[Federal Register Volume 64, Number 116 (Thursday, June 17, 1999)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Pages 32403-32404]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 99-15340]



[[Page 32403]]

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FEDERAL TRADE COMMISSION

16 CFR Part 305


Rule Concerning Disclosures Regarding Energy Consumption and 
Water Use of Certain Home Appliances and Other Products Required Under 
the Energy Policy and Conservation Act (``Appliance Labeling Rule'')

AGENCY: Federal Trade Commission.

ACTION: Final rule.

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SUMMARY: The Federal Trade Commission amends its Appliance Labeling 
Rule by publishing new ranges of comparability to be used on required 
labels for clothes washers.

EFFECTIVE DATE: September 15, 1999.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: James Mills, Attorney, Division of 
Enforcement, Federal Trade Commission, Washington, DC 20580 (202-326-
3035).

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
    The Appliance Labeling Rule (``Rule'') was issued by the Commission 
in 1979, 44 FR 66466 (Nov. 19, 1979), in response to a directive in the 
Energy Policy and Conservation Act of 1975.\1\ The Rule covers eight 
categories of major household appliances. Clothes washers are among 
those categories. The Rule also covers pool heaters, 59 FR 49556 (Sept. 
28, 1994), and contains requirements that pertain to fluorescent lamp 
ballasts, 54 FR 28031 (July 5, 1989), certain plumbing products, 58 FR 
54955 (Oct. 25, 1993), and certain lighting products, 59 FR 25176 (May 
13, 1994, eff. May 15, 1995).
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    \1\ 42 U.S.C. 6294. The statute also requires the Department of 
Energy (``DOE'') to develop test procedures that measure how much 
energy the appliances use, and to determine the representative 
average cost a consumer pays for the different types of energy 
available.
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    The Rule requires manufacturers of all covered appliances and pool 
heaters to disclose specific energy consumption or efficiency 
information (derived from the DOE test procedures) at the point of sale 
in the form of an ``EnergyGuide'' label and in catalogs. It also 
requires manufacturers of furnaces, central air conditioners, and heat 
pumps either to provide fact sheets showing additional cost 
information, or to be listed in an industry directory showing the cost 
information for their products. The Rule requires manufacturers to 
include, on labels and fact sheets, an energy consumption or efficiency 
figure and a ``range of comparability.'' This range shows the highest 
and lowest energy consumption or efficiencies for all comparable 
appliance models so consumers can compare the energy consumption or 
efficiency of other models (perhaps competing brands) similar to the 
labeled model. The Rule also requires manufacturers to include, on 
labels for some products, a secondary energy usage disclosure in the 
form of an estimated annual operating cost based on a specificed DOE 
national average cost for the fuel the appliance uses.
    Section 305.8(b) of the Rules requires manufacturers, after filing 
an initial report, to report certain information annually to the 
Commission by specified dates for each product type.\2\ These reports, 
which are to assist the Commission in preparing the ranges of 
comparability, contain the estimated annual energy consumption or 
energy efficiency ratings for the appliances derived from tests 
performed pursuant to the DOE test procedures. Because manufacturers 
regularly add new models to their lines, improve existing models, and 
drop others, the data base from which the ranges of comparability are 
calculated is constantly changing. To keep the required information 
consistent with these changes, under Sec. 305.10 of the Rule the 
Commission will publish new ranges (but not more often than annually) 
if an analysis of the new information indicates that the upper or lower 
limits of the ranges have changed by more than 15%. Otherwise, the 
Commission will publish a statement that the prior ranges remain in 
effect for the next year.
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    \2\ Reports for clothes washers are due March 1.
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    Manufacturers of clothes washers have made the required annual 
submissions of data for this product category. In analyzing the data, 
the Commission has found that there has been a significant change of 
more than 15% in the ranges. Accordingly, the Commission is publishing 
new ranges of comparability for the clothes washer category. These 
ranges will supersede the current ranges for clothes washers, which 
were published originally on April 20, 1998 (63 FR 19398), and which 
became effective August 12, 1998.
    In consideration of the foregoing, the Commission revises Appendix 
F of its Appliance Labeling Rule by publishing the following ranges of 
comparability for use in required disclosures (including labeling) for 
clothes washers manufactured on or after September 15, 1999. In 
addition, as of this effective date, manufacturers must base the 
disclosures of estimated annual operating cost required at the bottom 
of the EnergyGuide for clothes washers on the 1999 Representative 
Average Unit Costs of Energy for electricity (8.22 cents per kiloWatt-
hour) and natural gas (68.8 cents per therm) that were published by DOE 
on January 5, 1999, 64 FR 487, and by the Commission on February 17, 
1999, 64 FR 7785.

Regulatory Flexibility Act

    The provisions of the Regulatory Flexibility Act relating to a 
Regulatory Flexibility Act analysis (5 U.S.C. 603-604) are not 
applicable to this proceeding because the amendments do not impose any 
new obligations on entities regulated by the Appliance Labeling Rule. 
Thus, the amendments will not have a ``significant economic impact on a 
substantial number of small entities'' (5 U.S.C. 605). The Commission 
has concluded, therefore, that a regulatory flexibility analysis is not 
necessary, and certifies, under section 605 of the Regulatory 
Flexibility Act (5 U.S.C. 605(b)), that the amendments announced today 
will not have a significant economic impact on a substantial number of 
small entities.

Paperwork Reduction Act

    The Paperwork Reduction Act (``PRA''), 44 U.S.C. 3501 et seq., 
requires government agencies, before promulgating rules or other 
regulations that require ``collections of information'' (i.e., 
recordkeeping, reporting, or third-party disclosure requirements), to 
obtain approval from the Office of Management and Budget (``OMB''), 44 
U.S.C. 3502. The Commission currently has OMB clearance for the Rule's 
information collection requirements (OMB No. 3084-0069). The amendment 
will not impose any new information collection requirements. Instead, 
it will provide manufacturers with revised ranges of comparability to 
use on the EnergyGuide labels already required by the Rule.

List of Subjects in 16 CFR Part 305

    Advertising, Energy conservation, Household appliances, Labeling, 
Reporting and recordkeeping requirements.
    Accordingly, 16 CFR part 305 is amended as follows:

PART 305--[AMENDED]

    1. The authority citation for part 305 continues to read as 
follows:

    Authority: 42 U.S.C. 6294.

    2. Appendix F to Part 305 is revised to read as follows:

Appendix F to Part 305--Clothes Washers

    Range Information: ``Compact'' includes all household clothes 
washers

[[Page 32404]]

with a tub capacity of less than 1.6 cu. ft. or 13 gallons of water.
    ``Standard'' includes all household clothes washers with a tub 
capacity of 1.6 cu. ft. or 13 gallons of water or more.

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                                                   Range of estimated
                                                      annual energy
                   Capacity                       consumption (kWh/yr.)
                                               -------------------------
                                                    Low          High
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COMPACT.......................................  ...........  ...........
    Top Loading...............................          537          607
    Front Loading.............................          (*)          (*)
STANDARD......................................  ...........  ...........
    Top Loading...............................          294         1154
    Front Loading.............................          156          314
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(*) No Data Submitted

    By direction of the Commission.
Donald S. Clark,
Secretary.
[FR Doc. 99-15340 Filed 6-16-99; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6750-01-M