPCA or the ``Act''). Specifically, DOE is proposing a 12-
month extension to the compliance date for the certification provisions
of commercial refrigeration equipment; commercial heating, ventilating,
air-conditioning (HVAC) equipment; and commercial water heating
equipment. DOE is proposing to retain a December 31, 2012 certification
date for automatic commercial ice makers. Lastly, DOE is proposing a
correction in the packaged terminal equipment standards table, which
would impact standard-size packaged terminal air conditioners and
packaged terminal heat pumps with a cooling capacity of 15,000 Btu/h.
DATES: DOE will accept comments, data, and information regarding the
notice of proposed rulemaking (NOPR) postmarked no later than December
21, 2012.
ADDRESSES: Interested persons are encouraged to submit comments using
the Federal eRulemaking Portal at www.regulations.gov. Follow the
instructions for submitting comments. Alternatively, interested persons
may submit comments, identified by docket number EERE-2012-BT-CE-0048,
by any of the following methods:
Email: to CCENOPR2012CE0048@ee.doe.gov. Include EERE-2012-
BT-CE-0048 in the subject line of the message.
Mail: Ms. Brenda Edwards, U.S. Department of Energy,
Building Technologies Program, Mailstop EE-2J, Revisions to Energy
Efficiency Enforcement Regulations, EERE-2012-BT-CE-0048, 1000
Independence Avenue SW., Washington, DC 20585- 0121. Phone: (202) 586-
2945. Please submit one signed paper original.
Hand Delivery/Courier: Ms. Brenda Edwards, U.S. Department
of Energy, Building Technologies Program, 6th Floor, 950 L'Enfant Plaza
SW., Washington, DC 20024. Phone: (202) 586-2945. Please submit one
signed paper original.
Instructions: All submissions received must include the agency name
and docket number or RIN for this rulemaking.
Docket: For access to the docket to read background documents, or
comments received, go to the Federal eRulemaking Portal at
www.regulations.gov.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Ms. Ashley Armstrong, 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: 202-586-6590. Email:
Ashley.Armstrong@ee.doe.gov; and Ms. Laura Barhydt, U.S. Department of
Energy, Office of the General Counsel, Forrestal Building, GC-32, 1000
Independence Avenue SW., Washington, DC 20585. Telephone: (202) 287-
5772. Email: Laura.Barhydt@hq.doe.gov.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: On March 7, 2011, DOE published a final rule
in the Federal Register that, among other things, modified the
requirements regarding manufacturer submission of compliance statements
and certification reports to DOE (hereafter referred to as the March
2011 Final Rule) (76 FR 12421). These certification provisions are
central to the Department's regulatory framework for ensuring that
covered products and equipment sold in the Unites States comply with
existing Federal energy conservation standards and associated
regulations.
The March 2011 Final Rule imposed new reporting requirements,
including a requirement that manufacturers submit annual reports to the
Department certifying compliance of their basic models with applicable
standards. It also revised the types of information manufacturers must
provide in that submission. The Department emphasized that
manufacturers could use their discretion in grouping individual models
as a certified ``basic model'' such that the certified rating for the
basic model matched the represented rating for all included models. See
76 FR 12428-12429 for more information. This reflected a basic
requirement of the Department's longstanding self-certification
compliance regime--that efficiency certifications and representations
must be supported by either testing or an approved alternative method
of estimating efficiency.
The March 2011 Final Rule provided for the revised certification
provisions to be effective on July 5, 2011. Certain manufacturers of
particular types of commercial and industrial equipment \1\ stated
that, for a variety of reasons, they would be unable to meet that
deadline. As a result, the Department extended the compliance date for
certification of commercial refrigeration equipment; commercial HVAC
equipment; commercial WH equipment; and walk-in coolers and freezers.
See 76 FR 38287 (hereafter referred to as the June 30 Final Rule). DOE
also acknowledged in the June 30 Final Rule that numerous manufacturers
for certain types of commercial equipment appear to have been making
representations of efficiency and determining compliance with the
applicable energy conservation standards without testing products in
accordance with all of the provisions of the DOE test procedures, which
include sampling plans and certification testing tolerances.
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\1\ These products included commercial warm air furnaces,
commercial packaged boilers, and commercial air conditioners and
heat pumps (collectively referred to as commercial HVAC equipment);
commercial refrigeration equipment; commercial water heaters,
commercial hot water supply boilers, and unfired hot water storage
tanks (collectively referred to as commercial WH equipment); walk-in
coolers; walk-in freezers; and automatic commercial ice makers.
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In the June 30 Final Rule, DOE stated that it believed 18 months
would be sufficient to provide manufacturers with the time necessary to
develop the data and supporting documentation needed
[[Page 72764]]
to populate the certification reports and certify compliance with DOE's
regulations, including the existing testing and sampling procedures.
DOE also emphasized that all covered equipment must meet the applicable
energy conservation standard and that all testing procedures and
sampling provisions were unaffected by the final rule.
On May 24, 2012, DOE issued a proposed rule to revise and expand
its regulations regarding alternative efficiency determination methods
(AEDMs). AEDMs reduce testing burdens by allowing manufacturers to use
computer simulations, mathematical models, and other alternative
methods to determine the amount of energy used or efficiency by a
particular basic model. AEDM provisions for commercial HVAC equipment
and commercial WH equipment already exist, but DOE has proposed to
revise those regulations and to allow manufacturers of commercial
refrigeration equipment to use AEDMs. DOE has not yet finalized the
AEDM rulemaking.
In an October 2012, letter to the Secretary of Energy, the Air
Conditioning, Heating and Refrigeration Institute (AHRI) requested
another certification compliance date extension. AHRI wrote, the ``AEDM
is a critical element of the DOE certification process as it will help
manufacturers comply with the regulations without having to test every
basic model they offer.'' (AHRI, No. 1 at pp. 1-2) As a result, in its
letter AHRI requested that the compliance date for certification be
extended a minimum of 18 months from the date of publication of the
AEDM final rule.
The Department agrees that it may address some of the concerns
raised by manufacturers' by completing the AEDM rulemaking. The
Department is also reviewing the recommendations of the Convenor
regarding the feasibility of a negotiated rulemaking to revise the
certification requirements for commercial HVAC equipment and commercial
refrigeration equipment.\2\
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\2\ The U.S. Department of Energy Convening Report on the
Feasibility of a Negotiated Rulemaking to Revise the Certification
Program for Commercial Heating, Ventilating, Air Conditioning, and
Commercial Refrigeration Equipment can be found at https://www.eere.energy.gov/buildings/appliance_standards/pdfs/convening_report_hvac_cre.pdf.
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As such, the Department agrees with AHRI that further extension of
the December 31, 2012 compliance date may be warranted for commercial
refrigeration equipment; commercial HVAC equipment; and commercial WH
equipment. However, as all manufacturers should have at least some
valid test data upon which to develop a substantiated AEDM, DOE does
not believe that an extension for the length of time after finalization
of an AEDM rule requested by AHRI would be necessary. Further, the
potential for issues raised by manufacturers to be addressed through a
negotiated rulemaking also suggests that the time requested by AHRI may
be longer than necessary. Accordingly, the Department is proposing a
12-month delay in the compliance date for submission of a certification
report for commercial refrigeration equipment, commercial HVAC
equipment, and commercial WH equipment. However, DOE is requesting
comment on its assumption regarding the existence of test data. We also
seek comment on whether a longer or shorter period of time would be
more appropriate.
If the Department adopts in a final rule a delayed compliance date
for submission of certification reports, DOE will also implement an
enforcement policy to encourage voluntary certifications. Specifically,
during the interim period, DOE would not perform random assessment
tests (as defined at 10 CFR 429.104) of basic models of commercial
HVAC, refrigeration, or WH equipment that are voluntarily certified in
accordance with DOE's regulations set forth in 10 CFR Parts 429 and
431. This approach would acknowledge the efforts of manufacturers that
have been working toward completing the necessary testing to develop
certified ratings in accordance with the December 31, 2012 deadline.
Even under this approach, DOE would continue to conduct enforcement
testing of any basic model pursuant to 10 CFR 429.110 when it has a
reason to believe a given basic model may be non-compliant with the
applicable Federal standard.
The preamble to the June 30 Final Rule stated that the compliance
date for submitting a certification report for automatic commercial ice
makers (ACIM) was also extended; however, the regulatory text did not
extend the compliance date for that product (76 FR 38287). DOE has not
enforced the certification requirements for ACIM. Information available
to DOE does not suggest any issues with the compliance date for ACIMs;
therefore, DOE is proposing to modify the regulatory text to require
submission of a certification report for each basic model of ACIM by
December 31, 2012, as contemplated by the June 30 Final Rule. DOE
requests comment, however, regarding whether the compliance date for
ACIM certification should also be extended.
The compliance dates for certification requirements for walk-in
coolers and freezers, distribution transformers, and metal halide lamp
ballasts have passed, and manufacturers of those products are now
submitting certification reports. The proposed regulatory text would
reflect that these products are now required to be certified by
removing the delayed compliance dates.
Lastly, the Department is proposing to correct a technical drafting
error for packaged terminal air conditioners and heat pumps that was
implemented in the reprinting of Table 5 in 10 CFR 431.97 in a final
rule published on May 16, 2012 (77 FR 28994). More specifically, DOE
adopted changes to the applicable energy conservation standards for
standard size and non-standard size packaged terminal air conditioners
and heat pumps with a cooling capacity of 15,000 Btu/h. DOE is
proposing to correct this error in today's proposed rule and adopt the
original standards for standard size and non-standard size packaged
terminal air conditioners and heat pumps with a cooling capacity of
15,000 Btu/h as presented in a final rule evaluating and originally
adopting the amended energy conservation for this equipment published
on April 7, 2008 (73 FR 18915).
Further Information on Submitting Comments
Under 10 CFR 1004.11, any person submitting information that he or
she believes to be confidential and exempt by law from public
disclosure should submit two copies: one copy of the document including
all the information believed to be confidential, and one copy of the
document with the information believed to be confidential deleted. DOE
will make its own determination about the confidential status of the
information and treat it according to its determination.
Factors of interest to DOE when evaluating requests to treat
submitted information as confidential include (1) A description of the
items, (2) whether and why such items are customarily treated as
confidential within the industry, (3) whether the information is
generally known by or available from other sources, (4) whether the
information has previously been made available to others without
obligation concerning its confidentiality, (5) an explanation of the
competitive injury to the submitting person which would result from
public disclosure, (6) when such information might lose its
confidential character due to the
[[Page 72765]]
passage of time, and (7) why disclosure of the information would be
contrary to the public interest.
I. Procedural Issues and Regulatory Review
A. Review Under Executive Order 12866
This proposed rule has been determined not to be a ``significant
regulatory action'' under section 3(f) of Executive Order 12866.
Accordingly, this action was not subject to review under the Executive
Order by the Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs (OIRA) in the
Office of Management and Budget (OMB).
B. Review Under the Regulatory Flexibility Act
The Regulatory Flexibility Act (5 U.S.C. 601 et seq.) requires
preparation of an initial regulatory flexibility analysis (IFRA) for
any rule that by law must be proposed for public comment, unless the
agency certifies that the rule, if promulgated, will not have a
significant economic impact on a substantial number of small entities.
As required by Executive Order 13272, ``Proper Consideration of Small
Entities in Agency Rulemaking,'' (67 FR 53461, August 16, 2002), DOE
published procedures and policies on February 19, 2003, to ensure that
the potential impacts of its rules on small entities are properly
considered during the DOE rulemaking process (68 FR 7990). DOE has made
its procedures and policies available on the Office of the General
Counsel's Web site: https://www.energy.gov/gc.
DOE reviewed this proposed rule under the provisions of the
Regulatory Flexibility Act and the procedures and policies published on
February 19, 2003. This proposed rule would merely extend the
compliance date of a rulemaking already promulgated. To the extent such
action has any economic impact it would be positive in that it would
allow regulated parties additional time to come into compliance. DOE
did undertake a full regulatory flexibility analysis of the original
CCE rulemaking. That analysis considered the impacts of that rulemaking
on small entities. As a result, DOE certifies that, if adopted, this
proposed rule would not have a significant economic impact on a
substantial number of small entities.
C. Review Under the National Environmental Policy Act
DOE has determined that this rule falls into a class of actions
that are categorically excluded from review under the National
Environmental Policy Act of 1969 (42 U.S.C. 4321 et seq.) and DOE's
implementing regulations at 10 CFR part 1021. Specifically, this rule
amends an existing rule without changing its environmental effect and,
therefore, is covered by the Categorical Exclusion in 10 CFR part 1021,
subpart D, paragraph A5. Accordingly, neither an environmental
assessment nor an environmental impact statement is required.
II. Approval of the Office of the Secretary
The Secretary of Energy has approved publication of today's NOPR.
List of Subjects in 10 CFR Parts 429 and 431
Administrative practice and procedure, Energy conservation,
Commercial equipment, Reporting and recordkeeping requirements.
Issued in Washington, DC, on November 28, 2012.
Kathleen B. Hogan,
Deputy Assistant Secretary for Energy Efficiency, Energy Efficiency and
Renewable Energy.
For the reasons stated in the preamble, DOE is proposing to amend
chapter II, subchapter D, of title 10 of the Code of Federal
Regulations, to read as set forth below:
PART 429--CERTIFICATION, COMPLIANCE, AND ENFORCEMENT FOR CONSUMER
PRODUCTS AND COMMERCIAL AND INDUSTRIAL EQUIPMENT
1. The authority citation for part 429 continues to read as
follows:
Authority: 42 U.S.C. 6291-6317.
2. In Sec. 429.12, revise paragraph (i) to read as follows:
Sec. 429.12 General requirements applicable to certification reports.
* * * * *
(i) Compliance dates. For any product subject to an applicable
energy conservation standard for which the compliance date has not yet
occurred, a certification report must be submitted not later than the
compliance date for the applicable energy conservation standard. The
covered products are subject to the stated compliance dates for
certification as follows:
(1) Automatic commercial ice makers, December 31, 2012;
(2) Commercial refrigeration equipment, December 31, 2013;
(3) Commercial heating, ventilating, and air-conditioning
equipment, December 31, 2013; and
(4) Commercial water heating equipment, December 31, 2013.
PART 431--ENERGY EFFICIENCY PROGRAM FOR CERTAIN COMMERCIAL AND
INDUSTRIAL EQUIPMENT
3. The authority citation for part 431 continues to read as
follows:
Authority: 42 U.S.C. 6291-6317.
4. In Sec. 431.97, paragraph (c), revise Table 5 to read as
follows:
Sec. 431.97 Energy efficiency standards and their compliance dates.
* * * * *
(c) * * *
Table 5 to Sec. 431.97--Updated Minimum Efficiency Standards for PTAC and PTHP
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Compliance date: Products
Equipment type Cooling capacity Sub-category Efficiency level manufactured on and after
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
PTAC............. Standard Size...... <7,000 Btu/h....... EER = 11.7......... October 8, 2012.
>=7,000 Btu/h and EER = 13.8-(0.3 x October 8, 2012.
<= 15,000 Btu/h. Cap\1\).
>15,000 Btu/h...... EER = 9.3.......... October 8, 2012.
Non-Standard Size.. <7,000 Btu/h....... EER = 9.4.......... October 7, 2010.
>=7,000 Btu/h and EER = 10.9-(0.213 x October 7, 2010.
<= 15,000 Btu/h. Cap\1\).
>15,000 Btu/h...... EER = 7.7.......... October 7, 2010.
PTHP............. Standard Size...... <7,000 Btu/h....... EER = 11.9......... October 8, 2012.
COP = 3.3..........
>=7,000 Btu/h and EER = 14.0 - (0.3 x October 8, 2012.
<= 15,000 Btu/h. Cap\1\)
COP = 3.7 - (0.052
x Cap\1\).
[[Page 72766]]
>15,000 Btu/h...... EER = 9.5 October 8, 2012.
COP = 2.9..........
Non-Standard Size.. <7,000 Btu/h....... EER = 9.3.......... October 7, 2010.
COP = 2.7..........
>=7,000 Btu/h and EER = 10.8 - (0.213 October 7, 2010.
<=15,000 Btu/h. x Cap\1\).
COP = 2.9 - (0.026
x Cap\1\).
>15,000 Btu/h...... EER = 7.6.......... October 7, 2010.
COP = 2.5..........
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\1\ ``Cap'' means cooling capacity in thousand Btu/h at 95[emsp14][deg]F outdoor dry-bulb temperature.
* * * * *
[FR Doc. 2012-29486 Filed 12-5-12; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6450-01-P
