[Federal Register Volume 67, Number 96 (Friday, May 17, 2002)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Pages 35006-35008]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 02-12431]


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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 (``Commission'') is amending the 
Appliance Labeling Rule to require dishwasher manufacturers to submit 
their annual energy data for dishwashers this year on June 17 (rather 
than June 1 as currently required) to ensure that the data reflects the 
results of a new Department of Energy (``DOE'') test procedure, which 
will become effective on June 17, 2002 (see 66 FR 65094 (December 18, 
2001)). In addition, the Commission is amending the Rule to require a 
60-day effective date for any new ranges of comparability for standard 
size dishwashers published this year. The Commission is also providing 
manufacturers with information about their responsibilities for re-
labeling these products this year.

EFFECTIVE DATE: May 17, 2002.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Hampton Newsome, Attorney, Division of 
Enforcement, Federal Trade Commission, Washington, DC. 20580 (202-326-
2889); [email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Background

    The Commission issued the Appliance Labeling Rule in 1979, 44 FR 
66466 (Nov. 19, 1979), in response to a directive in the Energy Policy 
and Conservation Act of 1975 (``EPCA'').\1\ The Rule covers, among 
other things, eight categories of major household appliances: 
refrigerators and refrigerator-freezers, freezers, dishwashers, clothes 
washers, water heaters, room air conditioners, furnaces, and central 
air conditioners.
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    \1\42 U.S.C. 6294. The statute also requires the Department of 
Energy 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 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. The Rule requires

[[Page 35007]]

manufacturers to include, on labels, 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 similar to the labeled model.
    The Rule requires manufacturers, after filing an initial report, to 
report annually (the due date for dishwashers is June 1) the estimated 
annual energy consumption or energy efficiency ratings for the 
appliances derived from tests performed pursuant to the DOE test 
procedures. 16 CFR 305.8(b). 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. Under Sec. 305.10 of the Rule, to keep the 
required information on labels consistent with these changes, the 
Commission publishes 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 publishes a statement that the prior ranges remain in effect 
for the next year.

Recent DOE Test Procedure for Dishwashers

    On December 18, 2001 (66 FR 65094), DOE published amendments to the 
test procedure that manufacturers must use to determine the energy use 
of their dishwashers. This new test will become effective June 17, 
2002. Among other things, the amended DOE test procedure will reduce 
the number of annual cycles manufacturers must use in calculating their 
dishwashers' energy consumption. This change uniformly will decrease 
the disclosed energy consumption for dishwashers.
    Under EPCA, all energy use representations (including information 
on the EnergyGuide labels) must reflect the amended test procedure 
beginning 180 days after the change in the procedure is prescribed.\2\ 
Consistent with this requirement, all energy use representations for 
dishwashers should reflect the amended test beginning on June 17, 2002. 
The timing of this restriction, however, creates several issues. First, 
the Commission's June 1 annual submission date for dishwashers required 
in the Rule predates the effective date of the new test procedure. If 
the June 1 submission date is followed, manufacturers would submit data 
based on the old version of the test procedure because that version 
would continue to be applicable at that time. As a result, the staff 
would not have data to develop ranges based on the new test 
procedure.\3\ Second, if the data submitted this year (whether it is 
based on the old or new test procedure) yields new ranges of 
comparability, manufacturers would be required to create new labels for 
all of their dishwasher products twice within a short period--once to 
meet the June 17 statutory deadline (section 6293(c)) for making 
representations based on the new test procedure and again shortly 
afterward to reflect new ranges of comparability published by the 
Commission (such ranges would not be effective until sometime after the 
June 17 deadline). Finally, new labels for units produced after June 17 
(but before the new ranges are published) would have energy use 
disclosures based on the amended test procedure--to comply with section 
6293(c)--but ranges of comparability based on the old test procedure.
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    \2\42 U.S.C. 6293(c).
    \3\If the data submitted on June 1 does not yield new ranges, 
the current ranges which are based on the old test procedure would 
remain in effect until the next annual submission date (June 1, 
2003).
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    To address these issues, the Commission is amending the Rule to 
require manufacturers to submit their annual dishwasher data for this 
year on June 17, 2002 instead of June 1, 2002 as currently required by 
the Rule. Because the amended DOE test procedure will not be effective 
until June 17, this change to the submission date will ensure that the 
new data reflects compliance with the amended DOE test procedure. In 
addition, the Commission is amending the Rule to set a 60-day effective 
date for any new standard size dishwasher ranges published this 
year.\4\
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    \4\Because a new range for compact models became effective on 
March 22, 2002, any amendments published this year to the range for 
compact models cannot become effective until March 22, 2003. Compact 
models constitute only a small fraction of the basic dishwasher 
models on the market.
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    The Commission also is announcing that it does not expect 
manufacturers to change their labels this year to reflect the amended 
test procedure until after the Commission has published these new 
ranges (or published a statement that there will be no new ranges). In 
other words, the Commission intends to exercise discretion to not take 
law enforcement action pursuant to Sec. 6293(c) against manufacturers 
that wait to account for the new test procedure on their labels until 
the Commission has provided notice about new ranges for dishwashers. 
The Commission plans to publish a notice announcing any changes to the 
ranges shortly after June 17. Assuming new ranges are published this 
year, the Commission expects that manufacturers would begin labeling 
their products with the results of the amended test procedure and the 
revised ranges on labels at that time. As indicated above, any new 
ranges for standard-size models would be effective 60 days after 
publication.\5\
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    \5\The Commission notes that Sec. 305.11(a)(5)(i)(H)(2) of the 
Rule currently requires manufacturers to print language near the 
bottom of their dishwasher labels indicating that the label 
information is based ``on six washloads a week.'' As a result of the 
new test procedure, this will have to change to ``five washloads a 
week.'' The Commission will formally publish this amendment in its 
notice regarding dishwasher ranges this summer.
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    Although the Commission's decision to allow an enforcement grace 
period for compliance with section 6293(c) here will cause a minor 
delay in the dissemination of labels reflecting the amended test 
procedure, it will ensure that both the energy use representations and 
ranges of comparability reflect data derived from the new test 
procedure. Thus, the approach discussed in this notice will avoid the 
problems and potential confusion for both consumers and manufacturers 
that could result from strict adherence to the current deadlines. For 
consumers, a blending of new test data with ranges based on prior data 
could affect their ability to make meaningful comparisons among 
competing models. For manufacturers, this approach allows them to 
change the labels on their dishwasher products only once instead of 
twice in a short period of time.

Administrative Procedure Act

    The amendments published in this notice involve minor, procedural 
changes to the submission date for data already required by the Rule 
and to the effective date for new dishwasher ranges this year. These 
technical amendments merely alter the dates on which compliance is 
required and do not affect the requirements of the Rule nor do the 
amendments alter the frequency with which regulated entities must 
comply with these requirements. These changes will help to ensure that 
information on new EnergyGuide labels for dishwashers will reflect both 
energy use representations and any resulting new ranges of 
comparability based on the amended test. In addition, these minor 
amendments must take effect in a timely fashion to avoid the problems 
discussed in this notice. Accordingly, the Commission finds for good 
cause that public comment and a 30-day effective date for these 
technical, procedural amendments are impractical and

[[Page 35008]]

unnecessary (5 U.S.C. 553(b)(A)(B) and (d)).

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. 
The amendments merely alter the dates on which compliance is required 
and do not affect the requirements of the rule nor do the amendments 
alter the frequency with which regulated entities must comply with 
these requirements. 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

    In the 1988 NPR, the Commission stated that the Rule contains 
disclosure and reporting requirements that constitute ``information 
collection requirements'' as defined by 5 CFR 1320.7(c), the regulation 
that implements the Paperwork Reduction Act (``PRA'').\6\ The 
Commission noted that the Rule had been reviewed and approved in 1984 
by the Office of Management and Budget (``OMB'') and assigned OMB 
Control No. 3084-0068. OMB has again reviewed the Rule and extended its 
approval for its recordkeeping and reporting requirements until 
September 30, 2004. The amendments now being adopted do not change the 
substance or frequency of the recordkeeping, disclosure, or reporting 
requirements and, therefore, do not require further OMB clearance.
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    \6\44 U.S.C. 3501-3520.
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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. Section 305.8(b) is revised to read as follows:


Sec. 305.8  Submission of Data.

* * * * *
    (b)(1) All data required by Sec. 305.8(a) except serial numbers 
shall be submitted to the Commission annually, on or before the 
following dates:

------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                                   Deadline for data
               Product category                        submission
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Refrigerators................................  August 1.
Refrigerator-freezers........................  August 1.
Freezers.....................................  August 1.
Central air conditioners.....................  July 1.
Heat pumps...................................  July 1.
Dishwashers..................................  *June 1.
Water heaters................................  May 1.
Room air conditioners........................  May 1.
Furnaces.....................................  May 1.
Pool heaters.................................  May 1.
Clothes washers..............................  March 1.
Fluorescent lamp ballasts....................  March 1.
Showerheads..................................  March 1.
Faucets......................................  March 1.
Water closets................................  March 1.
Urinals......................................  March 1.
Fluorescent lamps............................  March 1 [Stayed].
Medium Base Compact Fluorescent Lamps........  March 1 [Stayed].
Incandescent Lamps, incl. Reflector Lamps....  March 1 [Stayed].
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*Except the submission deadline for Year 2002 is June 17.

    (2) All revisions to such data (both additions to and deletions 
from the preceding data) shall be submitted to the Commission as part 
of the next annual report period.

    3. Section 305.10(a) is revised to read as follows:


Sec. 305.10  Ranges of estimated annual energy consumption and energy 
efficiency ratings.

    (a) The range of estimated annual energy consumption or energy 
efficiency ratings for each covered product (except fluorescent lamp 
ballasts, showerheads, faucets, water closets or urinals) shall be 
taken from the appropriate appendix to this rule in effect at the time 
the labels are affixed to the product. The Commission shall publish 
revised ranges annually in the Federal Register, if appropriate, or a 
statement that the specific prior ranges are still applicable for the 
new year.
    Ranges will be changed if the estimated annual energy consumption 
or energy efficiency ratings of the products within the range change in 
a way that would alter the upper or lower estimated annual energy 
consumption or energy efficiency rating limits of the range by 15% or 
more from that previously published. When a range is revised, all 
information disseminated after 90 days following the publication of the 
revision shall conform to the revised range subject to the following 
exception. For any standard size dishwasher range revised in 2002, all 
information disseminated after 60 days following the publication of the 
revision shall conform to the revised range. Products that have been 
labeled prior to the effective date of a modification under this 
section need not be relabeled.
* * * * *

    By direction of the Commission.
Donald S. Clark,
Secretary.
[FR Doc. 02-12431 Filed 5-16-02; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6750-01-P