[Federal Register Volume 86, Number 85 (Wednesday, May 5, 2021)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Pages 23875-23876]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2021-09274]


 ========================================================================
 Proposed Rules
                                                 Federal Register
 ________________________________________________________________________
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 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. 85 / Wednesday, May 5, 2021 / 
Proposed Rules  

[[Page 23875]]



DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY

10 CFR Part 431

[EERE-2020-BT-TP-0032]
RIN 1904-AE53


Energy Conservation Program: Test Procedure for Commercial & 
Industrial Pumps

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

ACTION: Request for information; extension of public comment period.

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SUMMARY: On April 16, 2021, the U.S. Department of Energy (``DOE'') 
published a request for information (``RFI'') pertaining to the test 
procedure for commercial and industrial pumps (``pumps''). The notice 
provided an opportunity for submitting written comments, data, and 
information by June 1, 2021. On April 19, 2021, DOE received a request 
from Price Pump Company (``Price Pump''), and on April 20, 2021, DOE 
received requests from Grundfos and the Hydraulic Institute (``HI'') to 
extend the public comment period by 90 days. DOE has reviewed these 
requests and is granting a 30-day extension of the public comment 
period to allow public comments to be submitted until July 1, 2021.

DATES: The comment period for the RFI published on April 16, 2021 (86 
FR 20075) is extended. DOE will accept comments, data, and information 
regarding this RFI received no later than July 1, 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-
TP-0032 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-TP-0032 in the subject line of the message.
    No telefacsimilies (``faxes'') will be accepted.
    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 suspending receipt of 
public comments via postal mail and hand delivery/courier. If a 
commenter finds that this change poses an undue hardship, please 
contact Appliance Standards Program staff at (202) 586-1445 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 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-TP-0032. The docket web page contains 
instructions on how to access all documents, including public comments, 
in the docket.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Mr. Jeremy Dommu, U.S. Department of 
Energy, Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy, Building 
Technologies Office, EE-2J, 1000 Independence Avenue SW, Washington, DC 
20585-0121. Telephone: (202) 586-9870. Email: 
[email protected].
    Mr. Michael Kido, U.S. Department of Energy, Office of the General 
Counsel, GC-33, 1000 Independence Avenue SW, Washington, DC 20585-0121. 
Telephone: (202) 586-8145. 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: On April 16, 2021, DOE published a RFI 
seeking data and information regarding whether amended test procedures 
would more accurately or fully comply with the requirement that the 
test procedure produces results that measure energy use during a 
representative average use cycle for pumps without being unduly 
burdensome to conduct, or that reduce testing burden. 86 FR 20075. 
Interested parties in the matter, Price Pump (on April 19, 2021), HI 
(on April 20, 2021), and Grundfos (on April 20, 2021), requested a 90-
day extension of the public comment period for the RFI. (Price Pump, 
No. 10 at p. 1; HI, No. 11 at p. 1; Grundfos, No. 12, at p. 1).\1\ 
Grundfos and Price Pump commented that the June 1, 2021 deadline does 
not provide sufficient time to collect the requested data and 
information requested in the RFI. (Price Pump, No. 10 at p. 1; 
Grundfos, No. 12 at p. 1 HI commented that it has developed a committee 
to review and respond to DOE's requests for comment, and requires 
additional time to develop and review member surveys and coordinate a 
response. (HI, No. 11, p.1)
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    \1\ The parenthetical reference provides a reference for 
information located in DOE's test procedure rulemaking docket. 
(Docket No. EERE-2020-BT-TP-0032, which is maintained at http://www.regulations.gov/#!docketDetail;D=EERE-2020-BT-TP-0032). The 
references are arranged as follows: (Commenter name, comment docket 
ID number, page of that document).
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    DOE has reviewed the requests and is extending the comment period 
to allow additional time for interested parties to submit comments. As 
noted, the RFI was issued as part of the preliminary stages of 
rulemaking to consider amendments to the test procedure for pumps. If 
DOE determines that amended test procedures may be appropriate, 
additional notices will be published (e.g., a notice of proposed 
rulemaking) providing interested parties with an additional opportunity 
to submit comment. As such, DOE has determined that a 30-day extension 
is sufficient for this preliminary stage. Therefore, DOE is extending 
the comment period to July 1, 2021.

[[Page 23876]]

Signing Authority

    This document of the Department of Energy was signed on April 27, 
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 28, 2021.
Treena V. Garrett,
Federal Register Liaison Officer, U.S. Department of Energy.
[FR Doc. 2021-09274 Filed 5-4-21; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6450-01-P