Bill Text: TX HB883 | 2011-2012 | 82nd Legislature | Introduced

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Bill Title: Relating to minimum efficiency standards for certain products; providing a civil penalty.

Sponsorship: Partisan Bill (Democrat 1)

Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2011-04-20 - Left pending in committee [HB883 Detail]

Download: Texas-2011-HB883-Introduced.html

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82R481 ALL-D
By: Alvarado H.B. No. 883

A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT
relating to minimum efficiency standards for certain products;
providing a civil penalty.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
SECTION 1. Subtitle C, Title 5, Health and Safety Code, is
amended by adding Chapter 392 to read as follows:
CHAPTER 392. PRODUCT EFFICIENCY STANDARDS
SUBCHAPTER A. GENERAL PROVISIONS
Sec. 392.001. DEFINITIONS. In this chapter:
(1) "Residential pool pump" means a product,
consisting in part of a motor and an impeller and housing, designed
to circulate and filter residential swimming pool water to maintain
the water's clarity and sanitation.
(2) "Residential pool pump motor" means a definite
purpose motor designed for use in a residential pool pump.
(3) "Total horsepower" means the product of a motor's
service factor and nameplate horsepower.
Sec. 392.002. APPLICABILITY; EXEMPTIONS. (a) This chapter
applies to the following types of new products sold, offered for
sale, or installed in this state:
(1) residential pool pumps;
(2) residential pool pump motors; and
(3) residential pool pump motor controls.
(b) This chapter does not apply to:
(1) a new product manufactured in this state and sold
outside the state;
(2) a new product manufactured outside this state and
sold at wholesale inside the state for final retail sale and
installation outside the state; or
(3) water pumps that are labeled as not intended for
use as a swimming pool filtration pump and are used in:
(A) a water feature;
(B) a fountain;
(C) a spa jet; or
(D) a process other than filtration.
[Sections 392.003-392.050 reserved for expansion]
SUBCHAPTER B. EFFICIENCY STANDARDS
Sec. 392.051. MINIMUM EFFICIENCY STANDARDS FOR CERTAIN
PRODUCTS. (a) Not later than September 1, 2012, the comptroller,
in consultation with the State Energy Conservation Office, by rule
shall establish minimum efficiency standards for each type of new
product described by Section 392.002(a).
(b) If a federal law establishes a minimum efficiency
standard for a product covered by this chapter, the standard set
under this chapter is preempted by the federal law unless an
application for waiver under Section 392.102 is granted.
Sec. 392.052. NEW OR REVISED EFFICIENCY STANDARDS. (a) The
comptroller by rule may establish a new or revised efficiency
standard for a product described by Section 392.002(a).
(b) The comptroller, in consultation with the State Energy
Conservation Office, by rule shall establish a new or revised
standard if the comptroller determines that the standard would:
(1) serve to promote energy conservation in this
state; and
(2) be cost-effective for consumers who purchase and
use a new product to which the standard applies.
(c) Notwithstanding Subsections (a) and (b), the
comptroller may not establish a new or revised standard for a
product described by Section 392.002(a) if the standard would
provide for less stringent energy efficiency requirements than a
standard prescribed by Section 392.054 or a rule adopted under
Section 392.051.
Sec. 392.053. EFFECTIVE DATE OF STANDARDS. A standard
established under this subchapter takes effect on the first
anniversary of the date the rule establishing the standard is
adopted.
Sec. 392.054. RESIDENTIAL POOL PUMPS, RESIDENTIAL POOL PUMP
MOTORS, AND RESIDENTIAL POOL PUMP MOTOR CONTROLS. (a) A
residential pool pump motor may not be a split-phase or capacitor
start-induction run type motor, except that the following are not
prohibited by this subsection:
(1) a two-speed motor with a low-speed section that is
a capacitor start-induction run type; and
(2) a 48-frame motor designed for use with
above-ground pools.
(b) A residential pool pump motor with a total horsepower
capacity of one or more must:
(1) have the capability of operating at two or more
speeds with a low speed having a rotation rate that is not more than
one-half of the motor's maximum rotation rate; and
(2) be operated with a pool pump motor control with the
capability to operate the pump at two or more speeds.
(c) A pool pump motor control that is sold for use with a
residential pool pump motor capable of operating at two or more
speeds must have the capability of operating the pool pump at two or
more speeds. The control's default circulation speed setting may
not exceed one-half of the motor's maximum rotation rate. Any
high-speed override capability must be for a temporary period not
to exceed one 24-hour cycle without resetting to the default
setting.
[Sections 392.055-392.100 reserved for expansion]
SUBCHAPTER C. IMPLEMENTATION AND MODIFICATION OF EFFICIENCY
STANDARDS
Sec. 392.101. PRODUCT COMPLIANCE. (a) A new product
described by Section 392.002(a) may not be sold or offered for sale
in this state unless the efficiency of the new product meets or
exceeds the applicable efficiency standards prescribed by this
chapter or a rule adopted under this chapter.
(b) On or after the first anniversary of the date the sale or
offering for sale of a new product becomes subject to an efficiency
standard prescribed by or adopted under this chapter, that product
may not be installed for compensation in this state unless the
efficiency of the product meets or exceeds the applicable
efficiency standard.
Sec. 392.102. APPLICATION FOR WAIVER. For purposes of this
chapter, the comptroller may apply for a waiver of federal
preemption in accordance with federal procedures under 42 U.S.C.
Section 6297(d) to authorize a state efficiency standard for a
product regulated by the federal government.
[Sections 392.103-392.150 reserved for expansion]
SUBCHAPTER D. TESTING, CERTIFICATION, LABELING, AND ENFORCEMENT
Sec. 392.151. PRODUCT TESTING. (a) The manufacturer of a
new product subject to an efficiency standard prescribed by or
adopted under this chapter shall test samples of the product in
accordance with the test methods or procedures adopted under this
chapter.
(b) The comptroller, in consultation with the State Energy
Conservation Office, by rule shall adopt test methods or procedures
for determining a product's energy efficiency. The comptroller
shall adopt test methods or procedures approved by the United
States Department of Energy or, in the absence of those test methods
or procedures, other appropriate nationally recognized test
methods or procedures.
(c) The comptroller may adopt an updated test method or
procedure when a new version of a test method or procedure becomes
available.
Sec. 392.152. PRODUCT CERTIFICATION. (a) The manufacturer
of a new product subject to an efficiency standard prescribed by or
adopted under this chapter shall certify to the comptroller that
the product is in compliance with that standard according to test
results.
(b) The comptroller shall adopt rules governing the
certification of products under this section and shall coordinate
certification by this state with the certification programs of
other states and federal agencies with similar standards.
Sec. 392.153. PRODUCT LABELING. (a) The manufacturer of a
new product subject to an efficiency standard prescribed by or
adopted under this chapter shall identify each product offered for
sale or installation in this state as being in compliance with this
chapter by means of a mark, label, or tag on the product and
packaging at the time of sale or installation.
(b) The comptroller shall adopt rules governing the
identification of products and packaging under this section. The
rules must to the greatest practical extent be coordinated with the
labeling programs of other states and federal agencies with
equivalent efficiency standards. The comptroller shall allow the
use of existing marks, labels, or tags that connote compliance with
the efficiency requirements of this chapter.
Sec. 392.154. COMPTROLLER TESTING FOR EFFICIENCY STANDARDS
COMPLIANCE. The comptroller may test products subject to an
efficiency standard prescribed by or adopted under this chapter for
compliance with the applicable efficiency standard. If a product
tested is found not to be in compliance with the standard, the
comptroller shall:
(1) impose against the manufacturer of the product an
assessment in an amount sufficient to recover the costs of
purchasing and testing the product; and
(2) make information available to the public on any
product found to be not in compliance with the standard.
Sec. 392.155. INSPECTIONS. The comptroller may have
periodic inspections conducted of a distributor or retailer of new
products described by Section 392.002(a) subject to an efficiency
standard prescribed by or adopted under this chapter to determine
compliance with this chapter. The inspections must be conducted at
reasonable and convenient hours. Notice must be given before an
inspection may be conducted.
Sec. 392.156. COMPLAINTS. The comptroller shall
investigate a complaint received concerning a violation of this
chapter and shall report the results of the investigation to the
attorney general.
Sec. 392.157. ATTORNEY GENERAL ENFORCEMENT. The attorney
general may institute proceedings to enforce this chapter.
Sec. 392.158. VIOLATIONS AND PENALTIES. (a) The
comptroller shall issue a warning to a person for the person's first
violation of this chapter.
(b) A person's second and subsequent violations are subject
to a civil penalty of not more than $250.
(c) Each violation constitutes a separate violation, and
each day that a violation continues constitutes a separate
violation.
(d) A penalty assessed under this section is in addition to
costs assessed under Section 392.154.
Sec. 392.159. RULES FOR IMPLEMENTATION AND ENFORCEMENT.
The comptroller may adopt additional rules necessary to ensure the
proper implementation and enforcement of this chapter.
SECTION 2. Section 389.002, Health and Safety Code, is
amended to read as follows:
Sec. 389.002. USE OF CERTAIN INFORMATION FOR FEDERAL
RECOGNITION OF EMISSIONS REDUCTIONS. (a) The commission, using
information derived from the reports to the commission under
Sections 386.205, 388.003(e), and 388.006, shall take all
appropriate and necessary actions so that emissions reductions
achieved by means of activities under Chapters 386 and 388 are
credited by the United States Environmental Protection Agency to
the appropriate emissions reduction objectives in the state
implementation plan.
(b) The commission shall work with the Energy Systems
Laboratory at the Texas Engineering Experiment Station of The Texas
A&M University System to ensure that the emissions reductions
achieved by an efficiency standard established under Chapter 392
are credited by the United States Environmental Protection Agency
to the appropriate emissions reduction objectives in the state
implementation plan.
SECTION 3. (a) An efficiency standard prescribed by a rule
adopted under Subchapter B, Chapter 392, Health and Safety Code, as
added by this Act, applies only to the sale or offer for sale of a
new product to which that chapter applies that occurs on or after
January 1, 2013.
(b) Notwithstanding Subsection (a) of this section, a new
residential pool pump, residential pool pump motor, or residential
pool pump motor control that does not meet an efficiency standard
prescribed by Section 392.054, Health and Safety Code, as added by
this Act, may be sold in this state through December 31, 2013.
SECTION 4. This Act takes effect September 1, 2011.