Appliance Standards and Rulemaking Federal Advisory Committee: Notice of Public Meetings for the Variable Refrigerant Flow Multi-Split Air Conditioners and Heat Pumps Working Group To Negotiate a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking for Test Procedures and Energy Conservation Standards

Published date24 October 2019
Citation84 FR 56949
Record Number2019-23140
SectionProposed rules
CourtEnergy Department
Federal Register, Volume 84 Issue 206 (Thursday, October 24, 2019)
[Federal Register Volume 84, Number 206 (Thursday, October 24, 2019)]
                [Proposed Rules]
                [Pages 56949-56950]
                From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
                [FR Doc No: 2019-23140]
                ========================================================================
                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.
                ========================================================================
                Federal Register / Vol. 84, No. 206 / Thursday, October 24, 2019 /
                Proposed Rules
                [[Page 56949]]
                DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY
                10 CFR Part 431
                [EERE-2018-BT-STD-0003]
                Appliance Standards and Rulemaking Federal Advisory Committee:
                Notice of Public Meetings for the Variable Refrigerant Flow Multi-Split
                Air Conditioners and Heat Pumps Working Group To Negotiate a Notice of
                Proposed Rulemaking for Test Procedures and Energy Conservation
                Standards
                AGENCY: Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy, U.S.
                Department of Energy.
                ACTION: Notice of public meetings and webinars.
                -----------------------------------------------------------------------
                SUMMARY: The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE or the Department)
                announces public meetings and webinars for the variable refrigerant
                flow multi-split air conditioners and heat pumps (VRF multi-split
                systems) working group. The Federal Advisory Committee Act (FACA)
                requires that agencies publish notice of an advisory committee meeting
                in the Federal Register. This document updates the schedule of meetings
                announced in the Federal Register on August 22, 2019.
                DATES: See the SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION section for meeting dates.
                ADDRESSES: The next several rounds of public meetings will be held at
                multiple locations. Please see the SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION section to
                find the address for each date. Please see the Public Participation
                section of this notice for additional information on attending the
                public meeting, including webinar registration information, participant
                instructions, and information about the capabilities available to
                webinar participants.
                FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Mr. John Cymbalsky, U.S. Department of
                Energy, Office of Building Technologies (EE-5B), 950 L'Enfant Plaza SW,
                Washington, DC 20024. Telephone: (202) 287-1692. Email:
                [email protected].
                SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: On January 10, 2018, the Appliance Standards
                and Rulemaking Federal Advisory Committee (ASRAC) met and passed the
                recommendation to form a VRF multi-split systems working group to meet
                and discuss and, if possible, reach a consensus on proposed Federal
                test procedures and energy conservation standards for VRF multi-split
                systems. On April 11, 2018, DOE published a notice of intent to
                establish a working group for VRF multi-split systems to negotiate a
                notice of proposed rulemaking for test procedures and energy
                conservations standards. The notice also solicited nominations for
                membership to the working group. 83 FR 15514.
                 On August 22, 2019, DOE published a notice announcing public
                meetings for the VRF working group. 84 FR 43731. This notice makes
                changes to the meetings announced in the August 2019 notice. These
                changes include the cancellation of the late October public meetings,
                changes to the meeting dates and times of the early November meetings,
                as well as the announcement of one mid-December webinar and two late
                December public meetings. This notice announces the updated schedule
                for this working group as follows.
                 DOE will host a public meeting and webinar on the following dates:
                 Tuesday, November 5, 2019 from 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. at
                Federal Mediation & Conciliation Services, Room 7008, 250 E Street SW,
                Washington, DC 20427.
                 Wednesday, November 6, 2019 from 9:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. at
                Federal Mediation & Conciliation Services, Room 7008, 250 E Street SW,
                Washington, DC 20427.
                 Wednesday, November 20, 2019 from 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.
                at U.S. Department of Energy, Forrestal Building, Room 8E-089, 1000
                Independence Avenue SW, Washington, DC 20585-0121.
                 Thursday, November 21, 2019 from 9:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. at
                U.S. Department of Energy, Forrestal Building, Room 8E-089, 1000
                Independence Avenue SW, Washington, DC 20585-0121.
                 Wednesday, December 18, 2019 from 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.
                at Federal Mediation & Conciliation Services, Room 7008, 250 E Street
                SW, Washington, DC 20427.
                 Thursday, December 19, 2019 from 9:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. at
                Federal Mediation & Conciliation Services, Room 7008, 250 E Street SW,
                Washington, DC 20427.
                 DOE will host a webinar on Thursday, December 12, 2019 from 11:00
                a.m. to 1:00 p.m.
                 The purpose of these meetings will be to negotiate in an attempt to
                reach consensus on proposed Federal test procedures and energy
                conservation standards for VRF multi-split systems.
                Public Participation
                Attendance at Public Meeting
                 The times, dates, and locations of the public meetings are listed
                in this SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION section. If you plan to attend the
                public meeting, please notify the ASRAC staff at [email protected]
                 Please note that foreign nationals participating in the public
                meeting or webinar are subject to advance security screening procedures
                which require advance notice prior to attendance at the public meeting.
                If a foreign national wishes to participate in the public meeting or
                webinar, please inform DOE as soon as possible by contacting Ms. Regina
                Washington at (202) 586-1214 or by email: [email protected]
                so that the necessary procedures can be completed.
                 DOE requires visitors to have laptops and other devices, such as
                tablets, checked upon entry into the building. Any person wishing to
                bring these devices into the Forrestal Building will be required to
                obtain a property pass. Visitors should avoid bringing these devices,
                or allow an extra 45 minutes to check in. Please report to the
                visitor's desk to have devices checked before proceeding through
                security.
                 Due to the REAL ID Act implemented by the Department of Homeland
                Security (DHS), there have been recent changes regarding ID
                requirements for individuals wishing to enter Federal buildings from
                specific States and U.S. territories. DHS maintains an updated website
                identifying the State and territory driver's licenses that currently
                are acceptable for entry into DOE facilities at https://www.dhs.gov/real-id-enforcement-brief. A driver's license from a State or territory
                identified as not compliant by DHS will not be accepted
                [[Page 56950]]
                for building entry, and one of the alternate forms of ID listed below
                will be required. Acceptable alternate forms of Photo-ID include: A
                U.S. Passport or Passport Card; an Enhanced Driver's License or
                Enhanced ID-Card issued by States and territories as identified on the
                DHS website (Enhanced licenses issued by these States and territories
                are clearly marked Enhanced or Enhanced Driver's License); a military
                ID or other Federal government-issued Photo-ID card.
                 In addition, you can attend the public meeting via webinar. Webinar
                registration information, participant instructions, and information
                about the capabilities available to webinar participants will be
                published on DOE's website: https://energy.gov/eere/buildings/appliance-standards-and-rulemaking-federal-advisory-committee.
                Participants are responsible for ensuring their systems are compatible
                with the webinar software.
                Procedure for Submitting Prepared General Statements for Distribution
                 Any person who has plans to present a prepared general statement
                may request that copies of his or her statement be made available at
                the public meeting. Such persons may submit requests, along with an
                advance electronic copy of their statement in PDF (preferred),
                Microsoft Word or Excel, WordPerfect, or text (ASCII) file format, to
                the appropriate address shown in the FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT
                section of this notice. The request and advance copy of statements must
                be received at least one week before the public meeting and may be
                emailed, hand-delivered, or sent by postal mail. DOE prefers to receive
                requests and advance copies via email. Please include a telephone
                number to enable DOE staff to make a follow-up contact, if needed.
                Conduct of the Public Meetings
                 ASRAC's Designated Federal Officer will preside at the public
                meetings and may also use a professional facilitator to aid discussion.
                The meetings will not be judicial or evidentiary-type public hearings,
                but DOE will conduct them in accordance with section 336 of EPCA (42
                U.S.C. 6306). A court reporter will be present to record the
                proceedings and prepare a transcript. A transcript of each public
                meeting will be included on DOE's website: https://energy.gov/eere/buildings/appliance-standards-and-rulemaking-federal-advisory-committee. In addition, any person may buy a copy of each transcript
                from the transcribing reporter. Public comment and statements will be
                allowed prior to the close of each meeting.
                Docket
                 The docket is available for review at: https://www.regulations.gov/docket?D=EERE-2018-BT-STD-0003, including Federal Register notices,
                public meeting attendee lists and transcripts, comments, and other
                supporting documents/materials. All documents in the docket are listed
                in the http://www.regulations.gov index. However, not all documents
                listed in the index may be publically available, such as information
                that is exempt from public disclosure.
                 Signed in Washington, DC, on October 18, 2019.
                Alexander N. Fitzsimmons
                Acting Deputy Assistant Secretary for Energy Efficiency, Energy
                Efficiency and Renewable Energy.
                [FR Doc. 2019-23140 Filed 10-23-19; 8:45 am]
                 BILLING CODE 6450-01-P
                

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