[Federal Register Volume 86, Number 75 (Wednesday, April 21, 2021)]
[Notices]
[Pages 20674-20676]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2021-08203]


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DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY

[EERE-2020-BT-DET-0017]


Preliminary Analysis Regarding Energy Efficiency Improvements in 
ANSI/ASHRAE/IES Standard 90.1-2019

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

ACTION: Notice of availability.

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SUMMARY: The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) is announcing the 
availability of a Preliminary Energy Savings Analysis of ANSI/ASHRAE/
IES Standard 90.1-2019 (Preliminary Analysis). DOE welcomes written 
comments from interested parties on any subject within the scope of 
this Preliminary Analysis.

DATES: DOE will accept written comments and information on the 
Preliminary Analysis no later than May 21, 2021.

ADDRESSES: A copy of the Preliminary Analysis is available at https://www.energycodes.gov/sites/default/files/documents/20210407_Standard_90.1-2019_Determination_TSD.pdf.
    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 by email to the following address: 
[email protected]. Include docket number EERE-2020-BT-
DET-0017 and/or RIN number 1904-AF12 in the subject line of the 
message. Submit electronic comments in WordPerfect, Microsoft Word, 
PDF, or ASCII file format, and avoid the use of special characters or 
any form of encryption.
    Although DOE has routinely accepted public comment submissions 
through a variety of mechanisms, including postal mail and hand 
delivery/courier, the Department has found it necessary to make 
temporary modifications to the comment submission process in light of 
the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic. DOE is currently accepting only 
electronic submissions at this time. If a commenter finds that this 
change poses an undue hardship, please contact the parties listed below 
to discuss the need for alternative arrangements. Once the Covid-19 
pandemic health emergency is resolved, DOE anticipates resuming all of 
its regular options for public comment submission, including postal 
mail and hand delivery/courier.
    Docket: The docket, 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. A link to 
the docket on can be found at: http://www.regulations.gov/docket?D=EERE-2020-BT-DET-0017. The http://www.regulations.gov web page 
will contain instructions on how to access all documents, including 
public comments, in the docket. See section II for further information 
on how to submit comments through http://www.regulations.gov.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 
    Mr. Jeremiah Williams; U.S. Department of Energy, Office of Energy 
Efficiency and Renewable Energy, 1000 Independence Avenue SW, EE-5B, 
Washington, DC 20585. Telephone: (202) 287-1941; 
[email protected].
    Mr. Matthew Ring; U.S. Department of Energy, Office of the General 
Counsel, 1000 Independence Avenue SW, GC-33, Washington, DC 20585; 
Telephone: (202) 586-2555; [email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
I. Background
II. Public Participation

I. Background

    Title III of the Energy Conservation and Production Act, as amended 
(ECPA), establishes requirements for DOE to review consensus-based 
building energy conservation standards. (42 U.S.C. 6831 et seq.) 
Section 304(b), as amended, of ECPA provides that whenever the ANSI/
ASHRAE/IESNA Standard 90.1-1989 (Standard 90.1-1989 or 1989 edition), 
or any successor to that code, is revised, the Secretary of Energy 
(Secretary) must make a determination, not later than 12 months after 
such revision, whether the revised code would improve energy efficiency 
in commercial buildings, and must

[[Page 20675]]

publish notice of such determination in the Federal Register. (42 
U.S.C. 6833(b)(2)(A)) If the Secretary makes an affirmative 
determination, within two years of the publication of the 
determination, each State is required to certify that it has reviewed 
and updated the provisions of its commercial building code regarding 
energy efficiency with respect to the revised or successor code and 
include in its certification a demonstration that the provisions of its 
commercial building code, regarding energy efficiency, meet or exceed 
the revised Standard. (42 U.S.C. 6833(b)(2)(B)(i))
    Standard 90.1-2019, the most recent edition, was published in 
October 2019, triggering the statutorily required DOE review process. 
The Standard is developed under ANSI-approved consensus procedures,\1\ 
and is under continuous maintenance under the purview of an ASHRAE 
Standing Standard Project Committee (commonly referenced as SSPC 90.1). 
ASHRAE has an established program for regular publication of addenda, 
or revisions, including procedures for timely, documented, consensus 
action on requested changes to the Standard. More information on the 
consensus process and ANSI/ASHRAE/IES Standard 90.1-2019 \2\ is 
available at https://www.ashrae.org/resources--publications/bookstore/standard-90-1.
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    \1\ See https://www.ansi.org/aboutansi/overview/.
    \2\ ANSI--American National Standards Institute; ASHRAE--
American Society of Heating, Refrigerating, and Air-Conditioning 
Engineers; IES--Illuminating Engineering Society.
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    In addition, on January 20, 2021, the President issued Executive 
Order 13990, ``Protecting Public Health and the Environment and 
Restoring Science to Tackle the Climate Crisis.'' 86 FR 7037 (Jan. 25, 
2021). The Executive Order directed DOE to consider publishing for 
notice and comment a proposed rule suspending, revising, or rescinding 
the final technical determination regarding the ASHRAE Standard 90.1-
2016 by May 2021. Id. at 86 FR 7038. In response, DOE has conducted 
this preliminary analysis of Standard 90.1-2019 so that DOE's 
determination under section 304(b) of ECPA reflects the most recent 
version of Standard 90.1, and to facilitate State and local adoption of 
the Standard, which will improve energy efficiency in the nation's 
commercial buildings.
    To meet the statutory requirement, DOE conducted a preliminary 
analysis to quantify the expected national energy savings associated 
with Standard 90.1-2019 relative to the previous 2016 version. The 
preliminary results of this analysis indicate national savings of:
     4.7 percent site energy savings;
     4.3 percent source energy savings;
     4.3 percent energy cost savings, and;
     4.2 percent carbon emissions.
    A copy of the Preliminary Analysis is available at https://www.energycodes.gov/sites/default/files/documents/20210407_Standard_90.1-2019_Determination_TSD.pdf. DOE welcomes written 
comments from interested parties on any subject within the scope of the 
Preliminary Analysis.
    States can experience significant benefits by updating their codes 
to reflect current construction standards, a total estimated $51.59 
billion in energy cost savings and 405.51 MMT of avoided CO2 
emissions in commercial buildings (cumulative 2010 through 2040), or 
$2.24 billion in annual energy cost savings and 17.57 MMT in annual 
avoided CO2 emissions (annually by 2030).\3\
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    \3\ https://www.energycodes.gov/about/results. Financial 
benefits are calculated by applying historical and future fuel 
prices to site energy savings and by discounting future savings to 
2016 dollars. Historical and future real fuel prices are obtained 
through EIA's AEO 2015 report (EIA 2015). A real discount factor of 
5% is applied to discount future energy cost savings.
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II. Public Participation

    DOE will accept comments, data, and information regarding the 
Preliminary Analysis no later than the date provided in the DATES 
section at the beginning of this notice. Interested parties may submit 
comments, data, and other information using any of the methods 
described in the ADDRESSES section at the beginning of this notice.
    Submitting comments via http://www.regulations.gov. The http://www.regulations.gov web page will require you to provide your name and 
contact information. Your contact information will be viewable to DOE 
Building Technologies Office 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 itself 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. 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 below.
    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, including 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 facsimiles (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, that are written in English, and that are 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

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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).

Signing Authority

    This document of the Department of Energy was signed on April 15, 
2021, by Kelly Speakes-Backman, Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary 
and Acting Assistant Secretary for Energy Efficiency and Renewable 
Energy, pursuant to delegated authority from the 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 April 16, 2021.
Treena V. Garrett,
Federal Register Liaison Officer, U.S. Department of Energy.
[FR Doc. 2021-08203 Filed 4-20-21; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6450-01-P