I 
114TH CONGRESS 
1ST SESSION 
H. R. 906 
To modify the efficiency standards for grid-enabled water heaters. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
FEBRUARY 11, 2015 
Mr. WHITFIELD (for himself, Mr. WELCH, Mr. LATTA, Mr. LOEBSACK, Mr. 
CRAMER, and Mr. MICHAEL F. DOYLE of Pennsylvania) introduced the 
following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Energy and Com-
merce 
A BILL 
To modify the efficiency standards for grid-enabled water 
heaters. 
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 
SECTION 1. GRID-ENABLED WATER HEATERS. 
Part B of title III of the Energy Policy and Conserva-
tion Act (42 U.S.C. 6291 et seq.) is amended— 
(1) in section 325(e) (42 U.S.C. 6295(e)), by 
adding at the end the following: 
‘‘(6) ADDITIONAL
STANDARDS
FOR
GRID-EN-
ABLED WATER HEATERS.— 
‘‘(A) DEFINITIONS.—In this paragraph: 
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‘‘(i) ACTIVATION
LOCK.—The term 
‘activation lock’ means a control mecha-
nism (either a physical device directly on 
the water heater or a control system inte-
grated into the water heater) that is locked 
by default and contains a physical, soft-
ware, or digital communication that must 
be activated with an activation key to en-
able the product to operate at its designed 
specifications and capabilities and without 
which activation the product will provide 
not greater than 50 percent of the rated 
first hour delivery of hot water certified by 
the manufacturer. 
‘‘(ii) GRID-ENABLED
WATER
HEAT-
ER.—The term ‘grid-enabled water heater’ 
means an electric resistance water heater 
that— 
‘‘(I) has a rated storage tank vol-
ume of more than 75 gallons; 
‘‘(II) is manufactured on or after 
April 16, 2016; 
‘‘(III) has— 
‘‘(aa) an energy factor of 
not less than 1.061 minus the 
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product 
obtained 
by 
multi-
plying— 
‘‘(AA) the rated storage 
volume of the tank, ex-
pressed in gallons; and 
‘‘(BB) 0.00168; or 
‘‘(bb) an equivalent alter-
native standard prescribed by the 
Secretary and developed pursu-
ant to paragraph (5)(E); 
‘‘(IV) is equipped at the point of 
manufacture with an activation lock; 
and 
‘‘(V) bears a permanent label ap-
plied by the manufacturer that— 
‘‘(aa) is made of material 
not adversely affected by water; 
‘‘(bb) is attached by means 
of 
non-water-soluble 
adhesive; 
and 
‘‘(cc) advises purchasers and 
end-users of the intended and ap-
propriate use of the product with 
the following notice printed in 
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16.5 point Arial Narrow Bold 
font: 
‘‘ ‘IMPORTANT INFORMATION: This water heater is 
intended only for use as part of an electric thermal storage 
or demand response program. It will not provide adequate 
hot water unless enrolled in such a program and activated 
by your utility company or another program operator. 
Confirm the availability of a program in your local area 
before purchasing or installing this product.’. 
‘‘(B) REQUIREMENT.—The manufacturer 
or private labeler shall provide the activation 
key for a grid-enabled water heater only to a 
utility or other company that operates an elec-
tric thermal storage or demand response pro-
gram that uses such a grid-enabled water heat-
er. 
‘‘(C) REPORTS.— 
‘‘(i) 
MANUFACTURERS.—The 
Sec-
retary shall require each manufacturer of 
grid-enabled water heaters to report to the 
Secretary annually the quantity of grid-en-
abled water heaters that the manufacturer 
ships each year. 
‘‘(ii) 
OPERATORS.—The 
Secretary 
shall require utilities and other demand re-
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mand response and thermal storage pro-
grams annually, the Secretary shall, after 
opportunity for notice and comment, estab-
lish procedures to prevent product diver-
sion for non-program purposes. 
‘‘(E) COMPLIANCE.— 
‘‘(i) 
IN
GENERAL.—Subparagraphs 
(A) through (D) shall remain in effect 
until the Secretary determines under this 
section that— 
‘‘(I) grid-enabled water heaters 
do not require a separate efficiency 
requirement; or 
‘‘(II) sales of grid-enabled water 
heaters exceed by 15 percent or great-
er the quantity of such products acti-
vated for use in demand response and 
thermal storage programs annually 
and procedures to prevent product di-
version for non-program purposes 
would not be adequate to prevent such 
product diversion. 
‘‘(ii) EFFECTIVE DATE.—If the Sec-
retary exercises the authority described in 
clause (i) or amends the efficiency require-
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ment for grid-enabled water heaters, that 
action will take effect on the date de-
scribed in subsection (m)(4)(A)(ii). 
‘‘(iii) CONSIDERATION.—In carrying 
out this section with respect to electric 
water heaters, the Secretary shall consider 
the impact on thermal storage and demand 
response programs, including any impact 
on energy savings, electric bills, peak load 
reduction, electric reliability, integration of 
renewable resources, and the environment. 
‘‘(iv) REQUIREMENTS.—In carrying 
out this paragraph, the Secretary shall re-
quire that grid-enabled water heaters be 
equipped with communication capability to 
enable the grid-enabled water heaters to 
participate in ancillary services programs if 
the Secretary determines that the tech-
nology is available, practical, and cost-ef-
fective.’’; 
(2) in section 332(a) (42 U.S.C. 6302(a))— 
(A) in paragraph (5), by striking ‘‘or’’ at 
the end; 
(B) in the first paragraph (6), by striking 
the period at the end and inserting a semicolon; 
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(C) by redesignating the second paragraph 
(6) as paragraph (7); 
(D) in subparagraph (B) of paragraph (7) 
(as so redesignated), by striking the period at 
the end and inserting ‘‘; or’’; and 
(E) by adding at the end the following: 
‘‘(8) for any person to— 
‘‘(A) activate an activation lock for a grid- 
enabled water heater with knowledge that such 
water heater is not used as part of an electric 
thermal storage or demand response program; 
‘‘(B) distribute an activation key for a 
grid-enabled water heater with knowledge that 
such activation key will be used to activate a 
grid-enabled water heater that is not used as 
part of an electric thermal storage or demand 
response program; 
‘‘(C) otherwise enable a grid-enabled water 
heater to operate at its designed specification 
and capabilities with knowledge that such water 
heater is not used as part of an electric thermal 
storage or demand response program; or 
‘‘(D) knowingly remove or render illegible 
the label of a grid-enabled water heater de-
scribed in section 325(e)(6)(A)(ii)(V).’’; 
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(3) in section 333(a) (42 U.S.C. 6303(a))— 
(A) by striking ‘‘section 332(a)(5)’’ and in-
serting ‘‘paragraph (5), (6), (7), or (8) of sec-
tion 332(a)’’; and 
(B) by striking ‘‘paragraph (1), (2), or (5) 
of section 332(a)’’ and inserting ‘‘paragraph 
(1), (2), (5), (6), (7), or (8) of section 332(a)’’; 
and 
(4) in section 334 (42 U.S.C. 6304)— 
(A) by striking ‘‘section 332(a)(5)’’ and in-
serting ‘‘paragraph (5), (6), (7), or (8) of sec-
tion 332(a)’’; and 
(B) by striking ‘‘section 332(a)(6)’’ and in-
serting ‘‘section 332(a)(7)’’. 
Æ 
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