Voluntary Verification Program Act of 2015

Summary: Voluntary Verification Program Act of 2015  This bill amends the Energy Policy and Conservation Act to require the Department of Energy (DOE) and the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to rely on voluntary programs for certifying manufacturer compliance with energy conservation performance standards and Energy Star specifications for consumer products and industrial equipment.  Consumer products are the following: central air conditioners and central air conditioning heat pumps, water heaters, furnaces, direct heating equipment, and pool heaters.  Industrial equipment is the following: commercial package air conditioning and heating equipment, automatic commercial ice makers, packaged terminal air-conditioners and packaged terminal heat pumps, warm air furnaces and packaged boilers, and storage water heaters, instantaneous water heaters, and unfired hot water storage tanks. The consumer products exclude those that are designed solely for use in recreational vehicles and other mobile equipment.  DOE and the EPA must initiate a negotiated rulemaking to establish criteria, meeting certain minimum requirements, for achieving recognition by DOE or the EPA as an approved voluntary verification program.  Neither DOE nor the EPA may require manufacturers that participate in a voluntary verification program to provide information that can be obtained through the program. If a voluntary program subjects products to periodic verification testing and provides test results to DOE or the EPA on request, DOE and the EPA may not subject participating manufacturers that are in compliance with the program to additional testing to verify the accuracy of the performance rating of the product or equipment.

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Voluntary Verification Program Act 
of 2015''.

SEC. 2. VOLUNTARY VERIFICATION PROGRAMS FOR AIR CONDITIONING, FURNACE, 
              BOILER, HEAT PUMP, AND WATER HEATER PRODUCTS.

    Section 326(b) of the Energy Policy and Conservation Act (42 U.S.C. 
6296(b)) is amended by adding at the end the following:
            ``(6) Voluntary verification programs for air conditioning, 
        furnace, boiler, heat pump, and water heater products.--
                    ``(A) Reliance on voluntary verification 
                programs.--For the purpose of verifying compliance with 
                energy conservation standards and Energy Star 
                specifications established under sections 324A, 325, 
                and 342 for covered products described in paragraphs 
                (3), (4), (5), (9), and (11) of section 322(a) and 
                covered equipment described in subparagraphs (B), (C), 
                (D), (F), (I), (J), and (K) of section 340(1), the 
                Secretary and Administrator of the Environmental 
                Protection Agency (in this paragraph referred to as the 
                `Administrator') shall--
                            ``(i) rely on voluntary verification 
                        programs that are recognized by the Secretary 
                        or the Administrator according to criteria that 
                        have consensus support established through a 
                        negotiated rulemaking; and
                            ``(ii) not later than 180 days after the 
                        date of enactment of the Voluntary Verification 
                        Program Act of 2015, initiate a negotiated 
                        rulemaking described in clause (i) to establish 
                        criteria for achieving recognition by the 
                        Secretary or the Administrator as an approved 
                        voluntary verification program, which at a 
                        minimum shall ensure that voluntary 
                        verification programs--
                                    ``(I) are nationally recognized;
                                    ``(II) maintain a publicly 
                                available list of all verified products 
                                and equipment;
                                    ``(III) require the changing of the 
                                performance rating or removal of the 
                                product or equipment from the program 
                                if testing determines that the 
                                performance rating does not meet the 
                                levels the manufacturer has verified to 
                                the Secretary or the Administrator;
                                    ``(IV) require the qualification of 
                                new participants in the program through 
                                testing and production of test reports;
                                    ``(V) allow for challenge testing 
                                of products and equipment within the 
                                scope of the program;
                                    ``(VI) require program participants 
                                to verify the performance rating of all 
                                covered products and equipment within 
                                the scope of the voluntary verification 
                                program;
                                    ``(VII) provide to the Secretary or 
                                the Administrator--
                                            ``(aa) prompt notification 
                                        when program testing results 
                                        in--

                                                    ``(AA) the rerating 
                                                of the performance 
                                                rating of a product or 
                                                equipment; or

                                                    ``(BB) the 
                                                delisting of a product 
                                                or equipment; and

                                            ``(bb) test reports, on the 
                                        request of the Secretary or the 
                                        Administrator, for Energy Star 
                                        compliant products, which shall 
                                        be treated as confidential 
                                        business information as 
                                        provided for under section 
                                        552(b)(4) of title 5, United 
                                        States Code (commonly known as 
                                        the `Freedom of Information 
                                        Act'); and
                                    ``(VIII) meet any additional 
                                requirements or standards that the 
                                Secretary or the Administrator shall 
                                establish consistent with this clause.
                    ``(B) Administration.--
                            ``(i) In general.--Neither the Secretary 
                        nor the Administrator shall require--
                                    ``(I) manufacturers to participate 
                                in a voluntary verification program 
                                described in subparagraph (A); or
                                    ``(II) participating manufacturers 
                                to provide information that can be 
                                obtained through a voluntary 
                                verification program described in 
                                subparagraph (A).
                            ``(ii) List of covered products.--The 
                        Secretary or the Administrator may maintain a 
                        publicly available list of covered products and 
                        equipment verified under subparagraph (A) that 
                        distinguishes between--
                                    ``(I) covered products and 
                                equipment verified by a program 
                                described in subparagraph (A); and
                                    ``(II) products not verified by a 
                                program described in subparagraph (A).
                            ``(iii) Periodic verification testing.--The 
                        Secretary and the Administrator shall not 
                        subject a manufacturer that participates in a 
                        voluntary verification program described in 
                        subparagraph (A), and that is in compliance 
                        with subparagraph (A)(ii) (I) through (VIII), 
                        to additional periodic verification testing to 
                        verify the accuracy of the performance rating 
                        of the product or equipment, if the voluntary 
                        verification program subjects covered products 
                        to periodic verification testing and provides 
                        test results to the Secretary or the 
                        Administrator on request.
                            ``(iv) Effect on other authority.--Nothing 
                        in this paragraph limits the authority of the 
                        Secretary or the Administrator to enforce 
                        compliance with any law.''.