Commission Information Collection Activities (FERC Form No. 2 and FERC Form No. 2-A); Comment Request, 33490-33492 [2017-15243]

Agencies

• DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY
• Federal Energy Regulatory Commission

[Federal Register Volume 82, Number 138 (Thursday, July 20, 2017)]
[Notices]
[Pages 33490-33492]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2017-15243]


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DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY

Federal Energy Regulatory Commission

[Docket No. IC17-10-000]


Commission Information Collection Activities (FERC Form No. 2 and 
FERC Form No. 2-A); Comment Request

AGENCY: Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, Department of Energy.

ACTION: Comment request.

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SUMMARY: In compliance with the requirements of the Paperwork

[[Page 33491]]

Reduction Act of 1995, the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission 
(Commission or FERC) is submitting its information collection [FERC 
Form No. 2 (Major Natural Gas Pipeline Annual Report) and FERC Form No. 
2-A (Non-major Natural Gas Pipeline Annual Report).] 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 previously issued a Notice April 11, 
2017, in the Federal Register requesting public comments. The 
Commission received no comments on these collections and is making this 
notation in its submittal to OMB.

DATES: Comments on the collections of information are due by August 21, 
2017.

ADDRESSES: Comments filed with OMB, identified by the OMB Control Nos. 
1902-0028 and 1902-0030, should be sent via email to the Office of 
Information and Regulatory Affairs: oira_submission@omb.gov. Attention: 
Federal Energy Regulatory Commission Desk Officer. The Desk Officer may 
also be reached via telephone at 202-395-0710.
    A copy of the comments should also be sent to the Commission, in 
Docket No. IC17-10-000, by either of the following methods:
     eFiling at Commission's Web site: https://www.ferc.gov/docs-filing/efiling.asp.
     Mail/Hand Delivery/Courier: Federal Energy Regulatory 
Commission, Secretary of the Commission, 888 First Street NE., 
Washington, DC 20426.
    Instructions: All submissions must be formatted and filed in 
accordance with submission guidelines at: https://www.ferc.gov/help/submission-guide.asp. For user assistance contact FERC Online Support 
by email at ferconlinesupport@ferc.gov, or by phone at: (866) 208-3676 
(toll-free), or (202) 502-8659 for TTY.
    Docket: Users interested in receiving automatic notification of 
activity in this docket or in viewing/downloading comments and 
issuances in this docket may do so at https://www.ferc.gov/docs-filing/docs-filing.asp.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Ellen Brown may be reached by email at 
DataClearance@FERC.gov, by telephone at (202) 502-8663, and by fax at 
(202) 273-0873.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 
    Title: FERC Form No. 2 (Annual Report of Major Natural Gas 
Companies) and FERC Form No. 2-A (Annual Report of Non-major Natural 
Gas Companies).\1\
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    \1\ The FERC Form No. 2 and Form 2-A are also part of the Forms 
Refresh effort (started in Docket No. AD15-11), which is a separate 
activity and not addressed in this Notice.
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    OMB Control Nos.: 1902-0028 (FERC Form No. 2) and 1902-0030 (FERC 
Form No. 2-A).
    Type of Request: Three-year extension of the FERC Form No. 2 and 
FERC Form No. 2-A information collection requirements with no changes 
to the reporting requirements.
    Abstract: Pursuant to sections 8, 10 and 14 of the National Gas Act 
(NGA), (15 U.S.C. 717g-717m, Pub. L. 75-688), the Commission is 
authorized to make investigations and collect and record data, to 
prescribe rules and regulations concerning accounts, records and 
memoranda as necessary or appropriate for purposes of administering the 
NGA. The Commission includes the filing requirements in 18 CFR parts 
260.1 and 260.2.
    The forms provide information concerning a company's past 
performance. The information is compiled using a standard chart of 
accounts contained in the Commission's Uniform System of Accounts 
(USofA).\2\ The forms contain schedules which include a basic set of 
financial statements: Comparative Balance Sheet, Statement of Income 
and Retained Earnings, Statement of Cash Flows, and the Statement of 
Comprehensive Income and Hedging Activities. Supporting schedules 
containing supplementary information are filed, including revenues and 
the related quantities of products sold or transported; account 
balances for various operating and maintenance expenses; selected plant 
cost data; and other information.
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    \2\ See 18 CFR part 201.
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    The information collected in the forms is used by Commission staff, 
state regulatory agencies and others in the review of the financial 
condition of regulated companies. The information is also used in 
various rate proceedings, industry analyses and in the Commission's 
audit programs and, as appropriate, for the computation of annual 
charges based on Page 520 of the forms. The Commission provides the 
information to the public, interveners and all interested parties to 
assist in the proceedings before the Commission.
    Print versions of the Forms No. 2 and 2-A are located on the 
Commission's Web site at https://www.ferc.gov/docs-filing/forms.asp#2 
and https://www.ferc.gov/docs-filing/forms.asp#2a respectively.
    Type of Respondents: Each natural gas company whose combined gas 
transported or stored for a fee exceeds 50 million dekatherms in each 
of the previous three years must file the Form 2. Each natural gas 
company not meeting the filing threshold for the Form 2 but having 
total gas sales or volume transactions exceeding 200,000 dekatherms in 
each of the previous three calendar years must submit the Form 2-A.
    Estimate of Annual Burden \3\: The Commission estimates the annual 
public reporting burden for the information collections as:
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    \3\ Burden is the total time, effort, or financial resources 
expended by persons to generate, maintain, retain, or disclose or 
provide information to or for a Federal agency. For further 
explanation of what is included in the information collection 
burden, refer to Title 5 Code of Federal Regulations 1320.3.
    \4\ The estimates for cost per response are derived using the 
following formula: 2017 Average Burden Hours per Response * $76.50 
per Hour = Average Cost per Response. The hourly cost figure of 
$76.50 is the average FERC employee wage plus benefits. We assume 
that respondents earn at a similar rate.

          FERC Form No. 2: Annual Report of Major Natural Gas Companies and FERC Form No. 2-A: Annual Report of Non-Major Natural Gas Companies
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                                                        Annual number
                                          Number of     of responses    Total number    Average burden and cost  Total annual burden and     Cost per
                                         respondents   per respondent   of responses       per response \4\         total annual cost     respondent ($)
                                                  (1)             (2)     (1) * (2) =  (4).....................  (3) * (4) = (5)........       (5) / (1)
                                                                                  (3)
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FERC Form No. 2......................              92               1              92  1,629 hrs.; $124,619....  149,868 hrs.;                  $124,619
                                                                                                                  $11,464,902.
FERC Form No. 2-A....................              66               1              66  253.39 hrs.; 19,384.....  16,724 hrs.; $1,279,366         $19,384
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[[Page 33492]]

    Comments: Comments are invited on: (1) Whether the collections 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 estimates of the burden and 
costs of the collections of information, including the validity of the 
methodologies and assumptions used; (3) ways to enhance the quality, 
utility and clarity of the information collections; and (4) ways to 
minimize the burden of the collections of information on those who are 
to respond, including the use of automated collection techniques or 
other forms of information technology.

    Dated: July 13, 2017.
Kimberly D. Bose,
Secretary.
[FR Doc. 2017-15243 Filed 7-19-17; 8:45 am]
 BILLING CODE 6717-01-P