Sept. 16, 2014: ACCA, IHACI Comment on California HVAC Impact Evaluation Draft Report
Industry Sees Serious Deficiencies That Were Not Addressed
ARLINGTON, Va. — ACCA and the Institute of Heating & Air Conditioning Industries (IHACI) announced they have sent a joint letter to the California Public Utility Commission (CPUC) regarding CPUC WO32 (HVAC Impact Evaluation Draft Report) that urges the commission to refrain from releasing the report in its current form.
As the CPUC WO32 was progressing, ACCA and IHACI, along with industry partners the Air-Conditioning, Heating, and Refrigeration Institute (AHRI), ASHRAE, Heating, Air-conditioning, and Refrigeration Distributors International (HARDI), RSES, and others, worked through the Western HVAC Performance Alliance (WHPA) to identify and resolve what were seen as serious deficiencies in the effort. However, on Aug. 27, 2014, the CPUC released the draft final report, which did not address the flaws identified by the industry.
“ACCA and our partners at IHACI are concerned that the CPUC is moving forward by releasing this report that ignores widespread industry concerns about how the WO32 studies were scoped, investigations undertaken, and the results interpreted and presented,” said Paul T. Stalknecht, ACCA president and CEO. “On top of ignoring the industry’s concerns, the CPUC is only providing a two week review period for the lengthy report that does not include copies of the collaborating studies or raw data. This limited review period makes it difficult for industry stakeholders to provide timely and useful input.”
The letter included three recommendations for CPUC regarding the WO32 report:
1. The WO32 report not be released in its current form;
2. Report flaws be addressed and once the subsequent update is available, that adequate time be provided for dissemination, review, and vetting; and
3. In the interim, the WO32 report information and findings not be used for decision making.
ACCA and IHACI noted that the entire HVAC industry strongly encourages quality installation and quality maintenance of HVAC systems as that creates and maintains the equipment energy efficiencies needed in California and elsewhere. The organizations said they remain committed to helping CPUC and others in working towards a standards-based approach for improving the operating performance of installed HVAC systems.
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For more information on the letter sent to CPUC, email Glenn Hourahan, ACCA senior vice president of technical, accreditation, and educational policy development, at glenn.hourahan@acca.org.
Publication date: 9/15/2014
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