Department of Energy September 30, 2019 – Federal Register Recent Federal Regulation Documents

On August 9, 2019, the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) published a request for information (RFI) pertaining to the energy conservation standards for unfired hot water storage tanks. The RFI provided an opportunity for submitting written comments, data, and information by September 23, 2019. Prior to the end of the comment period for the RFI, DOE received a request from the Air-Conditioning, Heating and Refrigeration Institute (AHRI) on September 13, 2019 seeking additional time to analyze data, possibly conduct further testing, and prepare comments. In light of this request, DOE is reopening the comment period for an additional 30 days and announcing that decision in this document.

The Assistant Secretary for Electricity has approved and placed into effect on an interim basis Rate Order No. SWPA-76, which extends the following existing Robert D. Willis Hydropower Project rate schedule for the Southwestern Power Administration: Rate Schedule RDW- 15, Wholesale Rates for Hydro Power and Energy. This is an interim rate action effective October 1, 2019, extending for a period of two years through September 30, 2021.

The Assistant Secretary for Electricity has approved and placed into effect on an interim basis Rate Order No. SWPA-74, which extends the following existing Integrated System rate schedules for the Southwestern Power Administration: Rate Schedule P-13A, Wholesale Rates for Hydro Peaking Power; Rate Schedule NFTS-13A, Wholesale Rates for Non-Federal Transmission/Interconnection Facilities Service; Rate Schedule EE-13, Wholesale Rates for Excess Energy. This is an interim rate action effective October 1, 2019, extending for a period of two years through September 30, 2021.

The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) proposes to amend its test procedures for ceiling fans established under the Energy Policy and Conservation Act. On July 25, 2016, DOE published a final rule amending the test procedure for ceiling fans to support the ceiling fans energy conservation standards rulemaking. In this notice of proposed rulemaking (NOPR), DOE proposes to: Interpret the term ``suspended from a ceiling'' in the EPCA definition of ceiling fan to mean offered for mounting only on a ceiling; specify that very small-diameter (VSD) ceiling fans that do not also meet the definition of low-speed small- diameter (LSSD) ceiling fan are not required to be tested pursuant to the DOE test method; for LSSD and VSD ceiling fans, increase the tolerance for the stability criteria for the average air velocity measurements in low speed to reduce test burden; specify that large- diameter ceiling with blade spans greater than 24 feet do not need to be tested pursuant to the DOE test method; codify current guidance on calculating several values reported on the U.S. Federal Trade Commission's (FTC) EnergyGuide label for LSSD and VSD ceiling fans using results from the ceiling fan test procedures; and amend certification requirements and product-specific enforcement provisions to reflect the current test procedures and recently amended energy conservation standards for ceiling fans.