The Subcommittee on Energy and Power, chaired by Rep. Ed Whitfield (R-KY), has scheduled a hearing for Thursday, March 19, at 10:00 a.m. in room 2322 of the Rayburn House Office Building. The hearing is entitled, “H.R. 906, a Bill to Modify the Efficiency Standards for Grid-Enabled Water Heaters."
H.R. 906, introduced by Chairman Whitfield, exempts from regulation certain thermal storage water heaters under new DOE efficiency standards that go into effect in April 2015, enabling these innovative and energy-saving appliances to continue to be manufactured and sold. Large grid-enabled electric-resistance water heaters can continue to be manufactured so long as they include capabilities that allow them to be used in electric thermal storage or demand response programs, which improve efficiency and save consumers money. The bill includes data reporting requirements for manufacturers and utilities to report to DOE the number of units enrolled in electric thermal storage or demand response programs.
The legislation passed the House last Congress as part of the Energy Efficiency Improvement Act of 2014 and passed both the House and the Senate earlier this year as part of S.1, the Keystone XL Pipeline Approval Act
The Majority Memorandum, a witness list, and witness testimony will be available here as they are posted.
