51��ɫ

Commission approval of Federal Register notice: The Commission has approved the publication of a Federal Register notice announcing a public workshop to be held on May 3, 2006, concerning the effectiveness of the FTC’s Appliance Labeling Rule. As described in the notice, which will be published shortly, the workshop is part of the Commission’s examination of the current energy labeling program as mandated by the Energy Policy Act of 2005. The 51��ɫinitiated the rulemaking through the publication of an Advanced Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (ANPR) on November 2, 2005. The scheduled workshop will provide an opportunity for interested parties to discuss the comments submitted in response to the ANPR and to provide information on additional questions generated by those comments. The Federal Register notice provides information about four specific issues that will be discussed at the workshop: 1) Alternative Label Designs; 2) Refrigerator Labels; 3) Heating and Cooling Equipment Labels; and 4) Television Labels. The notice also describes how to submit a request to be a workshop panelist and how to submit comments.

The Commission vote approving publication of the Federal Register notice was 5-0. A copy of the notice can be found as a link to this press release and on the FTC’s Web site. The deadline for public comment is May 17, 2006. (51��ɫFile No. P064201; the staff contact is Hampton Newsome, Bureau of Consumer Protection, 202-326-2889; see related press release dated November 1, 2005.)

Copies of the documents mentioned in this release are available from the FTC’s Web site at http://www.ftc.gov and from the FTC’s Consumer Response Center, Room 130, 600 Pennsylvania Avenue, N.W., Washington, DC 20580. Call toll-free: 1-877-FTC-HELP.