Department of Energy April 2006 – Federal Register Recent Federal Regulation Documents

In a notice of proposed rulemaking published December 13, 1999, (NOPR) the Department of Energy (DOE or the Department) proposed to adopt (1) energy conservation requirements that the Energy Policy and Conservation Act, as amended, (EPCA or the Act) specifically mandated for commercial warm air furnaces, and (2) provisions applying generally to covered commercial heating, air conditioning and water heating equipment, including furnaces, (collectively referred to as ``commercial HVAC & WH equipment'') to assure their compliance with EPCA requirements. On October 21, 2004, DOE adopted a final rule incorporating the requirements for furnaces but only certain of the general provisions proposed for commercial HVAC & WH equipment. As to the latter, the Department did not adopt the NOPR's proposals for manufacturers to use to determine and certify compliance, and or most of its enforcement proposals, which remain under consideration. These include proposals about manufacturers' use of testing and calculation methods to rate the efficiency of their equipment, the role of voluntary independent certification programs in assuring the accuracy of the ratings, and the testing regimen and criteria that DOE would use in enforcement proceedings, which are the subjects of today's notice. The Department is now soliciting comments on several additional proposed options that DOE is now considering for the rule. In addition, the Energy Policy Act of 2005, Public Law 109-58, (EPACT 2005) created a new category of covered equipment and set forth definitions, test procedures, and energy conservation standards for very large commercial package air conditioning and heating equipment. The Department has codified the definitions and energy conservation standards in Title 10, Code of Federal Regulations, Part 431. 70 FR 60407 (October 18, 2005). The Department is applying to that equipment the proposed compliance and enforcement requirements that are the subject of this supplemental notice. (The Department notes that the recent amendments to EPCA set forth in EPACT 2005 do not otherwise affect the issues raised in today's notice.)

Pursuant to Sections 323(b)(10) and 346(a) of the Energy Policy and Conservation Act, as amended, (EPCA or the Act), 42 U.S.C. 6293(b)(10) and 6317(a), the Department of Energy (DOE or the Department) promulgates a rule prescribing test procedures for measuring the energy efficiency of distribution transformers under EPCA, definitions to delineate the products covered by the test procedures, provisions (including a sampling plan) manufacturers must use to implement the test procedures, provisions to allow manufacturers to use calculation methods to determine the efficiency of some of their models, and enforcement testing for distribution transformers. The Department will use the new test procedures in evaluating what energy conservation standards are warranted for distribution transformers other than the low-voltage dry-type. When DOE promulgates such standards, then the test procedures and other provisions adopted today will be used to determine the efficiencies and assess compliance of the transformers subject to these standards. For low-voltage dry-type distribution transformers, the new standards prescribed for them in section 325(y) of EPCA, 42 U.S.C. 6295(y), go into effect on January 1, 2007, and all of the provisions of today's rule will become applicable to those transformers at that time.

The Department of Energy (DOE or Department) will hold an informal public meeting to present its proposed methodologies for conducting this rulemaking, discuss issues relevant to this rulemaking proceeding, and initiate stakeholder interaction in this rulemaking proceeding. The Department is also interested in information that will assist it in establishing energy conservation standards for ice cream freezers; self-contained commercial refrigerators, freezers, and refrigerator-freezers without doors; and remote-condensing commercial refrigerators, freezers, and refrigerator-freezers. (These types of equipment are referred to collectively hereafter as ``commercial refrigeration equipment.'') The Department encourages written comments on these subjects. This effort is the result of the directive in the Energy Policy Act of 2005 to DOE to establish energy conservation standards for such equipment by January 1, 2009. To inform stakeholders and facilitate this process, DOE has prepared a Framework Document, a draft of which is available at https://www.eere.energy.gov/buildings/ appliancestandards.

In compliance with the requirements of section 3507 of the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, 44 U.S.C. 3507, the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (Commission) has submitted the information collection described below to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) for review and extension of this information collection requirement. Any interested person may file comments directly with OMB and should address a copy of those comments to the Commission as explained below. The Commission received no comments in response to an earlier Federal Register notice of February 14, 2006 (71 FR 7751-7852) and has made this notation in its OMB submission.

In compliance with the requirements of section 3507 of the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, 44 U.S.C. 3507, the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (Commission) has submitted the information collection described below to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) for review and extension of this information collection requirement. Any interested person may file comments directly with OMB and should address a copy of those comments to the Commission as explained below. The Commission received no comments in response to an earlier Federal Register notice of February 14, 2006 (71 FR 7750-7751) and has made this notation in its submission to OMB.