[Federal Register: February 15, 2005 (Volume 70, Number 30)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Page 7673-7674]
From the Federal Register Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]
[DOCID:fr15fe05-14]
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Proposed Rules
Federal Register
________________________________________________________________________
This section of the FEDERAL REGISTER contains notices to the public of
the proposed issuance of rules and regulations. The purpose of these
notices is to give interested persons an opportunity to participate in
the rule making prior to the adoption of the final rules.
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[[Page 7673]]
DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY
Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy
10 CFR Part 431
[Docket No. EE-RM/STD-01-375]
RIN 1904-AB09
Energy Conservation Program for Commercial and Industrial
Equipment: Energy Conservation Standards for Commercial Unitary Air
Conditioners and Heat Pumps
AGENCY: Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy, Department of
Energy (DOE).
ACTION: Advance notice of proposed rulemaking; availability of the
``Joint Stakeholders Comments'' and opportunity for comment.
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SUMMARY: DOE announces the availability of the ``Joint Stakeholders
Comments on Standards for Commercial Package Air Conditioners and Heat
Pumps'' (hereafter ``Joint Stakeholders Comments'') and an opportunity
for public comment. DOE received the Joint Stakeholders Comments from a
group of nineteen stakeholders in response to DOE's advance notice of
proposed rulemaking (ANOPR) concerning standards for commercial unitary
air conditioners and heat pumps. This notice informs the public of the
recommended minimum energy efficiency standards presented in the Joint
Stakeholders Comments. To help DOE determine the appropriate next step
in this rulemaking, DOE invites interested members of the public who
did not join in the Joint Stakeholders Comments to submit any comments
they may have on the Joint Stakeholders Comments, including the
recommendation for expediting the proceedings by adopting these
recommended efficiency standards through a direct final rule.
DATES: DOE will accept written comments, data, and information
regarding the Joint Stakeholders Comments until, but no later than 4
p.m., April 1, 2005.
ADDRESSES: A document entitled ``Joint Stakeholders Comments on
Standards for Commercial Package Air Conditioners and Heat Pumps,
Docket EE-RM/STD-01-375'' is available for review on the Internet at:
http://www.eere.energy.gov/ buildings/appliance--standards /commercial/
cuac-- anopr.html or from Ms. Brenda Edwards-Jones, U.S. Department of
Energy, Building Technologies Program, EE-2J, Room 1J-018, 1000
Independence Ave., SW., Washington, DC 20585, or by telephone (202)
586-2945.
You may submit comments, identified by EE-RM/STD-01-375 or RIN
Number 1904-AB09, by any of the following methods:
Federal eRulemaking Portal: http://www.regulations.gov.
Follow the instructions for submitting comments.
E-mail: commercialairconditioner. anopr@ee.doe.gov with
``Joint Stakeholders Comments on Standards for Commercial Air
Conditioners and Heat Pumps'' in the subject line.
Mail: Ms. Brenda Edwards-Jones, U.S. Department of Energy,
Building Technologies Program, EE-2J, Room 1J-018, 1000 Independence
Ave., SW., Washington, DC 20585.
Fax: (202) 586-4617.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: James Raba, U.S. Department of Energy,
Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy, Building
Technologies, EE-2J, 1000 Independence Avenue, SW., Washington, DC
20585. Telephone: (202) 586-8654. E-mail: jim.raba@ee.doe.gov or
Francine Pinto, U.S. Department of Energy, Office of General Counsel,
GC-72, 1000 Independence Avenue, SW., Washington, DC 20585. Telephone:
(202) 586-9507. E-mail: francine.pinto@hq.doe.gov.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: On July 29, 2004, DOE published in the
Federal Register an ANOPR to solicit public comments on its preliminary
analyses concerning possible energy efficiency standards for certain
commercial unitary air conditioners and heat pumps with rated cooling
capacities of 65,000 British thermal units per hour (Btu/h) and
greater, but less than 240,000 Btu/h. This rulemaking was initiated
under the authority of the Energy Policy and Conservation Act (42
U.S.C. 6311 et seq.) (EPCA). In response to the ANOPR, a group of
nineteen stakeholders submitted to DOE a set of joint comments. That
group of stakeholders (hereafter ``Joint Stakeholders'') includes: the
Air-Conditioning and Refrigeration Institute; the American Council for
an Energy-Efficient Economy; Aaon, Inc.; The Alliance to Save Energy;
the Appliance Standards Awareness Project; Armstrong Air Conditioning
Inc.; the California Energy Commission; Carrier Corporation; Daikin
Industries, Ltd.; Lennox International Inc.; Mammoth, Inc.; McQuay
International; the Natural Resources Defense Council; Nordyne Inc.;
Northeast Energy Efficiency Partnerships; Rheem Manufacturing Company;
Sanyo Fisher (USA) Corp.; Trane/American Standard Inc.; and York
International Corp.
The Joint Stakeholders Comments recommend the adoption of certain
energy efficiency standards that the Joint Stakeholders assert meet the
applicable statutory requirements. Specifically, the Joint Stakeholders
recommend minimum energy efficiency ratios (EERs) and coefficients of
performance (COPs) for certain commercial package air conditioners and
heat pumps, respectively, as follows:
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Air-cooled products Efficiency standards
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>=65,000 -- < 135,000 Btu/h.................. 11.2/11.0 EER for Air Conditioners.
11.0/10.8 EER for Heat Pumps.
>=135,000 -- < 240,000 Btu/h................. 11.0/10.8 EER for Air Conditioners.
10.6/10.4 EER for Heat Pumps.
[[Page 7674]]
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The Joint Stakeholders Comments further ask DOE to adopt January 1,
2010, as the effective date for compliance with the recommended minimum
efficiency standards. The Comments state that this date was chosen to
coincide with a change in the refrigerant used in these systems
mandated by the Clean Air Act, as amended. (42 U.S.C. 7401 et seq.) The
Joint Stakeholders urge DOE to issue a notice of proposed rulemaking
(NOPR) or a direct final rule that would adopt the Joint Stakeholders'
recommended minimum efficiency standards. The Joint Stakeholders
Comments are available for review on the Internet at http://www.eere.energy.gov/buildings/appliance_standards/commercial/cuac_anopr.html
, or from Ms. Brenda Edwards-Jones, U.S. Department of
Energy, Building Technologies Program, EE-2J, Room 1J-018, 1000
Independence Ave., SW., Washington, DC 20585, or by telephone (202)
586-2945.
1. The Efficiency Standards
Because of the diversity of interests represented by the Joint
Stakeholders, the minimum efficiency standards they have recommended
may be acceptable to stakeholders who were not parties to the Joint
Stakeholders Comments. DOE is interested in other stakeholders'
reactions to the recommended minimum efficiency standards and whether
stakeholders who did not sign the joint comments believe the
recommended standards are appropriate and could or should be adopted.
2. Rulemaking Procedure
The Joint Stakeholders urge DOE to adopt the recommended standards
by issuing either a standard Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NOPR) or a
direct final rule.
If DOE were to proceed with the NOPR process, it would issue a
standard NOPR and accept comments from interested members of the
public. After considering the comments and possibly conducting further
analyses, DOE would publish a notice of final rulemaking with a
preamble that responded to major issues that emerge from the comments.
This procedure would be the more time consuming of the two alternatives
suggested by the Joint Stakeholders because, based on DOE's experience,
it believes the two notices would require long preparation times;
moreover, the two notices would be published separately with a wide
interval between publication dates.
The direct final rulemaking procedure would involve simultaneous
publication of both a direct final rule, and a NOPR that incorporates
by reference the text of the direct final rule. The preamble of the
direct final rule would include a statement that the agency would
publish a timely notice of withdrawal in the Federal Register before
the effective date established for purposes of modifying the Code of
Federal Regulations and proceed with the NOPR if it receives
significant adverse public comments. If significant adverse comments
are not received, the direct final rule would become effective without
any other action by the agency. This procedure is appropriate only for
rules for which significant adverse comment is considered unlikely.
DOE is interested in stakeholder comments on these alternative
procedures and whether the public would benefit by implementing minimum
energy efficiency standards for commercial package air conditioners and
heat pumps in an expedited manner. If public comments in response to
today's notice of availability indicate that there is no significant
opposition to DOE promulgating a direct final rule establishing the
standards recommended by the Joint Stakeholders Comments, DOE would
strongly consider doing so if DOE concluded that such standards meet
EPCA requirements.
All persons interested in submitting comments on the Joint
Stakeholders Comments must submit their comments to DOE by the date
specified in the DATES section of this notice; after that date, no
further submissions will be entertained. Comments must be submitted to
one of the addresses listed in the ADDRESSES section of this notice.
DOE will consider all comments received by the specified deadline.
Issued in Washington, DC, on February 9, 2005.
David K. Garman,
Assistant Secretary, Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy.
[FR Doc. 05-2875 Filed 2-14-05; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6450-01-P