SparkyAK:
Not to totally disagree with you, as I said, I see your point.
To the best of my knowledge, the cord thru the cabinet is a 'normal' install as I stated originally. It is accepted by AHJ's, and I have not heard of anyone debating the install.
That said, I will broach this subject at the next (September) NJEIA meeting.
A little more logic...micro comes with a cord/plug from mfg. EC installs recept behind/inside dedicated micro cabinet space; micro does not fit because of recept/cap. So the micro (single recept) is installed in the cabinet above the micro space, and a hole of appropriate diameter is drilled in the upper cabinet bottom.
Cabinet depth and the depth of appliances should be considered IF it is mandated that the recept be in the dedicated space for the appliance. Alas this is a design issue, and the NEC is NOT a design tool. Also, common sense and good judgement are not within the NEC
