CTA, ITI Among 8 Groups Seeking Public Meeting on Proposed DOE Import Energy Reporting Rule
CTA and the Information Technology Industry Council joined six other trade groups in urging the Department of Energy to extend its Friday comments deadline and hold a public meeting to explain an NPRM (docket NEERE-2015-BT-CE-0019) that would require importers of…
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products covered under “an applicable energy conservation standard” to file a “certification of admissibility” for each shipment of such products before their arrival at a U.S. port of entry. The proposal “would be a completely new requirement,” and would “trigger a new and additional reporting scheme and importers would need to develop internal processes to comply,” said the eight groups in a Feb. 2 letter that was posted online Tuesday. In the NPRM issued Dec. 29, DOE sought comment on “six weighty issues” and gave commenters only 45 days to respond, “starting during the winter holiday season,” the letter said. “Although it seems DOE contemplated a public meeting because one is mentioned” in the NPRM, the agency hasn't scheduled one "to discuss this proposal with the large number of affected stakeholders,” it said. The trade groups have genuine confusion about the NPRM because it “does little to explain the specific issue the Department is attempting to resolve with the proposed import data collection,” it said. The groups also “are confused by the proposed requirements for products that are imported as component parts of other products not subject to DOE regulations,” the letter said. “We would like to further understand how DOE envisions that proposal working in practice and the goals DOE has for requiring the brand name and model number be reported for the final product.” The groups want DOE to extend the comments deadline for an additional 30 days from the date of a public meeting, "if one is scheduled as we hope it will be," the letter said. The meeting also should be held before comments are due, not after, it said. If the agency denies the request for a public meeting, the comments deadline should be extended for 60 days to April 12, it said. Also signing the letter were the Association of Home Appliance Manufacturers, the Air-Conditioning, Heating, and Refrigeration Institute, the Hearth, Patio & Barbecue Association, the National Electrical Manufacturers Association, the North American Association of Food Equipment Manufacturers and Plumbing Manufacturers International. DOE representatives didn’t comment Wednesday.