[Federal Register Volume 77, Number 107 (Monday, June 4, 2012)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Pages 32916-32918]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2012-13401]
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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. 77, No. 107 / Monday, June 4, 2012 / Proposed
Rules
[[Page 32916]]
DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY
10 CFR Part 431
[Docket No. EERE-2010-BT-STD-0048]
RIN 1904-AC04
Energy Conservation Standards for Distribution Transformers:
Public Meeting and Availability of Supplementary Analysis
AGENCY: Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy, Department of
Energy.
ACTION: Notice of public meeting and availability of documentation.
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SUMMARY: The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE or Department) will hold a
public meeting to discuss additional information that it is making
available about the liquid-immersed distribution transformer equipment
classes that were analyzed in a previously issued notice of proposed
rulemaking (NOPR). Specifically, DOE is supplementing the NOPR analysis
to include additional trial standard levels (TSLs) that embody separate
equipment classes for several different types of liquid-immersed
distribution transformers. In addition to this notice and the public
meeting, DOE has several documents and analytical tools available to
interested parties on its Web site. The documents describe the
technical information in more detail and the software modeling tools
that can be used by interested parties to evaluate how this information
affects the results of certain aspects of DOE's key economic analyses.
Through this notice and public meeting, DOE invites comment, data, and
information about the considered equipment classes and their effects on
DOE's analysis, results, and (TSLs).
DATES: DOE will hold a public meeting on June 20, 2012, from 9 a.m. to
1 p.m. in Washington, DC. Additionally, DOE plans to allow for
participation in the public meeting via webinar. DOE will accept
comments, data, and other information regarding this information before
and after the public meeting, but not later than June 29, 2012. See
section II, ``Public Participation,'' of this notice of public meeting
(NOPM) for details.
ADDRESSES: To inform interested parties and facilitate this process,
DOE is preparing an agenda, a summary of analysis performed, and
briefing materials, which will be available on the program Web site at:
http://www1.eere.energy.gov/buildings/appliance_standards/commercial/distribution_transformers.html.
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. Please note that any foreign national who
wishes to participate in the public meeting is subject to advance
security screening procedures that require early notice prior to
attending the public meeting. Any foreign national who wishes to
participate in the public meeting, must so inform DOE as soon as
possible by contacting Ms. Brenda Edwards at (202) 586-2945, so that
the necessary procedures can be completed.
Interested persons may submit comments, identified by docket number
EERE-2010-BT-STD-0048 or regulation identifier number (RIN) 1904-AC04,
by any of the following methods:
Federal eRulemaking Portal: www.regulations.gov. Follow
the instructions for submitting comments.
Email: DistributionTransformers-2010-STD-0048@ee.doe.gov.
Include the docket number EERE-2010-BT-STD-0048 and/or RIN 1904-AC04 in
the subject line of the message.
Postal Mail: Ms. Brenda Edwards, U.S. Department of
Energy, Building Technologies Program, Mailstop EE-2J, Public Meeting
for Distribution Transformers, EERE-2010-BT-STD-0048, 1000 Independence
Avenue SW., Washington, DC 20585-0121. Telephone (202) 586-2945. If
possible, please submit all items on a compact disk (CD). It is not
necessary to include printed copies.
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 CD. It is not necessary to include printed
copies.
Docket: The docket is available for review at www.regulations.gov
including Federal Register notices, framework documents, public meeting
attendee lists and transcripts, comments, and other supporting
documents and materials. All documents in the docket are listed in the
www.regulations.gov index. However, not all documents listed in the
index may be publicly available, such as information that is exempt
from public disclosure. The www.regulations.gov Web site will contain
instructions on how to access all documents in the docket, including
public comments.
The rulemaking Web site can be found at: http://www1.eere.energy.gov/buildings/appliance_standards/commercial/distribution_transformers.html. This Web site contains a link to the
docket for this notice on www.regulations.gov.
For detailed instructions on submitting comments and additional
information on the rulemaking process, see section II, ``Public
Participation,'' of this document.
For further information on how to submit a comment, review other
public comments in the docket, or participate in the public meeting,
contact Ms. Brenda Edwards at (202) 586-2945 or by email:
Brenda.Edwards@ee.doe.gov.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Direct requests for additional
information to Mr. James Raba, U.S. Department of Energy, Office of
Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy, Building Technologies, EE-2J,
1000 Independence Avenue SW., Washington, DC 20585-0121, (202) 586-
8654. Email: jim.raba@ee.doe.gov.
In the Office of General Counsel, contact Mr. Alan Strasser, U.S.
Department of Energy, Office of the General Counsel, GC-71, 1000
Independence Avenue SW., Washington, DC 20585-0121, (202) 586-8269,
alan.strasser@hq.doe.gov.
For information on how to submit or review public comments, and on
how to participate in the public meeting, contact Ms. Brenda Edwards,
U.S. Department of Energy, Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable
Energy, Building Technologies Program, EE-2J, 1000 Independence Avenue
SW., Washington, DC 20585-0121. Telephone (202) 586-2945. Email:
Brenda.Edwards@ee.doe.gov.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
[[Page 32917]]
I. Introduction
On February 10, 2012, DOE published a NOPR that proposed revised
energy conservation standards for distribution transformers (77 FR
7282). On February 23, 2012, DOE held a public meeting to present the
amended standards proposed in the NOPR and receive feedback on them and
the underlying analyses.
In the NOPR and at the public meeting DOE asked for comment on
whether certain types of liquid-immersed distribution transformers that
are currently part of the same equipment classes warranted separation
into distinct equipment classes. For example, pole- and pad-mounted
distribution transformers are in the same equipment class and DOE asked
for comment on whether they would be more appropriately evaluated as
separate equipment classes.
A number of interested parties submitted written comments
supporting an approach that separated pole- and pad-mounted liquid-
immersed distribution transformers into separate equipment classes.
Furthermore, many interested parties also urged DOE to consider
separate equipment classes for network and vault distribution
transformers, as well as those with basic impulse level (BIL) ratings
above 200 kV.
In light of these comments, DOE decided to supplement its NOPR
analysis to include several new trial standard levels (TSLs), which
consider additional standards scenarios that represent the separate
equipment classes that were supported by comments from several
interested parties. The new TSLs, lettered ``A'' through ``C,'' contain
separate standards for pole- and pad-mounted distribution transformers,
and also incorporate the separation of network- and vault-based
distribution transformers and distribution transformers with BIL
ratings 200 kV and above into separate equipment classes. The new TSLs
relate only to liquid-immersed distribution transformers. No
modifications have been made to the dry-type distribution transformers
analysis for the purposes of this notice and the public meeting.
Furthermore, DOE used these TSLs to supplement certain NOPR
analyses, including the life-cycle cost and payback period analysis and
provide interested parties with a perspective on how separate equipment
classes may alter the analytical results presented with the NOPR. This
information, as well as the analytical tools from the NOPR, is
available on DOE's distribution transformer rulemaking Web site,
located at: http://www1.eere.energy.gov/buildings/appliance_standards/commercial/distribution_transformers.html.
II. Public Participation
DOE invites input from the public on the supplementary information.
The final rule establishing any amended energy conservation standards
will contain the final analysis results, including any appropriate
revisions following further review and consideration of public
comments, and be accompanied by a final rule technical support document
(TSD).
DOE encourages those who wish to participate in the public meeting
to obtain the TSD from DOE's Web site and to be prepared to discuss its
contents. A copy of the TSD is available at: http://www1.eere.energy.gov/buildings/appliance_standards/pdfs/dt_nopr_tsd_complete.pdf.
DOE welcomes all interested parties, regardless of whether they
participate in the public meeting, to submit, in writing, by June 29,
2012, comments and information on matters addressed in the
supplementary information and on other matters relevant to
consideration of standards for liquid-immersed distribution
transformers.
After the public meeting and the closing of the comment period, DOE
will consider all timely submitted comments and additional information
obtained from interested parties, as well as information obtained
through further analyses, and thereafter prepare a final rule.
A. Procedure for Submitting Requests To Speak
Any person who has an interest in today's notice or who is a
representative of a group or class of persons that has an interest in
these issues may request an opportunity to make an oral presentation.
Such persons may hand-deliver requests to speak, along with a computer
diskette or compact disk (CD) in WordPerfect, Microsoft Word, portable
document format (PDF) file, or American Standard Code for Information
Interchange (ASCII) file format to Ms. Brenda Edwards at the address
shown in the ADDRESSES section at the beginning of this NOPM, between 9
a.m. and 4 p.m., Monday through Friday, except Federal holidays.
Requests may also be sent by postal mail to the address shown in the
ADDRESSES section or by email to Brenda.Edwards@ee.doe.gov.
Persons requesting to speak should briefly describe the nature of
their interest in this rulemaking and provide a telephone number for
contact. DOE requests that each person selected to be heard submit in
advance a copy of his or her statement not later than two weeks before
the public meeting. At its discretion, DOE may permit a person who
cannot supply an advance copy of his or her statement to participate,
provided that person has made alternative arrangements in advance with
the Building Technologies Program. The person who seeks to give an oral
presentation should ask for such alternative arrangements.
B. Conduct of Public Meeting
DOE will designate a DOE official to preside at the public meeting
and may also employ a professional facilitator to aid discussion. The
meeting will not be a judicial or evidentiary-type public hearing, but
DOE will conduct it in accordance with section 336 of the Energy Policy
and Conservation Act. (42 U.S.C. 6306) A court reporter will record the
proceedings and prepare a transcript. DOE reserves the right to
schedule the order of presentations and to establish the procedures
governing the conduct of the public meeting. After the public meeting,
interested parties may submit further comments on the proceedings as
well as on any aspect of the rulemaking until the end of the comment
period.
The public meeting will be conducted in an informal conference
style. DOE will present summaries of comments received before the
public meeting, allow time for presentations by participants, and
encourage all interested parties to share their views on issues
affecting this rulemaking. Each participant will be allowed to make a
prepared general statement (within DOE-determined time limits) prior to
the discussion of specific topics. DOE will permit other participants
to comment briefly on any general statements.
At the end of all prepared statements on a topic, DOE will permit
participants to clarify their statements briefly and comment on
statements made by others. Participants should be prepared to answer
questions from DOE and other participants concerning these issues. DOE
representatives may also ask questions of participants concerning other
matters relevant to this rulemaking. The official conducting the public
meeting will accept additional comments or questions from those
attending, as time permits. The presiding official will announce any
further procedural rules or modification of the above procedures that
may be needed for the proper conduct of the public meeting.
[[Page 32918]]
A transcript of the public meeting will be included in the docket,
which can be viewed as described in the Docket section at the beginning
of this notice. In addition, any person may purchase a copy of the
transcript from the transcribing reporter.
C. Submission of Comments
DOE will accept comments, data, and other information regarding the
issues raised in this notice before or after the public meeting, but no
later than the date provided at the beginning of this notice. Please
submit comments, data, and other information as provided in the
ADDRESSES section. Submit electronic comments in WordPerfect, Microsoft
Word, PDF, or text (ASCII) file format and avoid the use of special
characters or any form of encryption. Comments in electronic format
should be identified by the docket number EERE-2010-BT-STD-0048 and/or
RIN 1904-AC04 and wherever possible carry the electronic signature of
the author. No telefacsimilies (faxes) will be accepted.
According to Title 10 of the Code of Federal Regulations, section
1004.11, any person submitting information that he or she believes to
be confidential and exempt by law from public disclosure should submit
two copies: One copy of the document including all the information
believed to be confidential and one copy of the document with the
information believed to be confidential deleted. DOE will make its own
determination as to the confidential status of the information and
treat it according to its determination.
Factors of interest to DOE when evaluating requests to treat
submitted information as confidential include (1) a description of the
items; (2) whether and why such items are customarily treated as
confidential within the industry; (3) whether the information is
generally known by or available from other sources; (4) whether the
information has previously been made available to others without
obligation concerning its confidentiality; (5) an explanation of the
competitive injury to the submitting person which would result from
public disclosure; (6) a date upon which such information might lose
its confidential nature due to the passage of time; and (7) why
disclosure of the information would be contrary to the public interest.
III. Approval of the Office of the Secretary
The Secretary of Energy has approved publication of this notice.
Issued in Washington, DC, on May 29, 2012.
Kathleen B. Hogan,
Deputy Assistant Secretary for Energy, Energy Efficiency and Renewable
Energy.
[FR Doc. 2012-13401 Filed 6-1-12; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6450-01-P