Miscellaneous Refrigeration Products

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Miscellaneous refrigeration product means a consumer refrigeration product other than a refrigerator, refrigerator-freezer, or freezer, which includes coolers and combination cooler refrigeration products. Manufacturers have been required to comply with the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) energy conservation standards for miscellaneous refrigeration products since 2019.

Current Standard | Current Test Procedure | Ongoing Rulemaking for Standards | Ongoing Rulemaking for Test Procedure | Helpful Links


Recent and Ongoing Activities

DOE has issued a pre-publication Federal Register notice of proposed rulemaking (NOPR) pertaining to energy conservation standards for miscellaneous refrigeration products. The Energy Policy and Conservation Act (EPCA) also requires DOE to periodically determine whether more stringent, standards would be technologically feasible and economically justified, and would result in significant energy savings. In this NOPR, DOE proposes amended standards for miscellaneous refrigeration products, and also announces a public meeting to receive comment on these proposed standards and associated analyses and results.

  • DOE will accept comments, data, and information regarding this NOPR until 60 days after date of publication in the Federal Register. DOE will send a follow-up e-mail once the notice publishes to announce the closing date of the comment period.
  • Interested persons may submit comments identified by docket number EERE-2020-BT-STD-0039, by email (MRP2020STD0039@ee.doe.gov), Federal eRulemaking portal (http://www.regulations.gov).
  • DOE will hold a webinar on Tuesday, May 2, 2023, from 1:00 p.m. to 4:00 p.m. 
  • Click here to register for the webinar.
  • Foreign Nationals interested in participating in this webinar, must be screened by DOE Headquarters Security prior to being granted access. Please email Regina.Washington@ee.doe.gov to complete the necessary documentation at least two weeks prior to scheduled meeting date.
  • Additional 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/public-meetings-and-comment-deadlines

On July 18, 2016 DOE published a final rule that amended the test procedure for refrigerators and refrigerator-freezers and established both coverage and procedures for testing miscellaneous refrigeration products (MREFs). That final rule also established provisions within DOE’s certification requirements to provide instructions regarding product category determinations, which were intended to be consistent with the definitions established for MREFs and refrigerators, refrigerator-freezers, and freezers. This published Federal Register final rule corrects certain inconsistencies between the instructions for determining product categories and the corresponding product definitions to avoid confusion regarding the application of those definitions.

  • The effective date of this rule is March 9, 2023.

For the latest information on the planned timing of future DOE regulatory milestones, see the current Office of Management and Budget Unified Agenda of Regulatory and Deregulatory Actions. All planned dates are preliminary and subject to change.

Standards

Notice of Proposed Rulemaking

Notification of Rescheduled Public Meeting

Notification of a Webinar and Availability of Preliminary Technical Support Document

Request for Information 
  • Federal Register, 85FR78964 (December 8, 2020)

DOE undertook a rulemaking that concluded with a direct final rule in October 2016 to establish conservation standards for miscellaneous refrigeration products. 81 FR 75194 (October 28, 2016) and   has published a Federal Register notice detailing the effective date and compliance dates for DOE's direct final rule  pertaining to energy conservation standards for Miscellaneous Refrigeration Products. 82 FR 24214 (May 26, 2017)

The miscellaneous refrigeration products energy conservation standard rulemaking docket EERE-2011-BT-STD-0043 contains all notices, public comments, public meeting transcripts, and supporting documents pertaining to this rulemaking.

Public Meeting Information:

There is no public meeting scheduled at this time.

Submitting Public Comments

The comment period is closed.

Test Procedure

Final Rule; Correction
  • Federal Register, 88FR7840 (February 7, 2023)

Notice of Proposed Rulemaking

  • Federal Register, 87FR35678 (June 13, 2022)

Final rule

  • Federal Register,  86FR56790 (October 12, 2021).

DOE undertook a rulemaking process that concluded with a final rule in July 2016 pertaining to test procedures and product coverage for miscellaneous refrigeration products 81 FR 46768 (July 18, 2016) and has published a notice of final rule; correction pertaining to test procedures for miscellaneous refrigeration products 81 FR 49868 (July 29, 2016).

The miscellaneous refrigeration products test procedure rulemaking docket EERE-2013-BT-TP-0029 contains all notices, public comments, public meeting transcripts, and supporting documents pertaining to this rulemaking.

Public Meeting Information

There is no public meeting scheduled at this time.

Submitting Public Comments

Comment period is closed.


Current Standard

The direct final rule for miscellaneous refrigeration products published on October 28, 2016 (81 FR 75194) became effective on February 27, 2017. Compliance with the new standards in the direct final rule was required on October 28, 2019.


Current Test Procedure

Miscellaneous refrigeration products are not currently required to be tested and rated according to a DOE test procedure. However, miscellaneous refrigeration product manufacturers must follow the test procedure methods specified at 10 CFR 430, Subpart B, Appendix A for all representations of energy use on or after January 17, 2017.


Helpful Links

Compliance

DOE has not yet established regulations on certification, compliance, and enforcement for miscellaneous refrigeration products.

Waivers

For information on current test procedure wavers, see DOE’s Waivers webpage.

For information about obtaining test procedure waivers, see 10 CFR 430.27.

Exceptions

DOE's Office of Hearings and Appeals has not authorized exception relief for miscellaneous refrigeration products.

For information about obtaining exception relief, see 10 CFR part 1003.

Guidance and Frequently Asked Questions

For information on further guidance and answers to Frequently Asked Questions on all covered products, see DOE’s Further Guidance database.

State Exemptions to Federal Pre-emption

DOE has not exempted any state from this energy conservation standard. States may petition DOE to exempt a state regulation from preemption by the Federal energy conservation standard. States may also petition DOE to withdraw such exemptions. For details, see 10 CFR part 430, subpart D.

Small Business Exemptions

Any manufacturer of a covered product with annual gross revenues that do not exceed $8,000,000 from all its operations and meets certain other conditions may apply for an exemption to the energy conservation standard. For details, see 10 CFR part 430, subpart E.

ENERGY STAR®

DOE supports the testing and verification of ENERGY STAR® products in close collaboration with the Environmental Protection Agency.

Find tips and guidance for making your home, workplace, or vehicle more energy efficient visit EnergySavers.gov.

Contact information

For more information related to this product, please email:
ApplianceStandardsQuestions@ee.doe.gov


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