[Federal Register Volume 71, Number 124 (Wednesday, June 28, 2006)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Pages 36715-36717]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 06-5838]


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DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY

Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy

10 CFR Part 431

[Docket No. EERE-2006-STD-0125]
RIN 1904-AB58


Energy Conservation Standards for Refrigerated Bottled or Canned 
Beverage Vending Machines: Public Meeting and Availability of the 
Framework Document

AGENCY: Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy, U.S. 
Department of Energy.

ACTION: Notice of public meeting and availability of the Framework 
Document.

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SUMMARY: The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE or Department) will hold an 
informal public meeting to present its proposed methodologies for 
conducting this rulemaking, discuss issues relevant to this rulemaking 
proceeding, and initiate stakeholder interaction in this rulemaking 
proceeding. The Department is also interested in information that will 
assist it in establishing energy conservation standards for 
refrigerated bottled or canned beverage vending machines. (These types 
of equipment are referred

[[Page 36716]]

to collectively hereafter as ``beverage vending machines.'') The 
Department encourages written comments on these subjects. This effort 
is the result of the directive in the Energy Policy Act of 2005 to DOE 
to establish energy conservation standards for such equipment by August 
8, 2009. To inform stakeholders and facilitate this process, DOE has 
prepared a Framework Document, a draft of which is available at http://www.eere.energy.gov/buildings/appliance_standards.

DATES: The Department will hold a public meeting on July 11, 2006, from 
9 a.m. to 5 p.m. EDT in Washington, DC. Any person who requesting to 
speak at the public meeting should submit a request to speak before 4 
p.m., July 3, 2006. The Department must receive a signed original and 
an electronic copy of statement to be given at the public meeting 
before 4 p.m., July 3, 2006. Written comments on the Framework Document 
are welcome and encouraged following the public meeting and should be 
submitted by July 27, 2006.

ADDRESSES: The public meeting will be held at the U.S. Department of 
Energy, Forrestal Building, Room 1E-245, 1000 Independence Avenue, SW., 
Washington, DC 20585-0121. (Please note that foreign nationals 
participating in the public meeting are subject to advance security 
screening procedures. If a foreign national wishes to participate in 
the public meeting, please inform DOE of this fact as soon as possible 
by contacting Ms. Brenda Edwards-Jones at (202) 586-2945 so that the 
necessary procedures can be completed.)
    Stakeholders may submit comments, identified by docket number EERE-
2006-STD-0125 and/or RIN number 1904-AB58, by any of the following 
methods:
     Federal eRulemaking Portal: http://www.regulations.gov gov. 
Follow the instructions for submitting comments.
     E-mail: [email protected]. Include 
EERE-2006-STD-0125 and/or RIN 1904-AB58 in the subject line of the 
message.
     Mail: Ms. Brenda Edwards-Jones, U.S. Department of Energy, 
Building Technologies Program, Mailstop EE-2J, Framework Document for 
Commercial Refrigeration Equipment, EERE-2006-STD-0125 and/or RIN 1904-
AB58, 1000 Independence Avenue, SW., Washington, DC 20585-0121. 
Telephone: (202) 586-2945. Please submit one signed paper original.
     Hand Delivery/Courier: Ms. Brenda Edwards-Jones, U.S. 
Department of Energy, Building Technologies Program, Room 1J-018, 1000 
Independence Avenue, SW, Washington, DC 20585-0121.
    Instructions: All submissions received must include the agency name 
and docket number or Regulatory Information Number (RIN) for this 
rulemaking.
    Docket: For access to the docket to read background documents or 
comments received, go to the U.S. Department of Energy, Forrestal 
Building, Room 1J-018 (Resource Room of the Building Technologies 
Program), 1000 Independence Avenue, SW., Washington, DC 20585-0121, 
Telephone Number (202) 586-9127, between 9 a.m. and 4 p.m., Monday 
through Friday, except Federal holidays. Please call Ms. Brenda 
Edwards-Jones at the above telephone number for additional information 
regarding visiting the Resource Room. Please note that the Department's 
Freedom of Information Reading Room (formerly Room 1E-190 at the 
Forrestal Building) is no longer housing rulemaking materials.

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 
20585-0121, (202) 586-8654. E-mail: [email protected]. Thomas 
DePriest, U.S. Department of Energy, Office of General Counsel, GC-72, 
1000 Independence Avenue, SW., Washington, DC 20585-0121, (202) 586-
9507. E-mail: [email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Part B of Title III of the Energy Policy and 
Conservation Act of 1975 (EPCA), 42 U.S.C 6291 et seq., established an 
energy conservation program for consumer products other than 
automobiles. The National Energy Conservation Policy Act of 1978 
(NECPA), 42 U.S.C. 6311 et seq., amended EPCA to add Part C of Title 
III, which established an energy conservation program for certain 
industrial equipment. The Energy Policy Act of 1992 (EPACT 1992), 
Public Law 102-486, included amendments to EPCA, that expanded Title 
III to include certain commercial equipment. The recent Energy Policy 
Act of 2005 (EPACT 2005), Public Law 109-58, updated several existing 
standards and test procedures, prescribed definitions, standards, and 
test procedures for certain new covered products and covered equipment, 
and mandated that the Secretary of Energy (the Secretary) commence 
rulemakings to develop test procedures and standards for certain other 
new covered products and covered equipment.
    In particular, section 135(c)(4) of EPACT 2005 amends section 325 
of EPCA by adding, in part, new subsection 325(v)(2), (3) and (4), 42 
U.S.C. 6295(v)(2), (3) and (4), which direct the Secretary to issue by 
rule, no later than August 8, 2009, energy conservation standards for 
refrigerated bottled or canned beverage vending machines manufactured 
on or after August 8, 2012. In addition, section 135(b) of EPACT 2005 
amends section 323 of EPCA by adding, in part, new subsections 
323(b)(15) (42 U.S.C.6293(b)(15)) and 323(f) (6293(f)), which, 
respectively, state that the test procedure for refrigerated bottled or 
canned beverage vending machines shall be based on American National 
Standards Institute (ANSI)/American Society of Heating, Refrigerating 
and Air-Conditioning Engineers (ASHRAE) Standard 32.1-2004, ``Methods 
of Testing for Rating Vending Machines for Bottled, Canned or Other 
Sealed Beverages,'' and direct the Secretary to prescribe testing 
requirements for this equipment not later than August 8, 2007. The 
Department intends to address the test procedure and testing 
requirements for beverage vending machines under a separate rulemaking.
    To begin this rulemaking, the Department prepared a Framework 
Document to explain the issues, analyses, and process it is considering 
for the development of energy conservation standards for beverage 
vending machines. The main focus of the public meeting will be to 
discuss the analyses and issues contained in various sections of the 
Framework Document. For each item listed, the Department will make a 
presentation with some discussion to follow. In addition, the 
Department will also make a brief presentation on the rulemaking 
process for beverage vending machines. The Department encourages those 
who wish to participate in the public meeting to obtain the Framework 
Document and be prepared to discuss its contents. A copy of the draft 
Framework Document is available at http://www.eere.energy.gov/buildings/appliance_standards. However, public meeting participants 
need not limit their comments to the topics in the Framework Document. 
The Department is also interested in receiving comments concerning 
other relevant issues that participants believe would affect energy 
conservation standards for beverage vending machines. The Department 
also welcomes all interested parties, whether or not they participate 
in the public meeting, to submit in writing by July 27,

[[Page 36717]]

2006, comments and information on the matters addressed in the 
Framework Document and on other matters relevant to consideration of 
standards for beverage vending machines.
    The public meeting will be conducted in an informal conference-
style. During the public meeting, there shall be no discussion of 
proprietary information, costs or prices, market shares, or other 
commercial matters regulated by the U.S. antitrust laws.
    After the public meeting and the expiration of the period for 
submitting written statements, the Department will begin collecting 
data, conducting the analyses as discussed in the Framework Document 
and reviewing the comments received.
    Anyone who would like to participate in the public meeting, receive 
meeting materials, or be added to the DOE mailing list to receive 
future notices and information regarding beverage vending machines, 
should contact Ms. Brenda Edwards-Jones at (202) 586-2945.

    Issued in Washington, DC, on June 22, 2006.
Alexander A. Karsner,
Assistant Secretary, Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy.
[FR Doc. 06-5838 Filed 6-27-06; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6450-01-P