oftbt1Hnittb1DQC20515TheHonorableGinaMcCarthyAdministratorNovember19,2014U.S.EnvironmentalProtectionAgency1200PennsylvaniaAveNWWashingtonDC20460RE:TheEPA'sproposedNewSourcePerformanceStandardsforwarmairfurnacesDearAdministratorMcCarthy:InreviewingtheproposedNewSourcePerformanceStandards(NSPS)forwarmairfurnaces,wefoundthattheproposaldepartsfrompriorregulationsforsimilarsourcesunderSection111(b)oftheCleanAirAct(CAA),andthetimelineforcompliancethreatensunreasonableeconomicdamagetofurnacemanufacturersintheUnitedStates.1Theproposedrule,whichundertheprovisionsoftheCAAmustbefinalizedbyEPAbyFebruary3,2015,wouldprohibitthemanufactureorsaleofanywarmairfurnacethatisnotcertifiedbyEPAwithin60daysofthefinalrule'spublicationintheFederalRegister.2Thattimelineisimpossibletoachievewithoutundueharmtomarketparticipants.WeaskEPAtoensurethecompliancetimelineforwarmairfurnacesisatleastoneyearinlength.Priortothisproposal,EPAhasneverrequiredemissionscontrolsonwarmairfurnaces,andmanufacturerswillnowberequiredtomodifyandsubmittheirmodelstocostlytestspriortocertification.Mandatingonly60daystocompletethenecessaryresearchanddevelopment,testing,andretoolingoftheirmanufacturingoperationsisbeyondthecapacityofmanymanufacturers.Additionally,EPA'sOfficeofEnforcementandComplianceAssurance(OECA)hasinformedindustrythatcertificationmaybeunavailableuntilthe60-dayperiodhasexpired,andthecertificationandtestingprocessformanufacturersisfurthercomplicatedbyEPA'sdrivetotransitionfromcribtocordwoodtesting,adevelopmentthatsignificantlycomplicatesthetestingprocessforthesemanufacturers.Thissituationleavesmanufacturersnochoicebuttoceaseproductionduringtheperiod betweentherule'sfinalizationandavailabilityofEPAcertification.Manyofthewarmairfurnacemodelsmanufacturedaresoldtoretailhome-improvementandhardwarestores,whichpurchasestockseveralmonthsinadvance.Becauseoftheirpurchasingdecisiontimeline,thesestoreswillnowbestuckwithnon-certifiedinventory,and179Fed Reg6330(February3,2014).242U.S.C.§741l{b){l)(B).The Honorable

Gina McCarthy November 19,2014 Page2 under

the proposed

rule,

it appears

they will

be prevented

from selling

it. Because

the content

of the final rule remains

in flux, inventory stocked

for sale throughout

2015 may have

to be repurchased

by manufacturers

at the same time that they

are undertaking

costly research

and development,

testing,

and certification

work. The "standards

of performance"
described

in Section

111

of the CAA require

a consideration

of the cost

of achieving the associated
emission reductions.

In this instance,

the 60-day timeline

for compliance exacerbates

the cost.
The financial burden

that the proposed

rule threatens

to places

on warm

air furnace manufacturers

- in the form

of uncertain certification resulting

in production

halts

as well

as manufacturers

having

to buy back furnaces

from retailers

- will force many

out
of business, decreasing consumer
choice

in the marketplace

and increasing unemployment.

This stands

in contrast

to EPA's

first NSPS

for woodstoves, promulgated

in 1988, which allowed
small manufacturers

a year

to attain compliance

3 and staggered effective dates

for
all other manufacturers.

4 This year-long compliance timeline

was

set

to explicitly ensure

that manufacturers

could surmount

the financial

and logistical challenges

to certification. We urge EPA

to follow

past precedence

and ensure

the compliance timeline

for warm

air furnaces

is at least one year

in length

to give consumers, retailers,

and manufacturers

the certainty necessary

to develop

and manufacture compliant furnaces.
Thank

you
for your time and attention

to this matter. 3 See

52 Fed. Reg.

at 5,000 (Feb.

18, 1987). 4 !d.

§ 60.532 (1990).

Sincerely

, **~ J~)L** 

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_The Honorable

Gina McCarthy November

19, 2014 Page

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- -----The Honorable

Gina McCarthy November

19, 2014 Page4

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