Update on End Use Codes and Standards: January 17, 2025

Report on the BECS Committee Meeting of January 15-16, 2025, in Greenville, South Carolina.

Thanks to everyone who attended in-person or participated virtually in this week’s very productive, BECS Committee Meeting of January 15-16, 2025, in Greenville, South Carolina. The draft minutes of the meeting will be sent out in the near future. Attached are a number of the presentation made at the meeting. They include the following:

Update on Federal Regulations Impacting the Use of Natural Gas in Homes and Buildings, Matt Agen, AGA Chief Regulatory Counsel, Energy
Overview of State Code and Regulations in the United States, Frank Canavan, AGA Director of State Affairs
Uniting the Natural Gas Industry to Secure our Future, Hank McCollough, Carolinas Natural Gas Coalition Board Chair
Presentation: Greenville, South Carolina Home Builders Association (GHBA). Taylor Lyles and Jenna Ramsey, GHBA

All presentations are also being posted on the BECS Committee community site soon.

DOE Withdraws a Proposed Onerous Rule for Consumers Boilers that Would Have Required a Minimum Efficiency Requirement of 95% AFUE for Residential Gas Boilers.

Today, the DOE withdrew a proposed rule for consumer (residential) boilers that was published in the Federal Register on August 14, 2023 that would have required a 95% AFUE minimum efficiency requirement for gas boilers that would have eliminated the manufacturing of non-condensing boilers after the effective date of the rule. Back on October 13, 2023, AGA, the American Public Gas Association (APGA), the National Propane Gas Association (NPGA), Spire Inc., Spire Missouri Inc., and Spire Alabama Inc., filed timely comments (attached) that identified and documented serious concerns with the technical analysis and economic justification that DOE developed to establish the 95% AFUE minimum efficiency level for gas boilers. According to the DOE withdraw notice, “DOE continues to support the intent and purpose of the proposed energy conservation standards for consumer boilers, in light of the considerable feedback received through the public comment process, the forthcoming change in Administration, and the significant resources needed to review and consider all relevant matters presented in the public comments, DOE does not believe that finalizing the proposed energy conservation standards is an efficient use of its resources at this time.” We will continue to follow DOE’s future regulatory action on gas boilers as well as all DOE appliance and equipment minimum efficiency regulations that do not meet the federally legislated requirement of being technically feasible and economically justified.

AGA Joins Coalition to Challenge the DOE Final Rule Pertaining to Standards for Gas-Fired Instantaneous Water Heaters (GIWH’s) that Bans Non-Condensing Technologies for Most GIWH’s.

Back on December 27, 2024, we reported that the DOE published the Federal Register Notice with the Final Rule that adopted amended standards for gas-fired instantaneous water heaters less than 2 gallon and greater than 50,000 Btu/hour, at an efficiency level that requires condensing technology. According to the notice, “DOE has determined that the amended standards for these products would result in significant conservation of energy and are technologically feasible and economically justified.” The Notice listed “the effective date of this rule as March 11, 2025. Compliance with the amended standards established for gas[1]fired instantaneous water heaters in this final rule is required on and after December 26, 2029.” Today, AGA joined 21 State Attorney Generals, GIWH manufacturer Rinnai, as well as other national and state trade associations challenging (petition attached) this DOE Instantaneous Water Heater Rule in the 11th Circuit. We are pleased with this withdraw by DOE and will provide updates on this legal matter as it proceeds in the court system.

AGA Submits Priorities Regarding the Areas of Jurisdiction within the U.S. Department of Energy (“DOE”), the U.S. Energy Information Administration (“EIA”) and the Environmental Protection Agency (“EPA”) to the Incoming Administrations Transition Teams.

For your information, yesterday AGA submitted our associations priorities regarding the areas of jurisdiction within DOE, EIA and EPA impacting natural gas applications that are being posted in the BECS committee community page that list a number of priorities directly impact the committees end use codes and standards activities and responsibilities.

State Codes Activity Update.

Attached is a weekly feature of the “Friday Update” covering state code calendar activities as presented by the online utility “Fiscal Note,” which is sponsored by APGA and AGA Code and Standards. Please review the update and determine if there are state code activities that impact your service territory or organization.