[Federal Register Volume 80, Number 62 (Wednesday, April 1, 2015)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Pages 17363-17366]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2015-07377]
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DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY
10 CFR Part 431
[EERE-2013-BT-STD-0007; EERE-2013-BT-STD-0021]
Appliance Standards and Rulemaking Federal Advisory Committee:
Notice of Intent To Establish the Commercial Package Air Conditioners
and Heat Pumps and Commercial Warm Air Furnaces Working Group To
Negotiate Potential Energy Conservation Standards
AGENCY: Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy, U.S.
Department of Energy.
ACTION: Notice of intent and announcement of a public meeting.
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SUMMARY: The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE or the Department) is
giving notice that it intends to establish a negotiated rulemaking
working group under the Appliance Standards and Rulemaking Federal
Advisory Committee (ASRAC) in accordance with the Federal Advisory
Committee Act (FACA) and the Negotiated Rulemaking Act (NRA) to
negotiate regarding energy conservation standards for small, large, and
very large, air-cooled commercial package air conditioners and heat
pumps as well as commercial warm air furnaces. The purpose of the
working group will be to discuss and, if possible, reach consensus
regarding the development of energy conservation standards for small,
large, and very large, air-cooled commercial package air conditioners
and heat pumps as well as commercial warm air furnaces, as authorized
by the Energy Policy and Conservation Act (EPCA) of 1975, as amended.
The working group will consist of representatives of parties having a
defined stake in the outcome of the energy conservation standards, and
will consult as appropriate with a range of experts on technical
issues.
The working group is expected to negotiate a final term sheet
regarding energy conservation standards for the aforementioned
equipment by Monday, June 15, 2015. The final term sheet will be
presented to ASRAC at an open meeting for their deliberation and
decision on whether to pass it on as a formal recommendation to DOE.
DATES: Written comments and request to be appointed as members of the
CUAC and CWAF Working Group, including an application package, are
welcome and should be submitted by April 15, 2015.
DOE will hold the first meeting for the CUAC and CWAF Working Group
on Tuesday, April, 28, 2015, from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., in Washington, DC.
The meeting will also be broadcast as a webinar. See section V Public
Participation for webinar registration information, participant
instructions, and information about the capabilities available to
webinar participants.
ADDRESSES: The first CUAC and CWAF Working Group meeting, which is also
open to the public, will be held at the U.S. Department of Energy,
Forrestal Building, Room 8E-089, 1000 Independence Avenue SW.,
Washington, DC 20585. To attend, please notify [email protected]. Please
note that foreign nationals participating in the public meeting are
subject to advance security screening procedures which require advance
notice prior to attendance at the public meeting. If a foreign national
wishes to participate in the public meeting, please inform DOE as soon
as possible by contacting [email protected] so that the
necessary procedures can be completed. Please also note that those
wishing to bring laptops into the Forrestal Building will be required
to obtain a property pass. Visitors should avoid bringing laptops, or
allow an extra 45 minutes. Persons can attend the public meeting via
webinar. For more information, refer to section V of this document
(Public Participation).
Interested person may submit comments, identified by docket number
EERE-2013-BT-STD-0007; EERE-2013-BT-STD-0021 by any of the following
methods:
1. Federal eRulemaking Portal: www.regulations.gov. Follow the
instructions for submitting comments.
2. Email: [email protected]. Include docket number EERE-2013-BT-STD-
0007; EERE-2013-BT-STD-0021 in the subject line of the message.
3. Mail: Ms. Brenda Edwards, U.S. Department of Energy, Building
Technologies Office, Mailstop EE-5B, 1000 Independence Avenue SW.,
Washington, DC 20585-0121. If possible, please submit all items on a
compact disc (CD), in which case it is not necessary to include printed
copies.
4. Hand Delivery/Courier: Ms. Brenda Edwards, U.S. Department of
Energy, Building Technologies Program, 950 L'Enfant Plaza SW., Suite
600, Washington, DC 20024. Telephone: (202) 586-2945. If possible,
please submit all items on a CD, in which case it is not necessary to
include printed copies.
No telefacsimilies (faxes) will be accepted.
Docket: The docket is available for review at www.regulations.gov,
including Federal Register notices, public meeting attendee lists and
transcripts, comments, and other supporting documents/materials. All
documents in the docket are listed in the www.regulations.gov index.
However, not all documents listed in the index may be publicly
available, such as information that is exempt from public disclosure.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: John Cymbalsky, U.S. Department of
Energy, Office of Building Technologies (EE-2J), 950 L'Enfant Plaza
SW., Washington, DC 20024. Phone: 202-287-1692. Email:
[email protected].
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Preamble
I. Authority
II. Background
III. Proposed Negotiating Procedures
IV. Comments Requested
V. Public Participation
[[Page 17364]]
I. Authority
This notice of intent, announcing DOE's intent to negotiate
regarding energy conservation standards for small (greater than or
equal to 65,000 Btu/h and under 135,000 Btu/h cooling capacity), large,
(greater than or equal to 135,000 Btu/h and under 240,000 Btu/h cooling
capacity) and very large (greater than or equal to 240,000 Btu/h and
under 760,000 Btu/h cooling capacity), air-cooled commercial package
air conditioners and heat pumps (CUACs) as well as commercial warm air
furnaces (CWAFs), was developed under the authority of sections 563 and
564 of the NRA (5 U.S.C. 561-570, Pub. L. 104-320). The establishment
of energy conservation standards for CUACs and CWAFs by DOE is pursuant
to authority in EPCA, as amended, 42 U.S.C. 6311(1)(A) and 42 U.S.C.
6291, et seq.
II. Background
As required by the NRA, DOE is giving notice that it is
establishing a working group under ASRAC to negotiate regarding energy
conservation standards CUACs and CWAFs. EPCA, as amended, directs DOE
to adopt energy conservation standards for CUACs and CWAFs for which
standards would be technologically feasible and economically justified,
and would result in significant energy savings. The current Federal for
CUACs are found in 10 CFR part 431.97(b).
A. Negotiated Rulemaking
DOE has decided to use the negotiated rulemaking process to discuss
the development of energy conservation standards for CUACs and CWAFs.
Under EPCA, Congress mandated that DOE develop regulations establishing
energy conservation standards for covered consumer and commercial
products that are designed to achieve the maximum improvement in energy
efficiency that are technologically feasible and economically
justified. 42 U.S.C. 6295(o)(2)(A). The primary reason for using the
negotiated rulemaking process for considering amended energy
conservation standards is that stakeholders strongly support a
consensual rulemaking effort. DOE believes such a regulatory
negotiation process will be less adversarial and better suited to
resolving complex technical issues. An important virtue of negotiated
rulemaking is that it allows expert dialog that is much better than
traditional techniques at getting the facts and issues right and will
result in a rulemaking that will effectively reflect Congressional
intent.
A regulatory negotiation will enable DOE to engage in direct and
sustained dialog with informed, interested, and affected parties when
considering potential revisions to the publically available analysis.
Because a negotiating working group includes representatives from the
major stakeholder groups affected by or interested in the rule, the
number of changes in the analysis resulting from responses to public
comments on the proposed rule may be decreased as DOE and the major
stakeholder groups affected by the rule have the opportunity to have a
discussions about the data, methodology, and analyses.
B. Rulemaking for CUAC and CWAF Energy Conservation Standards
The NRA enables DOE to establish an advisory committee or working
group if it is determined that the use of the negotiated rulemaking
process is in the public interest. DOE intends to develop Federal
regulations that build on the depth of experience accrued in both the
public and private sectors in implementing standards and programs.
DOE has determined that the regulatory negotiation process will
provide for obtaining a diverse array of in-depth input, as well as an
opportunity for increased collaborative discussion from both private-
sector stakeholders and government officials who are familiar with
energy use and efficiency of CUACs and CWAFs.
D. Department Commitment
In initiating this regulatory negotiation process regarding energy
conservation standards for CUACs and CWAFs, DOE is making a commitment
to provide adequate resources to facilitate timely and successful
completion of the process. This commitment includes making the process
a priority activity for all representatives, components, officials, and
personnel of the Department who need to be involved in the rulemaking,
from the time of initiation until such time as a final rule is issued
or the process is expressly terminated. DOE will provide administrative
support for the process and will take steps to ensure that the advisory
committee or working group has the dedicated resources it requires to
complete its work in a timely fashion. Specifically, DOE will make
available the following support services: properly equipped space
adequate for public meetings and caucuses; logistical support; word
processing and distribution of background information; the service of a
facilitator; and such additional research and other technical
assistance as may be necessary.
To the maximum extent possible consistent with the legal
obligations of the Department, DOE will consider the consensus of the
advisory committee or working group as the basis for the rulemaking
moving forward.
E. Negotiating Consensus
As discussed above, the negotiated rulemaking process differs
fundamentally from the usual process for developing and revising a
typical rulemaking. Negotiation enables interested and affected parties
to discuss various approaches to issues rather than asking them only to
respond to a proposal developed by the Department. The negotiation
process involves a mutual education of the various parties on the
practical concerns about the impact of standards. Each advisory
committee or working group member participates in resolving the
interests and concerns of other members, rather than leaving it up to
DOE to evaluate and incorporate different points of view.
A key principle of negotiated rulemaking is that agreement is by
consensus of all the interests. Thus, no one interest or group of
interests is able to control the process. The NRA defines consensus as
the unanimous concurrence among interests represented on a negotiated
rulemaking committee or working group, unless the committee or working
group itself unanimously agrees to use a different definition. 5 U.S.C.
562. In addition, experience has demonstrated that using a trained
mediator to facilitate this process will assist all parties, including
DOE, in identifying their real interests in the rule, and thus will
enable parties to focus on and resolve the important issues.
III. Proposed Negotiating Procedures
A. Key Issues for Negotiation
The following issues and concerns will underlie the work of the
Negotiated Rulemaking Committee on CUAC and CWAF Energy Conservation
Standards:
Additional data that could be considered by the Working
Group in potentially revising the analytical tools that DOE used for
the proposed rules;
Additional methodology assumptions that could be
considered by the Working Group in potentially revising the analytical
tools that DOE used for the proposed rules;
Synergies gained by combining the rulemaking and potential
compliance dates for two covered products; and
Consideration of energy conservation standards.
To examine the underlying issues outlined above, and others not yet
[[Page 17365]]
articulated, all parties in the negotiation will need DOE to provide
data and an analytic framework complete and accurate enough to support
their deliberations. DOE's analyses must be adequate to inform a
prospective negotiation--for example, the notice of proposed
rulemakings for CUACs and CWAFs or equivalent must be available and
timely.
B. Formation of Working Group
A working group will be formed and operated in full compliance with
the requirements of FACA and in a manner consistent with the
requirements of the NRA. DOE has determined that the working group
shall not exceed 25 members. The Department believes that more than 25
members would make it difficult to conduct effective negotiations. DOE
is aware that there are many more potential participants than there are
membership slots on the working group. The Department does not believe,
nor does the NRA contemplate, that each potentially affected group must
participate directly in the negotiations; nevertheless, each affected
interest can be adequately represented. To have a successful
negotiation, it is important for interested parties to identify and
form coalitions that adequately represent significantly affected
interests. To provide adequate representation, those coalitions must
agree to support, both financially and technically, a member of the
working group whom they choose to represent their interests.
DOE recognizes that when it establishes energy conservation
standards for consumer products and commercial equipment, various
segments of society may be affected in different ways, in some cases
producing unique ``interests'' in a rulemaking based on income, gender,
or other factors. The Department will pay attention to providing that
any unique interests that have been identified, and that may be
significantly affected by the rulemaking, are represented.
FACA also requires that members of the public have the opportunity
to attend meetings of the full committee and speak or otherwise address
the committee during the public comment period. In addition, any member
of the public is permitted to file a written statement with the
advisory committee. DOE plans to follow these same procedures in
conducting meetings of the working group.
C. Interests Involved/Working Group Membership
DOE anticipates that the working group will comprise no more than
25 members who represent affected and interested stakeholder groups, at
least one of whom must be a member of the ASRAC. As required by FACA,
the Department will conduct the negotiated rulemaking with particular
attention to ensuring full and balanced representation of those
interests that may be significantly affected by the rulemaking for
energy conservation standards regarding CUACs and CWAFs. Section 562 of
the NRA defines the term interest as ``with respect to an issue or
matter, multiple parties which have a similar point of view or which
are likely to be affected in a similar manner.'' Listed below are
parties the Department to date has identified as being ``significantly
affected'' by a rulemaking regarding the energy conservation standards
regarding CUACs and CWAFs.
The U.S. Department of Energy
Trade Associations representing manufacturers of CUACs and
CWAF;
Utilities
Energy Efficiency/Environmental Advocacy Groups
Consumers
One purpose of this notice of intent is to determine whether
Federal regulations regarding CUACs and CWAFs energy conservation
standards will significantly affect interests that are not listed
above. DOE invites comment and suggestions on its initial list of
significantly affected interests.
Members may be individuals or organizations. If the effort is to be
fruitful, participants on the working group should be able to fully and
adequately represent the viewpoints of their respective interests. This
document gives notice of DOE's process to other potential participants
and affords them the opportunity to request representation in the
negotiations. Those who wish to be appointed as members of the CUACs
and CWAFs Working Group, should submit a request to DOE, in accordance
with the public participation procedures outlined in the DATES and
ADDRESSES sections of this notice of intent. Membership of the working
group is likely to involve:
Attendance at approximately six, one (1) to two (2) day
meetings;
Travel costs to those meetings; and
Preparation time for those meetings.
Members serving on the working group will not receive compensation
for their services. Interested parties who are not selected for
membership on the working group may make valuable contributions to this
negotiated rulemaking effort in any of the following ways:
The person may request to be placed on the working group
mailing list and submit written comments as appropriate.
The person may attend working group meetings, which are
open to the public; caucus with his or her interest's member on the
working group; or even address the working group during the public
comment portion of the working group meeting.
The person could assist the efforts of a workgroup that
the working group might establish.
A working group may establish informal workgroups, which usually
are asked to facilitate committee deliberations by assisting with
various technical matters (e.g., researching or preparing summaries of
the technical literature or comments on specific matters such as
economic issues). Workgroups also might assist in estimating costs or
drafting regulatory text on issues associated with the analysis of the
costs and benefits addressed, or formulating drafts of the various
provisions and their justifications as previously developed by the
working group. Given their support function, workgroups usually consist
of participants who have expertise or particular interest in the
technical matter(s) being studied. Because it recognizes the importance
of this support work for the working group, DOE will provide
appropriate technical expertise for such workgroups.
D. Good Faith Negotiation
Every working group member must be willing to negotiate in good
faith and have the authority, granted by his or her constituency, to do
so. The first step is to ensure that each member has good
communications with his or her constituencies. An intra-interest
network of communication should be established to bring information
from the support organization to the member at the table, and to take
information from the table back to the support organization. Second,
each organization or coalition should designate as its representative a
person having the credibility and authority to ensure that needed
information is provided and decisions are made in a timely fashion.
Negotiated rulemaking can require the appointed members to give a
significant sustained time commitment for as long as the duration of
the negotiated rulemaking. Other qualities of members that can be
helpful are negotiating experience and skills, and sufficient technical
knowledge to participate in substantive negotiations.
Certain concepts are central to negotiating in good faith. One is
the willingness to bring all issues to the bargaining table in an
attempt to reach
[[Page 17366]]
a consensus, as opposed to keeping key issues in reserve. The second is
a willingness to keep the issues at the table and not take them to
other forums. Finally, good faith includes a willingness to move away
from some of the positions often taken in a more traditional rulemaking
process, and instead explore openly with other parties all ideas that
may emerge from the working group's discussions.
E. Facilitator
The facilitator will act as a neutral in the substantive
development of the proposed standard. Rather, the facilitator's role
generally includes:
Impartially assisting the members of the working group in
conducting discussions and negotiations; and
Impartially assisting in performing the duties of the
Designated Federal Official under FACA.
F. Department Representative
The DOE representative will be a full and active participant in the
consensus building negotiations. The Department's representative will
meet regularly with senior Department officials, briefing them on the
negotiations and receiving their suggestions and advice so that he or
she can effectively represent the Department's views regarding the
issues before the working group. DOE's representative also will ensure
that the entire spectrum of governmental interests affected by the
standards rulemaking, including the Office of Management and Budget,
the Attorney General, and other Departmental offices, are kept informed
of the negotiations and encouraged to make their concerns known in a
timely fashion.
G. Working Group and Schedule
After evaluating the comments submitted in response to this notice
of intent and the requests for nominations, DOE will either inform the
members of the working group that they have been selected or determine
that conducting a negotiated rulemaking is inappropriate.
The working group is expected to negotiate a final term sheet by
Monday, June 15, 2015. The final term sheet will be presented to ASRAC
at an open meeting for their deliberation and decision on whether or
not to pass it on as a formal recommendation to DOE.
DOE will advise working group members of administrative matters
related to the functions of the working group before beginning. DOE
will establish a meeting schedule based on the settlement agreement and
produce the necessary documents so as to adhere to that schedule. While
the negotiated rulemaking process is underway, DOE is committed to
performing much of the same analysis as it would during a normal
standards rulemaking process and to providing information and technical
support to the working group.
IV. Comments Requested
DOE requests comments on which parties should be included in a
negotiated rulemaking to consider energy conservation standards for
CUACs and CWAFs and suggestions of additional interests and/or
stakeholders that should be represented on the working group. All who
wish to participate as members of the working group should submit a
request for nomination to DOE.
V. Public Participation
Attendance at the Public Meeting
The time, date, and location of the public meeting are listed in
the DATES and ADDRESSES sections. If you plan to attend the public
meeting, please notify [email protected].
In addition, you can attend the public meeting via webinar. Webinar
registration information, participant instructions, and information
about the capabilities available to webinar participants will be
published on DOE's Web site at: http://www1.eere.energy.gov/buildings/appliance_standards/rulemaking.aspx?ruleid=106. Participants are
responsible for ensuring their systems are compatible with the webinar
software.
Conduct of the Public Meeting
DOE will designate a DOE official to preside at the public meeting
and may also use a professional facilitator to aid discussion. The
meeting will not be a judicial or evidentiary-type public hearing, but
DOE will conduct it in accordance with section 336 of EPCA. (42 U.S.C.
6306) A court reporter will be present to record the proceedings and
prepare a transcript. DOE reserves the right to schedule the order of
presentations and to establish the procedures governing the conduct of
the public meeting. After the public meeting, interested parties may
submit further comments on the proceedings as well as on any aspect of
the rulemaking until the end of the comment period.
The public meeting will be conducted in an informal, conference
style. DOE will present summaries of comments received before the
public meeting, allow time for prepared general statements by
participants, and encourage all interested parties to share their views
on issues affecting this rulemaking. Each participant will be allowed
to make a general statement (within time limits determined by DOE),
before the discussion of specific topics. DOE will allow, as time
permits, other participants to comment briefly on any general
statements.
VI. Approval of the Office of the Secretary
The Secretary of Energy has approved publication of this notice of
intent.
Issued in Washington, DC, on March 24, 2015.
Kathleen B. Hogan,
Deputy Assistant Secretary for Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy.
[FR Doc. 2015-07377 Filed 3-31-15; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6450-01-P