National Conference on Weights and Measures 99th Annual Meeting, 38493-38495 [2014-15798]
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Federal Register / Vol. 79, No. 130 / Tuesday, July 8, 2014 / Notices
(B) 1 shall have appropriate expertise
and experience in travel distribution
services; and
(C) 1 shall have appropriate expertise
and experience as an official in a state
tourism office.
To be eligible for Board membership,
one must have international travel and
tourism marketing experience and must
also be a U.S. citizen. In addition,
individuals cannot be federally
registered lobbyists or registered as a
foreign agent under the Foreign Agents
Registration Act of 1938, as amended.
Those selected for the Board must be
able to meet the time and effort
commitments of the Board. Priority may
be given to individuals with experience
as a Chief Executive Officer or President
(or comparable level of responsibility) of
an organization or entity in the travel
and tourism sector in the United States.
Board members serve at the discretion
of the Secretary of Commerce (who may
remove any member of the Board for
good cause). The terms of office of each
member of the Board appointed by the
Secretary shall be 3 years. Board
members can serve a maximum of two
consecutive full three-year terms. Board
members are not considered Federal
government employees by virtue of their
service as a member of the Board and
will receive no compensation from the
Federal government for their
participation in Board activities.
Members participating in Board
meetings and events may be paid actual
travel expenses and per diem when
away from their usual places of
residence.
To be considered for membership,
please provide the following:
1. Name, title, and personal resume of
the individual requesting consideration,
including address and phone number;
and
2. A brief statement of why the person
should be considered for membership
on the Board. This statement should
also address the individual’s relevant
international travel and tourism
marketing experience and indicate
clearly the sector or sectors enumerated
above in which the individual has the
requisite expertise and experience.
Individuals who have the requisite
expertise and experience in more than
one sector can be appointed for only one
of those sectors. Appointments of
members to the Board will be made by
the Secretary of Commerce.
Dated: July 2, 2014.
Isabel M. Hill,
Director, National Travel and Tourism Office.
[FR Doc. 2014–15908 Filed 7–7–14; 8:45 am]
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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE
National Institute of Standards and
Technology
National Conference on Weights and
Measures 99th Annual Meeting
National Institute of Standards
and Technology, Commerce.
ACTION: Notice.
AGENCY:
The 99th Annual Meeting of
the National Conference on Weights and
Measures (NCWM) will be held in
Detroit, Michigan, from Sunday, July 13,
2014, to Thursday, July 17, 2014. This
notice contains information about
significant items on the NCWM
Committee agendas, but does not
include all agenda items. As a result, the
items are not consecutively numbered.
DATES: The meeting will be held from
Sunday, July 13, 2014, to Thursday, July
17, 2014. Meeting hours are from 8:00
a.m. to 5:00 p.m. (ET) daily.
ADDRESSES: This meeting will be held at
the Westin Book Cadillac Detroit located
at 1114 Washington Boulevard, Detroit,
MI 48226
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Ms.
Carol Hockert, Chief, NIST, Office of
Weights and Measures, 100 Bureau
Drive, Stop 2600, Gaithersburg, MD
20899–2600. You may also contact Ms.
Hockert at (301) 975–5507 or by email
at carol.hockert@nist.gov. The meeting
is open to the public, but a paid
registration is required. Please see
NCWM Publication 16 ‘‘Committee
Reports for the 99th Annual Meeting’’
(www.ncwm.net) to view the meeting
agendas, registration forms, and hotel
information.
SUMMARY:
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Publication of this notice on the
NCWM’s behalf is undertaken as a
public service; NIST does not endorse,
approve, or recommend any of the
proposals or other information
contained in this notice or in the
publications of the NCWM.
The NCWM is an organization of
weights and measures officials of the
states, counties, and cities of the United
States, federal agencies, and
representatives from the private sector.
These meetings bring together
government officials and representatives
of business, industry, trade associations,
and consumer organizations on subjects
related to the field of weights and
measures technology, administration,
and enforcement. NIST participates to
encourage cooperation between federal
agencies and the states in the
development of legal metrology
requirements. NIST also promotes
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38493
uniformity among the states in laws,
regulations, methods, and testing
equipment that comprise the regulatory
control of commercial weighing and
measuring devices, packaged goods, and
other trade and commerce issues.
The following are brief descriptions of
some of the significant agenda items
that will be considered along with other
issues at the NCWM Annual Meeting.
Comments will be taken on these and
other issues during several public
comment sessions. At this stage, the
items are proposals. This meeting also
includes work sessions in which the
Committees may also accept comments
and discuss the recommendations up for
adoption at the 2014 Annual Meeting.
The Committees may withdraw or
carryover items that need additional
development.
Some of the items listed below
provide notice of projects under
development by groups working to
develop specifications, tolerances, and
other requirements for devices used in
the retail sales of engine fuels and the
establishment of approximate gallon
and liter equivalents to diesel fuel that
would be used in marketing both
compressed and liquefied natural gas.
Also included is a notice about efforts
to clarify a method of sale for
pressurized containers that utilize bagon-valve technology. These notices are
intended to make interested parties
aware of these projects and additional
information on each item may be given
at the Annual Meeting. The notices are
also presented to invite the participation
of manufacturers, experts, consumers,
users, and others who may be interested
in these efforts.
The Specifications and Tolerances
Committee (S&T Committee) will
consider proposed amendments to NIST
Handbook 44, ‘‘Specifications,
Tolerances, and other Technical
Requirements for Weighing and
Measuring Devices’’ (HB44). Those
items address weighing and measuring
devices used in commercial
applications, that is, devices that are
used to buy from or sell to the public
or used for determining the quantity of
product sold among businesses. Issues
on the agenda of the NCWM Laws and
Regulations Committee (L&R
Committee) relate to a proposal to
amend the ‘‘Uniform Method of Sale of
Commodities Regulation’’ and other
uniform regulations in NIST Handbook
130 ‘‘Uniform Laws and Regulations in
the area of Legal Metrology and Engine
Fuel Quality’’ (HB130).
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Federal Register / Vol. 79, No. 130 / Tuesday, July 8, 2014 / Notices
NCWM Specifications and Tolerances
Committee
The following items are proposals to
amend NIST Handbook 44:
General Code
Item 310–2 G.S.5.6. Recorded
Representations
A variety of commercial weighing and
measuring devices are required to
provide paper receipts for consumers at
the end of a transaction. These receipts
provide important information for
consumers (e.g., seller identity, date,
product identity, and amount delivered,
along with the unit price and total price
of the transaction). Sometimes receipts
include details of transaction that are
often not readily apparent to consumers
at the time of the transaction (e.g., such
as when a point of sale system in a
grocery store deducts for the tare weight
on a package of apples). These
documents help consumers understand
a transaction and reconcile the
transaction with billing invoices or
credit card bills in the future. Detailed
receipts are especially important in
transactions where the customer is often
not present, such as when a delivery of
heating fuel is made when the consumer
is not at home. Receipts describing
transaction details help prevent fraud
and provide valuable protections for
buyers and sellers alike. This item is a
proposal to revise the General Code
requirement to allow sellers to offer
consumers the choice of receiving
receipts via digital communications
such as email or online account access.
Scales
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Item 320–2 User Requirement—
UR.2.4. Foundations, Supports, and
Clearance
The S&T Committee is recommending
an amendment to this User Requirement
to allow an in-motion railroad scale to
use continuous rails extending
throughout the approach and weighing
areas. Currently use of continuous rails
is not permitted under paragraph HB44–
UR.2.4. that reads ‘‘clearance shall be
provided around all live parts to the
extent that no contacts may result when
the load-receiving element is empty, nor
throughout the weighing range of the
scale.’’ This proposal was made in
response to a request from a scale
manufacturer that offers a scale that
determines the weight of railcars
moving over continuous rails. This
railroad scale design is used in other
countries where it has received approval
from legal metrology officials under
regulations that differ from the
requirements in HB44.
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Mass Flow Meters
Item 337–2 Appendix D—Definitions:
Diesel Liter Equivalent (DLE) and Diesel
Gallon
Equivalent (DGE) for Compressed
Natural Gas and Liquefied Natural Gas;
Definition of Gasoline Gallon Equivalent
(GGE) and Gasoline Liter Equivalent
(GLE) for Compressed Natural Gas;
S.1.2. Compressed Natural Gas and
Liquefied Natural Gas Dispensers;
S.1.3.1.1. Compressed Natural Gas Used
as an Engine Fuel; S.1.3.1.2. Liquefied
Natural Gas Used as an Engine Fuel;
S.5.2. Marking of Diesel and Gasoline
Volume Equivalent Conversion Factor;
Compressed Natural Gas, S.5.3. Marking
of Diesel Volume Equivalent Conversion
Factor; Liquefied Natural Gas, UR.3.1.1.
Marking of Equivalent Conversion
Factor for Compressed Natural Gas,
UR.3.1.2. Marking of Equivalent
Conversion Factor for Liquefied Natural
Gas, and UR.3.8. Return of Product to
Storage, Retail Compressed Natural Gas
and Liquefied Natural Gas.
In 1994, in response to a request from
a coalition of natural gas providers and
subsequent fuel study, the NCWM
adopted conversion factors for use in
converting a delivery of Compressed
Natural Gas (CNG) vehicle fuel to an
equivalent liter or gallon of gasoline. At
that time those equivalents were based
on averaged regional CNG energy values
and the approximate lower heating
value for a gallon of gasoline (indolene).
The equivalent values were
recommended by the CNG industry to
promote greater use of CNG as a vehicle
fuel. The ‘‘Gasoline Liter/Gallon
Equivalents’’ were developed as a
means to facilitate value comparisons
between gasoline and CNG and to
permit fuel economy comparisons. In a
number of instances since the adoption
of these ‘‘equivalents,’’ some state
weights and measures officials and
several CNG providers have expressed
the concern that the energy equivalent
values adopted in 1994 do not provide
an accurate estimate of the energy
content of natural gas. Another concern
with the 1994 ‘‘equivalents’’ is that the
specified values have not been
reevaluated to ensure that they correlate
with the energy content of today’s
gasoline and gasoline-oxygenated
blends or other alternative fuels such as
E85. Consequently, many weights and
measures officials are reluctant to
consider adding more energy
‘‘equivalency’’ values for additional
fuels unless some mechanism is
established to ensure that all of these
energy equivalency values are routinely
updated to reflect the current energy
content (i.e., Joules/BTUs) of gasoline
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and diesel fuels and various blends of
these products with alternative fuels.
The need for such a mechanism is
important considering the many blends
of fuels that are currently in the
marketplace and others that are
anticipated to enter the fuel arena in the
future (e.g., 15% or higher ethanol
blends with gasoline and biodiesel
blends greater than 5%). The proposals
would establish new equivalents
identified as the ‘‘diesel liter equivalent
(DLE)’’ and a ‘‘diesel gallon equivalent
(DGE)’’ for both CNG and Liquefied
Natural Gas (LNG) that correspond to
specific mass values for these units
when they are used in retail vehicle
refueling applications. The proponents
of these proposals indicate that the
purpose of these units is to educate
consumers to the fact that a DLE or DGE
of ‘‘compressed’’ or ‘‘liquefied’’ natural
gas would contain approximately the
same amount of energy as a liter or
gallon of diesel fuel. Many sellers of
these products believe that adoption
and use of the DLE or DGE in retail fuel
sales would make it easier for
consumers to make price, value, and
fuel economy comparisons between an
energy based ‘‘equivalent’’ liter or gallon
of compressed natural gas and diesel
fuel. See also Items 337–3, and 337–5 on
the Specifications and Tolerances
Committee Agenda and Items 232–3 and
Item 237–2 on the Laws and Regulations
Committee Agenda regarding proposed
methods of sale for the DLE and DGE.
The Clean Vehicle Education
Foundation (CVEF) submitted proposals
in 2012 and 2013 for rule changes to
allow compressed natural gas (CNG) and
liquefied natural gas (LNG) to be sold as
a retail engine fuel in liter or gallon
equivalent units. The NCWM
established the Natural Gas Steering
Committee (NGSC) in July 2013 to
address concerns over the proliferation
of equivalent units and resolve other
technical issues involved with the
proposed changes to HB44 and HB130.
At the January 2014 NCWM Interim
Meeting, the Chairman of the NGSC
advised the S&T and L&R Committees
that the NGSC planned to consolidate
the proposals to modify HB44 and
HB130 and that the NGSC supported
recognition of the new diesel energy
equivalent units for both compressed
and liquefied natural gas. The NGSC
completed its work in March 2014 and
its recommendations are included in
NCWM Publication 16 as voting items
for adoption at the July 2014 NCWM
Annual Meeting.
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Federal Register / Vol. 79, No. 130 / Tuesday, July 8, 2014 / Notices
NCWM Laws and Regulations
Committee (L & R Committee)
Notice of SEDAR 41 Data
Workshop for South Atlantic red
snapper (Lutjanus campechanus) and
gray triggerfish (Balistes capriscus).
ACTION:
The following item is a proposal to
amend NIST Handbook 130:
Item 231–2 Section 10.3. Aerosols and
Similar Pressurized Containers
This item includes a proposal to
clarify that a current method of sale
applies to aerosol containers, and
containers that utilize Bag-on-Valve
(BOV) technology and other selfpressurized packages that have their net
content declarations presented in terms
of fluid volume. Currently, under the
Uniform Packaging and Labeling
Regulation (UPLR) adopted by many
states and under regulations issued by
both the Food and Drug Administration
and the Federal Trade Commission,
products sold in aerosol or similar
pressurized containers must be offered
for sale by net weight. BOV packaging,
which has been in the marketplace for
many years, is used to sell the same
products sold in aerosol containers (e.g.,
sunscreen, wound wash, shaving cream,
and car-care products). Because BOV
containers (with their net contents
declared in fluid volume) are used to
sell the same type of products dispensed
from aerosol containers (with their net
contents declared by weight),
consumers are unable to make value
comparisons between similar products.
The L&R Committee proposal will allow
the companies which currently label
containers by volume in conflict with
the existing method of sale at least three
years (the deadline for compliance is
January 1, 2018) to bring their labeling
into compliance.
Dated: June 26, 2014.
Willie E. May,
Associate Director for Laboratory Programs.
[FR Doc. 2014–15798 Filed 7–7–14; 8:45 am]
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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE
National Oceanic and Atmospheric
Administration
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RIN 0648–XD323
Fisheries of the South Atlantic;
Southeast Data, Assessment and
Review (SEDAR); Public Meeting
National Marine Fisheries
Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and
Atmospheric Administration (NOAA),
Commerce.
AGENCY:
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The SEDAR 41 assessments of
the South Atlantic stocks of red snapper
and gray triggerfish will consist of: A
Data Workshop; an Assessment
Workshop; and a Review Workshop. See
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION.
DATES: The SEDAR 41 Data Workshop
will be held on August 4, 2014, from 1
p.m. until 6 p.m.; August 5–7, 2014,
from 8 a.m. until 6 p.m.; and August 8,
2014, from 8 a.m. until 1 p.m.
The established times may be
adjusted as necessary to accommodate
the timely completion of discussion
relevant to the assessment process. Such
adjustments may result in the meeting
being extended from, or completed prior
to the time established by this notice.
The Assessment Workshop and Review
Workshop dates and times will publish
in a subsequent issue in the Federal
Register. See SUPPLEMENTARY
INFORMATION.
ADDRESSES: The SEDAR 41 Data
Workshop will be held at the Charleston
Marriott, 170 Lockwood Boulevard,
Charleston, SC 29403; telephone: (843)
732–3000.
SEDAR address: 4055 Faber Place
Drive, Suite 201, North Charleston, SC
29405.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Julia
Byrd, SEDAR Coordinator, phone: (843)
571–4366; email: julia.byrd@safmc.net.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The Gulf
of Mexico, South Atlantic, and
Caribbean Fishery Management
Councils, in conjunction with NOAA
Fisheries and the Atlantic and Gulf
States Marine Fisheries Commissions
have implemented the Southeast Data,
Assessment and Review (SEDAR)
process, a multi-step method for
determining the status of fish stocks in
the Southeast Region. SEDAR is a three
step process including: (1) Data
Workshop; (2) Assessment Process
utilizing workshops and webinars; and
(3) Review Workshop. The product of
the Data Workshop is a data report
which compiles and evaluates potential
datasets and recommends which
datasets are appropriate for assessment
analyses. The product of the Assessment
Process is a stock assessment report
which describes the fisheries, evaluates
the status of the stock, estimates
biological benchmarks, projects future
population conditions, and recommends
research and monitoring needs. The
assessment is independently peer
reviewed at the Review Workshop. The
product of the Review Workshop is a
SUMMARY:
NIST Handbook 130—Uniform
Regulation for the Method of Sale of
Commodities
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38495
Summary documenting panel opinions
regarding the strengths and weaknesses
of the stock assessment and input data.
Participants for SEDAR Workshops are
appointed by the Gulf of Mexico, South
Atlantic, and Caribbean Fishery
Management Councils, the Atlantic and
Gulf States Marine Fisheries
Commissions and NOAA Fisheries
Southeast Regional Office and Southeast
Fisheries Science Center. Participants
include: Data collectors and database
managers; stock assessment scientists,
biologists, and researchers; constituency
representatives including fishermen,
environmentalists, and nongovernmental organizations (NGOs);
international experts; and staff of
Councils, Commissions, and state and
federal agencies.
An assessment data set and associated
documentation will be developed
during the Data Workshop. Participants
will evaluate all available data and
select appropriate sources for providing
information on life history
characteristics, catch statistics, discard
estimates, length and age composition,
and fishery independent and fishery
dependent measures of stock
abundance, as specified in the Terms of
Reference for the workshop.
Although non-emergency issues not
contained in this agenda may come
before this group for discussion, those
issues may not be the subject of formal
action during this meeting. Action will
be restricted to those issues specifically
identified in this notice and any issues
arising after publication of this notice
that require emergency action under
section 305(c) of the Magnuson-Stevens
Fishery Conservation and Management
Act, provided the public has been
notified of the intent to take final action
to address the emergency.
Special Accommodations
The meeting is accessible to people
with disabilities. Requests for auxiliary
aids should be directed to the SEDAR
office (see ADDRESSES) at least 10
business days prior to the meetings.
Note: The times and sequence specified in
this agenda are subject to change.
Authority: 16 U.S.C. 1801 et seq.
Dated: July 2, 2014.
Tracey L. Thompson,
Acting Deputy Director, Office of Sustainable
Fisheries, National Marine Fisheries Service.
[FR Doc. 2014–15850 Filed 7–7–14; 8:45 am]
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]]>Agencies
[Federal Register Volume 79, Number 130 (Tuesday, July 8, 2014)]
[Notices]
[Pages 38493-38495]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2014-15798]
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE
National Institute of Standards and Technology
National Conference on Weights and Measures 99th Annual Meeting
AGENCY: National Institute of Standards and Technology, Commerce.
ACTION: Notice.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
SUMMARY: The 99th Annual Meeting of the National Conference on Weights
and Measures (NCWM) will be held in Detroit, Michigan, from Sunday,
July 13, 2014, to Thursday, July 17, 2014. This notice contains
information about significant items on the NCWM Committee agendas, but
does not include all agenda items. As a result, the items are not
consecutively numbered.
DATES: The meeting will be held from Sunday, July 13, 2014, to
Thursday, July 17, 2014. Meeting hours are from 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.
(ET) daily.
ADDRESSES: This meeting will be held at the Westin Book Cadillac
Detroit located at 1114 Washington Boulevard, Detroit, MI 48226
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Ms. Carol Hockert, Chief, NIST, Office
of Weights and Measures, 100 Bureau Drive, Stop 2600, Gaithersburg, MD
20899-2600. You may also contact Ms. Hockert at (301) 975-5507 or by
email at carol.hockert@nist.gov. The meeting is open to the public, but
a paid registration is required. Please see NCWM Publication 16
``Committee Reports for the 99th Annual Meeting'' (www.ncwm.net) to
view the meeting agendas, registration forms, and hotel information.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Publication of this notice on the NCWM's
behalf is undertaken as a public service; NIST does not endorse,
approve, or recommend any of the proposals or other information
contained in this notice or in the publications of the NCWM.
The NCWM is an organization of weights and measures officials of
the states, counties, and cities of the United States, federal
agencies, and representatives from the private sector. These meetings
bring together government officials and representatives of business,
industry, trade associations, and consumer organizations on subjects
related to the field of weights and measures technology,
administration, and enforcement. NIST participates to encourage
cooperation between federal agencies and the states in the development
of legal metrology requirements. NIST also promotes uniformity among
the states in laws, regulations, methods, and testing equipment that
comprise the regulatory control of commercial weighing and measuring
devices, packaged goods, and other trade and commerce issues.
The following are brief descriptions of some of the significant
agenda items that will be considered along with other issues at the
NCWM Annual Meeting. Comments will be taken on these and other issues
during several public comment sessions. At this stage, the items are
proposals. This meeting also includes work sessions in which the
Committees may also accept comments and discuss the recommendations up
for adoption at the 2014 Annual Meeting. The Committees may withdraw or
carryover items that need additional development.
Some of the items listed below provide notice of projects under
development by groups working to develop specifications, tolerances,
and other requirements for devices used in the retail sales of engine
fuels and the establishment of approximate gallon and liter equivalents
to diesel fuel that would be used in marketing both compressed and
liquefied natural gas. Also included is a notice about efforts to
clarify a method of sale for pressurized containers that utilize bag-
on-valve technology. These notices are intended to make interested
parties aware of these projects and additional information on each item
may be given at the Annual Meeting. The notices are also presented to
invite the participation of manufacturers, experts, consumers, users,
and others who may be interested in these efforts.
The Specifications and Tolerances Committee (S&T Committee) will
consider proposed amendments to NIST Handbook 44, ``Specifications,
Tolerances, and other Technical Requirements for Weighing and Measuring
Devices'' (HB44). Those items address weighing and measuring devices
used in commercial applications, that is, devices that are used to buy
from or sell to the public or used for determining the quantity of
product sold among businesses. Issues on the agenda of the NCWM Laws
and Regulations Committee (L&R Committee) relate to a proposal to amend
the ``Uniform Method of Sale of Commodities Regulation'' and other
uniform regulations in NIST Handbook 130 ``Uniform Laws and Regulations
in the area of Legal Metrology and Engine Fuel Quality'' (HB130).
[[Page 38494]]
NCWM Specifications and Tolerances Committee
The following items are proposals to amend NIST Handbook 44:
General Code
Item 310-2 G.S.5.6. Recorded Representations
A variety of commercial weighing and measuring devices are required
to provide paper receipts for consumers at the end of a transaction.
These receipts provide important information for consumers (e.g.,
seller identity, date, product identity, and amount delivered, along
with the unit price and total price of the transaction). Sometimes
receipts include details of transaction that are often not readily
apparent to consumers at the time of the transaction (e.g., such as
when a point of sale system in a grocery store deducts for the tare
weight on a package of apples). These documents help consumers
understand a transaction and reconcile the transaction with billing
invoices or credit card bills in the future. Detailed receipts are
especially important in transactions where the customer is often not
present, such as when a delivery of heating fuel is made when the
consumer is not at home. Receipts describing transaction details help
prevent fraud and provide valuable protections for buyers and sellers
alike. This item is a proposal to revise the General Code requirement
to allow sellers to offer consumers the choice of receiving receipts
via digital communications such as email or online account access.
Scales
Item 320-2 User Requirement--UR.2.4. Foundations, Supports, and
Clearance
The S&T Committee is recommending an amendment to this User
Requirement to allow an in-motion railroad scale to use continuous
rails extending throughout the approach and weighing areas. Currently
use of continuous rails is not permitted under paragraph HB44-UR.2.4.
that reads ``clearance shall be provided around all live parts to the
extent that no contacts may result when the load-receiving element is
empty, nor throughout the weighing range of the scale.'' This proposal
was made in response to a request from a scale manufacturer that offers
a scale that determines the weight of railcars moving over continuous
rails. This railroad scale design is used in other countries where it
has received approval from legal metrology officials under regulations
that differ from the requirements in HB44.
Mass Flow Meters
Item 337-2 Appendix D--Definitions: Diesel Liter Equivalent (DLE) and
Diesel Gallon
Equivalent (DGE) for Compressed Natural Gas and Liquefied Natural
Gas; Definition of Gasoline Gallon Equivalent (GGE) and Gasoline Liter
Equivalent (GLE) for Compressed Natural Gas; S.1.2. Compressed Natural
Gas and Liquefied Natural Gas Dispensers; S.1.3.1.1. Compressed Natural
Gas Used as an Engine Fuel; S.1.3.1.2. Liquefied Natural Gas Used as an
Engine Fuel; S.5.2. Marking of Diesel and Gasoline Volume Equivalent
Conversion Factor; Compressed Natural Gas, S.5.3. Marking of Diesel
Volume Equivalent Conversion Factor; Liquefied Natural Gas, UR.3.1.1.
Marking of Equivalent Conversion Factor for Compressed Natural Gas,
UR.3.1.2. Marking of Equivalent Conversion Factor for Liquefied Natural
Gas, and UR.3.8. Return of Product to Storage, Retail Compressed
Natural Gas and Liquefied Natural Gas.
In 1994, in response to a request from a coalition of natural gas
providers and subsequent fuel study, the NCWM adopted conversion
factors for use in converting a delivery of Compressed Natural Gas
(CNG) vehicle fuel to an equivalent liter or gallon of gasoline. At
that time those equivalents were based on averaged regional CNG energy
values and the approximate lower heating value for a gallon of gasoline
(indolene). The equivalent values were recommended by the CNG industry
to promote greater use of CNG as a vehicle fuel. The ``Gasoline Liter/
Gallon Equivalents'' were developed as a means to facilitate value
comparisons between gasoline and CNG and to permit fuel economy
comparisons. In a number of instances since the adoption of these
``equivalents,'' some state weights and measures officials and several
CNG providers have expressed the concern that the energy equivalent
values adopted in 1994 do not provide an accurate estimate of the
energy content of natural gas. Another concern with the 1994
``equivalents'' is that the specified values have not been reevaluated
to ensure that they correlate with the energy content of today's
gasoline and gasoline-oxygenated blends or other alternative fuels such
as E85. Consequently, many weights and measures officials are reluctant
to consider adding more energy ``equivalency'' values for additional
fuels unless some mechanism is established to ensure that all of these
energy equivalency values are routinely updated to reflect the current
energy content (i.e., Joules/BTUs) of gasoline and diesel fuels and
various blends of these products with alternative fuels. The need for
such a mechanism is important considering the many blends of fuels that
are currently in the marketplace and others that are anticipated to
enter the fuel arena in the future (e.g., 15% or higher ethanol blends
with gasoline and biodiesel blends greater than 5%). The proposals
would establish new equivalents identified as the ``diesel liter
equivalent (DLE)'' and a ``diesel gallon equivalent (DGE)'' for both
CNG and Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) that correspond to specific mass
values for these units when they are used in retail vehicle refueling
applications. The proponents of these proposals indicate that the
purpose of these units is to educate consumers to the fact that a DLE
or DGE of ``compressed'' or ``liquefied'' natural gas would contain
approximately the same amount of energy as a liter or gallon of diesel
fuel. Many sellers of these products believe that adoption and use of
the DLE or DGE in retail fuel sales would make it easier for consumers
to make price, value, and fuel economy comparisons between an energy
based ``equivalent'' liter or gallon of compressed natural gas and
diesel fuel. See also Items 337-3, and 337-5 on the Specifications and
Tolerances Committee Agenda and Items 232-3 and Item 237-2 on the Laws
and Regulations Committee Agenda regarding proposed methods of sale for
the DLE and DGE.
The Clean Vehicle Education Foundation (CVEF) submitted proposals
in 2012 and 2013 for rule changes to allow compressed natural gas (CNG)
and liquefied natural gas (LNG) to be sold as a retail engine fuel in
liter or gallon equivalent units. The NCWM established the Natural Gas
Steering Committee (NGSC) in July 2013 to address concerns over the
proliferation of equivalent units and resolve other technical issues
involved with the proposed changes to HB44 and HB130.
At the January 2014 NCWM Interim Meeting, the Chairman of the NGSC
advised the S&T and L&R Committees that the NGSC planned to consolidate
the proposals to modify HB44 and HB130 and that the NGSC supported
recognition of the new diesel energy equivalent units for both
compressed and liquefied natural gas. The NGSC completed its work in
March 2014 and its recommendations are included in NCWM Publication 16
as voting items for adoption at the July 2014 NCWM Annual Meeting.
[[Page 38495]]
NCWM Laws and Regulations Committee (L & R Committee)
The following item is a proposal to amend NIST Handbook 130:
NIST Handbook 130--Uniform Regulation for the Method of Sale of
Commodities
Item 231-2 Section 10.3. Aerosols and Similar Pressurized Containers
This item includes a proposal to clarify that a current method of
sale applies to aerosol containers, and containers that utilize Bag-on-
Valve (BOV) technology and other self-pressurized packages that have
their net content declarations presented in terms of fluid volume.
Currently, under the Uniform Packaging and Labeling Regulation (UPLR)
adopted by many states and under regulations issued by both the Food
and Drug Administration and the Federal Trade Commission, products sold
in aerosol or similar pressurized containers must be offered for sale
by net weight. BOV packaging, which has been in the marketplace for
many years, is used to sell the same products sold in aerosol
containers (e.g., sunscreen, wound wash, shaving cream, and car-care
products). Because BOV containers (with their net contents declared in
fluid volume) are used to sell the same type of products dispensed from
aerosol containers (with their net contents declared by weight),
consumers are unable to make value comparisons between similar
products. The L&R Committee proposal will allow the companies which
currently label containers by volume in conflict with the existing
method of sale at least three years (the deadline for compliance is
January 1, 2018) to bring their labeling into compliance.
Dated: June 26, 2014.
Willie E. May,
Associate Director for Laboratory Programs.
[FR Doc. 2014-15798 Filed 7-7-14; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510-13-P
