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[Federal Register Volume 78, Number 137 (Wednesday, July 17, 2013)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Pages 42719-42720]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2013-17157]

========================================================================
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. 78, No. 137 / Wednesday, July 17, 2013 / 
Proposed Rules

[[Page 42719]]

DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY

10 CFR Part 430

[Docket No. EERE-2011-BT-TP-0061]
RIN 1904-AC65

Test Procedures for Showerheads, Faucets, Water Closets, Urinals, 
and Commercial Prerinse Spray Valves: Public Meeting

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

ACTION: Notice of public meeting and request for public comment.

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SUMMARY: The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) will hold a public meeting 
to discuss methodologies and gather comments on DOE's proposed test 
method for verifying the amount of force required to remove the flow 
control insert of showerheads for purposes of amending DOE test 
procedures. In addition, DOE encourages written comments on these 
subjects.

DATES: DOE will hold a public meeting on Tuesday, July 30, 2013, from 1 
p.m. to 3 p.m. in Washington, DC. DOE will accept comments, data, and 
information regarding the subjects of this notice before or after the 
public meeting, but no later than August 9, 2013.

ADDRESSES: The public meeting will be held at the U.S. Department of 
Energy, Forrestal Building, Room 8E-089, 1000 Independence Avenue SW., 
Washington, DC 20585-0121. To attend, please notify Ms. Brenda Edwards 
at (202) 586-2945. Please note that foreign nationals visiting DOE 
Headquarters are subject to advance security screening procedures. Any 
foreign national wishing to participate in the public meeting should 
advise DOE as soon as possible by contacting Ms. Brenda Edwards at 
(202) 586-2945 to initiate the necessary procedures.
    Interested parties may submit comments, identified by docket number 
EERE-2011-BT-TP-0061 or Regulation Identifier Number (RIN) 1904-AC65, 
by any of the following methods:
    1. Federal eRulemaking Portal: http://www.regulations.gov. Follow 
the instructions for submitting comments.
    2. Email: PlumbingPrds-2011-TP-0061@ee.doe.gov. Include the docket 
number and/or RIN in the subject line of the message.
    3. Mail: Ms. Brenda Edwards, U.S. Department of Energy, Building 
Technologies Program, Mailstop EE-2J, 1000 Independence Avenue SW., 
Washington, DC 20585-0121. If possible, please submit all items on a 
CD. It is not necessary to include printed copies.
    4. Hand Delivery/Courier: Ms. Brenda Edwards, U.S. Department of 
Energy, Building Technologies Program, 950 L'Enfant Plaza SW., Suite 
600, Washington, DC 20024. Telephone: (202) 586-2945. If possible, 
please submit all items on a CD. It is not necessary to include printed 
copies.
    Docket: The docket is available for review at www.regulations.gov. 
All documents in the docket are listed in the www.regulations.gov 
index. However, not all documents in the index may be publicly 
available, such as information that is exempt from public disclosure. A 
link to the docket Web page can be found at www.regulations.gov. The 
www.regulations.gov Web page contains a link to the docket for this 
notice, along with simple instructions on how to access all documents 
in the docket, including public comments.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
Mr. Lucas Adin, U.S. Department of Energy, Office of Energy Efficiency 
and Renewable Energy, Building Technologies, EE-2J, 1000 Independence 
Avenue SW., Washington, DC 20585-0121. Phone: (202) 287-1317. Email: 
Lucas.Adin@ee.doe.gov.
Ms. Jennifer Tiedeman, U.S. Department of Energy, Office of the General 
Counsel, GC-71, 1000 Independence Avenue SW., Washington, DC 20585-
0121. Phone: (202) 287-6111. Email: Jennifer.Tiedeman@hq.doe.gov.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Title III of the Energy Policy and 
Conservation Act of 1975 (42 U.S.C. 6291, et seq.; ``EPCA'') sets forth 
a variety of provisions designed to improve energy efficiency. (All 
references to EPCA refer to the statute as amended through the American 
Energy Manufacturing Technical Corrections Act (AEMTCA), Pub. L. 112-
210 (Dec. 18, 2012)). Part B of title III (42 U.S.C. 6291-6309, as 
codified) establishes the Energy Conservation Program for Consumer 
Products Other Than Automobiles, which includes the showerheads that 
are the subjects of today's notice.\1\
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    \1\ For editorial reasons, upon codification in the U.S. Code, 
Part B was re-designated Part A.
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    Under EPCA, the program consists of four activities: (1) Testing; 
(2) labeling; and (3) Federal energy and water conservation standards; 
and (4) certification, and enforcement procedures. The testing 
requirements consist of test procedures that manufacturers of covered 
products must use as the basis for (1) certifying to DOE that their 
products comply with applicable water conservation standards adopted 
pursuant to EPCA and (2) making representations about the water 
consumption of those products. Similarly, DOE must use these test 
procedures to determine whether the products comply with any relevant 
standards promulgated under EPCA.
    EPCA states that the procedures for testing and measuring the water 
use of faucets and showerheads shall be American Society of Mechanical 
Engineers (ASME) Standard A112.18.1M-1989, ``Plumbing Fixture 
Fittings.'' \2\ EPCA further specifies that if ASME revises these 
requirements, the Secretary of Energy (Secretary) shall adopt such 
revisions if they conform to the basic statutory requirements for test 
procedures. (42 U.S.C. 6293(b)(7)) DOE last amended test procedures for 
these products in a final rule published in March 1998 (March 1998 
final rule), which incorporated by reference ASME Standard A112.18.1M-
1996, ``Plumbing Fixture Fittings,'' for showerheads and faucets.\3\ 63 
FR 13308 (March 18, 1998). The current test procedures for faucets and 
showerheads, as adopted in the March 1998 final rule, are located in 
appendix S to subpart B of 10 CFR part 430, ``Uniform Test Method for 
Measuring the Water Consumption of Faucets and Showerheads.''
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    \2\ EPCA also mandates that the test procedure for water closets 
and urinals shall be ASME Standard A112.19.6-1990, ``Hydraulic 
Requirements for Water Closets and Urinals.''
    \3\ DOE also incorporated by reference ASME Standard A112.19.6-
1995, ``Hydraulic Performance Requirements for Water Closets and 
Urinals,'' for water closets and urinals in this final rule.
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    On May 30, 2012, DOE issued a notice of proposed rulemaking, 
proposing to

[[Page 42720]]

amend, among other items, the test procedures for showerheads by 
incorporating by reference, with the exception of certain provisions 
regarding rounding of measured values, ASME Standard A112.18.1-2011. 77 
FR 31742, 31744. DOE requested comments and information on prospective 
methods for verifying compliance with the requirement in section 42 
U.S.C. 6295(j)(1) of EPCA that a showerhead must be manufactured such 
that a pushing or pulling force of 8 lbf or more is required to remove 
the insert.\4\ DOE also requested comments and information on 
showerhead designs that may complicate verification of the force 
requirement or, alternatively, make verification unnecessary. 77 FR at 
31746-31748.
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    \4\ This requirement is also found in 10 CFR 430.32(p) and 
section 4.11.1 of ASME A112.18.1-2011.
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    Several comments submitted in response to the NOPR recommended that 
DOE not adopt a standardized test method (Docket No. EERE-2011-BT-TP-
0061, Moen, No. 4 at p. 2; PMI, No. 8 at p. 2; Kohler, No. 9 at p. 3; 
Kohler, Public Meeting Transcript, No. 11 at p. 47; ICC, Public Meeting 
Transcript, No. 11 at pp. 48-49; Sloan Valve, No. 12 at p. 2); on the 
other hand, some comments suggested that such a test would be valuable 
(NRDC/ASAP, No. 14 at p. 5). DOE did not receive any comments 
indicating that a standardized method currently exists, however. DOE 
subsequently conducted testing on a selection of showerhead models to 
evaluate flow insert designs and developed a pull-force verification 
test. In an April 8, 2013 supplemental notice of proposed rulemaking 
(SNOPR), DOE proposed to adopt this test method, which would not be 
required for certifying compliance with the DOE standards at 10 CFR 
430.32(p), but rather, would only be used by DOE for verification or 
enforcement testing. 78 FR at 20835-20837.
    In response to the SNOPR, DOE received several comments opposing 
adoption of a standardized test, generally indicating that the proposed 
pull-style test represented a duplication of the requirements in the 
ASME Standard A112.18.1 test method or that it would conflict with 
other established industry test methods (NSF, No. 22 at p. 2, PMI, No. 
23 at p. 3, Kohler, No. 27 at p. 2, Chicago Faucet, No. 28 at p. 2, and 
Moen, No. 30 at p. 2). However, DOE notes that A112.18.1 states only 
that the flow-restricting insert in a showerhead must be mechanically 
retained at the point of manufacture such that a pulling or pushing 
force of 8 lbf or more is required to remove the insert, but does not 
specify a method for verifying that this requirement has been met for a 
given model. DOE did not receive any comments describing a test method 
currently in use by manufacturers, test laboratories, or others for 
verifying compliance with this requirement.
    To ensure that all aspects of DOE's proposal for a standardized 
method of verifying compliance with the requirements for the flow-
restricting insert have been considered and to consider whether DOE's 
proposed method should be adopted in the absence of an industry test 
method, DOE has scheduled a public meeting to receive additional 
information, comments, and proposals from manufacturers, testing 
organizations, and other interested stakeholders. DOE encourages 
stakeholders to bring examples of products subject to these 
requirements that may aid in discussions of prospective test 
methodologies or that illustrate points raised in comments. DOE does 
not intend to discuss any other aspect of the plumbing products test 
procedure proposals as part of this meeting.
    DOE will conduct the public meeting in an informal, facilitated, 
conference style. There shall be no discussion of proprietary 
information, costs or prices, market shares, or other commercial 
matters regulated by U.S. antitrust laws. A court reporter will record 
the minutes of the meeting, after which a transcript will be available 
for purchase from the court reporter and placed on the DOE Web site.
    Anyone who wishes to participate in the public meeting, receive 
meeting materials, or be added to the DOE mailing list to receive 
future notices and information about showerheads should contact Ms. 
Brenda Edwards at (202) 586-2945.

    Issued in Washington, DC, on July 11, 2013.
Kathleen B. Hogan,
Deputy Assistant Secretary for Energy Efficiency, Energy Efficiency and 
Renewable Energy.
[FR Doc. 2013-17157 Filed 7-16-13; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6450-01-P
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