(a) Service. All documents required to be served under this subpart shall, if mailed, be served by first class mail. Service upon a person's duly authorized representative shall constitute service upon that person.

(b) Obligation to supply information. A person or State submitting a petition is under a continuing obligation to provide any new or newly discovered information relevant to that petition. Such information includes, but is not limited to, information regarding any other petition or request for action subsequently submitted by that person or State.

(c) The same or related matters. A person or State submitting a petition or other request for action shall state whether to the best knowledge of that petitioner the same or related issue, act, or transaction has been or presently is being considered or investigated by any State agency, department, or instrumentality.

(d) Computation of time.

(1) Computing any period of time prescribed by or allowed under this subpart, the day of the action from which the designated period of time begins to run is not to be included. If the last day of the period is Saturday, or Sunday, or Federal legal holiday, the period runs until the end of the next day that is neither a Saturday, or Sunday or Federal legal holiday.

(2) Saturdays, Sundays, and intervening Federal legal holidays shall be excluded from the computation of time when the period of time allowed or prescribed is 7 days or less.

(3) When a submission is required to be made within a prescribed time, DOE may grant an extension of time upon good cause shown.

(4) Documents received after regular business hours are deemed to have been submitted on the next regular business day. Regular business hours for the DOE's National Office, Washington, DC, are 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.

(5) DOE reserves the right to refuse to accept, and not to consider, untimely submissions.

(e) Filing of petitions.

(1) A petition for a rule shall be submitted in triplicate to: The Assistant Secretary for Conservation and Renewable Energy, U.S. Department of Energy, Section 327 Petitions, Appliance Efficiency Standards, Forrestal Building, 1000 Independence Avenue, SW., Washington, DC 20585.

(2) A petition may be submitted on behalf of more than one person. A joint petition shall indicate each person participating in the submission. A joint petition shall provide the information required by §430.41 for each person on whose behalf the petition is submitted.

(3) All petitions shall be signed by the person(s) submitting the petition or by a duly authorized representative. If submitted by a duly authorized representative, the petition shall certify this authorization.

(4) A petition for a rule to withdraw a rule exempting a State regulation, all supporting documents, and all future submissions shall be served on each State agency, department, or instrumentality whose regulation the petitioner seeks to supersede. The petition shall contain a certification of this service which states the name and mailing address of the served parties, and the date of service.

(f) Acceptance for filing.

(1) Within fifteen (15) days of the receipt of a petition, the Secretary will either accept it for filing or reject it, and the petitioner will be so notified in writing. The Secretary will serve a copy of this notification on each other party served by the petitioner. Only such petitions which conform to the requirements of this subpart and which contain sufficient information for the purposes of a substantive decision will be accepted for filing. Petitions which do not so conform will be rejected and an explanation provided to petitioner in writing.

(2) For purposes of the Act and this subpart, a petition is deemed to be filed on the date it is accepted for filing.

(g) Docket. A petition accepted for filing will be assigned an appropriate docket designation. Petitioner shall use the docket designation in all subsequent submissions.