Commission Information Collection Activities (FERC-917 and FERC-918) 1, 51027-51030 [2010-20458]
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Federal Register / Vol. 75, No. 159 / Wednesday, August 18, 2010 / Notices
(740) 897–3822,
Joel.Bradburne@lex.doe.gov.
DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY
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SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Purpose of the Board: The purpose of
the Board is to make recommendations
to DOE–EM and site management in the
areas of environmental restoration,
waste management and related
activities.
Tentative Agenda:
• Call to Order, Introductions, Review
of Agenda.
• Approval of May Minutes.
• Deputy Designated Federal Officer’s
Comments.
• Federal Coordinator’s Comments.
• Liaisons’ Comments.
• Administrative Issues:
Æ Subcommittee Updates.
Æ Recommendation on Baseline
Funding Support.
Æ Motions.
fi First reading of amendment to
the Operating Procedures.
• Public Comments.
• Final Comments.
• Adjourn.
Breaks taken as appropriate.
Public Participation: The meeting is
open to the public. The EM SSAB,
Portsmouth, welcomes the attendance of
the public at its advisory committee
meetings and will make every effort to
accommodate persons with physical
disabilities or special needs. If you
require special accommodations due to
a disability, please contact Joel
Bradburne at least seven days in
advance of the meeting at the phone
number listed above. Written statements
may be filed with the Board either
before or after the meeting. Individuals
who wish to make oral statements
pertaining to agenda items should
contact Joel Bradburne at the address or
telephone number listed above.
Requests must be received five days
prior to the meeting and reasonable
provision will be made to include the
presentation in the agenda. The Deputy
Designated Federal Officer is
empowered to conduct the meeting in a
fashion that will facilitate the orderly
conduct of business. Individuals
wishing to make public comments will
be provided a maximum of five minutes
to present their comments.
Minutes: Minutes will be available by
writing or calling Joel Bradburne at the
address and phone number listed above.
Minutes will also be available at the
following website: https://www.portsssab.org/publicmeetings.html.
Issued at Washington, DC on August 11,
2010.
Rachel Samuel,
Deputy Committee Management Officer.
[FR Doc. 2010–20437 Filed 8–17–10; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6450–01–P
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Environmental Management SiteSpecific Advisory Board, Oak Ridge
Reservation
Department of Energy.
Notice of open meeting.
AGENCY:
ACTION:
This notice announces a
meeting of the Environmental
Management Site-Specific Advisory
Board (EM SSAB), Oak Ridge
Reservation. The Federal Advisory
Committee Act (Pub. L. 92–463, 86 Stat.
770) requires that public notice of this
meeting be announced in the Federal
Register.
SUMMARY:
DATES:
Wednesday, September 8, 2010,
6 p.m.
51027
be provided a maximum of five minutes
to present their comments.
Minutes: Minutes will be available by
writing or calling Patricia J. Halsey at
the address and phone number listed
above. Minutes will also be available at
the following Web site: https://
www.oakridge.doe.gov/em/ssab/
minutes.htm.
Issued at Washington, DC on August 11,
2010.
Rachel Samuel,
Deputy Committee Management Officer.
[FR Doc. 2010–20435 Filed 8–17–10; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6450–01–P
DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY
ADDRESSES:
Federal Energy Regulatory
Commission
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
[Docket Nos. IC10–917–001 and IC10–918–
001]
DOE Information Center,
475 Oak Ridge Turnpike, Oak Ridge,
Tennessee.
Patricia J. Halsey, Federal Coordinator,
Department of Energy Oak Ridge
Operations Office, P.O. Box 2001, EM–
90, Oak Ridge, TN 37831. Phone (865)
576–4025; Fax (865) 576–2347 or e-mail:
halseypj@oro.doe.gov or check the Web
site at https://www.oakridge.doe.gov/em/
ssab.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Purpose of the Board: The purpose of
the Board is to make recommendations
to DOE–EM and site management in the
areas of environmental restoration,
waste management, and related
activities.
Tentative Agenda: The main meeting
presentation will be on DOE–Oak Ridge
long-term stewardship activities.
Public Participation: The EM SSAB,
Oak Ridge, welcomes the attendance of
the public at its advisory committee
meetings and will make every effort to
accommodate persons with physical
disabilities or special needs. If you
require special accommodations due to
a disability, please contact Patricia J.
Halsey at least seven days in advance of
the meeting at the phone number listed
above. Written statements may be filed
with the Board either before or after the
meeting. Individuals who wish to make
oral statements pertaining to the agenda
item should contact Patricia J. Halsey at
the address or telephone number listed
above. Requests must be received five
days prior to the meeting and reasonable
provision will be made to include the
presentation in the agenda. The Deputy
Designated Federal Officer is
empowered to conduct the meeting in a
fashion that will facilitate the orderly
conduct of business. Individuals
wishing to make public comments will
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Commission Information Collection
Activities (FERC–917 and FERC–918) 1;
Comment Request; Submitted for OMB
Review
August 12, 2010.
Federal Energy Regulatory
Commission.
AGENCY:
ACTION:
Notice.
In compliance with the
requirements of section 3507 of the
Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, 44
U.S.C. 3507, the Federal Energy
Regulatory Commission (Commission or
FERC) has submitted the information
collections described below to the
Office of Management and Budget
(OMB) for review of the information
collection requirements. Any interested
person may file comments directly with
OMB and should address a copy of
those comments to the Commission as
explained below. The Commission
issued a Notice in the Federal Register
(75 FR 30008, 5/28/2010) requesting
public comments. FERC received no
comments on the FERC–917 and FERC–
918 and has made this notation in its
submission to OMB.1
SUMMARY:
1 This Notice in Docket Nos. IC10–917 and IC10–
918 and the corresponding clearance package and
request to OMB for a three-year extension of the
existing regulations are separate activities from
pending Docket No. RM10–23 and the associated
OMB clearance package.
FERC has a separate, pending Notice of Proposed
Rulemaking (NOPR) in Docket No. RM10–23, that
includes proposals affecting the FERC–917. The
NOPR in Docket No. RM10–23 and the
corresponding OMB clearance package were
submitted to OMB (ICR No. 201006–1902–001) for
review on 6/30/2010. Comments on Docket No.
RM10–23 should be submitted in that docket.
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Federal Register / Vol. 75, No. 159 / Wednesday, August 18, 2010 / Notices
Comments on the collections of
information are due by September 17,
2010.
DATES:
Address comments on the
collections of information to the Office
of Management and Budget, Office of
Information and Regulatory Affairs,
Attention: Federal Energy Regulatory
Commission Desk Officer. Comments to
OMB should be filed electronically, c/o
oira__submission@omb.eop.gov and
include OMB Control Number 1902–
0233 for reference. For comments that
pertain to only one of the collections,
specify the appropriate collection. The
Desk Officer may be reached by
telephone at 202–395–4638.
A copy of the comments should also
be sent to the Federal Energy Regulatory
Commission and should refer to Docket
Nos. IC10–917–001 and IC10–918–001.
(If comments apply to only one of the
collections, indicate the docket and the
collection number.) Comments may be
filed either electronically or in paper
format. Those persons filing
electronically do not need to make a
paper filing. Documents filed
electronically via the Internet must be
prepared in an acceptable filing format
and in compliance with the Federal
Energy Regulatory Commission
submission guidelines. Complete filing
instructions and acceptable filing
formats are available at https://
www.ferc.gov/help/submission-guide/
electronic-media.asp. To file the
document electronically, access the
Commission’s Web site and click on
Documents & Filing, E-Filing (https://
www.ferc.gov/docs-filing/efiling.asp),
and then follow the instructions for
each screen. First time users will have
to establish a user name and password.
The Commission will send an automatic
acknowledgement to the sender’s e-mail
address upon receipt of comments.
For paper filings, the comments
should be submitted to the Federal
Energy Regulatory Commission,
Secretary of the Commission, 888 First
Street, NE., Washington, DC 20426, and
should refer to Docket Nos. IC10–917–
001 and IC10–918–001.
Users interested in receiving
automatic notification of activity in
FERC Docket Numbers IC10–917 and
IC10–918 may do so through
eSubscription at https://www.ferc.gov/
docs-filing/esubscription.asp. All
comments may be viewed, printed or
downloaded remotely via the Internet
through FERC’s homepage using the
‘‘eLibrary’’ link. For user assistance,
contact ferconlinesupport@ferc.gov, or
call toll-free at (866) 208–3676, or for
TTY, contact (202) 502–8659.
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ADDRESSES:
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FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
Ellen Brown may be reached by e-mail
at DataClearance@FERC.gov, by
telephone at (202) 502–8663, and by fax
at (202) 273–0873.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: On
February 17, 2007, the Commission
issued Order No. 890 to address and
remedy opportunities for undue
discrimination under the pro forma
Open Access Transmission Tariff
(OATT) adopted in 1996 by Order No.
888.2
Through Order No. 890, the
Commission:
(1) Adopted pro forma OATT
provisions necessary to keep imbalance
charges closely related to incremental
costs;
(2) Increased nondiscriminatory
access to the grid by requiring public
utilities, working through the North
American Electric Reliability
Corporation (NERC), to develop
consistent methodologies for available
transfer capability (ATC) calculation
and to publish those methodologies to
increase transparency.
(3) Required an open, transparent, and
coordinated transmission planning
process, thereby increasing the ability of
customers to access new generating
resources and promote efficient
utilization of transmission.
(4) Required both the transmission
provider’s merchant function and
network customers to include a
statement with each application for
network service or to designate a new
network resource that attests, for each
network resource identified, that the
transmission customer owns or has
committed to purchase the designated
network resource and the designated
network resource comports with the
requirements for designated network
resources.
(5) Gave the right to customers to
request from transmission providers
studies addressing congestion and/or
integration of new resource loads in
areas of the transmission system where
they have encountered transmission
problems due to congestion or where
they believe upgrades and other
investments may be necessary to reduce
2 Promoting Wholesale Competition Through
Open Access Non-discriminatory Transmission
Services by Public Utilities; Recovery of Stranded
Costs by Public Utilities and Transmitting Utilities,
Order No. 888, 61 FR 21540 (May 10, 1996), FERC
Stats. & Regs. ¶ 31,036 (1996), order on reh’g, Order
No. 888–A, 62 FR 12274 (Mar. 14, 1997), FERC
Stats. & Regs. ¶ 31,048 (1997), order on reh’g, Order
No. 888–B, 81 FERC ¶ 61,248 (1997), order on reh’g,
Order No. 888–C, 82 FERC ¶ 61,046 (1998), aff’d in
relevant part sub nom. Transmission Access Policy
Study Group v. FERC, 225 F.3d 667 (D.C. Cir. 2000),
aff’d sub nom. New York v. FERC, 535 U.S. 1
(2002).
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congestion and to integrate new
resources. The network customer
includes this attestation in the
customer’s comment section of the
request when it confirms the request on
the Open Access Same-Time
Information System (OASIS).
(6) Required with regard to capacity
reassignment that: (a) All sales or
assignments of capacity be conducted
through or otherwise posted on the
transmission provider’s OASIS on or
before the date the reassigned service
commences; (b) assignees of
transmission capacity execute a service
agreement prior to the date on which
the reassigned service commences; and
(c) transmission providers aggregate and
summarize in an electric quarterly
report the data contained in these
service agreements.
(7) Adopted an operational penalties
annual filing that provides information
regarding the penalty revenue the
transmission provider has received and
distributed.
(8) Required creditworthiness
information to be included in a
transmission provider’s OATT.
Attachment L must specify the
qualitative and quantitative criteria that
the transmission provider uses to
determine the level of secured and
unsecured credit required.
The Commission required a NERC/
NAESB 3 team to draft and review Order
No. 890 reliability standards and
business practices. The team was to
solicit comment from each utility on
developed standards and practices and
utilities were to implement each, after
Commission approval. Public utilities,
working through NERC, were to revise
reliability standards to require the
exchange of data and coordination
among transmission providers and,
working through NAESB, were to
develop complementary business
practices.
Required OASIS postings included:
(1) Explanations for changes in ATC
values;
(2) Capacity benefit margin (CBM)
reevaluations and quarterly postings;
(3) OASIS metrics and accepted/
denied requests;
(4) Planning redispatch offers and
reliability redispatch data;
(5) Curtailment data;
(6) Planning and system impact
studies;
(7) Metrics for system impact studies;
and
(8) All rules.
Incorporating the Order No. 890
standards into the Commission’s
3 NAESB is the North American Energy Standards
Board.
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Federal Register / Vol. 75, No. 159 / Wednesday, August 18, 2010 / Notices
regulations benefits wholesale electric
customers by streamlining utility
business practices, transactional
processes, and OASIS procedures, and
by adopting a formal ongoing process
for reviewing and upgrading the
Commission’s OASIS standards and
other electric industry business
practices. These practices and
procedures benefit from the
implementation of generic industry
standards.
The Commission’s Order No. 890
regulations can be found in 18 CFR
35.28 (pro forma tariff requirements),
and 37.6 and 37.7 (OASIS
requirements).
Action: The Commission is requesting
a three-year extension of the current
FERC–917 and FERC–918 reporting
requirements, with no change.
Burden Statement: FERC–917 and
FERC–918 are both included in OMB
Control Number 1902–0233. The
estimated annual public reporting
burdens for FERC–917 (requirements in
18 CFR 35.28) and FERC–918
(requirements in 18 CFR 37.6 and 37.7)
are reduced from the original estimates
made three years ago. The reductions
Annual number
of
respondents
(1)
FERC Information collection
are due to the incorporation and
completion of: (1) One-time pro forma
tariff changes by utilities in existence at
that time; (2) completed development
and comment solicitation of the
required NERC/NAESB reliability
standards and business practices; and
(3) the transfer of burden associated
with the implementation of some of the
NERC/NAESB business practices, in
Order No. 729, issued November 11,
2009,4 to the Commission’s FERC–725A
information collection (OMB Control
Number 1902–0244). The estimated
annual figures follow.
Average number
of responses per
respondent
(2)
Average burden
hours per
response
(3)
Total annual
burden hours
(1) × (2) × (3)
18 CFR 35.28 (FERC–917)
Conforming tariff changes ...............................................................
Revision of Imbalance Charges ......................................................
ATC revisions ..................................................................................
Planning (Attachment K) ..................................................................
Congestion studies ..........................................................................
Attestation of network resource commitment ..................................
Capacity reassignment ....................................................................
Operational Penalty annual filing .....................................................
Creditworthiness—include criteria in the tariff .................................
6
6
6
134
134
134
134
134
6
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
25
5
40
100
300
1
100
10
40
150
30
240
13,400
40,200
134
13,400
1,340
240
FERC–917—Sub Total Part 35 ................................................
............................
............................
............................
69,134
18 CFR 37.6 & 37.7 (FERC–918)
ATC-related standards:
NERC/NAESB Team to develop ..............................................
Review and comment by utility .................................................
Implementation by each utility 4 ................................................
Mandatory data exchanges .............................................................
Explanation of change of ATC values .............................................
Reevaluate CBM and post quarterly ...............................................
Post OASIS metrics; requests accepted/denied .............................
Post planning redispatch offers and reliability redispatch data .......
Post curtailment data .......................................................................
Post Planning and System Impact Studies .....................................
Posting of metrics for System Impact Studies ................................
Post all rules to OASIS ....................................................................
0
0
0
134
134
134
134
134
134
134
134
134
0
0
0
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
0
0
0
80
100
20
90
20
10
5
100
5
0
0
40
10,720
13,400
2,680
12,060
2,680
1,340
670
13,400
670
FERC–918—Sub Total of Part 37 Reporting Requirements ...
FERC–918—Recordkeeping Requirements ....................................
............................
134
............................
1
............................
40
57,620
5,360
FERC–918—Sub Total of Reporting and Recordkeeping Requirements ............................................................................
............................
............................
............................
62,980
Total FERC–917 and FERC–918 (Part 35 + Part 37, Reporting and Recordkeeping Requirements) ...................
............................
............................
............................
132,114
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Total combined annual burden for
FERC–917 and FERC–918 is 132,114
hours (126,754 reporting hours + 5,360
recordkeeping hours). This is a
reduction of 24,922 hours from the
combined FERC–917 and FERC–918
burden OMB previously approved.
4 Mandatory Reliability Standards for the
Calculation of Available Transfer Capability,
Capacity Benefit Margins, Transmission Reliability
Margins, Total Transfer Capability, and Existing
Transmission Commitments and Mandatory
Reliability Standards for the Bulk-Power System,
Order No. 729, 74 FR 64884 (Dec. 3, 2009) 129
FERC ¶ 61,155.
The FERC–725A requirements (Mandatory
Reliability Standards for the Bulk-Power System,
which now includes the utilities’ implementation)
are separate and are not a subject of this Notice in
Docket Nos. IC10–917 and IC10–918. The FERC–
725A reporting and recordkeeping requirements in
Order 729 (Docket No. RM08–19, et al.) were
approved by OMB (in ICR Number 200912–1902–
005) on 3/12/2010.
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Federal Register / Vol. 75, No. 159 / Wednesday, August 18, 2010 / Notices
Total combined estimated annual cost
for FERC–917 and FERC–918 is
$21,941,076.5 This includes:
(1) Reporting costs of $14,449,956;
(126,754 hours @ $114 an hour (average
cost of attorney ($200 per hour),
consultant ($150), technical ($80), and
administrative support ($25)) and
(2) Recordkeeping (labor and storage)
costs of $7,491,120 (labor = $91,120 [for
5,360 hours × $17/hour (file/record
clerk @ $17 an hour)] and off-site storage
costs = $7,400,000 (8,000 sq. ft. × $925/
sq. ft.)).
The reporting burden includes the
total time, effort, or financial resources
expended to generate, maintain, retain,
disclose, or provide the information
including: (1) Reviewing instructions;
(2) developing, acquiring, installing, and
utilizing technology and systems for the
purposes of collecting, validating,
verifying, processing, maintaining,
disclosing and providing information;
(3) adjusting the existing ways to
comply with any previously applicable
instructions and requirements; (4)
training personnel to respond to the
collections of information; (5) searching
data sources; (6) completing and
reviewing the collections of
information; and (7) transmitting, or
otherwise disclosing the information.
The estimate of cost for respondents
is based upon salaries for professional
and clerical support, as well as direct
and indirect overhead costs. Direct costs
include all costs directly attributable to
providing this information, such as
administrative costs and the cost for
information technology. Indirect or
overhead costs are costs incurred by an
organization in support of its mission.
These costs apply to activities which
benefit the whole organization rather
than any one particular function or
activity.
Comments are invited on: (1) Whether
the proposed collections of information
are necessary for the proper
performance of the functions of the
Commission, including whether the
information will have practical utility;
(2) the accuracy of the agency’s
estimates of the burden of the proposed
collections of information, including the
validity of the methodology and
assumptions used; (3) ways to enhance
the quality, utility and clarity of the
information to be collected; and (4)
ways to minimize the burden of the
collections of information on those who
are to respond, including the use of
5 Using the hourly rate figures of the Bureau of
Labor Statistics, occupational series and market
rates as applicable, the hourly rate is a composite
of the respondents who will be responsible for
implementing and responding to the collection of
information (support staff, engineering, and legal).
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appropriate automated, electronic,
mechanical, or other technological
collection techniques or other forms of
information technology, e.g. permitting
electronic submission of responses.
Kimberly D. Bose,
Secretary.
[FR Doc. 2010–20458 Filed 8–17–10; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6717–01–P
DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY
Federal Energy Regulatory
Commission
[Docket No. CP10–479–000]
Columbia Gas Transmission, LLC;
Notice of Application
August 12, 2010.
Take notice that on August 5, 2010,
Columbia Gas Transmission Corporation
(Columbia), 5151 San Felipe, Suite
2500, Houston, Texas 77056, filed in
Docket No. CP10–479–000 an
application, pursuant to section 7(b) of
the Natural Gas Act (NGA), for
permission and approval to abandon by
transfer and by sale certain natural gas
facilities located in Pennsylvania and
West Virginia and to abandon the
services being provided through these
facilities. Columbia also requests that
the Commission find certain facilities,
when sold, as exempt from the
Commission’s jurisdiction pursuant to
section 1(c) of the NGA, as more fully
set forth in the application which is
open to public inspection. The filing
may also be viewed on the Web at
https://www.ferc.gov using the ‘‘eLibrary’’
link. Enter the docket number excluding
the last three digits in the docket
number field to access the document.
For assistance, contact FERC at
FERCOnlineSupport@ferc.gov or call
toll-free, (886) 208–3676 or TYY, (202)
502–8659.
Columbia proposes to: (1) Abandon by
transfer to NiSource Midstream
Services, LLC (NMS), a nonjurisdictional affiliate of Columbia, on
its Line 1528 approximately 3.8 miles of
16-inch diameter pipeline and
appurtenances in Marshall County,
West Virginia, and Greene County,
Pennsylvania, at their net book value of
$2,700,000; (2) transfer measurement
facilities in Marshall County to NMS; (3)
abandon by sale to Texas Eastern
Transmission, L.P. (Texas Eastern),
approximately 2 miles of 16-inch
pipeline on Columbia’s Line 1528 in
Marshall County and Greene County;
and (4) seek a determination that NMS’
acquired segment of Line 1528 would be
part of the upstream gathering system
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and exempt from the Commission’s
jurisdiction under the NGA. Columbia
states that no construction or removal of
facilities would be required in this
proposal.
Any questions regarding this
application should be directed to
Frederic J. George, Senior Counsel,
Columbia Gas Transmission, LLC, P.O.
Box 1273, Charleston, West Virginia
25325–1273, or via telephone at (304)
357–2359 and facsimile number (304)
357–3206.
There are two ways to become
involved in the Commission’s review of
this project. First, any person wishing to
obtain legal status by becoming a party
to the proceedings for this project
should, on or before the comment date
stated below, file with the Federal
Energy Regulatory Commission, 888
First Street, NE., Washington, DC 20426,
a motion to intervene in accordance
with the requirements of the
Commission’s Rules of Practice and
Procedure (18 CFR 385.214 or 385.211)
and the Regulations under the NGA (18
CFR 157.10). A person obtaining party
status will be placed on the service list
maintained by the Secretary of the
Commission and will receive copies of
all documents filed by the applicant and
by all other parties. A party must submit
seven copies of filings made with the
Commission and must mail a copy to
the applicant and to every other party in
the proceeding. Only parties to the
proceeding can ask for court review of
Commission orders in the proceeding.
However, a person does not have to
intervene in order to have comments
considered. The second way to
participate is by filing with the
Secretary of the Commission, as soon as
possible, an original and two copies of
comments in support of or in opposition
to this project. The Commission will
consider these comments in
determining the appropriate action to be
taken, but the filing of a comment alone
will not serve to make the filer a party
to the proceeding. The Commission’s
rules require that persons filing
comments in opposition to the project
provide copies of their protests only to
the party or parties directly involved in
the protest.
Persons who wish to comment only
on the environmental review of this
project should submit an original and
two copies of their comments to the
Secretary of the Commission.
Environmental commenters will be
placed on the Commission’s
environmental mailing list, will receive
copies of the environmental documents,
and will be notified of meetings
associated with the Commission’s
environmental review process.
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]]>Agencies
[Federal Register Volume 75, Number 159 (Wednesday, August 18, 2010)]
[Notices]
[Pages 51027-51030]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2010-20458]
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY
Federal Energy Regulatory Commission
[Docket Nos. IC10-917-001 and IC10-918-001]
Commission Information Collection Activities (FERC-917 and FERC-
918) \1\; Comment Request; Submitted for OMB Review
August 12, 2010.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\1\ This Notice in Docket Nos. IC10-917 and IC10-918 and the
corresponding clearance package and request to OMB for a three-year
extension of the existing regulations are separate activities from
pending Docket No. RM10-23 and the associated OMB clearance package.
FERC has a separate, pending Notice of Proposed Rulemaking
(NOPR) in Docket No. RM10-23, that includes proposals affecting the
FERC-917. The NOPR in Docket No. RM10-23 and the corresponding OMB
clearance package were submitted to OMB (ICR No. 201006-1902-001)
for review on 6/30/2010. Comments on Docket No. RM10-23 should be
submitted in that docket.
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AGENCY: Federal Energy Regulatory Commission.
ACTION: Notice.
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SUMMARY: In compliance with the requirements of section 3507 of the
Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, 44 U.S.C. 3507, the Federal Energy
Regulatory Commission (Commission or FERC) has submitted the
information collections described below to the Office of Management and
Budget (OMB) for review of the information collection requirements. Any
interested person may file comments directly with OMB and should
address a copy of those comments to the Commission as explained below.
The Commission issued a Notice in the Federal Register (75 FR 30008, 5/
28/2010) requesting public comments. FERC received no comments on the
FERC-917 and FERC-918 and has made this notation in its submission to
OMB.\1\
[[Page 51028]]
DATES: Comments on the collections of information are due by September
17, 2010.
ADDRESSES: Address comments on the collections of information to the
Office of Management and Budget, Office of Information and Regulatory
Affairs, Attention: Federal Energy Regulatory Commission Desk Officer.
Comments to OMB should be filed electronically, c/o oira__submission@omb.eop.gov and include OMB Control Number 1902-0233 for
reference. For comments that pertain to only one of the collections,
specify the appropriate collection. The Desk Officer may be reached by
telephone at 202-395-4638.
A copy of the comments should also be sent to the Federal Energy
Regulatory Commission and should refer to Docket Nos. IC10-917-001 and
IC10-918-001. (If comments apply to only one of the collections,
indicate the docket and the collection number.) Comments may be filed
either electronically or in paper format. Those persons filing
electronically do not need to make a paper filing. Documents filed
electronically via the Internet must be prepared in an acceptable
filing format and in compliance with the Federal Energy Regulatory
Commission submission guidelines. Complete filing instructions and
acceptable filing formats are available at https://www.ferc.gov/help/submission-guide/electronic-media.asp. To file the document
electronically, access the Commission's Web site and click on Documents
& Filing, E-Filing (https://www.ferc.gov/docs-filing/efiling.asp), and
then follow the instructions for each screen. First time users will
have to establish a user name and password. The Commission will send an
automatic acknowledgement to the sender's e-mail address upon receipt
of comments.
For paper filings, the comments should be submitted to the Federal
Energy Regulatory Commission, Secretary of the Commission, 888 First
Street, NE., Washington, DC 20426, and should refer to Docket Nos.
IC10-917-001 and IC10-918-001.
Users interested in receiving automatic notification of activity in
FERC Docket Numbers IC10-917 and IC10-918 may do so through
eSubscription at https://www.ferc.gov/docs-filing/esubscription.asp. All
comments may be viewed, printed or downloaded remotely via the Internet
through FERC's homepage using the ``eLibrary'' link. For user
assistance, contact ferconlinesupport@ferc.gov, or call toll-free at
(866) 208-3676, or for TTY, contact (202) 502-8659.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Ellen Brown may be reached by e-mail
at DataClearance@FERC.gov, by telephone at (202) 502-8663, and by fax
at (202) 273-0873.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: On February 17, 2007, the Commission issued
Order No. 890 to address and remedy opportunities for undue
discrimination under the pro forma Open Access Transmission Tariff
(OATT) adopted in 1996 by Order No. 888.\2\
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\2\ Promoting Wholesale Competition Through Open Access Non-
discriminatory Transmission Services by Public Utilities; Recovery
of Stranded Costs by Public Utilities and Transmitting Utilities,
Order No. 888, 61 FR 21540 (May 10, 1996), FERC Stats. & Regs. ]
31,036 (1996), order on reh'g, Order No. 888-A, 62 FR 12274 (Mar.
14, 1997), FERC Stats. & Regs. ] 31,048 (1997), order on reh'g,
Order No. 888-B, 81 FERC ] 61,248 (1997), order on reh'g, Order No.
888-C, 82 FERC ] 61,046 (1998), aff'd in relevant part sub nom.
Transmission Access Policy Study Group v. FERC, 225 F.3d 667 (D.C.
Cir. 2000), aff'd sub nom. New York v. FERC, 535 U.S. 1 (2002).
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Through Order No. 890, the Commission:
(1) Adopted pro forma OATT provisions necessary to keep imbalance
charges closely related to incremental costs;
(2) Increased nondiscriminatory access to the grid by requiring
public utilities, working through the North American Electric
Reliability Corporation (NERC), to develop consistent methodologies for
available transfer capability (ATC) calculation and to publish those
methodologies to increase transparency.
(3) Required an open, transparent, and coordinated transmission
planning process, thereby increasing the ability of customers to access
new generating resources and promote efficient utilization of
transmission.
(4) Required both the transmission provider's merchant function and
network customers to include a statement with each application for
network service or to designate a new network resource that attests,
for each network resource identified, that the transmission customer
owns or has committed to purchase the designated network resource and
the designated network resource comports with the requirements for
designated network resources.
(5) Gave the right to customers to request from transmission
providers studies addressing congestion and/or integration of new
resource loads in areas of the transmission system where they have
encountered transmission problems due to congestion or where they
believe upgrades and other investments may be necessary to reduce
congestion and to integrate new resources. The network customer
includes this attestation in the customer's comment section of the
request when it confirms the request on the Open Access Same-Time
Information System (OASIS).
(6) Required with regard to capacity reassignment that: (a) All
sales or assignments of capacity be conducted through or otherwise
posted on the transmission provider's OASIS on or before the date the
reassigned service commences; (b) assignees of transmission capacity
execute a service agreement prior to the date on which the reassigned
service commences; and (c) transmission providers aggregate and
summarize in an electric quarterly report the data contained in these
service agreements.
(7) Adopted an operational penalties annual filing that provides
information regarding the penalty revenue the transmission provider has
received and distributed.
(8) Required creditworthiness information to be included in a
transmission provider's OATT. Attachment L must specify the qualitative
and quantitative criteria that the transmission provider uses to
determine the level of secured and unsecured credit required.
The Commission required a NERC/NAESB \3\ team to draft and review
Order No. 890 reliability standards and business practices. The team
was to solicit comment from each utility on developed standards and
practices and utilities were to implement each, after Commission
approval. Public utilities, working through NERC, were to revise
reliability standards to require the exchange of data and coordination
among transmission providers and, working through NAESB, were to
develop complementary business practices.
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\3\ NAESB is the North American Energy Standards Board.
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Required OASIS postings included:
(1) Explanations for changes in ATC values;
(2) Capacity benefit margin (CBM) reevaluations and quarterly
postings;
(3) OASIS metrics and accepted/denied requests;
(4) Planning redispatch offers and reliability redispatch data;
(5) Curtailment data;
(6) Planning and system impact studies;
(7) Metrics for system impact studies; and
(8) All rules.
Incorporating the Order No. 890 standards into the Commission's
[[Page 51029]]
regulations benefits wholesale electric customers by streamlining
utility business practices, transactional processes, and OASIS
procedures, and by adopting a formal ongoing process for reviewing and
upgrading the Commission's OASIS standards and other electric industry
business practices. These practices and procedures benefit from the
implementation of generic industry standards.
The Commission's Order No. 890 regulations can be found in 18 CFR
35.28 (pro forma tariff requirements), and 37.6 and 37.7 (OASIS
requirements).
Action: The Commission is requesting a three-year extension of the
current FERC-917 and FERC-918 reporting requirements, with no change.
Burden Statement: FERC-917 and FERC-918 are both included in OMB
Control Number 1902-0233. The estimated annual public reporting burdens
for FERC-917 (requirements in 18 CFR 35.28) and FERC-918 (requirements
in 18 CFR 37.6 and 37.7) are reduced from the original estimates made
three years ago. The reductions are due to the incorporation and
completion of: (1) One-time pro forma tariff changes by utilities in
existence at that time; (2) completed development and comment
solicitation of the required NERC/NAESB reliability standards and
business practices; and (3) the transfer of burden associated with the
implementation of some of the NERC/NAESB business practices, in Order
No. 729, issued November 11, 2009,\4\ to the Commission's FERC-725A
information collection (OMB Control Number 1902-0244). The estimated
annual figures follow.
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\4\ Mandatory Reliability Standards for the Calculation of
Available Transfer Capability, Capacity Benefit Margins,
Transmission Reliability Margins, Total Transfer Capability, and
Existing Transmission Commitments and Mandatory Reliability
Standards for the Bulk-Power System, Order No. 729, 74 FR 64884
(Dec. 3, 2009) 129 FERC ] 61,155.
The FERC-725A requirements (Mandatory Reliability Standards for
the Bulk-Power System, which now includes the utilities'
implementation) are separate and are not a subject of this Notice in
Docket Nos. IC10-917 and IC10-918. The FERC-725A reporting and
recordkeeping requirements in Order 729 (Docket No. RM08-19, et al.)
were approved by OMB (in ICR Number 200912-1902-005) on 3/12/2010.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Annual number of Average number Average burden Total annual
FERC Information collection respondents of responses per hours per burden hours (1)
(1) respondent (2) response (3) x (2) x (3)
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
18 CFR 35.28 (FERC-917)
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Conforming tariff changes............... 6 1 25 150
Revision of Imbalance Charges........... 6 1 5 30
ATC revisions........................... 6 1 40 240
Planning (Attachment K)................. 134 1 100 13,400
Congestion studies...................... 134 1 300 40,200
Attestation of network resource 134 1 1 134
commitment.............................
Capacity reassignment................... 134 1 100 13,400
Operational Penalty annual filing....... 134 1 10 1,340
Creditworthiness--include criteria in 6 1 40 240
the tariff.............................
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FERC-917--Sub Total Part 35......... ................ ................ ................ 69,134
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
18 CFR 37.6 & 37.7 (FERC-918)
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
ATC-related standards:
NERC/NAESB Team to develop.......... 0 0 0 0
Review and comment by utility....... 0 0 0 0
Implementation by each utility \4\.. 0 0 0 \4\ 0
Mandatory data exchanges................ 134 1 80 10,720
Explanation of change of ATC values..... 134 1 100 13,400
Reevaluate CBM and post quarterly....... 134 1 20 2,680
Post OASIS metrics; requests accepted/ 134 1 90 12,060
denied.................................
Post planning redispatch offers and 134 1 20 2,680
reliability redispatch data............
Post curtailment data................... 134 1 10 1,340
Post Planning and System Impact Studies. 134 1 5 670
Posting of metrics for System Impact 134 1 100 13,400
Studies................................
Post all rules to OASIS................. 134 1 5 670
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FERC-918--Sub Total of Part 37 ................ ................ ................ 57,620
Reporting Requirements.............
FERC-918--Recordkeeping Requirements.... 134 1 40 5,360
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FERC-918--Sub Total of Reporting and ................ ................ ................ 62,980
Recordkeeping Requirements.........
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Total FERC-917 and FERC-918 ................ ................ ................ 132,114
(Part 35 + Part 37, Reporting
and Recordkeeping Requirements)
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Total combined annual burden for FERC-917 and FERC-918 is 132,114 hours
(126,754 reporting hours + 5,360 recordkeeping hours). This is a
reduction of 24,922 hours from the combined FERC-917 and FERC-918
burden OMB previously approved.
[[Page 51030]]
Total combined estimated annual cost for FERC-917 and FERC-918 is
$21,941,076.\5\ This includes:
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\5\ Using the hourly rate figures of the Bureau of Labor
Statistics, occupational series and market rates as applicable, the
hourly rate is a composite of the respondents who will be
responsible for implementing and responding to the collection of
information (support staff, engineering, and legal).
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(1) Reporting costs of $14,449,956; (126,754 hours @ $114 an hour
(average cost of attorney ($200 per hour), consultant ($150), technical
($80), and administrative support ($25)) and
(2) Recordkeeping (labor and storage) costs of $7,491,120 (labor =
$91,120 [for 5,360 hours x $17/hour (file/record clerk @ $17 an hour)]
and off-site storage costs = $7,400,000 (8,000 sq. ft. x $925/sq.
ft.)).
The reporting burden includes the total time, effort, or financial
resources expended to generate, maintain, retain, disclose, or provide
the information including: (1) Reviewing instructions; (2) developing,
acquiring, installing, and utilizing technology and systems for the
purposes of collecting, validating, verifying, processing, maintaining,
disclosing and providing information; (3) adjusting the existing ways
to comply with any previously applicable instructions and requirements;
(4) training personnel to respond to the collections of information;
(5) searching data sources; (6) completing and reviewing the
collections of information; and (7) transmitting, or otherwise
disclosing the information.
The estimate of cost for respondents is based upon salaries for
professional and clerical support, as well as direct and indirect
overhead costs. Direct costs include all costs directly attributable to
providing this information, such as administrative costs and the cost
for information technology. Indirect or overhead costs are costs
incurred by an organization in support of its mission. These costs
apply to activities which benefit the whole organization rather than
any one particular function or activity.
Comments are invited on: (1) Whether the proposed collections of
information are necessary for the proper performance of the functions
of the Commission, including whether the information will have
practical utility; (2) the accuracy of the agency's estimates of the
burden of the proposed collections of information, including the
validity of the methodology and assumptions used; (3) ways to enhance
the quality, utility and clarity of the information to be collected;
and (4) ways to minimize the burden of the collections of information
on those who are to respond, including the use of appropriate
automated, electronic, mechanical, or other technological collection
techniques or other forms of information technology, e.g. permitting
electronic submission of responses.
Kimberly D. Bose,
Secretary.
[FR Doc. 2010-20458 Filed 8-17-10; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6717-01-P
