Department of Energy July 2019 – Federal Register Recent Federal Regulation Documents

The U.S. Department of Energy (``DOE'') proposes to amend the test procedures for clothes dryers to provide additional direction in response to questions from manufacturers and test laboratories. DOE also proposes amendments to specify rounding requirements for all reported values; apply consistent use of nomenclature and correct typographical errors; and remove obsolete sections of the test procedures, including appendix D. DOE also seeks feedback from interested parties on issues such as consumer usage patterns and ``connected'' clothes dryer features. As part of this proposal, DOE is announcing a public meeting to solicit comments and data on its proposal. DOE also welcomes comment on changes to the test procedure to ensure that the test procedure measures the energy use of the clothes dryer during a representative average use cycle or period of use, and is not unduly burdensome to conduct.

In compliance with the requirements of the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (PRA), the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (Commission or FERC) is soliciting public comment on the currently approved information collections FERC Form Nos. 1 (Annual Report of Major Electric Utilities, Licensees, and Others), 1-F (Annual Report for Nonmajor Public Utilities and Licensees), and 3-Q (Quarterly Financial Report of Electric Utilities, Licensees, and Natural Gas Companies), and submitting the information collections to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) for review. Any interested person may file comments directly with OMB and should address a copy of those comments to the Commission as explained below. On May 7, 2019, the Commission published a Notice in the Federal Register in Docket No. IC19-22-000 requesting public comments. The Commission received one public comment and will indicate that in its submittals to OMB.

This document announces receipt of and publishes a petition for waiver from Anker Innovations Limited (``Anker''), which seeks a waiver from the U.S. Department of Energy (``DOE'') test procedure used for determining the energy efficiency of a specified EPS basic model. Anker asserts that testing under the current DOE test procedure does not reflect actual use of EPSs that meet the USB Power Delivery Specification and seeks to use an alternate test procedure. DOE is granting to Anker an interim waiver from the DOE test procedure for the specified basic model, subject to use of the alternate test procedure as set forth in the Interim Waiver Order. DOE solicits comments, data, and information concerning Anker's petition and its suggested alternate test procedure, as well as the alternate test procedure specified in the interim waiver, to inform its final decision on Anker's waiver request.

American L&P Co dba American Light & Power (Applicant or AL&P) has applied for authorization to transmit electric energy from the United States to Mexico pursuant to the Federal Power Act.

The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) received a petition from the Competitive Enterprise Institute (CEI) to define a new product class under the Energy Policy and Conservation Act, as amended (EPCA), for residential dishwashers. The new product class would cover dishwashers with a cycle time for the normal cycle of less than one hour from washing through drying. DOE published this petition and request for comments in the Federal Register on April 24, 2018. Based upon its evaluation of the petition and careful consideration of the public comments, DOE has decided to grant this petition for rulemaking and propose a dishwasher product class with a cycle time for the normal cycle of less than one hour. DOE intends to consider appropriate energy and water use limits for such a product class, if adopted, in a separate rulemaking.

The DOE Office of Science (DOE-SC) is considering the launch of a multi-program basic research initiative in support of microelectronics and semiconductor sectors. The participating program offices in DOE-SC invite interested parties to provide input on the topical areas, innovation mechanisms, impact, and potential collaborations, including public-private partnerships, that could be implemented under this initiative. DOE-SC is particularly interested in ways in which unique DOE facilities, expertise and capabilities can be leveraged to support U.S. continued global innovation and leadership in this field.

In compliance with the requirements of the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (Commission or FERC) is submitting its information collection FERC-729 (Electric Transmission Facilities) to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) for review of the information collection requirements. 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 previously published a Notice in the Federal Register on April 29, 2019, requesting public comments. The Commission received no comments and is making this notation in its submittal to OMB.