Department of Energy 2019 – Federal Register Recent Federal Regulation Documents

In compliance with the requirements of the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (PRA), the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (Commission or FERC) is soliciting public comments on the currently approved information collection, FERC-547 (Gas Pipeline Rates: Refund Report Requirements) and submitting the information collection 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.

Pursuant to the Federal Advisory Committee Act, and in accordance with Title 41 of the Code of Federal Regulations, and following consultation with the Committee Management Secretariat, General Services Administration, notice is hereby given that the Nuclear Energy Advisory Committee (NEAC) will be renewed for a two-year period beginning on December 11, 2019. The Committee will provide advice to the Department of Energy's Office of Nuclear Energy on complex science and technical issues that arise in the planning, managing, and implementation of DOE's nuclear energy program. Additionally, the renewal of the NEAC has been determined to be essential to conduct business of the Department of Energy and to be in the public interest in connection with the performance of duties imposed upon the Department of Energy, by law and agreement. The Committee will continue to operate in accordance with the provisions of the Federal Advisory Committee Act, adhering to the rules and regulations in implementation of that Act.

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 collection, FERC Form 580 (Interrogatory on Fuel and Energy Purchase Practices) and submitting the information collection 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 November 15, 2019, the U.S. Department of Energy (``DOE'') published a request for information (``RFI'') to solicit information from the public to help DOE determine whether amended standards for consumer refrigerators, refrigerator-freezers, and freezers would result in a significant amount of additional energy savings and whether those standards would be technologically feasible and economically justified. The November 15, 2019 RFI also stated that public comments will be accepted until December 30, 2019. On November 21, 2019, the DOE received a request from the Association of Home Appliance Manufacturers (AHAM) to extend the public comment period by 60 days. DOE has reviewed this request and will be granting a 45 day extinction of the public comment period to allow public comments to be summited until February 13, 2020.

This document announces receipt of and publishes a petition for waiver from GD Midea Air Conditioning Equipment Co. LTD. (``Midea''), which seeks an exemption from the U.S. Department of Energy (``DOE'') test procedure when determining the efficiency of listed room air conditioner basic models. Midea seeks to use an alternate test procedure to address issues involved in testing the basic models listed in its petition. According to Midea, the current DOE test procedure for room air conditioners, which provides for testing at full-load performance only, does not take into account the benefits of room air conditioners that use variable-speed compressors (``variable-speed room air conditioners''), with their part-load performance characteristics, and misrepresents their actual energy consumption. Midea requests that DOE permit Midea to test the basic models listed in its petition using the alternate test procedure in the interim waiver granted to LG Electronics USA, Inc. (``LG'') on June 29, 2018, which requires testing units at four rating conditions instead of a single rating condition and calculating each test unit's weighted- average combined energy efficiency ratio (``CEER''), which is compared to the expected performance of a theoretical comparable single-speed room air conditioner across the same four rating conditions. The measured performance of the variable-speed room air conditioner when tested under the high-temperature rating condition of the DOE test procedure for room air conditioners would be scaled by the same relative performance improvement to determine the test unit's final rated CEER value. DOE grants Midea an interim waiver from DOE's room air conditioner test procedure for the basic models listed in the Interim Waiver Order, subject to use of the alternate test procedure as set forth in the Interim Waiver Order. DOE solicits comments, data, and information concerning Midea's petition and its suggested alternate test procedure to inform its final decision on Midea's waiver request.

The Department of Energy (DOE) has submitted an information collection request to the OMB for extension under the provisions of the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995. The information collection requests a three-year extension of its Programs for Improving Energy Efficiency in Buildings, OMB Control Number 1910-5184. The proposed collection will enable DOE to better understand and improve building energy load management programs including the following four voluntary programs aimed at reducing energy costs and improving occupant comfort in buildings: The Home Performance with ENERGY STAR Program, the Home Energy Score Program, the Better Buildings Residential Network, and the Zero Energy Ready Home Program. The information gathered by DOE in these four programs is necessary for DOE to run the programs effectively.

This notice announces a meeting of the Environmental Management Site-Specific Advisory Board (EM SSAB), Hanford. The Federal Advisory Committee Act requires that public notice of this meeting be announced in the Federal Register.