Commission Information Collection Activities, Proposed Collections; Comment Request; Extension, 12091-12093 [2011-4859]
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12091
Federal Register / Vol. 76, No. 43 / Friday, March 4, 2011 / Notices
This service life data is submitted on
FERC Form No. 73.
The data submitted are used by the
Commission to assist in the selection of
appropriate service lives and book
depreciation rates. Book depreciation
rates are used by oil pipeline companies
to compute the depreciation portion of
their operating expense which is a
component of their cost of service
which in turn is used to determine the
transportation rate to assess customers.
FERC staff’s recommended book
depreciation rates become legally
binding when issued by Commission
order. These rates remain in effect until
a subsequent review is requested and
the outcome indicates that a
modification is justified. The
Commission implements these filings in
18 CFR parts 347 and 357.
Number of
respondents
annually
(1)
Data collection
jlentini on DSKJ8SOYB1PROD with NOTICES
FERC Form 73 ................................................................................................
The estimated total cost to
respondents is $8,214 [120 hours/2080
hours 1 per year, times $142,372 2 equals
$8,214]. The cost per respondent
annually is $2,738.
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 a
collection of information; (5) searching
data sources; (6) completing and
reviewing the collection 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 collection of information
is 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 estimate of the burden of
the proposed collection of information,
1 Number
2 Average
of hours an employee works each year.
annual salary per employee.
VerDate Mar<15>2010
19:16 Mar 03, 2011
Jkt 223001
Number of
responses per
respondent
(2)
3
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 collection 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.
Dated: February 24, 2011.
Kimberly D. Bose,
Secretary.
[FR Doc. 2011–4858 Filed 3–3–11; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6717–01–P
DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY
Federal Energy Regulatory
Commission
[Docket Nos. IC11–520–000, IC11–561–000,
and IC11–566–000]
Commission Information Collection
Activities, Proposed Collections;
Comment Request; Extension
Federal Energy Regulatory
Commission.
ACTION: Notice of proposed information
collections and request for comments.
AGENCY:
In compliance with the
requirements of section 3506(c)(2)(A) of
the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995,
44 U.S.C. 3506(c)(2)(A) (2006), (Pub. L.
104–13), the Federal Energy Regulatory
Commission (Commission or FERC) is
soliciting public comment on the
proposed information collection
activities described below.
DATES: Comments in consideration of
the collection of information are due
May 3, 2011.
SUMMARY:
PO 00000
Frm 00079
Fmt 4703
Sfmt 4703
Action: The Commission is requesting
a three-year approval of the collection of
data with no changes to the information
that is collected on Form 73. This is a
mandatory information collection
requirement.
Burden Statement: Public reporting
burden for this collection is estimated as
follows:
1
Average
burden hours
per response
(3)
40
Total annual
burden hours
(1)×(2)×(3)
120
Comments may be filed
either electronically (eFiled) or in paper
format, and should refer to Docket Nos.
IC11–520–000, IC11–561–000, and
IC11–566–000. (For comments that only
pertain to one of the collections, specify
the appropriate collection and the
related docket number.) Documents
must be prepared in an acceptable filing
format and in compliance with
Commission submission guidelines at
https://www.ferc.gov/help/submissionguide.asp. eFiling instructions are
available at: https://www.ferc.gov/docsfiling/efiling.asp. First time users must
follow eRegister instructions at: https://
www.ferc.gov/docs-filing/
eregistration.asp, to establish a user
name and password before eFiling. The
Commission will send an automatic
acknowledgement to the sender’s e-mail
address upon receipt of eFiled
comments. Commenters making an
eFiling should not make a paper filing.
Commenters that are not able to file
electronically must send an original of
their comments to: Federal Energy
Regulatory Commission, Secretary of the
Commission, 888 First Street, NE.,
Washington, DC 20426.
Users interested in receiving
automatic notification of activity in
these dockets may do so through
eSubscription at https://www.ferc.gov/
docs-filing/esubscription.asp. In
addition, all comments and FERC
issuances may be viewed, printed or
downloaded remotely through FERC’s
eLibrary at https://www.ferc.gov/docsfiling/elibrary.asp, by searching on
Docket Nos. IC11–520, IC11–561, and
IC11–566. For user assistance, contact
FERC Online Support by e-mail at
ferconlinesupport@ferc.gov, or by phone
at: (866) 208–3676 (toll-free), or (202)
502–8659 for TTY.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
Ellen Brown may be reached by e-mail
at DataClearance@FERC.gov, telephone
ADDRESSES:
E:\FR\FM\04MRN1.SGM
04MRN1
12092
Federal Register / Vol. 76, No. 43 / Friday, March 4, 2011 / Notices
at (202) 502–8663, and fax at (202) 273–
0873.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The
Federal Power Act (FPA) as amended by
the Public Utility Regulatory Policies
Act of 1978 (PURPA) mandates Federal
oversight and approval of certain
Information collection number
electric corporate activities and put in
place related information filing
requirements. The FERC–520, the Form
561 and the FERC–566 are the data
collections currently helping ensure that
FPA-mandated oversight can occur and
that neither public nor private interests
OMB Number
CFR Cite
Statutory cite
FERC–520 ............................................
Form 561 ..............................................
1902–0083
1902–0099
18 CFR Part 45.
18 CFR 46.6 and 131.31 ....................
FERC–566 ............................................
jlentini on DSKJ8SOYB1PROD with NOTICES
are adversely affected by the electric
activities the FPA provisions cover.
The implementing processes and
regulatory requirements for the
collections are codified in Chapter 18 of
the Code of Federal Regulations (CFR).
1902–0114
18 CFR 46.3.
To clarify the aim and better publicize
the relationships among these
information activities, FERC is
combining its processes for noticing and
renewing its OMB authority to conduct
these information collections.
Overview of the Three Forms. The
FERC–520, Form 561 and FERC–566
provide views into complex electric
corporate activities and serve to
safeguard public and private interests,
as the FPA requires. The Commission
can use its enforcement authority when
violations and omissions of FPA
requirements occur.
FERC–520. The FERC–520,
‘‘Application for Authority to Hold
Interlocking Directorate Positions’’ is an
application requesting FERC
authorization for board members of
regulated electric utilities that plan to
simultaneously hold positions on the
corporate boards of related or similar
businesses. This corporate activity is
known as an ‘‘interlocked directorate.’’
The FERC–520 originates in FPA
Section 305(b) of the FPA. This part of
the FPA makes the holding of certain
defined interlocking corporate positions
unlawful unless the Commission has
authorized the interlocks to be held.
Before assuming an interlocked board
position, an applicant must demonstrate
that neither public nor private interests
will be adversely affected by the holding
of the position. The FERC–520 identifies
the applicant and describes the various
interlocking positions the applicant
seeks authorization to hold. Moreover,
the form collects information related to
the applicant’s financial interests, other
officers and directors of the firms
involved, and the nature of business
relationships among the firms.
FERC allows two types of FERC–520
applications to implement the FPA
requirements for holding interlocked
positions. The first, in 18 CFR 45.8, is
a ‘‘full’’ application. ‘‘Full’’ applications
are made by (1) an officer or director of
more than one public utility; (2) an
officer or director of a public utility and
of a public utility securities
VerDate Mar<15>2010
19:16 Mar 03, 2011
Jkt 223001
underwriter; or (3) an officer or director
of a public utility and of an electrical
equipment supplier to that utility. They
provide detailed information about the
position for which authorization is
sought, including a description of
duties, estimated time devoted to the
position, and the applicant’s
indebtedness to the public utility.
The second type of FERC–520
application, in 18 CFR 45.9, is an
‘‘informational’’ application for
automatic authorization. These
‘‘informational applications’’ are made
by (1) An officer or director of two or
more public utilities where the same
holding company owns, directly or
indirectly, wholly or in part, the other
public utility; (2) an officer or director
of two public utilities, if one utility is
owned, wholly or in part, by the other;
or (3) an officer or director of more than
one public utility, if such person is
already authorized under Part 45 to hold
different positions where the interlock
involves affiliated public utilities.
As part of the FERC–520 application
process, the FERC requires notices of
change if the applicant resigns or
withdraws from a Commissionauthorized interlocked position or if the
applicant is not re-elected or reappointed to the interlocked position.
Form 561. The Commission uses the
FERC Form 561, ‘‘Annual Report of
Interlocking Positions’’ to implement the
FPA requirement that those who are
authorized to hold interlocked
directorates annually disclose all the
interlocked positions they held the prior
year. The positions that must be
disclosed in the Form 561 are those
public utility officers and directors hold
with financial institutions, insurance
companies, utility equipment and fuel
providers, and with any of an electric
utility’s twenty largest purchasers of
electric energy. The FPA specifically
defines most of the information
elements in the Form 561, including the
information that must be filed, the
required filers, the directive to make the
information available to the public, and
PO 00000
Frm 00080
Fmt 4703
Sfmt 4703
FPA Section 305, as amended by PURPA
Title II, section 211 (16 U.S.C. 825d)
the filing deadline. The Commission
determined administrative aspects of
the Form 561 such as the filing format
and instructions for filling out the form.
FERC–566. The FERC–566 ‘‘Annual
Report of a Utility’s Twenty Largest
Purchasers’’ implements FPA
requirements that each public utility
annually publish a list of the purchasers
of the twenty largest annual amounts of
electric energy sold by such public
utility during any one of three previous
calendar years pursuant to rules
prescribed by the Commission. The
public disclosure of this information
provides officers and directors with the
information necessary to determine
whether any of the entities with whom
they are related are any of the largest
twenty purchasers of the public utility
with which they are affiliated. Similar
to the statutory detail in the FPA for the
FERC 561, the FPA identifies who must
file the FERC–566 report and sets the
filing deadline. Additionally, the FPA
specifies that those entities required to
report who have a holding company
system can calculate their total volumes
of energy sold by including the amounts
sold by utilities within their holding
company system. The FERC details in
its regulations special rules about the
information to be provided in the
FERC–566 report. For example, FERC
allows required filers to file estimates of
volumes based on actual information
available to them if actual volumes are
not available by the statutory due date.
However, the FERC also requires
revisions of those filed estimates with
final numbers by March 1st.
Filings Information. Under FERC
regulations, respondents must file their
FERC–520, Form 561 and FERC–566 in
various formats, including electronically
via the Commission’s eFiling web page.
Most are submitted this way.
FERC has especially encouraged Form
561 respondents to file their forms via
the FERC eFiling system and to use a
Microsoft Excel version of the Form 561.
The Microsoft Excel version of the Form
561 has been available since 1998.
E:\FR\FM\04MRN1.SGM
04MRN1
12093
Federal Register / Vol. 76, No. 43 / Friday, March 4, 2011 / Notices
There have been many efforts since
1998 to use evolving and advanced
features of the Excel software to make
filling the form out easier and compiling
the filed information more easily. The
following table shows the number of
filings FERC has received for each of the
three information collections.
NUMBER OF FILINGS RELATED TO INTERLOCKED POSITIONS AND REPORTS OF UTILITIES’ TWENTY LARGEST CUSTOMERS
2008–2010
Filing name
2008
FERC–520 (Total) ............................................................................................................................................................
Æ Initial .....................................................................................................................................................................
Æ Informational .........................................................................................................................................................
Æ Notice of Change ..................................................................................................................................................
Form 561 .........................................................................................................................................................................
Form 566 .........................................................................................................................................................................
Action: The FERC is requesting a
three-year extension of the current
expiration dates for these three
information collections. It proposes to
continue to explore making the filing of
the FERC–520, FERC Form 561 and
FERC–566 more efficient by evaluating
and possibly adopting more modern
information transfer technology.
2009
2010
689
24
469
196
2,441
403
600
36
326
238
2,420
457
594
26
335
233
2,432
443
Burden Statement: Public reporting
burden for this collection is estimated in
the following table.
ESTIMATED BURDEN OF FERC COLLECTIONS RELATED TO INTERLOCKED POSITIONS AND REPORTS OF UTILITIES’ TWENTY
LARGEST CUSTOMERS
Number of
responses per
respondent
(2)
Number of respondents annually
(average)
(1)
Form name
Average
burden hours
per response
(3)
Total annual
burden hours
(1)x(2)x(3)
4061 (total)
29
377
222
2,431
434
........................
1
1
1
1
1
........................
51.8
29.5
.25
.25
6
12,680
1,502
11,122
56
608
2,604
Total ...........................
jlentini on DSKJ8SOYB1PROD with NOTICES
FERC–520 ...............................
Æ Initial .............................
Æ Informational .................
Æ Notice of Change ..........
Form 561 .................................
FERC–566 ...............................
................................................................................................
........................
........................
15,873
The estimated total cost to FERC–520
respondents is $867,922. [12,680 hours/
2080 hours 2 per year, times $142,372 3
equals $867,922]. The cost per FERC–
520 respondent annually is $2,138.
The estimated total cost to FERC–561
respondents is $41,616. [608 hours/2080
hours per year, times $142,372 equals
$41,616]. The cost per FERC–561
respondent annually is $68.
The estimated total cost to FERC–566
respondents is $178,239. [2,604 hours/
2080 hours per year, times $178,239
equals $178,239]. The cost per FERC–
566 respondent annually is $68.
The estimated total cost to
respondents for these three information
collections is $1,087,777.
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
1 This
number of unique respondents corresponds
to the number of initial filers plus the number of
informational filers.
2 Number of hours an employee works each year.
3 Average annual salary per employee.
VerDate Mar<15>2010
19:16 Mar 03, 2011
Jkt 223001
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 a
collection of information; (5) searching
data sources; (6) completing and
reviewing the collection 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
PO 00000
Frm 00081
Fmt 4703
Sfmt 9990
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 estimate
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.
Dated: February 24, 2011.
Kimberly D. Bose,
Secretary.
[FR Doc. 2011–4859 Filed 3–3–11; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6717–01–P
E:\FR\FM\04MRN1.SGM
04MRN1
]]>Agencies
[Federal Register Volume 76, Number 43 (Friday, March 4, 2011)]
[Notices]
[Pages 12091-12093]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2011-4859]
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY
Federal Energy Regulatory Commission
[Docket Nos. IC11-520-000, IC11-561-000, and IC11-566-000]
Commission Information Collection Activities, Proposed
Collections; Comment Request; Extension
AGENCY: Federal Energy Regulatory Commission.
ACTION: Notice of proposed information collections and request for
comments.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
SUMMARY: In compliance with the requirements of section 3506(c)(2)(A)
of the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, 44 U.S.C. 3506(c)(2)(A) (2006),
(Pub. L. 104-13), the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (Commission
or FERC) is soliciting public comment on the proposed information
collection activities described below.
DATES: Comments in consideration of the collection of information are
due May 3, 2011.
ADDRESSES: Comments may be filed either electronically (eFiled) or in
paper format, and should refer to Docket Nos. IC11-520-000, IC11-561-
000, and IC11-566-000. (For comments that only pertain to one of the
collections, specify the appropriate collection and the related docket
number.) Documents must be prepared in an acceptable filing format and
in compliance with Commission submission guidelines at https://www.ferc.gov/help/submission-guide.asp. eFiling instructions are
available at: https://www.ferc.gov/docs-filing/efiling.asp. First time
users must follow eRegister instructions at: https://www.ferc.gov/docs-filing/eregistration.asp, to establish a user name and password before
eFiling. The Commission will send an automatic acknowledgement to the
sender's e-mail address upon receipt of eFiled comments. Commenters
making an eFiling should not make a paper filing. Commenters that are
not able to file electronically must send an original of their comments
to: Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, Secretary of the Commission,
888 First Street, NE., Washington, DC 20426.
Users interested in receiving automatic notification of activity in
these dockets may do so through eSubscription at https://www.ferc.gov/docs-filing/esubscription.asp. In addition, all comments and FERC
issuances may be viewed, printed or downloaded remotely through FERC's
eLibrary at https://www.ferc.gov/docs-filing/elibrary.asp, by searching
on Docket Nos. IC11-520, IC11-561, and IC11-566. For user assistance,
contact FERC Online Support by e-mail at ferconlinesupport@ferc.gov, or
by phone at: (866) 208-3676 (toll-free), or (202) 502-8659 for TTY.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Ellen Brown may be reached by e-mail
at DataClearance@FERC.gov, telephone
[[Page 12092]]
at (202) 502-8663, and fax at (202) 273-0873.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The Federal Power Act (FPA) as amended by
the Public Utility Regulatory Policies Act of 1978 (PURPA) mandates
Federal oversight and approval of certain electric corporate activities
and put in place related information filing requirements. The FERC-520,
the Form 561 and the FERC-566 are the data collections currently
helping ensure that FPA-mandated oversight can occur and that neither
public nor private interests are adversely affected by the electric
activities the FPA provisions cover.
The implementing processes and regulatory requirements for the
collections are codified in Chapter 18 of the Code of Federal
Regulations (CFR).
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Information collection number OMB Number CFR Cite Statutory cite
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
FERC-520................................ 1902-0083 18 CFR Part 45............
Form 561................................ 1902-0099 18 CFR 46.6 and 131.31.... FPA Section 305, as
amended by PURPA Title
II, section 211 (16
U.S.C. 825d)
FERC-566................................ 1902-0114 18 CFR 46.3...............
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
To clarify the aim and better publicize the relationships among
these information activities, FERC is combining its processes for
noticing and renewing its OMB authority to conduct these information
collections.
Overview of the Three Forms. The FERC-520, Form 561 and FERC-566
provide views into complex electric corporate activities and serve to
safeguard public and private interests, as the FPA requires. The
Commission can use its enforcement authority when violations and
omissions of FPA requirements occur.
FERC-520. The FERC-520, ``Application for Authority to Hold
Interlocking Directorate Positions'' is an application requesting FERC
authorization for board members of regulated electric utilities that
plan to simultaneously hold positions on the corporate boards of
related or similar businesses. This corporate activity is known as an
``interlocked directorate.'' The FERC-520 originates in FPA Section
305(b) of the FPA. This part of the FPA makes the holding of certain
defined interlocking corporate positions unlawful unless the Commission
has authorized the interlocks to be held. Before assuming an
interlocked board position, an applicant must demonstrate that neither
public nor private interests will be adversely affected by the holding
of the position. The FERC-520 identifies the applicant and describes
the various interlocking positions the applicant seeks authorization to
hold. Moreover, the form collects information related to the
applicant's financial interests, other officers and directors of the
firms involved, and the nature of business relationships among the
firms.
FERC allows two types of FERC-520 applications to implement the FPA
requirements for holding interlocked positions. The first, in 18 CFR
45.8, is a ``full'' application. ``Full'' applications are made by (1)
an officer or director of more than one public utility; (2) an officer
or director of a public utility and of a public utility securities
underwriter; or (3) an officer or director of a public utility and of
an electrical equipment supplier to that utility. They provide detailed
information about the position for which authorization is sought,
including a description of duties, estimated time devoted to the
position, and the applicant's indebtedness to the public utility.
The second type of FERC-520 application, in 18 CFR 45.9, is an
``informational'' application for automatic authorization. These
``informational applications'' are made by (1) An officer or director
of two or more public utilities where the same holding company owns,
directly or indirectly, wholly or in part, the other public utility;
(2) an officer or director of two public utilities, if one utility is
owned, wholly or in part, by the other; or (3) an officer or director
of more than one public utility, if such person is already authorized
under Part 45 to hold different positions where the interlock involves
affiliated public utilities.
As part of the FERC-520 application process, the FERC requires
notices of change if the applicant resigns or withdraws from a
Commission-authorized interlocked position or if the applicant is not
re-elected or re-appointed to the interlocked position.
Form 561. The Commission uses the FERC Form 561, ``Annual Report of
Interlocking Positions'' to implement the FPA requirement that those
who are authorized to hold interlocked directorates annually disclose
all the interlocked positions they held the prior year. The positions
that must be disclosed in the Form 561 are those public utility
officers and directors hold with financial institutions, insurance
companies, utility equipment and fuel providers, and with any of an
electric utility's twenty largest purchasers of electric energy. The
FPA specifically defines most of the information elements in the Form
561, including the information that must be filed, the required filers,
the directive to make the information available to the public, and the
filing deadline. The Commission determined administrative aspects of
the Form 561 such as the filing format and instructions for filling out
the form.
FERC-566. The FERC-566 ``Annual Report of a Utility's Twenty
Largest Purchasers'' implements FPA requirements that each public
utility annually publish a list of the purchasers of the twenty largest
annual amounts of electric energy sold by such public utility during
any one of three previous calendar years pursuant to rules prescribed
by the Commission. The public disclosure of this information provides
officers and directors with the information necessary to determine
whether any of the entities with whom they are related are any of the
largest twenty purchasers of the public utility with which they are
affiliated. Similar to the statutory detail in the FPA for the FERC
561, the FPA identifies who must file the FERC-566 report and sets the
filing deadline. Additionally, the FPA specifies that those entities
required to report who have a holding company system can calculate
their total volumes of energy sold by including the amounts sold by
utilities within their holding company system. The FERC details in its
regulations special rules about the information to be provided in the
FERC-566 report. For example, FERC allows required filers to file
estimates of volumes based on actual information available to them if
actual volumes are not available by the statutory due date. However,
the FERC also requires revisions of those filed estimates with final
numbers by March 1st.
Filings Information. Under FERC regulations, respondents must file
their FERC-520, Form 561 and FERC-566 in various formats, including
electronically via the Commission's eFiling web page. Most are
submitted this way.
FERC has especially encouraged Form 561 respondents to file their
forms via the FERC eFiling system and to use a Microsoft Excel version
of the Form 561. The Microsoft Excel version of the Form 561 has been
available since 1998.
[[Page 12093]]
There have been many efforts since 1998 to use evolving and advanced
features of the Excel software to make filling the form out easier and
compiling the filed information more easily. The following table shows
the number of filings FERC has received for each of the three
information collections.
Number of Filings Related to Interlocked Positions and Reports of
Utilities' Twenty Largest Customers 2008-2010
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Filing name 2008 2009 2010
------------------------------------------------------------------------
FERC-520 (Total)............................. 689 600 594
[cir] Initial............................ 24 36 26
[cir] Informational...................... 469 326 335
[cir] Notice of Change................... 196 238 233
Form 561..................................... 2,441 2,420 2,432
Form 566..................................... 403 457 443
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Action: The FERC is requesting a three-year extension of the
current expiration dates for these three information collections. It
proposes to continue to explore making the filing of the FERC-520, FERC
Form 561 and FERC-566 more efficient by evaluating and possibly
adopting more modern information transfer technology.
Burden Statement: Public reporting burden for this collection is
estimated in the following table.
Estimated Burden of FERC Collections Related to Interlocked Positions and Reports of Utilities' Twenty Largest Customers
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Number of Average burden Total annual
Form name Number of respondents annually (average) (1) responses per hours per burden hours
respondent (2) response (3) (1)x(2)x(3)
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FERC-520........................................ 406\1\ (total) .............. .............. 12,680
[cir] Initial............................... 29 1 51.8 1,502
[cir] Informational......................... 377 1 29.5 11,122
[cir] Notice of Change...................... 222 1 .25 56
Form 561........................................ 2,431 1 .25 608
FERC-566........................................ 434 1 6 2,604
Total................................... ...................................................... .............. .............. 15,873
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The estimated total cost to FERC-520 respondents is $867,922.
[12,680 hours/2080 hours \2\ per year, times $142,372 \3\ equals
$867,922]. The cost per FERC-520 respondent annually is $2,138.
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\1\ This number of unique respondents corresponds to the number
of initial filers plus the number of informational filers.
\2\ Number of hours an employee works each year.
\3\ Average annual salary per employee.
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The estimated total cost to FERC-561 respondents is $41,616. [608
hours/2080 hours per year, times $142,372 equals $41,616]. The cost per
FERC-561 respondent annually is $68.
The estimated total cost to FERC-566 respondents is $178,239.
[2,604 hours/2080 hours per year, times $178,239 equals $178,239]. The
cost per FERC-566 respondent annually is $68.
The estimated total cost to respondents for these three information
collections is $1,087,777.
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 a collection of information; (5)
searching data sources; (6) completing and reviewing the collection 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 estimate 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.
Dated: February 24, 2011.
Kimberly D. Bose,
Secretary.
[FR Doc. 2011-4859 Filed 3-3-11; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6717-01-P
