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Yesterday, the Department of Energy’s Office of Enforcement issued a subpoena to Richard Graham of Long Beach, California seeking water efficiency information and sales records for the “Super Power Shower” in response to a complaint that it violates federal water conservation standards.  The Super Power Shower is sold by Mr.

Today, the DOE General Counsel’s Office is launching a new Smart Gird web portal.  In October, the General Counsel’s office released two reports exploring technological and legal issues critical for the continued development of the Smart Grid.  Drawing upon significant public participation, the reports recommended several next steps to assist utilities and other stakeholders in the rollout of Smart Grid technologies and applications.  One of these recommendations was to provide a public portal for information on a variety of issues, including data access and privacy, priority of service, w

Today, the Department of Energy issued enforcement guidance on the application of recently granted waivers for large-capacity clothes washers and announced steps to improve the waiver process – and refrain from certain enforcement actions – so that innovative covered products can demonstrate compliance with DOE efficiency requirements and come to market without undue delays.  Based on comments received in response to DOE’s November 30, 2010 notice, today’s guidance makes clear that DOE’s current test procedure does not co

Today, the Department of Energy issued a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking to amend its regulations governing compliance with the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA). The proposals focus primarily on the Department’s categorical exclusion provisions, and reflect the first update to these provisions in thirteen years. The Department sought public input earlier this year to assist in the preparation of the current proposals.

The Department of Energy announced today that it has entered into a Memorandum of Agreement with the United States Civilian Board of Contract Appeals (CBCA) to enable the Department’s lab and facility management and operation (M&O) contractors to employ the CBCA for mediation, arbitration, and other alternative dispute resolution services.  Earlier this year, the Department clarified that M&O contractors are permitted to include binding arbitration clauses in their contracts with others, and, indeed, that arbitration may often be a desirable alternative to litigation where disputes

Because of the role wireless technologies will play in the evolution toward a smarter national grid, one of the recommendations in DOE’s report, The Communications Requirements of Smart Grid Technologies, was that members of the utility sector become more engaged in the federal advisory committees that provide input on key policy issues related to the Smart Grid, including spectrum management and network reliability issues.  Last week, the Department of Commerce’s National Telecommunications and Information Administration announced that it is seeking nominations

The D.C. Circuit today dismissed petitions filed by the National Association of Regulatory Utility Commissioners (NARUC) and other entities seeking (1) to force the Department to issue an assessment of the adequacy of the nuclear waste fund fee and (2) compelling suspension of the fee.  These petitions were filed before the Department's recent issuance of a new fee assessment, and, in that context, the court determined that the petitions were moot and unripe.  The court's order can be found here.

The Department of Energy has successfully resolved the enforcement case against Westinghouse Lighting Corporation for failure to certify its light bulbs as compliant with DOE’s federal efficiency requirements and for the sale of at least 29,000 general service fluorescent and medium base compact fluorescent lamps that used more energy than permitted by law.  This case reflects DOE’s renewed commitment to enforce the federal efficiency requirements systematically and fairly to level the competitive playing field and to ensure that American consumers are buying products that deliver signific

On December 8, 2010, the Department of Energy General Counsel’s office hosted a seminar on the topic of spectrum policy, attended by approximately fifty representatives of the utility industry.  At this spectrum policy seminar, senior officials from the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) and the Commerce Department’s National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) provided information on spectrum policy issues in light of the role wireless communications will play in the deployment of Smart Grid technologies.  They reviewed the current spectrum management process and

The Department last week invited interested parties to submit views on the proper application of waivers establishing alternative test procedures for existing large-capacity residential clothes washer models and units. We received responses from several parties, which can be found below.