Energy Conservation Program: Procedures, Interpretations, and Policies for Consideration of New or Revised Energy Conservation Standards and Test Procedures for Consumer Products and Certain Commercial/Industrial Equipment

Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy, Department of Energy.

As part of its implementation of the Executive order, “Unleashing American Energy” (Jan. 20, 2025), the Department of Energy (DOE or the Department) is seeking comments and information from interested parties to assist DOE in identifying potential modifications to its procedures, interpretations, and policies for considering new or revised energy conservation standards and test procedures for consumer products and certain commercial and industrial equipment ( i.e., the “Process Rule”). DOE is initiating this effort through this request for information to ensure consistency with recently issued Executive Orders, while continuing to satisfy the Department's statutory obligations in the development of appliance and equipment standards under the Energy Policy and Conservation Act (EPCA). Subsequently, DOE expects to expeditiously publish a notice of proposed rulemaking (NOPR) that proposes potential changes to the Process Rule and that will also provide feedback on the public comment received in response to this document and seek additional information on other potential improvements.

Written comments and information are requested and will be accepted on or before June 2, 2025.

Interested persons are encouraged to submit comments using the Federal eRulemaking Portal at www.regulations.gov under docket number EERE-2025-BT-STD-0001. Follow the instructions for submitting comments. Alternatively, interested persons may submit comments, identified by docket number EERE-2025-BT-STD-0001 and/or regulatory information number (RIN) 1904-AF72, by any of the following methods:

(1) Email: [email protected]. Include the docket number EERE-2025-BT-STD-0001 and/or RIN 1904-AF72 in the subject line of the message. Submit electronic comments in WordPerfect, Microsoft Word, PDF, or ASCII file format, and avoid the use of special characters or any form of encryption.

(2) Postal Mail: Appliance and Equipment Standards Program, U.S. Department of Energy, Building Technologies Office, Mailstop EE-5B, 1000 Independence Avenue SW, Washington, DC 20585-0121. If possible, please submit all items on a compact disc (CD), in which case it is not necessary to include printed copies.

(3) Hand Delivery/Courier: Appliance and Equipment Standards Program, U.S. Department of Energy, Building Technologies Office, 1000 Independence Avenue SW, Washington, DC 20585-0121. Telephone: (202) 287-1445. If possible, please submit all items on a CD, in which case it is not necessary to include printed copies.

No telefacsimiles (faxes) will be accepted. For detailed instructions on submitting comments and additional information on this process, see section III (Public Participation) of this document.

Docket: The docket for this activity, which includes Federal Register notices, comments, and other supporting documents/materials, is available for review at www.regulations.gov. All documents in the docket are listed in the www.regulations.gov index. However, some documents listed in the index, such as those containing information that is exempt from public disclosure, may not be publicly available.

The docket web page can be found at www.regulations.gov/​docket/​EERE-2025-BT-STD-0001. The docket web page contains instructions on how to access all documents, including public comments, in the docket. See section III of this document for information on how to submit comments through www.regulations.gov.