A ruling to the pending regional standards lawsuit may be less than a month away. American Public Gas Association (APGA) executive vice president Dave Schryver confirmed that the lawsuit, APGA v. U.S. Department of Energy (DOE), has entered mediation and that an agreement between the two parties could occur very soon.

A 30-day mediation period has passed and the discussions have yet to yield a resolution, leaving the HVACR industry on hold regarding a decision on the pending regional energy-efficiency standards lawsuit.

The American Public Gas Association (APGA) and the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) have filed a settlement agreement with the court in the ongoing lawsuit over regional efficiency standards.

A proposed settlement in the regional energy-efficiency standards lawsuit would exempt nonweatherized gas furnaces from the law, thus eliminating a May 1, 2013 requirement that would mandate 90-percent AFUE furnaces in the North, and 80-percent AFUE furnaces in the Southeast and Southwest.

There are two main aspects of complaining about the government — it is easy to do and it feels good. Sometimes I feel there is a degree of piling on that is not fair. Then there are other times when you think all that complaining is not nearly enough. The regional standards issue is one of those cases.

A proposed settlement in the regional energy-efficiency standards lawsuit would exempt nonweatherized gas furnaces from the law, thus eliminating a May 1, 2013 requirement that would mandate 90-percent AFUE furnaces in the North, and 80-percent AFUE furnaces in the Southeast and Southwest.

The Heating, Air-conditioning and Refrigeration Distributors International (HARDI) announced that it has filed a motion responding to the proposed regional standards lawsuit settlement. HARDI has filed to continue the lawsuit because the proposal does not address concerns related to air conditioners and heat pumps. 

It might be late in the game, but Heating, Air-conditioning, Refrigeration Distributors International (HARDI) is going for the win, not the tie. On Jan. 25, HARDI filed a motion responding to the proposed regional standards settlement filed by the Department of Energy (DOE) and the American Public Gas Association (APGA). HARDI has no problem with the furnace aspect of the settlement, but still wants to fight the air conditioner standard.

The complex regulatory landscape that HVAC contractors must navigate is always shifting — and it received another jolt last month when news broke that the Department of Energy’s (DOE’s) regional appliance standards for furnaces were potentially changing.

The Air-Conditioning, Heating, and Refrigeration Institute (AHRI) has filed a motion in the regional efficiency standards lawsuit in opposition to the motion filed by Heating, Air-conditioning, Refrigeration Distributors International (HARDI) to be substituted as a petitioner in the case, so that it can challenge DOE’s direct final rule on residential air conditioner and heat pump standards.