Regulations Implementing Energy Policy Act of 2005; Pre-Filing Procedures for Review of LNG Terminals and Other Natural Gas Facilities, 52328-52336 [05-17480]
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52328
Proposed Rules
Federal Register
Vol. 70, No. 170
Friday, September 2, 2005
This section of the FEDERAL REGISTER
contains notices to the public of the proposed
issuance of rules and regulations. The
purpose of these notices is to give interested
persons an opportunity to participate in the
rule making prior to the adoption of the final
rules.
DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY
Federal Energy Regulatory
Commission
18 CFR Parts 153, 157 and 375
[Docket No. RM05–31–000]
Regulations Implementing Energy
Policy Act of 2005; Pre-Filing
Procedures for Review of LNG
Terminals and Other Natural Gas
Facilities
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
Issued August 26, 2005.
Federal Energy Regulatory
Commission.
ACTION: Notice of proposed rulemaking.
AGENCY:
SUMMARY: The Federal Energy
Regulatory Commission (Commission) is
proposing regulations in accordance
with section 311(d) of the Energy Policy
Act of 2005 (EPAct 2005) to implement
mandatory procedures requiring
prospective applicants to begin the
Commission’s pre-filing review process
at least six months prior to filing an
application for authorization to site and
construct a liquefied natural gas (LNG)
terminal. As proposed, the mandatory
procedures would require that the
prospective applicant submit
information necessary for pre-filing
review of the LNG terminal, as defined
in EPAct 2005, as well as any pipeline
and other natural gas facilities necessary
to transport regasified LNG from an LNG
terminal to existing natural gas pipeline
infrastructure. As required by EPAct
2005, the proposed regulations are
designed to encourage applicants to
cooperate with state and local officials
to address safety considerations. A
prospective applicant also would be
required to comply with the pre-filing
procedures prior to filing an application
to make significant modifications to an
existing LNG terminal likely to involve
state and local safety considerations.
Under the proposed regulations,
prospective applicants could continue
to elect on a voluntary basis to
undertake the pre-filing process prior to
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filing applications for other facilities
subject to the Commission’s jurisdiction
under the Natural Gas Act (NGA).
DATES: Comments on the Notice of
Proposed Rulemaking are due
September 14, 2005.
ADDRESSES: Comments may be filed
electronically via the eFiling link on the
Commission’s Web site at https://
www.ferc.gov. Commenters unable to
file comments electronically must send
an original and 14 copies of their
comments to: Federal Energy Regulatory
Commission, Office of the Secretary,
888 First Street NE., Washington, DC
20426. Refer to the Comment
Procedures section of the preamble for
additional information on how to file
comments.
Richard Hoffmann, Office of Energy
Projects, 888 First Street, NE.,
Washington, DC 20426, (202) 502–8066,
richard.hoffmann@ferc.gov.
John Leiss, Office of Energy Projects,
888 First Street, NE., Washington, DC
20426, (202) 502–8058,
john.leiss@ferc.gov.
Whit Holden, Office of the General
Counsel, Federal Energy Regulatory
Commission, 888 First Street, NE.,
Washington, DC 20426, (202) 502–
8089, edwin.holden@ferc.gov.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
I. Introduction
1. Pursuant to section 311(d) of the
Energy Policy Act of 2005 (EPAct 2005),
the Commission is required, by October
7, 2005, to promulgate regulations
requiring prospective applicants for
authorization to construct liquefied
natural gas (LNG) terminals (as defined
in EPAct 2005) to comply with the
Commission’s pre-filing review process,
beginning at least six months prior to
filing an application. As further
required by EPAct 2005, the proposed
regulations encourage applicants to
cooperate with state and local officials.
2. Prior to any Commission decision
regarding an application for LNG
facilities, the Commission prepares an
environmental assessment (EA) or
environmental impact statement (EIS) to
fulfill the requirements of the National
Environmental Policy Act of 1969
(NEPA), 42 U.S.C. 4321, et seq., and the
Commission’s implementing regulations
under Title 18, Code of Federal
Regulations, Part 380, ‘‘Regulations
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Implementing the National
Environmental Policy Act.’’ The
purpose of the document is to inform
the public and permitting agencies
about the potential adverse and/or
beneficial environmental impacts of
proposed projects and their alternatives.
As with pipeline projects, a thorough
analysis of any substantive issues
relating to LNG facilities is undertaken
during the preparation of an EA or EIS.
The NEPA documents for new LNG
terminals and expansions at existing
sites include a thorough study of
potential impacts to public safety.
3. To date, it has been the
Commission’s policy to encourage early
involvement by the public and
governmental agencies, as contemplated
by NEPA and Council on Environmental
Quality (CEQ) regulations, by promoting
an optional pre-filing process for both
interstate gas pipeline and LNG terminal
projects. Specifically, in the case of LNG
project proposals, pre-filing activity is
one of three distinct phases of activity
that the Commission undertakes in
fulfilling its goal of assuring the safe
operation and system reliability of
proposed and operating jurisdictional
LNG facilities throughout the United
States.1
4. Typically, prior to filing an LNGrelated application, company
representatives meet with Commission
staff to explain the project and solicit
advice. These meetings provide
prospective applicants the opportunity
for Commission staff to offer suggestions
related to environmental, engineering,
and safety features of the proposal. At
this stage, Commission staff reviews
conceptual designs of planned LNG
facilities; provides guidance on
resolving potential environmental,
safety, and design issues; explains the
level of design detail and safety analysis
required for a complete application; and
assists potential applicants in
developing plans for ensuring extensive
public involvement in the application
process. In this manner, Commission
staff learns about future projects which
may be filed at the Commission, helps
companies in their application
preparation, and ensures that the public
is included in the process.
1 The other two phases of a project timeline for
any LNG proposal are pre-decision analysis and
post-decision construction/operation inspection
and monitoring.
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5. Because it is desirable to maximize
early public involvement to promote the
wide-spread dissemination of
information about proposed projects
and to reduce the amount of time
required to issue an EIS or EA once an
application is filed, the Commission’s
Office of Energy Projects (OEP) has
developed guidelines for going beyond
informal discussions into a more formal
pre-filing process. These guidelines
were developed because in certain
respects the collaborative pre-filing
procedures for use by prospective
applicants set forth in section 157.22 of
the Commission’s regulations have
proven to be impracticable.2 Therefore,
the Commission is proposing to
eliminate the collaborative process
procedures of section 157.22 in
conjunction with codification of the prefiling procedures and regulations
proposed in this notice.
6. Under the Commission’s current
guidelines, when a prospective
applicant elects to undertake the
Commission pre-filing process, the
prospective applicant submits a written
request to the Director of OEP for staff
assistance with the pre-filing process
seven to eight months prior to filing an
application. The request: (1) Explains
why the prospective applicant wants to
use the pre-filing process, including
time considerations; (2) lists the Federal
and state agencies in the project area
with relevant permitting requirements,
documents that those agencies are aware
of the prospective applicant’s intention
to use the Commission’s pre-filing
process, provides the Commission with
contact names and phone numbers, and
verifies that the Federal agencies agree
to participate in this process; (3)
identifies other interested persons and
organizations who have been contacted
about the project; (4) details what work
has been done already, i.e., contacting
landowners, agency consultants, project
engineering, and route planning; (5)
states that the prospective applicant will
provide a list of potential third-party
contractors who can prepare the
requisite NEPA document, from which
Commission staff will make a selection;
(6) acknowledges that a complete
Environmental Report and complete
application are still required at the time
of filing; and (7) details a Public
Participation Plan which identifies
specific tools and actions to facilitate
stakeholder communications and public
information, including establishing a
single point of contact. Prospective
applicants are strongly encouraged to
establish a project Web site where
interested persons can go for
2 18
CFR 157.22 (2005).
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information such as copies of
applications to other agencies. Also,
preliminary corridor or route
information maps are highly desirable.3
7. In recent years, Commission staff
has sought to promote use of the prefiling process by prospective applicants
for all major natural gas projects,
including LNG projects. If the
guidelines for requesting the pre-filing
process are satisfied by a prospective
applicant, a written acceptance is issued
by the Director of OEP, and a PF docket
number is assigned.
8. Commission staff’s role in the prefiling process is to work with
stakeholders and the prospective
applicant to ensure that a complete
application is prepared, based on a
thorough exploration of potential issues,
and not to take any position on the
merits of the potential application. Staff
and third-party contractor pre-filing
involvement is designed to encourage
and promote a cooperative pre-filing
process. On a case-by-case basis, this
involvement will include some or all of
the following: (1) Assisting the
prospective applicant in developing
initial information about the proposal
and identifying affected parties
(including landowners and agencies);
(2) issuing a Scoping Notice and
conducting scoping for the proposal; (3)
facilitating issue identification and
resolution; (4) conducting site visits,
examining alternatives, meeting with
agencies and stakeholders, and
participating in the prospective
applicant’s public information meetings;
(5) initiating the preparation of a
preliminary EA or preliminary DEIS,
which may include cooperating agency
review; and (6) reviewing draft resource
reports for the application that is to be
filed with the Commission.
9. When the application for
authorization to construct a pipeline
project or to site an LNG terminal is
filed, the Commission publishes a
notice of the application in the Federal
Register and establishes a deadline for
interested persons to intervene in the
proceeding. Because the pre-filing
3 Section 388.112 of the Commission’s
regulations, 18 CFR 388.112 (2005), sets forth
procedures to be followed by any person submitting
documents containing critical energy infrastructure
information (CEII). These procedures apply only to
submissions of CEII to the Commission. CEII, as
defined in section 388.113 of the regulations,
includes information about proposed or existing
natural gas facilities that could be used by a person
planning an attack on critical energy infrastructure.
The Commission’s procedures in section 388.112
are designed to ensure that CEII is not placed in the
Commission’s public records. The regulations
proposed by this notice would make the procedures
in section 388.112 applicable to submissions by
prospective applicants using the proposed pre-filing
review procedures.
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process occurs before an application to
begin a proceeding is filed, petitions to
intervene during this process are
premature and are not accepted by the
Commission.
10. As noted above, EPAct 2005
requires the Commission implement a
mandatory, rather than elective, prefiling process for review of LNG
terminal facilities prior to a prospective
applicant’s filing of an application for
authorization of such facilities. In this
regard, Congress has directed that the
Commission promulgate regulations
directing that the pre-filing process
commence at least 6 months prior to the
filing of an application and that the
regulations encourage applicants to
cooperate with state and local officials.
To fulfill this mandate, the Commission
is proposing to adopt its existing prefiling process as the mandatory prefiling process for review of LNG
terminal facilities and associated
jurisdictional pipeline facilities. The
Commission’s experience with the
current pre-filing process is that it has
been used with much success since its
introduction several years ago. It is a
process with which the natural gas
industry, governmental entities and the
public are familiar. To the extent that
minor changes will improve the current
process, we can consider them as a
result of the comment process in this
proceeding.
II. Summary of Proposed Regulations
11. As discussed above, the proposed
regulations, in large measure, adopt the
formal pre-filing process that the
Commission currently utilizes when
prospective applicants voluntarily elect
to use the process. First, section 153.2
of the regulations would be amended by
adding the definition of ‘‘LNG terminal’’
set forth in the new section 3A of the
NGA added by section 311(d) of EPAct
2005:
LNG Terminal means all natural gas
facilities located onshore or in State waters
that are used to receive, unload, load, store,
transport, gasify, liquefy, or process natural
gas that is imported to the United States from
a foreign country, exported to a foreign
country from the United States, or
transported in interstate commerce by a
waterborne vessel, but does not include:
(1) Waterborne vessels used to deliver
natural gas to or from any such facility; or
(2) Any pipeline or storage facility subject
to the jurisdiction of the Commission under
section 7 of the Natural Gas Act.
12. A proposed new paragraph (c)
would be added to section 153.6 to state
that no application for an LNG terminal
or associated jurisdictional pipeline
facilities may be made before 180 days
after the date of a notice by the Director
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of OEP announcing commencement of a
prospective applicant’s pre-filing
process under the procedures of
proposed new section 157.21, described
below. A new definition would be
added to section 157.1 to provide that,
for the purposes of section 157.21,
‘‘Director’’ means the Director of the
Commission’s Office of Energy Projects.
13. Proposed new section 157.21
would establish the pre-filing process
for LNG terminal facilities, as well as
other natural gas facilities. The
procedures would be mandatory for any
prospective applicant for authorization
to site, construct and operate facilities
included within the definition of ‘‘LNG
terminal,’’ as defined in proposed
section 153.2(d), and for any associated
jurisdictional pipeline facilities. The
pre-filing procedures also would be
mandatory in cases where the Director
finds that significant modifications to
existing LNG terminal facilities involve
state and local safety considerations. As
discussed below, the pre-filing review
process would remain voluntary for
natural gas facilities not related to LNG
terminals.
14. To initiate the pre-filing review
process under proposed section 157.21,
a prospective applicant for LNG
terminal facilities would be required to
make a filing containing certain
material, as described below, and
concurrently file a Letter of Intent and
a Preliminary Waterway Suitability
Assessment (WSA) with the U. S. Coast
Guard.4
15. Proposed section 157.21(a)(2)
would provide that an application for
LNG terminal facilities and associated
jurisdictional pipeline facilities (1) shall
not be filed until at least 180 days after
the date that the Director issues notice
of the commencement of the prospective
applicant’s pre-filing process, and (2)
shall contain all the information
specified by Commission staff.
16. The information that a prospective
applicant would be required to submit
pursuant to section 157.21(a)(2) would
include draft environmental material in
accordance with the provisions of Part
380 of the regulations implementing the
Commission’s procedures under NEPA.
The requirements in Part 380 of the
Commission’s regulations supplement
the CEQ’s regulations.5 The procedures
in Part 380 essentially follow CEQ
procedures concerning early and
efficient review of environmental issues,
public notice and participation, scoping,
4 Information concerning these documents may be
found in the U. S. Coast Guard Navigation and
Vessel Inspection Circular No. 05–05, dated June
14, 2005.
5 The CEQ’s regulations are set out at 40 CFR
parts 1500 through 1508 (2005).
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interagency cooperation, comments, and
timing of decisions on proposals.
17. The environmental material
required by the Part 380 regulations is
embodied in sections 380.12, 380.13,
380.14 and 380.15 and Appendix A to
Part 380. Section 380.12 describes
resource reports which list, in detail, the
information the Commission needs to
conduct an environmental review of a
proposal under NEPA. It consists of 13
resource reports ranging from a detailed
project description to descriptions of the
existing environment and potential
impacts on environmental resources
such as water use and quality, fish,
wildlife and vegetation, cultural
resources, land use and aesthetics, and
air and noise and, for LNG terminal
facilities, engineering and design
material.
18. Sections 380.13 and 380.14
provide procedures and detailed
descriptions of what the prospective
applicant is expected to do to help the
Commission comply with its obligations
under the Endangered Species Act and
the National Historic Preservation Act.
Section 380.15 identifies best practices
for the prospective applicant to follow
when siting and maintaining facilities.
Appendix A to Part 380 is a checklist of
minimum environmental filing
requirements.
19. Currently, when a prospective
applicant elects to undertake the
Commission’s voluntary pre-filing
procedures, it is required to use or file,
as appropriate, all of the abovedescribed Part 380 materials as it
formulates its project and then files the
application with the Commission. The
proposed procedures would require that
prospective applicants required or
requesting to use the pre-filing process
file draft environmental material in
accordance with the provisions of Part
380 of the regulations implementing the
Commission’s procedures under NEPA,
as described above. This would allow
the Commission to review and make
suggestions on how they could be
improved before the filing of the
application.
20. Proposed section 157.21(a)(3)
would require that a prospective
applicant for LNG terminal facilities and
any associated jurisdictional pipeline
facilities provide any necessary
information for the environmental
review of any pipeline or other natural
gas facilities which are necessary to
transport regasified LNG from the
subject LNG terminal facilities to the
existing natural gas pipeline
infrastructure. Such facilities would
include facilities not subject to the
Commission’s NGA jurisdiction, such as
intrastate pipeline and Hinshaw
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pipeline facilities that will be
interconnected with the LNG terminal.
21. Proposed section 157.21(b) also
states that a prospective applicant
approved to use the pre-filing
procedures for facilities not related to
LNG terminal facilities should not file
an application until at least 180 days
after the date that the Director issues a
notice approving use of the pre-filing
procedures. However, whereas a
prospective applicant for LNG facilities
would be precluded from filing an
application before the 180-day period
has ended, the proposed regulations do
not preclude a prospective applicant for
facilities not related to LNG facilities
from filing an application within 180
days.
22. Any prospective applicant
required to use the pre-filing process for
LNG terminal facilities and related
facilities or any prospective applicant
requesting to use the pre-filing process
for non-LNG related facilities would be
required by proposed section 157.21(c)
to first consult with the Director on the
nature of the project, the content of the
pre-filing request, and the status of the
prospective applicant’s progress toward
obtaining the information required for
the pre-filing request described in
paragraph (d) of this section. This
consultation will also include
discussion of the specifications for the
applicant’s solicitation for prospective
third-party contractors to prepare the
environmental documentation for the
project.
23. Proposed section 157.21(d)
identifies the information that a
prospective applicant’s initial filing to
initiate the pre-filing process must
include. For LNG terminal facilities, the
initial filing must include a description
of the schedule desired for the project,
including the expected application
filing date and the desired date for
Commission approval, and a description
of the zoning and availability of the
proposed site and marine facility
location.
24. For natural gas facilities not
related to LNG terminal facilities,
proposed section 157.21(d) provides
that a prospective applicant’s initial
filing must include an explanation of
why the prospective applicant wants to
use the process, including any critical
timing considerations, the expected
application filing date and the desired
date for Commission approval.
25. Filings by all prospective
applicants to initiate the pre-filing
process would be required by proposed
section 157.21(d) to include:
• A detailed description of the project
that will serve as the initial discussion
point for stakeholder review;
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• A list of the relevant Federal and
state agencies in the project area with
permitting requirements, and a
statement indicating that those agencies
are aware of the prospective applicant’s
intention to use the pre-filing process
(including contact names and telephone
numbers) and whether the agencies
have agreed to participate in the
process;
• A list and description of the interest
of other persons and organizations who
have been contacted about the project
(including contact names and telephone
numbers);
• A description of what work has
already been done, e.g., contacting
stakeholders, agency consultations,
project engineering, route planning,
environmental and engineering
contractor engagement, environmental
surveys/studies, and open houses;
• Proposals for at least three
prospective third-party contractors from
which Commission staff may make a
selection;
• Acknowledgement that a complete
Environmental Report and complete
application are required at the time of
filing; and
• A description of a Public
Participation Plan which identifies
specific tools and actions to facilitate
stakeholder communications and public
information, including a project website
and a single point of contact.
26. Proposed section 157.21(e) states
that the pre-filing process for a
prospective applicant will be deemed to
have commenced on the date the
Director issues a notice setting forth a
finding that the prospective applicant
has adequately addressed the
requirements of paragraphs (a) through
(d) of section 157.21. The date of such
notice shall be used in determining
whether the date an application is filed
is at least 180 days after commencement
of the pre-filing process. Proposed
section 157.21(e) also provides for the
Director to make determinations
whether prospective modifications to an
existing LNG terminal will be
significant modifications involving state
and local safety considerations. Such
prospective modifications to existing
LNG facilities will require that the
prospective applicant undertake the prefiling review process.
27. Existing section 375.308(z)
describes the Director’s delegated
authority with respect to the
collaborative pre-filing procedures in
section 157.22, which this proposed
rule would remove from the regulations
in view of the proposed implementation
of the pre-filing procedures and review
provided for in proposed new section
157.21. Therefore, the Commission is
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proposing to remove the existing text in
paragraph (z) in section 375.208 and
replace it with new text which would
provide for the Director’s issuance of
notices to commence the pre-filing
process under proposed new section
157.21, after the Director has found that
a prospective applicant has adequately
addressed the above-described
requirements. The proposed new text in
section 375.308(z) also provides for the
Director to post guidance on the
Commission’s website to clarify the
procedures and how prospective
applicants can achieve compliance with
the pre-filing process and regulations.
28. Proposed section 157.21(f)
provides that, upon the Director’s
issuance of a notice commencing a
prospective applicant’s pre-filing
process, the prospective applicant must:
• Within seven days 6 and after
consultation with Commission staff,
establish and notify Commission staff of
the dates and locations at which the
prospective applicant will conduct open
houses and meetings with stakeholders
(including agencies) and Commission
staff.
• Within 14 days, conclude the
contract with the selected third-party
contractor.
• Within 14 days, contact all
stakeholders not already informed about
the project.
• Within 30 days, submit a
stakeholder mailing list to Commission
staff.
• Within 30 days, file a draft of
Resource Report 1 in accordance with
§ 380.12(c) and a summary of the
alternatives considered or under
consideration.
• On a monthly basis, file status
reports detailing the applicant’s project
activities including surveys, stakeholder
communications, and agency meetings.
• Be prepared to provide a
description of the proposed project and
to answer questions from the public at
the scoping meetings held by
Commission staff.
• Be prepared to attend site visits and
other stakeholder and agency meetings
arranged by the Commission staff, as
required.
• Within 14 days of the end of the
scoping comment period, respond to
issues raised during scoping.
6 As provided in Rule 2007 of the Commission’s
Rules of Practice and Procedure, 18 CFR 385.2007
(2005), the day on which the Director’s notice is
issued would be excluded in counting days for
purposes of determining the date a filing is due.
Further, if the due date for a filing would fall on
a Saturday, Sunday, holiday, or day on which the
Commission closes early due to adverse conditions,
the following business day becomes the due date.
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• Within 60 days of the end of the
scoping comment period, file draft
Resource Reports 1 through 12.
• At least 60 days prior to filing an
application, file revised draft Resource
Reports, if requested by Commission
staff.
• At least 90 days prior to filing an
application, file draft Resource Report
13 (for LNG terminal facilities).
• Certify that a Follow-on WSA will
be submitted to the U.S. Coast Guard no
later than the filing of an application
with the Commission for LNG terminal
facilities.
29. Proposed section 157.21(g)
provides that Commission staff and
third-party contractor involvement
during the pre-filing process will be
designed to fit each project and will
include some or all of the following:
• Assisting the prospective applicant
in developing initial information about
the proposal and identifying affected
parties (including landowners, agencies,
and other interested parties).
• Issuing an environmental scoping
notice and conducting scoping for the
proposal.
• Facilitating issue identification and
resolution.
• Conducting site visits, examining
alternatives, meeting with agencies and
stakeholders, and participating in the
prospective applicant’s public
information meetings.
• Reviewing draft Resource Reports.
• Initiating the preparation of a
preliminary EA or draft EIS, which may
include cooperating agency review.
30. Paragraph (h) of proposed section
157.21 would provide that a prospective
applicant using the pre-filing
procedures shall comply with the
procedures in section 388.112 of the
regulations for the submission of
documents containing CEII, as defined
in section 388.113 of the regulations.
31. Once an application is accepted
by the Commission, whether the
environmental analysis can proceed will
be highly dependent on how well the
applicant responded to issues raised by
Commission staff and the stakeholders
during the pre-filing process described
above.
III. Environmental Analysis
32. The Commission is required to
prepare an EA or EIS for any action that
may have a significant adverse effect on
the human environment.7 No
environmental consideration is raised
by the promulgation of a rule that is
7 Order No. 486, Regulations Implementing the
National Environmental Policy Act, 52 FR 47897
(Dec. 17, 1987), FERC Stats. & Regs. Preambles
1986–1990 ¶ 30,783 (1987).
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procedural in nature or does not
substantially change the effect of
legislation or regulations being
amended.8
33. The regulations proposed herein
would establish pre-filing review
procedures which are mandatory for
prospective applicants for LNG terminal
and any associated jurisdictional
pipeline facilities and elective for
prospective applicants for natural gas
facilities not related to LNG terminals.
In neither case do the procedures
substantially change the regulatory
requirements to which applications for
such facilities are subject. Rather, the
proposed procedures would result in
certain regulatory requirements being
satisfied prior to the filing of an
application, as opposed to being
satisfied at the time, or after the filing,
of the application. The use of the
procedures generally will affect the
timing of the filing of applications, not
when regulatory requirements are met.
Further, the proposed procedures
implement regulatory changes
mandated by Congress in EPAct 2005
for new LNG terminals.
IV. Regulatory Flexibility Act Statement
34. The Regulatory Flexibility Act of
1980 (RFA) 9 generally requires a
description and analysis of proposed
regulations that will have significant
economic impact on a substantial
number of small entities. The
Commission is not required to make
such an analysis if proposed regulations
would not have such an effect. Under
the industry standards used for
purposes of the RFA, a natural gas
pipeline company qualifies as ‘‘a small
entity’’ if it has annual revenues of $6
million or less.
35. Most companies regulated by the
Commission do not fall within the
RFA’s definition of a small entity.10
Based on the Commission’s experience
using the proposed pre-filing
procedures, they will only be used for
major construction projects. Most, if not
all, LNG-related projects subject to
mandatory pre-filing review would be
projects costing millions of dollars.
Most, if not all, non-LNG related
projects for which prospective
applicants will elect to use the proposed
pre-filing procedures will be projects
costing millions of dollars. Because of
the scale and nature of projects likely to
be reviewed under the pre-filing
procedures, the Commission doubts that
any existing or new company using the
8 18
CFR 380.4(a)(2)(ii) (2005).
U.S.C. 601–612.
10 5 U.S.C. 601(3), citing to section 3 of the Small
Business Act, 15 U.S.C. 623. Section 3 of the Small
95
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pre-filing procedures will be a small
entity under the RFA’s standards.
Accordingly, the Commission hereby
certifies that this notice’s proposed
regulations, if promulgated, will not
have a significant economic impact on
a substantial number of small entities.
V. Information Collection Statement
36. The Office of Management and
Budget (OMB) regulations require that
OMB approve certain reporting, record
keeping, and public disclosure
(collections of information) imposed by
an agency.11 Accordingly, pursuant to
OMB regulations, the Commission is
providing notice of its proposed
information collections to OMB for
review under section 3507(d) of the
Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995.12
37. FERC–539, ‘‘Gas Pipeline
Certificates: Import/Export Related,’’
identifies the Commission’s information
collections relating to Part 153 of its
regulations, which apply to facilities to
import or export natural gas and for
which authorization under section 3 of
the NGA is necessary. If planned import
or export facilities will be LNG terminal
facilities, as defined in proposed section
153.2(d), the facilities will be subject to
the mandatory pre-filing review
required by proposed section 157.21. A
prospective applicant for non-LNG
related import and export facilities may
choose to request approval to undertake
the pre-filing procedures in proposed
section 157.21.
38. FERC–537, ‘‘Gas Pipeline
Certificates: Construction, Acquisition
and Abandonment,’’ identifies the
Commission’s information collections
relating to Part 157 of its regulations,
which apply to natural gas facilities for
which authorization under section 7 of
the NGA is required. Such facilities will
be subject to the mandatory pre-filing
review required by proposed section
157.21 only if they are included within
the definition of LNG terminal facilities,
as defined in proposed section 153.2(d)
or, more likely, are necessary to
transport regasified gas away from LNG
terminal facilities. A prospective
applicant for non-LNG related NGA
section 7 facilities may choose to
request approval to undertake the prefiling procedures in proposed section
157.21.
39. FERC–577, ‘‘Gas Pipeline
Certificates: Environmental Impact
Statement,’’ identifies the Commission’s
information collections relating to Part
380 implementing NEPA requirements
Business Act defines a ‘‘small-business concern’’ as
a business which is independently-owned and
operated and which is not dominant in its field of
operation.
PO 00000
Frm 00005
Fmt 4702
Sfmt 4702
relating to the construction of natural
gas facilities. As proposed herein,
prospective applicants using the prefiling procedures, whether on a
mandatory or voluntary basis, will be
subject to the requirements of Part 380.
40. The Commission’s information
collections relating to this notice’s
proposed pre-filing procedures are
described in this notice. The
Commission has submitted this notice
to OMB for review and clearance of the
notice’s information collection
requirements under emergency
processing procedures.13 OMB approval
has been requested by [INSERT DATE].
41. Comments are solicited on the
Commission’s need for this information,
whether the information will have
practical utility, the accuracy of the
provided burden estimates, ways to
enhance the quality, utility, and clarity
of the information to be collected, and
any suggested methods for minimizing
respondent’s burden, including the use
of automated information techniques.
42. The Commission has been using
its current voluntary pre-filing
procedures for approximately four
years. Thus, the Commission has
experience that it did not have when it
proposed existing section 157.22 of the
regulations, which this proposed rule
would eliminate. Based on this
experience, the Commission believes
that there will be no more than 20
prospective applicants that use the
proposed pre-filing review procedures
on an annual basis. The Commission
anticipates that this number will
include no more than five prospective
applicants for LNG terminal facilities.
During the four years that prospective
applicants have had the option of using
the Commission’s current voluntary prefiling procedures, all but three
prospective applicants for LNG terminal
projects have elected to undertake the
pre-filing procedures. Thus, the
adoption of mandatory pre-filing
procedures for LNG facilities is not
expected to significantly increase the
number of prospective LNG applicants
that use the pre-filing procedures, as
mandated by Congress in EPAct 2005.
43. The burden estimates for
complying with additional filing
requirements of this rule pursuant to the
procedures in proposed new section
157.21 are set forth below. As reflected,
the burden estimates are higher for a
respondent/prospective applicant for
LNG terminal facilities than for a
11 5
CFR 1320.11 (2005).
U.S.C. 3507(d) (2005).
13 5 CFR 1320.13 (2005).
12 44
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Federal Register / Vol. 70, No. 170 / Friday, September 2, 2005 / Proposed Rules
respondent/prospective applicant for
other natural gas facilities.
Number of
respondents
Data collection
Number of
responses
Hours per
response
Total annual
hours
FERC–537 .......................................................................................................
10
1
47
470
FERC–539 .......................................................................................................
FERC–577 .......................................................................................................
10
20
1
1
103
1,402
1,030
28,040
Totals ........................................................................................................
........................
........................
........................
29,540
From these burden estimates must be
subtracted the original data collection
requirements in OMB’s record relating
to section 157.22 which this notice
proposes to remove from the
Commission’s regulations. The numbers
in OMB’s record for section 157.22 are:
FERC–537: 13,230 hours.
FERC–539: 270 hours.
FERC–577: 13,580 hours.
When the burden estimates for
proposed section 157.21 are reduced to
reflect the removal of section 157.22, the
net data collection estimates for this
rule are:
FERC–537: ¥12,760 hours.
FERC–539: 760 hours.
FERC–577: 14,460 hours.
Total: 2,460 hours (net increase).
Total Annual Hours for Collection:
2,460 hours. For LNG terminal facilities
and LNG-related pipeline facilities,
these are mandatory information
collection requirements. For non-LNG
related natural gas facilities, these
information collection requirements are
voluntary but are still subject to OMB
review.
Information Collection Costs: The
Commission seeks comments on the
cost to comply with these requirements.
It has projected the average annualized
cost for all respondents to be $4,920,000
(2,460 hours × $100.00 per hour × 20
respondents).
Title: FERC–537 ‘‘Gas Pipeline
Certificates: Construction, Acquisition
and Abandonment’’; FERC–539, ‘‘Gas
Pipeline Certificates: Import/Export
Related’’; FERC–577, ‘‘Gas Pipeline
Certificates: Environmental Impact
Statement.’’
Action: Proposed Information
Collection.
OMB Control Nos.: 1902–0060 (FERC–
537); 1902–0062 (FERC–539); 1902–
0128 (FERC–577). The applicant shall
not be penalized for failure to respond
to these collections of information
unless the collections of information
display valid OMB control numbers.
Respondents: Business or other for
profit.
Frequency of Responses: One-time
implementation.
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Necessity of Information: On August
8, 2005, Congress enacted EPAct 2005.
Section 311(d) of EPAct 2005 amends
the NGA to insert a new section, section
3A, which requires that the Commission
shall promulgate regulations on the prefiling process for LNG terminals within
60 days from enactment of EPAct 2005.
Congress and the Commission consider
the promulgation of these regulations to
be a matter of critical importance to the
state and local safety concerns regarding
the construction and development of
LNG terminals. The Commission must
issue a final rule by October 7, 2005.
The Commission seeks emergency
processing of this proposed information
collection because the use of normal
clearance procedures is reasonably
likely to cause a statutory deadline to be
missed. The proposed rule revises the
requirements contained in 18 CFR parts
157 and 153 to add a requirement that
applicants for authorization to construct
LNG terminals must comply with a prefiling process and that such process
must commence at least 6 months prior
to the filing of any application with the
Commission for authorization to
construct such facilities.
Internal Review: The Commission has
assured itself, by means of internal
review, that there is specific, objective
support for the burden estimates
associated with the information
requirements. The Commission’s Office
of Energy Projects will review the data
included in the application to determine
whether the proposed facilities are in
the public interest as well as for general
industry oversight. This determination
involves, among other things, an
examination of adequacy of design, cost,
reliability, redundancy, safety and
environmental acceptability of the
proposed facilities. These requirements
conform to the Commission’s plan for
efficient information collection,
communication and management within
the natural gas industry.
44. Interested person may obtain
information on the reporting
requirements by contacting the
following: Federal Energy Regulatory
Commission, 888 First Street, NE.,
PO 00000
Frm 00006
Fmt 4702
Sfmt 4702
Washington, DC 20426 (Attention:
Michael Miller, Office of the Executive
Director, 202–502–8415, fax: 202–273–
0873, e-mail: michael.miller@ferc.gov.
45. For submitting comments
concerning the collection of information
and the associated burden estimate(s)
including suggestions for reducing this
burden, please send your comments to
the contact listed above and to the
Office of Management and Budget,
Room 10202 NEOB, 725 17th Street,
NW., Washington, DC 20503 (Attention:
Desk Officer for the Federal Energy
Regulatory Commission, 202–395–4650,
fax: 202–395–7285).
VI. Public Comment and Expedited
Procedures
46. EPAct 2005 mandates that the
Commission promulgate regulations
implementing the pre-filing process
within 60 days of the date of its
enactment. Therefore, the Commission
intends to promulgate final regulations
by October 7, 2005. To that end, public
comments on this notice are due on
September 14, 2005.
47. The Commission invites interested
persons to submit comments on the
matters and issues proposed in this
notice to be adopted, including any
related matters or alternative proposals
that commenters may wish to discuss.
The Commission will carefully weigh
and consider all public comments
received.
48. Comments must refer to Docket
No. RM05–31 and must include the
commenters’ names, the organization
they represent, if applicable, and their
address. Comments may be filed either
in electronic or paper format.
49. Comments may be filed
electronically via the eFiling link on the
Commission’s Web site at https://
www.ferc.gov. The Commission accepts
most standard word processing formats
and commenters may attach additional
files with supporting information in
certain other file formats. Commenters
filing electronically do not need to make
a paper filing. Commenters that are not
able to file comments electronically
must send an original and 14 copies of
their comments to: Federal Energy
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Regulatory Commission, Office of the
Secretary, 888 First Street NE.,
Washington, DC 20426.
50. All comments will be placed in
the Commission’s public files and may
be viewed, printed, or downloaded
remotely as described in the Document
Availability section below. Commenters
on this proposal are not required to
serve copies of their comments on other
commenters.
amended by E.O. 12038, 3 CFR, 1978 Comp.,
p. 136, DOE Delegation Order No. 0204–112,
49 FR 6684 (February 22, 1984).
In consideration of the foregoing, the
Commission proposes to amend parts
153, 157 and 375 of Chapter I, Title 18,
Code of Federal Regulations, as follows:
5. The authority citation for part 157
continues to read as follows:
PART 153—APPLICATIONS FOR
AUTHORIZATION TO CONSTRUCT,
OPERATE, OR MODIFY FACILITIES
USED FOR THE EXPORT OR IMPORT
OF NATURAL GAS
6. In § 157.1, the introductory text is
designated as paragraph (a), the
definition of Indian tribe is designated
as paragraph (a)(1), the definition of
Resource agency is designated as
paragraph (a)(2), and a paragraph (b) is
added to read as follows:
2. In § 153.2, a new paragraph (d) is
added, to read as follows:
§ 153.2
Definitions.
*
*
*
*
(d) LNG Terminal means all natural
gas facilities located onshore or in state
waters that are used to receive, unload,
load, store, transport, gasify, liquefy, or
VII. Document Availability
process natural gas that is imported to
51. In addition to publishing the full
the United States from a foreign
text of this document in the Federal
country, exported to a foreign country
Register, the Commission provides all
from the United States, or transported in
interested persons an opportunity to
interstate commerce by a waterborne
view and/or print the contents of this
vessel, but does not include:
document via the Internet through
(1) Waterborne vessels used to deliver
FERC’s Home Page (https://www.ferc.gov) natural gas to or from any such facility;
and in FERC’s Public Reference Room
or
during normal business hours (8:30 a.m.
(2) Any pipeline or storage facility
to 5 p.m. Eastern time) at 888 First
subject to the jurisdiction of the
Street, NE., Room 2A, Washington DC
Commission under section 7 of the
20426.
Natural Gas Act.
52. From FERC’s Home Page on the
3. In § 153.6, a new paragraph (c) is
Internet, this information is available in added, to read as follows:
the Commission’s document
§ 153.6 Time of filing.
management system, eLibrary. The full
text of this document is available on
*
*
*
*
*
eLibrary in PDF and Microsoft Word
(c) When a prospective applicant for
format for viewing, printing, and/or
authorization for LNG terminal
downloading. To access this document
facilities, associated jurisdictional
in eLibrary, type the docket number
natural gas facilities or modifications to
excluding the last three digits of this
existing LNG terminal facilities is
document in the docket number field.
required by 18 CFR 157.21(a) to comply
53. User assistance is available for
with that section’s pre-filing procedures,
eLibrary and the FERC’s Web site during no application for such authorization
normal business hours. For assistance,
may be made before 180 days after the
please contact FERC Online Support at
date of issuance of the notice by the
1–866–208–3676 (toll free) or 202–502– Director of the Office of Energy Projects,
6652 (e-mail at
as provided in 18 CFR 157.21(e), of the
FERCOnlineSupport@FERC.gov), or the
commencement of the prospective
Public Reference Room at 202–502–
applicant’s pre-filing process under 18
8371, TTY (202) 502–8659 (e-mail at
CFR 157.21.
public.referenceroom@ferc.gov).
4. Section 153.12 is removed.
List of Subjects in 18 CFR Part 157
PART 157—APPLICATIONS FOR
Administrative practice and
CERTIFICATES OF PUBLIC
procedure; Natural gas; Reporting and
CONVENIENCE AND NECESSITY AND
recordkeeping requirements.
FOR ORDERS PERMITTING AND
APPROVING ABANDONMENT UNDER
By direction of the Commission.
SECTION 7 OF THE NATURAL GAS
Magalie R. Salas,
ACT
Secretary.
1. The authority citation for part 153
continues to read as follows:
Authority: 15 U.S.C. 717b, 717o; E.O.
10485, 3 CFR, 1949–1953 Comp., p. 970, as
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*
Authority: 15 U.S.C. 717–717w; 3301–
3432; 42 U.S.C. 7101–7352.
§ 157.1
*
PO 00000
*
Definitions.
*
Frm 00007
*
Fmt 4702
*
Sfmt 4702
(b) For the purposes of § 157.21 of this
Part, Director means the Director of the
Commission’s Office of Energy Projects.
7. Section 157.21 is added, to read as
follows:
§ 157.21 Pre-filing procedures and review
process for LNG terminal facilities and
other natural gas facilities prior to filing of
applications.
(a) LNG terminal facilities and
associated jurisdictional pipeline
facilities. A prospective applicant for
authorization to site, construct and
operate facilities included within the
definition of ‘‘LNG terminal,’’ as defined
in 18 CFR 153.2(d), and any prospective
applicant for associated jurisdictional
pipeline facilities must comply with
this section’s pre-filing procedures and
review process. These mandatory prefiling procedures also shall apply when
the Director finds in accordance with
paragraph (e)(2) of this section that
prospective modifications to an existing
LNG terminal are significant
modifications that involve state and
local safety considerations.
When a prospective applicant is
required by this paragraph to comply
with this section’s pre-filing procedures:
(1) The prospective applicant must
make a filing containing the material
identified in paragraph (d) of this
section and concurrently file a Letter of
Intent and a Preliminary Waterway
Suitability Assessment (WSA) with the
U.S. Coast Guard. Information
concerning the documents to be filed
with the Coast Guard may be found in
the U.S. Coast Guard Navigation and
Vessel Inspection Circular No. 05–05,
dated June 14, 2005.
(2) An application:
(i) Shall not be filed until at least 180
days after the date that the Director
issues notice pursuant to paragraph (e)
of this section of the commencement of
the prospective applicant’s pre-filing
process; and
(ii) Shall contain all the information
specified by the Commission staff after
reviewing the draft materials filed by
the prospective applicant during the
pre-filing process, including required
environmental material in accordance
with the provisions of Part 380 of this
chapter, ‘‘Regulations Implementing the
National Environmental Policy Act.’’
(3) The prospective applicant must
provide sufficient information for the
pre-filing review of any pipeline or
other natural gas facilities, including
facilities not subject the Commission’s
Natural Gas Act jurisdiction, which are
necessary to transport regasified LNG
from the subject LNG terminal facilities
to the existing natural gas pipeline
infrastructure.
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(b) Other natural gas facilities. When
a prospective applicant for
authorization for natural gas facilities is
not required by paragraph (a) of this
section to comply with this section’s
pre-filing procedures, the prospective
applicant may file a request seeking
approval to use the pre-filing
procedures.
(1) A request to use the pre-filing
procedures must contain the material
identified in paragraph (d) of this
section; and
(2) If a prospective applicant for nonLNG terminal facilities is approved to
use this section’s pre-filing procedures:
(i) The application will normally not
be filed until at least 180 days after the
date that the Director issues notice
pursuant to paragraph (e) of this section
approving the prospective applicant’s
request to use the pre-filing procedures
under this section and commencing the
prospective applicant’s pre-filing
process. However, a prospective
applicant approved by the Director
pursuant to paragraph (e)(2) of this
section to undertake the pre-filing
process is not prohibited from filing an
application at an earlier date, if
necessary; and
(ii) The application shall contain all
the information specified by the
Commission staff after reviewing the
draft materials filed by the prospective
applicant during the pre-filing process,
including required environmental
material in accordance with the
provisions of Part 380 of this chapter,
‘‘Regulations Implementing the National
Environmental Policy Act.’’
(c) Initial consultation. A prospective
applicant required or requesting to use
the pre-filing process must first consult
with the Director on the nature of the
project, the content of the pre-filing
request, and the status of the
prospective applicant’s progress toward
obtaining the information required for
the pre-filing request described in
paragraph (d) of this section. This
consultation will also include
discussion of the specifications for the
applicant’s solicitation for prospective
third-party contractors to prepare the
environmental documentation for the
project.
(d) Contents of the initial filing. A
prospective applicant’s initial filing
pursuant to paragraph (a)(1) of this
section for LNG terminal facilities and
associated jurisdictional pipeline
facilities or paragraph (b)(1) of this
section for other natural gas facilities
shall include the following information:
(1) A description of the schedule
desired for the project including the
expected application filing date and the
desired date for Commission approval.
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(2) For LNG terminal facilities, a
description of the zoning and
availability of the proposed site and
marine facility location.
(3) For natural gas facilities other than
LNG terminal facilities and associated
jurisdictional facilities, an explanation
of why the prospective applicant is
requesting to use the pre-filing process
under this section.
(4) A detailed description of the
project that will serve as the initial
discussion point for stakeholder review.
(5) A list of the relevant federal and
state agencies in the project area with
permitting requirements, and a
statement indicating that those agencies
are aware of the prospective applicant’s
intention to use the pre-filing process
(including contact names and telephone
numbers), and whether the agencies
have agreed to participate in the
process.
(6) A list and description of the
interest of other persons and
organizations who have been contacted
about the project (including contact
names and telephone numbers).
(7) A description of what work has
already been done, e.g., contacting
stakeholders, agency consultations,
project engineering, route planning,
environmental and engineering
contractor engagement, environmental
surveys/studies, and open houses.
(8) Proposals for at least three
prospective third-party contractors from
which Commission staff may make a
selection to assist in the preparation of
the requisite NEPA document.
(9) Acknowledgement that a complete
Environmental Report and complete
application are required at the time of
filing; and
(10) A description of a Public
Participation Plan which identifies
specific tools and actions to facilitate
stakeholder communications and public
information, including a project Web
site and a single point of contact.
(e) Director’s notices.
(1) When the Director finds that a
prospective applicant has adequately
addressed the requirements of
paragraphs (a) through (d) of this
section, the Director shall issue a notice
of such finding. The pre-filing process
shall be deemed to have commenced on
the date of the Director’s notice, and the
date of such notice shall be used in
determining whether the date an
application is filed is at least 180 days
after commencement of the pre-filing
process.
(2) The Director shall issue a notice
making a determination whether
prospective modifications to an existing
LNG terminal shall be subject to this
section’s pre-filing procedures and
PO 00000
Frm 00008
Fmt 4702
Sfmt 4702
52335
review process. If the Direct determines
that the prospective modifications are
significant modifications that involve
state and local safety considerations, the
Director’s notice will state that the prefiling procedures shall apply, and the
pre-filing process shall be deemed to
have commenced on the date of the
Director’s notice in determining
whether the date an application is filed
is at least 180 days after commencement
of the pre-filing process.
(f) Upon the Director’s issuance of a
notice commencing a prospective
applicant’s pre-filing process, the
prospective applicant must:
(1) Within seven days and after
consultation with Commission staff,
establish the dates and locations at
which the prospective applicant will
conduct open houses and meetings with
stakeholders (including agencies) and
Commission staff.
(2) Within 14 days, conclude the
contract with the selected third-party
contractor.
(3) Within 14 days, contact all
stakeholders not already informed about
the project.
(4) Within 30 days, submit a
stakeholder mailing list to Commission
staff.
(5) Within 30 days, file a draft of
Resource Report 1, in accordance with
18 CFR 380.12(c), and a summary of the
alternatives considered or under
consideration.
(6) On a monthly basis, file status
reports detailing the applicant’s project
activities including surveys, stakeholder
communications, and agency meetings.
(7) Be prepared to provide a
description of the proposed project and
to answer questions from the public at
the scoping meetings held by OEP staff.
(8) Be prepared to attend site visits
and other stakeholder and agency
meetings arranged by the Commission
staff, as required.
(9) Within 14 days of the end of the
scoping comment period, respond to
issues raised during scoping.
(10) Within 60 days of the end of the
scoping comment period, file draft
Resource Reports 1 through 12.
(11) At least 60 days prior to filing an
application, file revised draft Resource
Reports 1 through 12, if requested by
Commission staff.
(12) At least 90 days prior to filing an
application, file draft Resource Report
13 (for LNG terminal facilities).
(13) Certify that a Follow-on WSA
will be submitted to the U. S. Coast
Guard no later than the filing of an
application with the Commission (for
LNG terminal facilities).
(g) Commission staff and third-party
contractor involvement during the pre-
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filing process will be designed to fit
each project and will include some or
all of the following:
(1) Assisting the prospective applicant
in developing initial information about
the proposal and identifying affected
parties (including landowners, agencies,
and other interested parties).
(2) Issuing an environmental scoping
notice and conducting such scoping for
the proposal.
(3) Facilitating issue identification
and resolution.
(4) Conducting site visits, examining
alternatives, meeting with agencies and
stakeholders, and participating in the
prospective applicant’s public
information meetings.
(5) Reviewing draft Resource Reports.
(6) Initiating the preparation of a
preliminary Environmental Assessment
or Draft Environmental Impact
Statement, the preparation of which
may involve cooperating agency review.
(h) A prospective applicant using the
pre-filing procedures of this section
shall comply with the procedures in 18
CFR 388.112 for the submission of
documents containing critical energy
infrastructure information, as defined in
18 CFR 388.113.
§ 157.22
[Removed]
8. Section 157.22 is removed.
PART 375—THE COMMISSION
8a. The authority citation for part 375
continues to read as follows:
Authority: 5 U.S.C. 551–557; 15 U.S.C.
717–717w, 3301–3432; 16 U.S.C. 791–825r,
2601–2645; 42 U.S.C. 7101–7352.
9. In § 375.308, paragraph (z) is
revised to read as follows:
§ 375.308 Delegations to the Director of
the Office of Energy Projects.
*
*
*
*
*
(z) Approve, on a case-specific basis,
and make such decisions and issue
guidance as may be necessary in
connection with the use of the pre-filing
procedures in 18 CFR 157.21, ‘‘Pre-filing
procedures and review process for LNG
terminal facilities and other natural gas
facilities prior to filing of applications.’’
[FR Doc. 05–17480 Filed 9–1–05; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6717–01–P
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DEPARTMENT OF HOMELAND
SECURITY
Customs and Border Protection
19 CFR Part 101
feddocket, including any personal
information provided.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
Dennis Dore, Office of Field Operations,
202–344–2776.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
[DHS–2005–0057]
Background
Establishment of New Port of Entry at
Sacramento, CA; Realignment of the
Port Limits of the Port of Entry at San
Francisco, CA
As part of its continuing efforts to
provide better service to carriers,
importers, and the general public, the
Department of Homeland Security
(DHS), Bureau of Customs and Border
Protection (CBP), is proposing to
establish a new port of entry at
Sacramento, California.
The new port of entry would include
all the territory within the following
areas: (i) The corporate limits of
Sacramento, including the adjacent
territory comprised of McClellan
Airport in Sacramento County; (ii) all
territory on the San Joaquin River in
Contra Costa and San Joaquin Counties,
to and including Stockton; (iii) from
Sacramento, southwest along U.S.
Interstate 80, east along Airbase
Parkway, to and including the territory
comprising Travis Air Force Base; (iv)
all points on the Sacramento River in
Solano, Yolo and Sacramento Counties,
from the junction of the Sacramento
River with the San Joaquin River in
Sacramento County, to and including
Sacramento, California; and (v) all
points on the Sacramento River Deep
Water Ship Channel in Solano, Yolo and
Sacramento Counties, (a) from and
including, the junction of Cache Slough
with the Sacramento River, to and
including Sacramento; and (b) from
Sacramento northwest along Interstate 5
to Airport Boulevard, north along
Airport Boulevard, to and including the
territory comprising the Sacramento
International Airport in Sacramento
County. All of the territory included in
the new port of Sacramento is located
within the State of California.
Sacramento International Airport
currently is a user fee airport. User fee
airports do not qualify for designation
by CBP as international airports (which
are a specific type of CBP port of entry)
based on the volume of their business,
but are approved by the Commissioner
of CBP to receive the services of CBP
officers for the processing of aircraft
entering the United States and their
passengers and cargo. Unlike the
situation at an international airport, the
availability of customs services at a user
fee airport is not paid for out of
appropriations from the general treasury
of the United States. Instead, customs
services are provided on a fully
reimbursable basis to be paid for by the
airport on behalf of the recipients of the
AGENCY:
Customs and Border Protection,
DHS.
ACTION:
Notice of proposed rulemaking.
SUMMARY: This rule proposes to amend
the Department of Homeland Security
regulations pertaining to the field
organization of the Bureau of Customs
and Border Protection by establishing a
new port of entry at Sacramento,
California, and terminating the user fee
status of Sacramento International
Airport. In order to accommodate this
new port of entry, this rule proposes to
realign the port boundaries of the port
of entry at San Francisco, California
since these boundaries currently
encompass an area that is to be included
within the new port of Sacramento. This
change is part of the Bureau of Customs
and Border Protection’s continuing
program to utilize more efficiently its
personnel, facilities, and resources to
provide better service to carriers,
importers, and the general public.
DATES: Comments must be received on
or before November 1, 2005.
ADDRESSES: Comments, identified by
docket number DHS–2005–0057, may be
submitted by one of the following
methods:
EPA Federal Partner EDOCKET Web
Site: https://www.epa.gov/feddocket.
Follow instructions for submitting
comments on the Web site.
Federal eRulemaking Portal: https://
www.regulations.gov. Follow the
instructions for submitting comments.
Mail: Comments by mail are to be
addressed to the Bureau of Customs and
Border Protection, Office of Regulations
and Rulings, Regulations Branch, 1300
Pennsylvania Avenue, NW. (Mint
Annex), Washington, DC 20229.
Submitted comments by mail may be
inspected at the Bureau of Customs and
Border Protection, 799 9th Street, NW.,
Washington, DC. To inspect comments,
please call (202) 572–8768 to arrange for
an appointment.
Instructions: All submissions received
must include the agency name and
docket number for this rulemaking. All
comments received will be posted
without change to https://www.epa.gov/
PO 00000
Frm 00009
Fmt 4702
Sfmt 4702
E:\FR\FM\02SEP1.SGM
02SEP1
]]>Agencies
[Federal Register Volume 70, Number 170 (Friday, September 2, 2005)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Pages 52328-52336]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 05-17480]
========================================================================
Proposed Rules
Federal Register
________________________________________________________________________
This section of the FEDERAL REGISTER contains notices to the public of
the proposed issuance of rules and regulations. The purpose of these
notices is to give interested persons an opportunity to participate in
the rule making prior to the adoption of the final rules.
========================================================================
Federal Register / Vol. 70, No. 170 / Friday, September 2, 2005 /
Proposed Rules
[[Page 52328]]
DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY
Federal Energy Regulatory Commission
18 CFR Parts 153, 157 and 375
[Docket No. RM05-31-000]
Regulations Implementing Energy Policy Act of 2005; Pre-Filing
Procedures for Review of LNG Terminals and Other Natural Gas Facilities
Issued August 26, 2005.
AGENCY: Federal Energy Regulatory Commission.
ACTION: Notice of proposed rulemaking.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
SUMMARY: The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (Commission) is
proposing regulations in accordance with section 311(d) of the Energy
Policy Act of 2005 (EPAct 2005) to implement mandatory procedures
requiring prospective applicants to begin the Commission's pre-filing
review process at least six months prior to filing an application for
authorization to site and construct a liquefied natural gas (LNG)
terminal. As proposed, the mandatory procedures would require that the
prospective applicant submit information necessary for pre-filing
review of the LNG terminal, as defined in EPAct 2005, as well as any
pipeline and other natural gas facilities necessary to transport
regasified LNG from an LNG terminal to existing natural gas pipeline
infrastructure. As required by EPAct 2005, the proposed regulations are
designed to encourage applicants to cooperate with state and local
officials to address safety considerations. A prospective applicant
also would be required to comply with the pre-filing procedures prior
to filing an application to make significant modifications to an
existing LNG terminal likely to involve state and local safety
considerations. Under the proposed regulations, prospective applicants
could continue to elect on a voluntary basis to undertake the pre-
filing process prior to filing applications for other facilities
subject to the Commission's jurisdiction under the Natural Gas Act
(NGA).
DATES: Comments on the Notice of Proposed Rulemaking are due September
14, 2005.
ADDRESSES: Comments may be filed electronically via the eFiling link on
the Commission's Web site at https://www.ferc.gov. Commenters unable to
file comments electronically must send an original and 14 copies of
their comments to: Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, Office of the
Secretary, 888 First Street NE., Washington, DC 20426. Refer to the
Comment Procedures section of the preamble for additional information
on how to file comments.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Richard Hoffmann, Office of Energy
Projects, 888 First Street, NE., Washington, DC 20426, (202) 502-8066,
richard.hoffmann@ferc.gov.
John Leiss, Office of Energy Projects, 888 First Street, NE.,
Washington, DC 20426, (202) 502-8058, john.leiss@ferc.gov.
Whit Holden, Office of the General Counsel, Federal Energy Regulatory
Commission, 888 First Street, NE., Washington, DC 20426, (202) 502-
8089, edwin.holden@ferc.gov.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
I. Introduction
1. Pursuant to section 311(d) of the Energy Policy Act of 2005
(EPAct 2005), the Commission is required, by October 7, 2005, to
promulgate regulations requiring prospective applicants for
authorization to construct liquefied natural gas (LNG) terminals (as
defined in EPAct 2005) to comply with the Commission's pre-filing
review process, beginning at least six months prior to filing an
application. As further required by EPAct 2005, the proposed
regulations encourage applicants to cooperate with state and local
officials.
2. Prior to any Commission decision regarding an application for
LNG facilities, the Commission prepares an environmental assessment
(EA) or environmental impact statement (EIS) to fulfill the
requirements of the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 (NEPA),
42 U.S.C. 4321, et seq., and the Commission's implementing regulations
under Title 18, Code of Federal Regulations, Part 380, ``Regulations
Implementing the National Environmental Policy Act.'' The purpose of
the document is to inform the public and permitting agencies about the
potential adverse and/or beneficial environmental impacts of proposed
projects and their alternatives. As with pipeline projects, a thorough
analysis of any substantive issues relating to LNG facilities is
undertaken during the preparation of an EA or EIS. The NEPA documents
for new LNG terminals and expansions at existing sites include a
thorough study of potential impacts to public safety.
3. To date, it has been the Commission's policy to encourage early
involvement by the public and governmental agencies, as contemplated by
NEPA and Council on Environmental Quality (CEQ) regulations, by
promoting an optional pre-filing process for both interstate gas
pipeline and LNG terminal projects. Specifically, in the case of LNG
project proposals, pre-filing activity is one of three distinct phases
of activity that the Commission undertakes in fulfilling its goal of
assuring the safe operation and system reliability of proposed and
operating jurisdictional LNG facilities throughout the United
States.\1\
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\1\ The other two phases of a project timeline for any LNG
proposal are pre-decision analysis and post-decision construction/
operation inspection and monitoring.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
4. Typically, prior to filing an LNG-related application, company
representatives meet with Commission staff to explain the project and
solicit advice. These meetings provide prospective applicants the
opportunity for Commission staff to offer suggestions related to
environmental, engineering, and safety features of the proposal. At
this stage, Commission staff reviews conceptual designs of planned LNG
facilities; provides guidance on resolving potential environmental,
safety, and design issues; explains the level of design detail and
safety analysis required for a complete application; and assists
potential applicants in developing plans for ensuring extensive public
involvement in the application process. In this manner, Commission
staff learns about future projects which may be filed at the
Commission, helps companies in their application preparation, and
ensures that the public is included in the process.
[[Page 52329]]
5. Because it is desirable to maximize early public involvement to
promote the wide-spread dissemination of information about proposed
projects and to reduce the amount of time required to issue an EIS or
EA once an application is filed, the Commission's Office of Energy
Projects (OEP) has developed guidelines for going beyond informal
discussions into a more formal pre-filing process. These guidelines
were developed because in certain respects the collaborative pre-filing
procedures for use by prospective applicants set forth in section
157.22 of the Commission's regulations have proven to be
impracticable.\2\ Therefore, the Commission is proposing to eliminate
the collaborative process procedures of section 157.22 in conjunction
with codification of the pre-filing procedures and regulations proposed
in this notice.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\2\ 18 CFR 157.22 (2005).
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
6. Under the Commission's current guidelines, when a prospective
applicant elects to undertake the Commission pre-filing process, the
prospective applicant submits a written request to the Director of OEP
for staff assistance with the pre-filing process seven to eight months
prior to filing an application. The request: (1) Explains why the
prospective applicant wants to use the pre-filing process, including
time considerations; (2) lists the Federal and state agencies in the
project area with relevant permitting requirements, documents that
those agencies are aware of the prospective applicant's intention to
use the Commission's pre-filing process, provides the Commission with
contact names and phone numbers, and verifies that the Federal agencies
agree to participate in this process; (3) identifies other interested
persons and organizations who have been contacted about the project;
(4) details what work has been done already, i.e., contacting
landowners, agency consultants, project engineering, and route
planning; (5) states that the prospective applicant will provide a list
of potential third-party contractors who can prepare the requisite NEPA
document, from which Commission staff will make a selection; (6)
acknowledges that a complete Environmental Report and complete
application are still required at the time of filing; and (7) details a
Public Participation Plan which identifies specific tools and actions
to facilitate stakeholder communications and public information,
including establishing a single point of contact. Prospective
applicants are strongly encouraged to establish a project Web site
where interested persons can go for information such as copies of
applications to other agencies. Also, preliminary corridor or route
information maps are highly desirable.\3\
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\3\ Section 388.112 of the Commission's regulations, 18 CFR
388.112 (2005), sets forth procedures to be followed by any person
submitting documents containing critical energy infrastructure
information (CEII). These procedures apply only to submissions of
CEII to the Commission. CEII, as defined in section 388.113 of the
regulations, includes information about proposed or existing natural
gas facilities that could be used by a person planning an attack on
critical energy infrastructure. The Commission's procedures in
section 388.112 are designed to ensure that CEII is not placed in
the Commission's public records. The regulations proposed by this
notice would make the procedures in section 388.112 applicable to
submissions by prospective applicants using the proposed pre-filing
review procedures.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
7. In recent years, Commission staff has sought to promote use of
the pre-filing process by prospective applicants for all major natural
gas projects, including LNG projects. If the guidelines for requesting
the pre-filing process are satisfied by a prospective applicant, a
written acceptance is issued by the Director of OEP, and a PF docket
number is assigned.
8. Commission staff's role in the pre-filing process is to work
with stakeholders and the prospective applicant to ensure that a
complete application is prepared, based on a thorough exploration of
potential issues, and not to take any position on the merits of the
potential application. Staff and third-party contractor pre-filing
involvement is designed to encourage and promote a cooperative pre-
filing process. On a case-by-case basis, this involvement will include
some or all of the following: (1) Assisting the prospective applicant
in developing initial information about the proposal and identifying
affected parties (including landowners and agencies); (2) issuing a
Scoping Notice and conducting scoping for the proposal; (3)
facilitating issue identification and resolution; (4) conducting site
visits, examining alternatives, meeting with agencies and stakeholders,
and participating in the prospective applicant's public information
meetings; (5) initiating the preparation of a preliminary EA or
preliminary DEIS, which may include cooperating agency review; and (6)
reviewing draft resource reports for the application that is to be
filed with the Commission.
9. When the application for authorization to construct a pipeline
project or to site an LNG terminal is filed, the Commission publishes a
notice of the application in the Federal Register and establishes a
deadline for interested persons to intervene in the proceeding. Because
the pre-filing process occurs before an application to begin a
proceeding is filed, petitions to intervene during this process are
premature and are not accepted by the Commission.
10. As noted above, EPAct 2005 requires the Commission implement a
mandatory, rather than elective, pre-filing process for review of LNG
terminal facilities prior to a prospective applicant's filing of an
application for authorization of such facilities. In this regard,
Congress has directed that the Commission promulgate regulations
directing that the pre-filing process commence at least 6 months prior
to the filing of an application and that the regulations encourage
applicants to cooperate with state and local officials. To fulfill this
mandate, the Commission is proposing to adopt its existing pre-filing
process as the mandatory pre-filing process for review of LNG terminal
facilities and associated jurisdictional pipeline facilities. The
Commission's experience with the current pre-filing process is that it
has been used with much success since its introduction several years
ago. It is a process with which the natural gas industry, governmental
entities and the public are familiar. To the extent that minor changes
will improve the current process, we can consider them as a result of
the comment process in this proceeding.
II. Summary of Proposed Regulations
11. As discussed above, the proposed regulations, in large measure,
adopt the formal pre-filing process that the Commission currently
utilizes when prospective applicants voluntarily elect to use the
process. First, section 153.2 of the regulations would be amended by
adding the definition of ``LNG terminal'' set forth in the new section
3A of the NGA added by section 311(d) of EPAct 2005:
LNG Terminal means all natural gas facilities located onshore or
in State waters that are used to receive, unload, load, store,
transport, gasify, liquefy, or process natural gas that is imported
to the United States from a foreign country, exported to a foreign
country from the United States, or transported in interstate
commerce by a waterborne vessel, but does not include:
(1) Waterborne vessels used to deliver natural gas to or from
any such facility; or
(2) Any pipeline or storage facility subject to the jurisdiction
of the Commission under section 7 of the Natural Gas Act.
12. A proposed new paragraph (c) would be added to section 153.6 to
state that no application for an LNG terminal or associated
jurisdictional pipeline facilities may be made before 180 days after
the date of a notice by the Director
[[Page 52330]]
of OEP announcing commencement of a prospective applicant's pre-filing
process under the procedures of proposed new section 157.21, described
below. A new definition would be added to section 157.1 to provide
that, for the purposes of section 157.21, ``Director'' means the
Director of the Commission's Office of Energy Projects.
13. Proposed new section 157.21 would establish the pre-filing
process for LNG terminal facilities, as well as other natural gas
facilities. The procedures would be mandatory for any prospective
applicant for authorization to site, construct and operate facilities
included within the definition of ``LNG terminal,'' as defined in
proposed section 153.2(d), and for any associated jurisdictional
pipeline facilities. The pre-filing procedures also would be mandatory
in cases where the Director finds that significant modifications to
existing LNG terminal facilities involve state and local safety
considerations. As discussed below, the pre-filing review process would
remain voluntary for natural gas facilities not related to LNG
terminals.
14. To initiate the pre-filing review process under proposed
section 157.21, a prospective applicant for LNG terminal facilities
would be required to make a filing containing certain material, as
described below, and concurrently file a Letter of Intent and a
Preliminary Waterway Suitability Assessment (WSA) with the U. S. Coast
Guard.\4\
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\4\ Information concerning these documents may be found in the
U. S. Coast Guard Navigation and Vessel Inspection Circular No. 05-
05, dated June 14, 2005.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
15. Proposed section 157.21(a)(2) would provide that an application
for LNG terminal facilities and associated jurisdictional pipeline
facilities (1) shall not be filed until at least 180 days after the
date that the Director issues notice of the commencement of the
prospective applicant's pre-filing process, and (2) shall contain all
the information specified by Commission staff.
16. The information that a prospective applicant would be required
to submit pursuant to section 157.21(a)(2) would include draft
environmental material in accordance with the provisions of Part 380 of
the regulations implementing the Commission's procedures under NEPA.
The requirements in Part 380 of the Commission's regulations supplement
the CEQ's regulations.\5\ The procedures in Part 380 essentially follow
CEQ procedures concerning early and efficient review of environmental
issues, public notice and participation, scoping, interagency
cooperation, comments, and timing of decisions on proposals.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\5\ The CEQ's regulations are set out at 40 CFR parts 1500
through 1508 (2005).
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
17. The environmental material required by the Part 380 regulations
is embodied in sections 380.12, 380.13, 380.14 and 380.15 and Appendix
A to Part 380. Section 380.12 describes resource reports which list, in
detail, the information the Commission needs to conduct an
environmental review of a proposal under NEPA. It consists of 13
resource reports ranging from a detailed project description to
descriptions of the existing environment and potential impacts on
environmental resources such as water use and quality, fish, wildlife
and vegetation, cultural resources, land use and aesthetics, and air
and noise and, for LNG terminal facilities, engineering and design
material.
18. Sections 380.13 and 380.14 provide procedures and detailed
descriptions of what the prospective applicant is expected to do to
help the Commission comply with its obligations under the Endangered
Species Act and the National Historic Preservation Act. Section 380.15
identifies best practices for the prospective applicant to follow when
siting and maintaining facilities. Appendix A to Part 380 is a
checklist of minimum environmental filing requirements.
19. Currently, when a prospective applicant elects to undertake the
Commission's voluntary pre-filing procedures, it is required to use or
file, as appropriate, all of the above-described Part 380 materials as
it formulates its project and then files the application with the
Commission. The proposed procedures would require that prospective
applicants required or requesting to use the pre-filing process file
draft environmental material in accordance with the provisions of Part
380 of the regulations implementing the Commission's procedures under
NEPA, as described above. This would allow the Commission to review and
make suggestions on how they could be improved before the filing of the
application.
20. Proposed section 157.21(a)(3) would require that a prospective
applicant for LNG terminal facilities and any associated jurisdictional
pipeline facilities provide any necessary information for the
environmental review of any pipeline or other natural gas facilities
which are necessary to transport regasified LNG from the subject LNG
terminal facilities to the existing natural gas pipeline
infrastructure. Such facilities would include facilities not subject to
the Commission's NGA jurisdiction, such as intrastate pipeline and
Hinshaw pipeline facilities that will be interconnected with the LNG
terminal.
21. Proposed section 157.21(b) also states that a prospective
applicant approved to use the pre-filing procedures for facilities not
related to LNG terminal facilities should not file an application until
at least 180 days after the date that the Director issues a notice
approving use of the pre-filing procedures. However, whereas a
prospective applicant for LNG facilities would be precluded from filing
an application before the 180-day period has ended, the proposed
regulations do not preclude a prospective applicant for facilities not
related to LNG facilities from filing an application within 180 days.
22. Any prospective applicant required to use the pre-filing
process for LNG terminal facilities and related facilities or any
prospective applicant requesting to use the pre-filing process for non-
LNG related facilities would be required by proposed section 157.21(c)
to first consult with the Director on the nature of the project, the
content of the pre-filing request, and the status of the prospective
applicant's progress toward obtaining the information required for the
pre-filing request described in paragraph (d) of this section. This
consultation will also include discussion of the specifications for the
applicant's solicitation for prospective third-party contractors to
prepare the environmental documentation for the project.
23. Proposed section 157.21(d) identifies the information that a
prospective applicant's initial filing to initiate the pre-filing
process must include. For LNG terminal facilities, the initial filing
must include a description of the schedule desired for the project,
including the expected application filing date and the desired date for
Commission approval, and a description of the zoning and availability
of the proposed site and marine facility location.
24. For natural gas facilities not related to LNG terminal
facilities, proposed section 157.21(d) provides that a prospective
applicant's initial filing must include an explanation of why the
prospective applicant wants to use the process, including any critical
timing considerations, the expected application filing date and the
desired date for Commission approval.
25. Filings by all prospective applicants to initiate the pre-
filing process would be required by proposed section 157.21(d) to
include:
A detailed description of the project that will serve as
the initial discussion point for stakeholder review;
[[Page 52331]]
A list of the relevant Federal and state agencies in the
project area with permitting requirements, and a statement indicating
that those agencies are aware of the prospective applicant's intention
to use the pre-filing process (including contact names and telephone
numbers) and whether the agencies have agreed to participate in the
process;
A list and description of the interest of other persons
and organizations who have been contacted about the project (including
contact names and telephone numbers);
A description of what work has already been done, e.g.,
contacting stakeholders, agency consultations, project engineering,
route planning, environmental and engineering contractor engagement,
environmental surveys/studies, and open houses;
Proposals for at least three prospective third-party
contractors from which Commission staff may make a selection;
Acknowledgement that a complete Environmental Report and
complete application are required at the time of filing; and
A description of a Public Participation Plan which
identifies specific tools and actions to facilitate stakeholder
communications and public information, including a project website and
a single point of contact.
26. Proposed section 157.21(e) states that the pre-filing process
for a prospective applicant will be deemed to have commenced on the
date the Director issues a notice setting forth a finding that the
prospective applicant has adequately addressed the requirements of
paragraphs (a) through (d) of section 157.21. The date of such notice
shall be used in determining whether the date an application is filed
is at least 180 days after commencement of the pre-filing process.
Proposed section 157.21(e) also provides for the Director to make
determinations whether prospective modifications to an existing LNG
terminal will be significant modifications involving state and local
safety considerations. Such prospective modifications to existing LNG
facilities will require that the prospective applicant undertake the
pre-filing review process.
27. Existing section 375.308(z) describes the Director's delegated
authority with respect to the collaborative pre-filing procedures in
section 157.22, which this proposed rule would remove from the
regulations in view of the proposed implementation of the pre-filing
procedures and review provided for in proposed new section 157.21.
Therefore, the Commission is proposing to remove the existing text in
paragraph (z) in section 375.208 and replace it with new text which
would provide for the Director's issuance of notices to commence the
pre-filing process under proposed new section 157.21, after the
Director has found that a prospective applicant has adequately
addressed the above-described requirements. The proposed new text in
section 375.308(z) also provides for the Director to post guidance on
the Commission's website to clarify the procedures and how prospective
applicants can achieve compliance with the pre-filing process and
regulations.
28. Proposed section 157.21(f) provides that, upon the Director's
issuance of a notice commencing a prospective applicant's pre-filing
process, the prospective applicant must:
Within seven days \6\ and after consultation with
Commission staff, establish and notify Commission staff of the dates
and locations at which the prospective applicant will conduct open
houses and meetings with stakeholders (including agencies) and
Commission staff.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\6\ As provided in Rule 2007 of the Commission's Rules of
Practice and Procedure, 18 CFR 385.2007 (2005), the day on which the
Director's notice is issued would be excluded in counting days for
purposes of determining the date a filing is due. Further, if the
due date for a filing would fall on a Saturday, Sunday, holiday, or
day on which the Commission closes early due to adverse conditions,
the following business day becomes the due date.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
Within 14 days, conclude the contract with the selected
third-party contractor.
Within 14 days, contact all stakeholders not already
informed about the project.
Within 30 days, submit a stakeholder mailing list to
Commission staff.
Within 30 days, file a draft of Resource Report 1 in
accordance with Sec. 380.12(c) and a summary of the alternatives
considered or under consideration.
On a monthly basis, file status reports detailing the
applicant's project activities including surveys, stakeholder
communications, and agency meetings.
Be prepared to provide a description of the proposed
project and to answer questions from the public at the scoping meetings
held by Commission staff.
Be prepared to attend site visits and other stakeholder
and agency meetings arranged by the Commission staff, as required.
Within 14 days of the end of the scoping comment period,
respond to issues raised during scoping.
Within 60 days of the end of the scoping comment period,
file draft Resource Reports 1 through 12.
At least 60 days prior to filing an application, file
revised draft Resource Reports, if requested by Commission staff.
At least 90 days prior to filing an application, file
draft Resource Report 13 (for LNG terminal facilities).
Certify that a Follow-on WSA will be submitted to the U.S.
Coast Guard no later than the filing of an application with the
Commission for LNG terminal facilities.
29. Proposed section 157.21(g) provides that Commission staff and
third-party contractor involvement during the pre-filing process will
be designed to fit each project and will include some or all of the
following:
Assisting the prospective applicant in developing initial
information about the proposal and identifying affected parties
(including landowners, agencies, and other interested parties).
Issuing an environmental scoping notice and conducting
scoping for the proposal.
Facilitating issue identification and resolution.
Conducting site visits, examining alternatives, meeting
with agencies and stakeholders, and participating in the prospective
applicant's public information meetings.
Reviewing draft Resource Reports.
Initiating the preparation of a preliminary EA or draft
EIS, which may include cooperating agency review.
30. Paragraph (h) of proposed section 157.21 would provide that a
prospective applicant using the pre-filing procedures shall comply with
the procedures in section 388.112 of the regulations for the submission
of documents containing CEII, as defined in section 388.113 of the
regulations.
31. Once an application is accepted by the Commission, whether the
environmental analysis can proceed will be highly dependent on how well
the applicant responded to issues raised by Commission staff and the
stakeholders during the pre-filing process described above.
III. Environmental Analysis
32. The Commission is required to prepare an EA or EIS for any
action that may have a significant adverse effect on the human
environment.\7\ No environmental consideration is raised by the
promulgation of a rule that is
[[Page 52332]]
procedural in nature or does not substantially change the effect of
legislation or regulations being amended.\8\
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\7\ Order No. 486, Regulations Implementing the National
Environmental Policy Act, 52 FR 47897 (Dec. 17, 1987), FERC Stats. &
Regs. Preambles 1986-1990 ] 30,783 (1987).
\8\ 18 CFR 380.4(a)(2)(ii) (2005).
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
33. The regulations proposed herein would establish pre-filing
review procedures which are mandatory for prospective applicants for
LNG terminal and any associated jurisdictional pipeline facilities and
elective for prospective applicants for natural gas facilities not
related to LNG terminals. In neither case do the procedures
substantially change the regulatory requirements to which applications
for such facilities are subject. Rather, the proposed procedures would
result in certain regulatory requirements being satisfied prior to the
filing of an application, as opposed to being satisfied at the time, or
after the filing, of the application. The use of the procedures
generally will affect the timing of the filing of applications, not
when regulatory requirements are met. Further, the proposed procedures
implement regulatory changes mandated by Congress in EPAct 2005 for new
LNG terminals.
IV. Regulatory Flexibility Act Statement
34. The Regulatory Flexibility Act of 1980 (RFA) \9\ generally
requires a description and analysis of proposed regulations that will
have significant economic impact on a substantial number of small
entities. The Commission is not required to make such an analysis if
proposed regulations would not have such an effect. Under the industry
standards used for purposes of the RFA, a natural gas pipeline company
qualifies as ``a small entity'' if it has annual revenues of $6 million
or less.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\9\ 5 U.S.C. 601-612.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
35. Most companies regulated by the Commission do not fall within
the RFA's definition of a small entity.\10\ Based on the Commission's
experience using the proposed pre-filing procedures, they will only be
used for major construction projects. Most, if not all, LNG-related
projects subject to mandatory pre-filing review would be projects
costing millions of dollars. Most, if not all, non-LNG related projects
for which prospective applicants will elect to use the proposed pre-
filing procedures will be projects costing millions of dollars. Because
of the scale and nature of projects likely to be reviewed under the
pre-filing procedures, the Commission doubts that any existing or new
company using the pre-filing procedures will be a small entity under
the RFA's standards. Accordingly, the Commission hereby certifies that
this notice's proposed regulations, if promulgated, will not have a
significant economic impact on a substantial number of small entities.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\10\ 5 U.S.C. 601(3), citing to section 3 of the Small Business
Act, 15 U.S.C. 623. Section 3 of the Small Business Act defines a
``small-business concern'' as a business which is independently-
owned and operated and which is not dominant in its field of
operation.
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V. Information Collection Statement
36. The Office of Management and Budget (OMB) regulations require
that OMB approve certain reporting, record keeping, and public
disclosure (collections of information) imposed by an agency.\11\
Accordingly, pursuant to OMB regulations, the Commission is providing
notice of its proposed information collections to OMB for review under
section 3507(d) of the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995.\12\
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\11\ 5 CFR 1320.11 (2005).
\12\ 44 U.S.C. 3507(d) (2005).
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
37. FERC-539, ``Gas Pipeline Certificates: Import/Export Related,''
identifies the Commission's information collections relating to Part
153 of its regulations, which apply to facilities to import or export
natural gas and for which authorization under section 3 of the NGA is
necessary. If planned import or export facilities will be LNG terminal
facilities, as defined in proposed section 153.2(d), the facilities
will be subject to the mandatory pre-filing review required by proposed
section 157.21. A prospective applicant for non-LNG related import and
export facilities may choose to request approval to undertake the pre-
filing procedures in proposed section 157.21.
38. FERC-537, ``Gas Pipeline Certificates: Construction,
Acquisition and Abandonment,'' identifies the Commission's information
collections relating to Part 157 of its regulations, which apply to
natural gas facilities for which authorization under section 7 of the
NGA is required. Such facilities will be subject to the mandatory pre-
filing review required by proposed section 157.21 only if they are
included within the definition of LNG terminal facilities, as defined
in proposed section 153.2(d) or, more likely, are necessary to
transport regasified gas away from LNG terminal facilities. A
prospective applicant for non-LNG related NGA section 7 facilities may
choose to request approval to undertake the pre-filing procedures in
proposed section 157.21.
39. FERC-577, ``Gas Pipeline Certificates: Environmental Impact
Statement,'' identifies the Commission's information collections
relating to Part 380 implementing NEPA requirements relating to the
construction of natural gas facilities. As proposed herein, prospective
applicants using the pre-filing procedures, whether on a mandatory or
voluntary basis, will be subject to the requirements of Part 380.
40. The Commission's information collections relating to this
notice's proposed pre-filing procedures are described in this notice.
The Commission has submitted this notice to OMB for review and
clearance of the notice's information collection requirements under
emergency processing procedures.\13\ OMB approval has been requested by
[INSERT DATE].
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\13\ 5 CFR 1320.13 (2005).
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
41. Comments are solicited on the Commission's need for this
information, whether the information will have practical utility, the
accuracy of the provided burden estimates, ways to enhance the quality,
utility, and clarity of the information to be collected, and any
suggested methods for minimizing respondent's burden, including the use
of automated information techniques.
42. The Commission has been using its current voluntary pre-filing
procedures for approximately four years. Thus, the Commission has
experience that it did not have when it proposed existing section
157.22 of the regulations, which this proposed rule would eliminate.
Based on this experience, the Commission believes that there will be no
more than 20 prospective applicants that use the proposed pre-filing
review procedures on an annual basis. The Commission anticipates that
this number will include no more than five prospective applicants for
LNG terminal facilities. During the four years that prospective
applicants have had the option of using the Commission's current
voluntary pre-filing procedures, all but three prospective applicants
for LNG terminal projects have elected to undertake the pre-filing
procedures. Thus, the adoption of mandatory pre-filing procedures for
LNG facilities is not expected to significantly increase the number of
prospective LNG applicants that use the pre-filing procedures, as
mandated by Congress in EPAct 2005.
43. The burden estimates for complying with additional filing
requirements of this rule pursuant to the procedures in proposed new
section 157.21 are set forth below. As reflected, the burden estimates
are higher for a respondent/prospective applicant for LNG terminal
facilities than for a
[[Page 52333]]
respondent/prospective applicant for other natural gas facilities.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Number of Number of Hours per Total annual
Data collection respondents responses response hours
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
FERC-537........................................ 10 1 47 470
-----------------
FERC-539........................................ 10 1 103 1,030
FERC-577........................................ 20 1 1,402 28,040
-----------------
Totals...................................... .............. .............. .............. 29,540
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
From these burden estimates must be subtracted the original data
collection requirements in OMB's record relating to section 157.22
which this notice proposes to remove from the Commission's regulations.
The numbers in OMB's record for section 157.22 are:
FERC-537: 13,230 hours.
FERC-539: 270 hours.
FERC-577: 13,580 hours.
When the burden estimates for proposed section 157.21 are reduced
to reflect the removal of section 157.22, the net data collection
estimates for this rule are:
FERC-537: -12,760 hours.
FERC-539: 760 hours.
FERC-577: 14,460 hours.
Total: 2,460 hours (net increase).
Total Annual Hours for Collection: 2,460 hours. For LNG terminal
facilities and LNG-related pipeline facilities, these are mandatory
information collection requirements. For non-LNG related natural gas
facilities, these information collection requirements are voluntary but
are still subject to OMB review.
Information Collection Costs: The Commission seeks comments on the
cost to comply with these requirements. It has projected the average
annualized cost for all respondents to be $4,920,000 (2,460 hours x
$100.00 per hour x 20 respondents).
Title: FERC-537 ``Gas Pipeline Certificates: Construction,
Acquisition and Abandonment''; FERC-539, ``Gas Pipeline Certificates:
Import/Export Related''; FERC-577, ``Gas Pipeline Certificates:
Environmental Impact Statement.''
Action: Proposed Information Collection.
OMB Control Nos.: 1902-0060 (FERC-537); 1902-0062 (FERC-539); 1902-
0128 (FERC-577). The applicant shall not be penalized for failure to
respond to these collections of information unless the collections of
information display valid OMB control numbers.
Respondents: Business or other for profit.
Frequency of Responses: One-time implementation.
Necessity of Information: On August 8, 2005, Congress enacted EPAct
2005. Section 311(d) of EPAct 2005 amends the NGA to insert a new
section, section 3A, which requires that the Commission shall
promulgate regulations on the pre-filing process for LNG terminals
within 60 days from enactment of EPAct 2005. Congress and the
Commission consider the promulgation of these regulations to be a
matter of critical importance to the state and local safety concerns
regarding the construction and development of LNG terminals. The
Commission must issue a final rule by October 7, 2005. The Commission
seeks emergency processing of this proposed information collection
because the use of normal clearance procedures is reasonably likely to
cause a statutory deadline to be missed. The proposed rule revises the
requirements contained in 18 CFR parts 157 and 153 to add a requirement
that applicants for authorization to construct LNG terminals must
comply with a pre-filing process and that such process must commence at
least 6 months prior to the filing of any application with the
Commission for authorization to construct such facilities.
Internal Review: The Commission has assured itself, by means of
internal review, that there is specific, objective support for the
burden estimates associated with the information requirements. The
Commission's Office of Energy Projects will review the data included in
the application to determine whether the proposed facilities are in the
public interest as well as for general industry oversight. This
determination involves, among other things, an examination of adequacy
of design, cost, reliability, redundancy, safety and environmental
acceptability of the proposed facilities. These requirements conform to
the Commission's plan for efficient information collection,
communication and management within the natural gas industry.
44. Interested person may obtain information on the reporting
requirements by contacting the following: Federal Energy Regulatory
Commission, 888 First Street, NE., Washington, DC 20426 (Attention:
Michael Miller, Office of the Executive Director, 202-502-8415, fax:
202-273-0873, e-mail: michael.miller@ferc.gov.
45. For submitting comments concerning the collection of
information and the associated burden estimate(s) including suggestions
for reducing this burden, please send your comments to the contact
listed above and to the Office of Management and Budget, Room 10202
NEOB, 725 17th Street, NW., Washington, DC 20503 (Attention: Desk
Officer for the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, 202-395-4650,
fax: 202-395-7285).
VI. Public Comment and Expedited Procedures
46. EPAct 2005 mandates that the Commission promulgate regulations
implementing the pre-filing process within 60 days of the date of its
enactment. Therefore, the Commission intends to promulgate final
regulations by October 7, 2005. To that end, public comments on this
notice are due on September 14, 2005.
47. The Commission invites interested persons to submit comments on
the matters and issues proposed in this notice to be adopted, including
any related matters or alternative proposals that commenters may wish
to discuss. The Commission will carefully weigh and consider all public
comments received.
48. Comments must refer to Docket No. RM05-31 and must include the
commenters' names, the organization they represent, if applicable, and
their address. Comments may be filed either in electronic or paper
format.
49. Comments may be filed electronically via the eFiling link on
the Commission's Web site at https://www.ferc.gov. The Commission
accepts most standard word processing formats and commenters may attach
additional files with supporting information in certain other file
formats. Commenters filing electronically do not need to make a paper
filing. Commenters that are not able to file comments electronically
must send an original and 14 copies of their comments to: Federal
Energy
[[Page 52334]]
Regulatory Commission, Office of the Secretary, 888 First Street NE.,
Washington, DC 20426.
50. All comments will be placed in the Commission's public files
and may be viewed, printed, or downloaded remotely as described in the
Document Availability section below. Commenters on this proposal are
not required to serve copies of their comments on other commenters.
VII. Document Availability
51. In addition to publishing the full text of this document in the
Federal Register, the Commission provides all interested persons an
opportunity to view and/or print the contents of this document via the
Internet through FERC's Home Page (https://www.ferc.gov) and in FERC's
Public Reference Room during normal business hours (8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m.
Eastern time) at 888 First Street, NE., Room 2A, Washington DC 20426.
52. From FERC's Home Page on the Internet, this information is
available in the Commission's document management system, eLibrary. The
full text of this document is available on eLibrary in PDF and
Microsoft Word format for viewing, printing, and/or downloading. To
access this document in eLibrary, type the docket number excluding the
last three digits of this document in the docket number field.
53. User assistance is available for eLibrary and the FERC's Web
site during normal business hours. For assistance, please contact FERC
Online Support at 1-866-208-3676 (toll free) or 202-502-6652 (e-mail at
FERCOnlineSupport@FERC.gov), or the Public Reference Room at 202-502-
8371, TTY (202) 502-8659 (e-mail at public.referenceroom@ferc.gov).
List of Subjects in 18 CFR Part 157
Administrative practice and procedure; Natural gas; Reporting and
recordkeeping requirements.
By direction of the Commission.
Magalie R. Salas,
Secretary.
In consideration of the foregoing, the Commission proposes to amend
parts 153, 157 and 375 of Chapter I, Title 18, Code of Federal
Regulations, as follows:
PART 153--APPLICATIONS FOR AUTHORIZATION TO CONSTRUCT, OPERATE, OR
MODIFY FACILITIES USED FOR THE EXPORT OR IMPORT OF NATURAL GAS
1. The authority citation for part 153 continues to read as
follows:
Authority: 15 U.S.C. 717b, 717o; E.O. 10485, 3 CFR, 1949-1953
Comp., p. 970, as amended by E.O. 12038, 3 CFR, 1978 Comp., p. 136,
DOE Delegation Order No. 0204-112, 49 FR 6684 (February 22, 1984).
2. In Sec. 153.2, a new paragraph (d) is added, to read as
follows:
Sec. 153.2 Definitions.
* * * * *
(d) LNG Terminal means all natural gas facilities located onshore
or in state waters that are used to receive, unload, load, store,
transport, gasify, liquefy, or process natural gas that is imported to
the United States from a foreign country, exported to a foreign country
from the United States, or transported in interstate commerce by a
waterborne vessel, but does not include:
(1) Waterborne vessels used to deliver natural gas to or from any
such facility; or
(2) Any pipeline or storage facility subject to the jurisdiction of
the Commission under section 7 of the Natural Gas Act.
3. In Sec. 153.6, a new paragraph (c) is added, to read as
follows:
Sec. 153.6 Time of filing.
* * * * *
(c) When a prospective applicant for authorization for LNG terminal
facilities, associated jurisdictional natural gas facilities or
modifications to existing LNG terminal facilities is required by 18 CFR
157.21(a) to comply with that section's pre-filing procedures, no
application for such authorization may be made before 180 days after
the date of issuance of the notice by the Director of the Office of
Energy Projects, as provided in 18 CFR 157.21(e), of the commencement
of the prospective applicant's pre-filing process under 18 CFR 157.21.
4. Section 153.12 is removed.
PART 157--APPLICATIONS FOR CERTIFICATES OF PUBLIC CONVENIENCE AND
NECESSITY AND FOR ORDERS PERMITTING AND APPROVING ABANDONMENT UNDER
SECTION 7 OF THE NATURAL GAS ACT
5. The authority citation for part 157 continues to read as
follows:
Authority: 15 U.S.C. 717-717w; 3301-3432; 42 U.S.C. 7101-7352.
6. In Sec. 157.1, the introductory text is designated as paragraph
(a), the definition of Indian tribe is designated as paragraph (a)(1),
the definition of Resource agency is designated as paragraph (a)(2),
and a paragraph (b) is added to read as follows:
Sec. 157.1 Definitions.
* * * * *
(b) For the purposes of Sec. 157.21 of this Part, Director means
the Director of the Commission's Office of Energy Projects.
7. Section 157.21 is added, to read as follows:
Sec. 157.21 Pre-filing procedures and review process for LNG terminal
facilities and other natural gas facilities prior to filing of
applications.
(a) LNG terminal facilities and associated jurisdictional pipeline
facilities. A prospective applicant for authorization to site,
construct and operate facilities included within the definition of
``LNG terminal,'' as defined in 18 CFR 153.2(d), and any prospective
applicant for associated jurisdictional pipeline facilities must comply
with this section's pre-filing procedures and review process. These
mandatory pre-filing procedures also shall apply when the Director
finds in accordance with paragraph (e)(2) of this section that
prospective modifications to an existing LNG terminal are significant
modifications that involve state and local safety considerations.
When a prospective applicant is required by this paragraph to
comply with this section's pre-filing procedures:
(1) The prospective applicant must make a filing containing the
material identified in paragraph (d) of this section and concurrently
file a Letter of Intent and a Preliminary Waterway Suitability
Assessment (WSA) with the U.S. Coast Guard. Information concerning the
documents to be filed with the Coast Guard may be found in the U.S.
Coast Guard Navigation and Vessel Inspection Circular No. 05-05, dated
June 14, 2005.
(2) An application:
(i) Shall not be filed until at least 180 days after the date that
the Director issues notice pursuant to paragraph (e) of this section of
the commencement of the prospective applicant's pre-filing process; and
(ii) Shall contain all the information specified by the Commission
staff after reviewing the draft materials filed by the prospective
applicant during the pre-filing process, including required
environmental material in accordance with the provisions of Part 380 of
this chapter, ``Regulations Implementing the National Environmental
Policy Act.''
(3) The prospective applicant must provide sufficient information
for the pre-filing review of any pipeline or other natural gas
facilities, including facilities not subject the Commission's Natural
Gas Act jurisdiction, which are necessary to transport regasified LNG
from the subject LNG terminal facilities to the existing natural gas
pipeline infrastructure.
[[Page 52335]]
(b) Other natural gas facilities. When a prospective applicant for
authorization for natural gas facilities is not required by paragraph
(a) of this section to comply with this section's pre-filing
procedures, the prospective applicant may file a request seeking
approval to use the pre-filing procedures.
(1) A request to use the pre-filing procedures must contain the
material identified in paragraph (d) of this section; and
(2) If a prospective applicant for non-LNG terminal facilities is
approved to use this section's pre-filing procedures:
(i) The application will normally not be filed until at least 180
days after the date that the Director issues notice pursuant to
paragraph (e) of this section approving the prospective applicant's
request to use the pre-filing procedures under this section and
commencing the prospective applicant's pre-filing process. However, a
prospective applicant approved by the Director pursuant to paragraph
(e)(2) of this section to undertake the pre-filing process is not
prohibited from filing an application at an earlier date, if necessary;
and
(ii) The application shall contain all the information specified by
the Commission staff after reviewing the draft materials filed by the
prospective applicant during the pre-filing process, including required
environmental material in accordance with the provisions of Part 380 of
this chapter, ``Regulations Implementing the National Environmental
Policy Act.''
(c) Initial consultation. A prospective applicant required or
requesting to use the pre-filing process must first consult with the
Director on the nature of the project, the content of the pre-filing
request, and the status of the prospective applicant's progress toward
obtaining the information required for the pre-filing request described
in paragraph (d) of this section. This consultation will also include
discussion of the specifications for the applicant's solicitation for
prospective third-party contractors to prepare the environmental
documentation for the project.
(d) Contents of the initial filing. A prospective applicant's
initial filing pursuant to paragraph (a)(1) of this section for LNG
terminal facilities and associated jurisdictional pipeline facilities
or paragraph (b)(1) of this section for other natural gas facilities
shall include the following information:
(1) A description of the schedule desired for the project including
the expected application filing date and the desired date for
Commission approval.
(2) For LNG terminal facilities, a description of the zoning and
availability of the proposed site and marine facility location.
(3) For natural gas facilities other than LNG terminal facilities
and associated jurisdictional facilities, an explanation of why the
prospective applicant is requesting to use the pre-filing process under
this section.
(4) A detailed description of the project that will serve as the
initial discussion point for stakeholder review.
(5) A list of the relevant federal and state agencies in the
project area with permitting requirements, and a statement indicating
that those agencies are aware of the prospective applicant's intention
to use the pre-filing process (including contact names and telephone
numbers), and whether the agencies have agreed to participate in the
process.
(6) A list and description of the interest of other persons and
organizations who have been contacted about the project (including
contact names and telephone numbers).
(7) A description of what work has already been done, e.g.,
contacting stakeholders, agency consultations, project engineering,
route planning, environmental and engineering contractor engagement,
environmental surveys/studies, and open houses.
(8) Proposals for at least three prospective third-party
contractors from which Commission staff may make a selection to assist
in the preparation of the requisite NEPA document.
(9) Acknowledgement that a complete Environmental Report and
complete application are required at the time of filing; and
(10) A description of a Public Participation Plan which identifies
specific tools and actions to facilitate stakeholder communications and
public information, including a project Web site and a single point of
contact.
(e) Director's notices.
(1) When the Director finds that a prospective applicant has
adequately addressed the requirements of paragraphs (a) through (d) of
this section, the Director shall issue a notice of such finding. The
pre-filing process shall be deemed to have commenced on the date of the
Director's notice, and the date of such notice shall be used in
determining whether the date an application is filed is at least 180
days after commencement of the pre-filing process.
(2) The Director shall issue a notice making a determination
whether prospective modifications to an existing LNG terminal shall be
subject to this section's pre-filing procedures and review process. If
the Direct determines that the prospective modifications are
significant modifications that involve state and local safety
considerations, the Director's notice will state that the pre-filing
procedures shall apply, and the pre-filing process shall be deemed to
have commenced on the date of the Director's notice in determining
whether the date an application is filed is at least 180 days after
commencement of the pre-filing process.
(f) Upon the Director's issuance of a notice commencing a
prospective applicant's pre-filing process, the prospective applicant
must:
(1) Within seven days and after consultation with Commission staff,
establish the dates and locations at which the prospective applicant
will conduct open houses and meetings with stakeholders (including
agencies) and Commission staff.
(2) Within 14 days, conclude the contract with the selected third-
party contractor.
(3) Within 14 days, contact all stakeholders not already informed
about the project.
(4) Within 30 days, submit a stakeholder mailing list to Commission
staff.
(5) Within 30 days, file a draft of Resource Report 1, in
accordance with 18 CFR 380.12(c), and a summary of the alternatives
considered or under consideration.
(6) On a monthly basis, file status reports detailing the
applicant's project activities including surveys, stakeholder
communications, and agency meetings.
(7) Be prepared to provide a description of the proposed project
and to answer questions from the public at the scoping meetings held by
OEP staff.
(8) Be prepared to attend site visits and other stakeholder and
agency meetings arranged by the Commission staff, as required.
(9) Within 14 days of the end of the scoping comment period,
respond to issues raised during scoping.
(10) Within 60 days of the end of the scoping comment period, file
draft Resource Reports 1 through 12.
(11) At least 60 days prior to filing an application, file revised
draft Resource Reports 1 through 12, if requested by Commission staff.
(12) At least 90 days prior to filing an application, file draft
Resource Report 13 (for LNG terminal facilities).
(13) Certify that a Follow-on WSA will be submitted to the U. S.
Coast Guard no later than the filing of an application with the
Commission (for LNG terminal facilities).
(g) Commission staff and third-party contractor involvement during
the pre-
[[Page 52336]]
filing process will be designed to fit each project and will include
some or all of the following:
(1) Assisting the prospective applicant in developing initial
information about the proposal and identifying affected parties
(including landowners, agencies, and other interested parties).
(2) Issuing an environmental scoping notice and conducting such
scoping for the proposal.
(3) Facilitating issue identification and resolution.
(4) Conducting site visits, examining alternatives, meeting with
agencies and stakeholders, and participating in the prospective
applicant's public information meetings.
(5) Reviewing draft Resource Reports.
(6) Initiating the preparation of a preliminary Environmental
Assessment or Draft Environmental Impact Statement, the preparation of
which may involve cooperating agency review.
(h) A prospective applicant using the pre-filing procedures of this
section shall comply with the procedures in 18 CFR 388.112 for the
submission of documents containing critical energy infrastructure
information, as defined in 18 CFR 388.113.
Sec. 157.22 [Removed]
8. Section 157.22 is removed.
PART 375--THE COMMISSION
8a. The authority citation for part 375 continues to read as
follows:
Authority: 5 U.S.C. 551-557; 15 U.S.C. 717-717w, 3301-3432; 16
U.S.C. 791-825r, 2601-2645; 42 U.S.C. 7101-7352.
9. In Sec. 375.308, paragraph (z) is revised to read as follows:
Sec. 375.308 Delegations to the Director of the Office of Energy
Projects.
* * * * *
(z) Approve, on a case-specific basis, and make such decisions and
issue guidance as may be necessary in connection with the use of the
pre-filing procedures in 18 CFR 157.21, ``Pre-filing procedures and
review process for LNG terminal facilities and other natural gas
facilities prior to filing of applications.''
[FR Doc. 05-17480 Filed 9-1-05; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6717-01-P
