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Federal Register / Vol. 86, No. 149 / Friday, August 6, 2021 / Proposed Rules
procedures for all covered products account for standby mode and off mode energy consumption. 75 FR 64621. DOE
most recently updated its test procedure for consumer furnaces and boilers in a final rule published in the Federal Register on January 15, 2016 January 2016 final rule. 81 FR 2628. The January 2016 final rule amended the existing DOE test procedure for consumer furnaces and boilers through a number of modifications designed to improve the consistency and accuracy of test results generated using the DOE
test procedure and to reduce test burden. 81 FR 2628, 26292630 Jan. 15, 2016.
EPCA established the initial energy conservation standards for consumer furnaces and boilers in terms of AFUE
42 U.S.C. 6295f13 and directed DOE to conduct a series of rulemakings to determine whether to amend these standards 42 U.S.C. 6295f4; see also 42 U.S.C. 6295m. On November 19, 2007, DOE published a final rule in the Federal Register the November 2007
final rule that revised the energy conservation standards for certain consumer furnace and boiler product classes, with compliance required beginning on November 19, 2015. 72 FR
65136. Following DOEs adoption of the November 2007 final rule, several parties jointly sued DOE in the United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit Second Circuit to invalidate the rule, arguing that the standards adopted did not reflect the maximum improvement in energy efficiency that is technologically feasible and economically justified, as required by EPCA. Petition for Review, State of New York, et al. v. Department of Energy, et al., Nos. 080311agL; 080312
agcon 2d Cir. Filed Jan. 17, 2008. On April 21, 2009, the Second Circuit granted a motion by DOE for voluntary remand which the petitioners did not oppose that indicated that DOE would revisit its initial conclusions outlined in the November 2007 final rule in a subsequent rulemaking action but did not vacate the standards adopted in the November 2007 final rule.
On June 27, 2011, DOE published a direct final rule June 2011 DFR
revising the energy conservation standards for consumer furnaces as well as consumer central air conditioners and heat pumps pursuant to the voluntary remand in State of New York, et al. v. Department of Energy, et al. 76 FR 37408. The June 2011 DFR
amended the existing energy conservation standards for nonweatherized gas furnaces, mobile home gas furnaces, and non-weatherized oil furnaces, and amended the compliance
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date but left the existing standards in place for weatherized gas furnaces. The June 2011 DFR also established electrical standby mode and off mode standards for non-weatherized gas furnaces, mobile home gas furnaces, non-weatherized oil furnaces, mobile home oil furnaces, and electric furnaces.
DOE confirmed the standards and compliance dates promulgated in the June 2011 DFR in a notice of effective date and compliance dates published in the Federal Register on October 31, 2011. 76 FR 67037.
Following DOEs adoption of the June 2011 DFR, the American Public Gas Association APGA filed a petition for review with the United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit D.C. Circuit to invalidate the DOE rule as it pertained to nonweatherized natural gas furnaces and mobile home gas furnaces. Petition for Review, American Public Gas Association, et al. v. Department of Energy, et al., No. 111485 D.C. Cir.
filed Dec. 23, 2011. On April 24, 2014, the Court granted a motion that approved a settlement agreement that was reached between DOE, APGA, and the various intervenors in the case, in which DOE agreed to a remand of the non-weatherized gas furnace and mobile home gas furnace portions of the June 2011 DFR in order to conduct further notice-and-comment rulemaking.
Accordingly, the Courts order vacated the June 2011 DFR in part i.e., those portions relating to non-weatherized gas furnaces and mobile home gas furnaces and remanded to the agency for further rulemaking. The energy conservation standards in the June 2011 DFR for the other consumer furnace product classes as well as central air conditioners and heat pumps were left in place.
On December 19, 2007, the Energy Independence and Security Act of 2007
EISA 2007, Public Law 110140, was signed into law. EISA 2007 revised the AFUE requirements and set design requirements for most consumer boiler product classes and required compliance with the amended standards beginning on September 1, 2012. 42
U.S.C. 6295f3 For gas-fired hot water boilers, oil-fired hot water boilers, and electric hot water boilers, EISA 2007
requires that residential boilers have an automatic means for adjusting water temperature.8 EISA 2007 also disallows the use of constant-burning pilot lights in gas-fired hot water boilers and gasfired steam boilers. EISA 2007 provided 8 The automatic means for adjusting water temperature must ensure that an incremental change in the inferred heat load produces a corresponding incremental change in the temperature of the water supplied by the boiler.

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an exception for boilers that operate without any need for electricity or any electric connection, electric gauges, electric pumps, electric wires, or electric devices; those boilers were not required to meet the requirements outlined in EISA 2007 for other consumer boilers that require an electrical connection. 42 U.S.C.
6295f3AC; 10 CFR
430.32e2iiv DOE published a final rule technical amendment in the Federal Register on July 28, 2008 July 2008 final rule technical amendment to codify the energy conservation standard levels, design requirements, and compliance dates for residential boilers outlined in EISA 2007. 73 FR 43611.
DOE completed the most recent rulemaking cycle to amend the standards for consumer boilers by publishing a final rule in the Federal Register on January 15, 2016 January 2016 final rule, as required under 42
U.S.C. 6295f4C. 81 FR 2320. The January 2016 final rule adopted new standby mode and off mode standards for consumer boilers in terms of PW,SB
and PW,OFF in addition to amended AFUE energy conservation standards.
Compliance with the new and amended standards for consumer boilers was required beginning January 15, 2021. Id.
In this NOPR, DOE proposes to require certification and reporting of standby mode and off mode energy consumption for certain product classes, consistent with the energy conservation standards for standby mode and off mode energy consumption adopted in the June 2011 DFR and January 2016
final rule. DOE also proposes to require certification of the type of ignition system for all gas-fired consumer boilers consistent with the prescriptive design requirement set forth in EISA 2007 and subsequently codified by DOE in the July 2008 final rule technical amendment, which applies to all gasfired consumer boilers.
5. Consumer Water Heaters Consumer water heaters are included in the list of covered products for which DOE is authorized to establish and amend energy conservation standards and test procedures. 42
U.S.C. 6292a4 DOEs energy conservation standards and test procedures for consumer water heaters are currently prescribed at 10 CFR
430.32d and 10 CFR part 430, subpart B, appendix E, respectively.
The Energy Efficiency Improvement Act of 2015 EEIA 2015, Public Law 11411, was enacted on April 30, 2015.
The EEIA 2015 amended EPCA, in relevant part, by adding definitions for grid-enabled water heater and
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