[Federal Register Volume 84, Number 63 (Tuesday, April 2, 2019)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Pages 12528-12529]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2019-06363]



[[Page 12528]]

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DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY

10 CFR Part 431

[EERE-2018-BT-STD-0003]


Appliance Standards and Rulemaking Federal Advisory Committee: 
Notice of Public Meetings for the Variable Refrigerant Flow Multi-Split 
Air Conditioners and Heat Pumps Working Group To Negotiate a Notice of 
Proposed Rulemaking for Test Procedures and Energy Conservation 
Standards

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

ACTION: Notice of public meeting and webinar.

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SUMMARY: The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE or the Department) 
announces a public meeting for the variable refrigerant flow multi-
split air conditioners and heat pumps (VRF multi-split systems) working 
group. The Federal Advisory Committee Act (FACA) requires that agencies 
publish notice of an advisory committee meeting in the Federal 
Register.

DATES: DOE will hold a public meeting on Wednesday, April 17, 2019 from 
9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. and on Thursday, April 18, 2019 from 9:00 a.m. 
to 5:00 p.m. in Washington, DC. The meeting will also be broadcast as a 
webinar.

ADDRESSES: The public meeting will be held at the U.S. Department of 
Energy, 1000 Independence Avenue SW, Washington, DC 20585. On the first 
day, the meeting will be held in Room 8E-089, and on the second day, 
the meeting will be held in Room 1E-245. Please see the Public 
Participation section of this notice for additional information on 
attending the public meeting, including webinar registration 
information, participant instructions, and information about the 
capabilities available to webinar participants.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Mr. John Cymbalsky, U.S. Department of 
Energy, Office of Building Technologies (EE-5B), 950 L'Enfant Plaza SW, 
Washington, DC 20024. Telephone: (202) 287-1692. Email: 
[email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: On January 10, 2018, the Appliance Standards 
and Rulemaking Federal Advisory Committee (ASRAC) met and passed the 
recommendation to form a VRF multi-split systems working group to meet 
and discuss and, if possible, reach a consensus on proposed Federal 
test procedures and standards for VRF multi-split systems. On April 11, 
2018, DOE published a notice of intent to establish a working group for 
VRF multi-split systems to negotiate a notice of proposed rulemaking 
for test procedures and energy conservation standards. The notice also 
solicited nominations for membership to the working group. 83 FR 15514. 
This notice announces the next round of meetings for this working 
group.
    DOE will host a public meeting and webinar on the following dates:
     Wednesday, Apri1 17, 2019 from 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. at 
the U.S. Department of Energy, Room 8E-089, 1000 Independence Ave. SW, 
Washington, DC 20585.
     Thursday, April 18, 2019 from 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. at 
the U.S. Department of Energy Room, Room 1E-245, 1000 Independence Ave. 
SW, Washington, DC 20585.
    The purpose of the meeting will be to negotiate in an attempt to 
reach consensus on proposed Federal test procedures and energy 
conservation standards for VRF multi-split systems.

Public Participation

Attendance at Public Meeting

    The times, dates, and locations of the public meeting are listed in 
the DATES and ADDRESSES sections of this document. If you plan to 
attend the public meeting, please notify the ASRAC staff at 
[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 or 
webinar, please inform DOE as soon as possible by contacting Ms. Regina 
Washington at (202) 586-1214 or by email: [email protected] 
so that the necessary procedures can be completed.
    DOE requires visitors to have laptops and other devices, such as 
tablets, checked upon entry into the building. Any person wishing to 
bring these devices into the Forrestal Building will be required to 
obtain a property pass. Visitors should avoid bringing these devices, 
or allow an extra 45 minutes to check in. Please report to the 
visitor's desk to have devices checked before proceeding through 
security.
    Due to the REAL ID Act implemented by the Department of Homeland 
Security (DHS), there have been recent changes regarding ID 
requirements for individuals wishing to enter Federal buildings from 
specific States and U.S. territories. DHS maintains an updated website 
identifying the State and territory driver's licenses that currently 
are acceptable for entry into DOE facilities at https://www.dhs.gov/real-id-enforcement-brief. A driver's license from a State or territory 
identified as not compliant by DHS will not be accepted for building 
entry and one of the alternate forms of ID listed below will be 
required. Acceptable alternate forms of Photo-ID include U.S. Passport 
or Passport Card; an Enhanced Driver's License or Enhanced ID-Card 
issued by States and territories as identified on the DHS website 
(Enhanced licenses issued by these States and territories are clearly 
marked Enhanced or Enhanced Driver's License); a military ID or other 
Federal government-issued Photo-ID card.
    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 website: https://energy.gov/eere/buildings/appliance-standards-and-rulemaking-federal-advisory-committee. 
Participants are responsible for ensuring their systems are compatible 
with the webinar software.

Procedure for Submitting Prepared General Statements for Distribution

    Any person who has plans to present a prepared general statement 
may request that copies of his or her statement be made available at 
the public meeting. Such persons may submit requests, along with an 
advance electronic copy of their statement in PDF (preferred), 
Microsoft Word or Excel, WordPerfect, or text (ASCII) file format, to 
the appropriate address shown in the FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT 
section of this notice. The request and advance copy of statements must 
be received at least one week before the public meeting and may be 
emailed, hand-delivered, or sent by postal mail. DOE prefers to receive 
requests and advance copies via email. Please include a telephone 
number to enable DOE staff to make a follow-up contact, if needed.

Conduct of Public Meeting

    ASRAC's Designated Federal Officer will 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. A transcript of the public 
meeting will be included on DOE's website: https://energy.gov/eere/
buildings/appliance-standards-and-

[[Page 12529]]

rulemaking-federal-advisory-committee. In addition, any person may buy 
a copy of the transcript from the transcribing reporter. Public comment 
and statements will be allowed prior to the close of the meeting.

Docket

    The docket is available for review at https://www.regulations.gov/docket?D=EERE-2018-BT-STD-0003, 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 https://www.regulations.gov index. However, not all documents 
listed in the index may be publically available, such as information 
that is exempt from public disclosure.

    Signed in Washington, DC, on March 26, 2019.
Valri Lightner,
Acting Deputy Assistant Secretary for Energy Efficiency, Energy 
Efficiency and Renewable Energy.
[FR Doc. 2019-06363 Filed 4-1-19; 8:45 am]
 BILLING CODE 6450-01-P