[Federal Register Volume 86, Number 32 (Friday, February 19, 2021)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Pages 10211-10213]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2021-03058]


 ========================================================================
 Proposed Rules
                                                 Federal Register
 ________________________________________________________________________
 
 This section of the FEDERAL REGISTER contains notices to the public of 
 the proposed issuance of rules and regulations. The purpose of these 
 notices is to give interested persons an opportunity to participate in 
 the rule making prior to the adoption of the final rules.
 
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 

  Federal Register / Vol. 86, No. 32 / Friday, February 19, 2021 / 
Proposed Rules  

[[Page 10211]]



DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY

10 CFR Parts 430 and 431

[EERE-2020-BT-STD-0004]


Energy Conservation Program: Procedures for Use in New or Revised 
Energy Conservation Standards and Test Procedures for Consumer Products 
and Commercial/Industrial Equipment; Prioritization Process

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

ACTION: Request for information; request for comment concerning 
prioritization of rulemakings.

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SUMMARY: The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE or the Department) is 
initiating an effort to elicit information from stakeholders and the 
interested public concerning the prioritization of rulemakings pursuant 
to the Department's rulemaking methodology titled, ``Procedures, 
Interpretations, and Policies for Consideration of New or Revised 
Energy Conservation Standards and Test Procedures for Consumer Products 
and Commercial/Industrial Equipment'' (Process Rule). DOE welcomes 
written comments as well as the submission of data and other relevant 
information.

DATES: Written comments and information are requested and will be 
accepted on or before March 11, 2021.

ADDRESSES: Interested persons are encouraged to submit comments using 
the Federal eRulemaking Portal at http://www.regulations.gov. Follow 
the instructions for submitting comments. Alternatively, interested 
persons may submit comments, identified by docket number EERE-2020-BT-
STD-0004, by any of the following methods:
    1. Federal eRulemaking Portal: http://www.regulations.gov. Follow 
the instructions for submitting comments.
    2. Email: to [email protected]. Include docket 
number EERE-2020-BT-STD-0004 in the subject line of the message.
    No telefacsimilies (faxes) will be accepted. For detailed 
instructions on submitting comments and additional information on this 
process, see section III of this document.
    Docket: The docket for this activity, which includes Federal 
Register notices, comments, and other supporting documents/materials, 
is available for review at http://www.regulations.gov. All documents in 
the docket are listed in the http://www.regulations.gov index. However, 
some documents listed in the index, such as those containing 
information that is exempt from public disclosure, may not be publicly 
available.
    The docket web page can be found at: http://www.regulations.gov/docket?D=EERE-2020-BT-STD-0004. The docket web page contains 
instructions on how to access all documents, including public comments, 
in the docket. See section III for information on how to submit 
comments through http://www.regulations.gov.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Mr. John Cymbalsky, U.S. Department of 
Energy, Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy, Building 
Technologies Office, EE-5B, 1000 Independence Avenue SW, Washington, DC 
20585-0121. Telephone: (202) 287-1692. Email: 
[email protected].
    Ms. Francine Pinto, U.S. Department of Energy, Office of the 
General Counsel, GC-33, 1000 Independence Avenue SW, Washington, DC 
20585-0121. Telephone: (202) 586-7432. Email: 
[email protected].
    For further information on how to submit a comment or review other 
public comments and the docket, contact the Appliance and Equipment 
Standards Program staff at (202) 287-1445 or by email: 
[email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Table of Contents

I. Introduction
    A. Authority
    B. Background on the Process Rule
II. The Prioritization Process and Request for Comments
    A. Description of How To Access the Fall 2019 Unified Agenda of 
Regulatory and Deregulatory Actions
    B. Request for Comments
III. Submission of Comments

I. Introduction

A. Authority

    The Department of Energy's Process Rule was developed to guide 
implementation of the Appliance Standards Program, which is conducted 
pursuant to Title III, Part B \1\ of the Energy Policy and Conservation 
Act, as amended (EPCA or the Act),\2\ Public Law 94-163 (42 U.S.C. 
6291-6309, as codified), establishing the Energy Conservation Program 
for Consumer Products Other Than Automobiles, which sets forth a 
variety of provisions designed to improve energy efficiency. In 
addition, Part C \3\ of EPCA, Public Law 94-163 (42 U.S.C. 6311-6317, 
as codified), added by Public Law 95-619, Title IV, section 441(a), 
established the Energy Conservation Program for Certain Industrial 
Equipment, which again sets forth a variety of provisions designed to 
improve energy efficiency.
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    \1\ For editorial reasons, upon codification in the U.S. Code, 
Part B was redesignated Part A.
    \2\ All references to EPCA in this document refer to the statute 
as amended through the Energy Act of 2020, Public Law 116-260 (Dec. 
27, 2020).
    \3\ For editorial reasons, upon codification in the U.S. Code, 
Part C was redesignated Part A-1.
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    The energy conservation program under EPCA consists essentially of 
four parts: (1) Testing, (2) labeling, (3) Federal energy conservation 
standards, and (4) certification and enforcement procedures. Relevant 
provisions of EPCA specifically include definitions (42 U.S.C. 6291; 42 
U.S.C. 6311), test procedures (42 U.S.C. 6293; 42 U.S.C. 6314), 
labeling provisions (42 U.S.C. 6294; 42 U.S.C. 6315), energy 
conservation standards (42 U.S.C. 6295; 42 U.S.C. 6313), and the 
authority to require information and reports from manufacturers (42 
U.S.C. 6296; 42 U.S.C. 6316). The statute sets forth the criteria, 
procedures and timeframes DOE must follow when establishing new or 
amended energy conservation standards for covered products (and at 
least certain types of equipment). The statute also sets forth the 
criteria and procedures DOE must follow when prescribing or amending 
test procedures for covered products.

[[Page 10212]]

B. Background on the Process Rule

    On July 15, 1996, DOE published a final rule titled, ``Procedures, 
Interpretations and Policies for Consideration of New or Revised Energy 
Conservation Standards for Consumer Products.'' 61 FR 36974. This 
document was codified at 10 CFR part 430, subpart C, appendix A, and 
became known colloquially as the ``Process Rule.'' The Process Rule was 
designed to provide guidance to stakeholders as to how DOE would 
implement its rulemaking responsibilities under EPCA for the Appliance 
Standards Program.
    The Department published a revised Process Rule in the Federal 
Register on February 14, 2020. 85 FR 8626. Section 4(b) of the Rule as 
revised, includes an opportunity for stakeholders to provide input on 
the prioritization of the Department's rulemakings as DOE prepares its 
Spring Regulatory Agenda.
    Pursuant to Executive Order 13990 of January 20, 2021 (E.O. 13990; 
86 FR 7038, January 25, 2021), DOE was directed to consider 
``suspending, revising or rescinding'' certain agency actions, 
including DOE's Process Rule. (E.O. 13990, Sec. 2(iii)) As directed by 
E.O. 13990, DOE is in the process of reconsidering the Process Rule but 
has determined that such reconsideration is not inconsistent with the 
Process Rule requirement in section 4(b) to seek early stakeholder 
feedback.

II. The Prioritization Process and Request for Comments

    The revised Process Rule provides that stakeholders will have the 
opportunity to provide input on the prioritization of rulemakings as 
DOE begins its preparation of the Spring Regulatory Agenda. If 
stakeholders believe that the Department is pursuing a rule that should 
not be prioritized as active, for example, the stakeholder comments 
should reflect such an opinion and inform the Department as to how such 
rule should be prioritized, if at all, with an explanation for the 
stakeholder's recommendation. At the same time, if stakeholders believe 
that DOE should act more quickly on a particular rulemaking, commenters 
should make such a point with as much specificity as possible to 
indicate a revised timeline with an explanation for the recommendation. 
In addition, if stakeholders believe a rulemaking should be initiated 
and prioritized that is not already underway, the Department would 
welcome that feedback.
    In making its recommendations, stakeholders can utilize the 
regulatory text in the revised Process Rule, section 4, entitled, 
Setting Priorities for Rulemaking Activity, that sets forth the factors 
the Department considers in making its priority-setting decisions.\4\
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    \4\ Section 4 reads as follows:
     Setting Priorities for Rulemaking Activity
    (a) In establishing its priorities for undertaking energy 
conservation standards and test procedure rulemakings, DOE will 
consider the following factors, consistent with applicable legal 
obligations:
    (1) Potential energy savings;
    (2) Potential social and private, including environmental or 
energy security, benefits;
    (3) Applicable deadlines for rulemakings;
    (4) Incremental DOE resources required to complete the 
rulemaking process;
    (5) Other relevant regulatory actions affecting the products/
equipment;
    (6) Stakeholder recommendations;
    (7) Evidence of energy efficiency gains in the market absent new 
or revised standards;
    (8) Status of required changes to test procedures; and
    (9) Other relevant factors.
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A. Description of How To Access and Use the Fall 2020 Unified Agenda of 
Regulatory and Deregulatory Actions

    As noted in the revised Process Rule, DOE requests that 
stakeholders use the previous year's Fall Unified Agenda of Regulatory 
and Deregulatory Actions (in this case, the 2020 Fall Agenda) as the 
common frame of reference for stakeholder comments. The 2020 Fall 
Agenda shows the two basic categories of agency actions: (1) Active 
rulemakings and (2) long-term actions.
    How the rules are ultimately categorized (active versus long-term 
actions) in the Unified Agenda depends upon the projection date DOE 
enters into the Regulatory Information Service Center Office of 
Management and Budget/Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs 
Consolidated Information System (ROCIS) for the next action in each 
timetable associated with a specific rule. Generally speaking, those 
rules with a ``next action'' that is scheduled more than a year away 
will be categorized as long-term actions; those rules having a ``next 
action'' within a year are generally categorized as active rules.
    The steps to access the active regulatory agenda actions/agency 
rule list are as follows:

    (1) Go to www.reginfo.gov.
    (2) To access the active actions, go to the box titled, 
``Unified Agenda and Regulatory Plan,'' and click on the line item 
that is titled, ``The Fall Agenda was published on 12/09/2020.''
    (3) Go to ``Fall 2020 Unified Agenda of Regulatory and 
Deregulatory Actions Active Regulatory Actions Listed by Agency.''
    (4) Go to ``Select Agency'' and in the drop-down menu select 
``Department of Energy'' and click ``Submit.'' What will appear is 
the Agency Rule list for DOE's portion of the 2020 Fall Agenda. This 
is the list of all DOE active rulemakings. Rules of the Appliance 
Standards Program will be included with those DOE rules designated 
as ``DOE/EERE.'' This agency rule list shows the stage of each 
rulemaking (i.e., pre-rule, notice of proposed rulemaking, or final 
rule), the title of the rule, and the regulatory identifier number 
(RIN). You will need to review the list for those rulemakings 
specific to the Appliance Program.

    Once stakeholders have accessed the list of DOE active rulemakings, 
they can review the information about each rule, including the 
timetable, that will be displayed. The timetable itself, which is most 
critical to this priority-setting review, will list all the actions 
already taken on that particular rule, as well as the next action DOE 
is planning to take, along with a projected date for that action.
    The steps to access the long-term actions information are as 
follows:

    (1) Go to www.reginfo.gov.
    (2) To access the long-term actions, go to the box titled, 
``Unified Agenda and Regulatory Plan,'' and click on the line item 
that is titled, ``The Fall Agenda was published on 12/09/2020.''
    (3) Click on the line item, ``Current Long Term Actions'' for a 
list of such actions.
    (4) Under the title ``Agenda Agency Regulatory Entries for Long-
Term Actions,'' go to ``Select Agency'' and in the drop-down menu 
select ``Department of Energy'' and click ``Submit.'' What will 
appear is the Agency Rule list for DOE's portion of the 2020 Fall 
Agenda. This is the list of all DOE long-term actions. You will need 
to review the list for those rulemakings specific to the Appliance 
Program.

    Once stakeholders have accessed the list of long-term actions, as 
with the active rulemakings, stakeholders will find information 
describing each rule, as well as the timetable for that rule.

B. Request for Comments

    As noted previously, the Department is seeking information that 
will shed light on how it should best prioritize and sequence its 
rulemaking activities for the Department's Appliance Standards Program. 
By this notice, and consistent with the revised Process Rule, DOE 
requests that stakeholders and the interested public review the 
timetables for all active and long-term appliance rules and comment 
upon both the timing and categorization of these rules. The Department 
is also interested in any other rulemaking activities that DOE should 
initiate and prioritize in the upcoming Spring Agenda.

III. Submission of Comments

    DOE invites all interested parties to submit in writing by March 
11, 2021, comments and information on matters addressed in this notice 
and on other

[[Page 10213]]

matters relevant to DOE's consideration of the priority-setting process 
for all upcoming energy conservation standards and test procedure 
rules. Such comments and information will aid in the development of the 
rulemaking schedule that will next appear in DOE's Spring Regulatory 
Agenda.
    Submitting comments via http://www.regulations.gov. The http://www.regulations.gov web page requires you to provide your name and 
contact information. Your contact information will be viewable to DOE 
Building Technologies staff only. Your contact information will not be 
publicly viewable except for your first and last names, organization 
name (if any), and submitter representative name (if any). If your 
comment is not processed properly because of technical difficulties, 
DOE will use this information to contact you. If DOE cannot read your 
comment due to technical difficulties and cannot contact you for 
clarification, DOE may not be able to consider your comment.
    However, your contact information will be publicly viewable if you 
include it in the comment or in any documents attached to your comment. 
Any information that you do not want to be publicly viewable should not 
be included in your comment, nor in any document attached to your 
comment. Persons viewing comments will see only first and last names, 
organization names, correspondence containing comments, and any 
documents submitted with the comments.
    Do not submit to http://www.regulations.gov information for which 
disclosure is restricted by statute, such as trade secrets and 
commercial or financial information (hereinafter referred to as 
Confidential Business Information (CBI)). Comments submitted through 
http://www.regulations.gov cannot be claimed as CBI. Comments received 
through the website will waive any CBI claims for the information 
submitted. For information on submitting CBI, see the Confidential 
Business Information section.
    DOE processes submissions made through http://www.regulations.gov 
before posting. Normally, comments will be posted within a few days of 
being submitted. However, if large volumes of comments are being 
processed simultaneously, your comment may not be viewable for up to 
several weeks. Please keep the comment tracking number that http://www.regulations.gov provides after you have successfully uploaded your 
comment.
    Submitting comments via email. Comments and documents submitted via 
email, also will be posted to http://www.regulations.gov. If you do not 
want your personal contact information to be publicly viewable, do not 
include it in your comment or any accompanying documents. Instead, 
provide your contact information in a cover letter. Include your first 
and last names, email address, telephone number, and optional mailing 
address. The cover letter will not be publicly viewable as long as it 
does not include any comments.
    Include contact information each time you submit comments, data, 
documents, and other information to DOE. No telefacsimiles (faxes) will 
be accepted.
    Comments, data, and other information submitted to DOE 
electronically should be provided in PDF (preferred), Microsoft Word or 
Excel, WordPerfect, or text (ASCII) file format. Provide documents that 
are not secured, written in English, and free of any defects or 
viruses. Documents should not contain special characters or any form of 
encryption and, if possible, they should carry the electronic signature 
of the author.
    Campaign form letters. Please submit campaign form letters by the 
originating organization in batches of between 50 to 500 form letters 
per PDF or as one form letter with a list of supporters' names compiled 
into one or more PDFs. This reduces comment processing and posting 
time.
    Confidential Business Information. Pursuant to 10 CFR 1004.11, any 
person submitting information that he or she believes to be 
confidential and exempt by law from public disclosure should submit via 
email, two well-marked copies: One copy of the document marked 
``confidential'' including all the information believed to be 
confidential, and one copy of the document marked ``non-confidential'' 
with the information believed to be confidential deleted. Submit these 
documents via email. DOE will make its own determination about the 
confidential status of the information and treat it according to its 
determination.
    It is DOE's policy that all comments may be included in the public 
docket, without change and as received, including any personal 
information provided in the comments (except information deemed to be 
exempt from public disclosure).
    DOE considers public participation to be a very important part of 
the process for developing test procedures and energy conservation 
standards. Interactions with and between members of the public provide 
a balanced discussion of the issues and assist DOE in the process. 
Anyone who wishes to be added to the DOE mailing list to receive future 
notices and information about this process should contact Appliance and 
Equipment Standards Program staff at (202) 287-1445 or via email at 
[email protected].

Signing Authority

    This document of the Department of Energy was signed on February 9, 
2021, Kelly Speakes-Backman, Acting Assistant Secretary for Energy 
Efficiency and Renewable Energy, pursuant to delegated authority from 
the Acting Secretary of Energy. That document with the original 
signature and date is maintained by DOE. For administrative purposes 
only, and in compliance with requirements of the Office of the Federal 
Register, the undersigned DOE Federal Register Liaison Officer has been 
authorized to sign and submit the document in electronic format for 
publication, as an official document of the Department of Energy. This 
administrative process in no way alters the legal effect of this 
document upon publication in the Federal Register.

    Signed in Washington, DC, on February 10, 2021.
Treena V. Garrett,
Federal Register Liaison Officer, U.S. Department of Energy.
[FR Doc. 2021-03058 Filed 2-18-21; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6450-01-P