Commission Information Collections Activities (Ferc Form Nos. 2 And 2-A); Comment Request; Extension; Errata Notice, 56597-56598 [2020-20170]
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Federal Register / Vol. 85, No. 178 / Monday, September 14, 2020 / Notices
of automated collection techniques or
other forms of information technology.
Dated: September 8, 2020.
Kimberly D. Bose,
Secretary.
[FR Doc. 2020–20166 Filed 9–11–20; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6717–01–P
DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY
Federal Energy Regulatory
Commission
[Docket No. IC20–10–000]
Commission Information Collections
Activities (Ferc Form Nos. 2 And 2–A);
Comment Request; Extension; Errata
Notice
Federal Energy Regulatory
Commission.
ACTION: Errata notice for information
collections and request for comments.
AGENCY:
In compliance with the
requirements of the Paperwork
Reduction Act of 1995, the Federal
Energy Regulatory Commission
(Commission or FERC) is soliciting
public comment on currently approved
information collections, FERC Form No.
2 (Annual Report for Major Natural Gas
Companies) and FERC Form No. 2–A
(Annual Report for Non-Major Natural
Gas Companies). This notice corrects
and replaces the 30-day notice
published on July 20, 2020. The 60-day
notice was published on April 30, 2020
and the initial 30-day notice published
on July 20, 2020. The intial 30-day
notice erroneously omitted the burden
associated with a Final rule approved
September 9, 2019. In order to correct
the previously published notices, FERC
is providing the opportunity for an
additional 30-day comment period.
DATES: Comments on the collections of
information are due October 14, 2020.
ADDRESSES: You may submit written
comments on FERC Form Nos. 2 and 2–
A to the Office of Management and
Budget (OMB) through
www.reginfo.gov/public/do/PRAMain,
Attention: Federal Energy Regulatory
Commission Desk Officer. Please
identify the OMB control numbers
(1902–0028 and 1902–0030) in the
subject line. Your comments should be
sent within 30 days of publication of
this notice in the Federal Register.
Please submit copies of your
comments to the Commission
(identified by Docket No. IC20–10–000)
by one of the following methods:
• eFiling at Commission’s Website:
https://www.ferc.gov.
khammond on DSKJM1Z7X2PROD with NOTICES
SUMMARY:
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17:51 Sep 11, 2020
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• U.S. Postal Service Mail: Persons
unable to file electronically may mail
similar pleadings to the Federal Energy
Regulatory Commission, 888 First Street
NE, Washington, DC 20426.
• Effective 7/1/2020, delivery of
filings other than by eFiling or the U.S.
Postal Service should be delivered to
Health and Human Services, 12225
Wilkins Avenue, Rockville, Maryland
20852.
Instructions: All submissions must be
formatted and filed in accordance with
submission guidelines at: https://
www.ferc.gov/filing-instructions. For
user assistance, contact FERC Online
Support by email at ferconlinesupport@
ferc.gov, or by phone at: (866) 208–3676
(toll-free).
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/docsfiling/docs-filing.asp.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
Ellen Brown may be reached by email
at DataClearance@FERC.gov and
telephone at (202) 502–8663.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Title: FERC Form No. 2, Annual
Report for Major Natural Gas
Companies, and FERC Form No. 2–A,
Annual Report for Non-Major Natural
Gas Companies.
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 collections
requirements without a change to the
current reporting and recordkeeping
requirements.
Abstract: Pursuant to sections 8, 10
and 14 of the Natural Gas Act (NGA),
(15 U.S.C. 717g, 717i, and 717m), the
Commission is authorized to conduct
investigations and collect and record
data, and to prescribe rules and
regulations concerning accounts,
records and memoranda as necessary or
appropriate for purposes of
administering the NGA. The
Commission may prescribe a system of
accounts for jurisdictional companies
and, after notice and opportunity for
hearing, may determine the accounts in
which particular outlays and receipts
will be entered, charged or credited.
The Commission collects FERC Form
Nos. 2 and 2–A information as
prescribed in 18 CFR 260.1 and 18 CFR
260.2. These forms provide information
concerning a company’s current
performance, compiled using the
Commission’s Uniform System of
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Frm 00026
Fmt 4703
Sfmt 4703
56597
Accounts (USofA).1 FERC Form No. 2 is
filed by ‘‘Major’’ natural gas companies
that have combined natural gas
transported or stored for a fee that
exceeds 50 million Dekatherms in each
of the three previous calendar years.
FERC Form No. 2–A is filed by ‘‘NonMajor’’ natural gas companies that do
not meet the filing threshold for the
FERC Form No. 2, but have total gas
sales or volume transactions that
exceeds 200,000 Dekatherms in each of
the three previous calendar years.2
The forms provide information
concerning a company’s financial and
operational information. 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.
The information collected assists the
Commission in the administration of its
jurisdictional responsibilities and is
used by Commission staff, state
regulatory agencies, customers, financial
analysts 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. The
information is made available to the
public, interveners and all interested
parties to assist in the proceedings
before the Commission. For financial
information to be useful to the
Commission, it must be understandable,
relevant, reliable and timely. The Form
Nos. 2 and 2–A financial statements are
prepared in accordance with the
Commission’s USofA and related
regulations, and provide data that
enables the Commission to develop and
monitor cost-based rates, analyze costs
of different services and classes of
assets, and compare costs across lines of
business. The use of the USofA permits
natural gas companies to account for
1 See 18 CFR part 201 (Uniform System of
Accounts Prescribed for Natural Gas Companies
Subject to the Provisions of the Natural Gas Act).
2 FERC Form Nos. 2 and 2–A are part of the
‘‘Forms Refresh’’ effort, which is a separate activity
and not addressed here. See Revisions to the Filing
Process for Commission Forms, 166 FERC ¶ 61,027
(2019) (started in Docket No. AD15–11–000 and
ongoing in Docket No. RM19–12–000). OMB issued
its decisions on the Forms Refresh Final Rule in
Docket No. RM19–12–000 on June 27, 2019.
E:\FR\FM\14SEN1.SGM
14SEN1
56598
Federal Register / Vol. 85, No. 178 / Monday, September 14, 2020 / Notices
similar transactions and events in a
consistent manner, and to communicate
those results to the Commission on a
periodic basis. Comparability of data
and financial statement analysis for a
particular entity from one period to the
next, or between entities, within the
same industry, would be difficult to
achieve if each company maintained its
own accounting records using dissimilar
accounting methods and classifications
to record similar transactions and
events. In summary, without the
information collected in the forms, it
Information collections (FERC Form No.)
would be difficult for the Commission
to ensure, as required by the NGA, that
a pipeline’s rates remain just and
reasonable, respond to Congressional
and outside inquires, and make
decisions in a timely manner. On April
30, 2020, the Commission published a
Notice in the Federal Register in Docket
No. IC20–10–000 requesting public
comments.3 The Commission received
no public comments.
Note: This notice replaces and
corrects the 30-day notice published on
July 20, 2020 (85FR43831); no public
comments were received. The burden
and cost estimates have been corrected
to include the industry burden of
preparing and submitting in XBRL
carried over from RM19–12 (approved
by OMB 9/2019). The changes are
reflected within the table below.
Type of Respondent: Major and NonMajor Natural Gas Companies.
Estimate of Annual Burden: 4 The
Commission estimates the annual public
reporting burden and cost 5 for the
information collections as shown in the
following table:
Number of
respondents
Annual
number of
responses per
respondent
Total
number of
responses
Average burden & cost ($)
per response
Total annual burden hours &
cost
($) 6
Annual cost
per
respondent
($)
(1)
(2)
(1) * (2) = (3)
(4)
(3) * (4) = (5)
(5) ÷ (1)
Form No. 2—representing 100 respondents
Burden to Comply with Filing Requirement ..........................
Burden to Prepare and Submit in XBRL (represented using
the same number of respondents and responses normally received annually).
100
100
1
1
100
100
1,671.67 hrs.; $133,734 ........
42.66 hrs.; $3,413 .................
167,167 hrs.; $13,373,360 ....
4,266 hrs.; $341,280 .............
133,734
3,413
Form No. 2 Total ............................................................
100
1
100
1,714.32 hrs.; $137,147 ........
171,433 hrs.; $13,714,700 ....
137,147
khammond on DSKJM1Z7X2PROD with NOTICES
Form No. 2–A—representing 81 respondents
Burden to Comply with Filing Requirement ..........................
Burden to Prepare and Submit in XBRL (represented using
the same number of respondents and responses normally received annually).
81
81
1
1
81
81
296 hrs.; $23,680 ..................
42.66 hrs.; $3,413 .................
23,976 hrs.; $1,918,080 ........
3,455.46 hrs.; $276,453 ........
23,680
3,413
Form No. 2–A Total ........................................................
81
1
81
338.66 hrs.; $27,093 .............
27,431.46 hrs.; $2,194, 533 ..
27,093
• The number of annual responses
related to the FERC Form Nos. 2 and 2–
A is 181 responses.
• The industry burden of complying
with the filing requirement is 167,167
hours (rounded) for FERC Form No. 2
and 23,976 hours for FERC Form No. 2–
A.
• The industry burden of preparing
and submitting in XBRL carried over
from RM19–12 (approved by OMB 9/
2019) 100 hours per form for the first
year plus 14 hours per form for the
remaining 2 years. The annual estimated
total XBRL hours (100 + 14 + 14 = 128;
128 hrs./3 yrs. = 42.66 hrs. per
respondent per response) is 4,266 hours
for FERC Form No. 2 and 3,455.46 hours
for FERC Form No. 2–A.
Comments: Comments are invited on:
(1) Whether the 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 and cost of the collections
of information, including the validity of
the methodology and assumptions used;
3 85
FR 23954.
is defined as 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
4 Burden
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17:51 Sep 11, 2020
Jkt 250001
(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: September 8, 2020.
Kimberly D. Bose,
Secretary.
[FR Doc. 2020–20170 Filed 9–11–20; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6717–01–P
DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY
Federal Energy Regulatory
Commission
[Docket No. CP20–27–000]
North Baja Pipeline, LLC; Notice of
Availability of the Environmental
Assessment for the Proposed North
Baja Xpress Project
The staff of the Federal Energy
Regulatory Commission (FERC or
Commission) has prepared an
collections burden, refer to 5 Code of Federal
Regulations 1320.3.
5 The Commission staff believes the FERC FTE
(full-time equivalent) average cost for wages plus
benefits is representative of the corresponding cost
for the industry respondents. Based upon the
PO 00000
Frm 00027
Fmt 4703
Sfmt 4703
environmental assessment (EA) for the
North Baja XPress Project, proposed by
North Baja Pipeline, LLC (North Baja) in
the above-referenced docket. North Baja
requests authorization to modify an
existing compressor station in La Paz
County, Arizona, as well as install
additional flow measurement facilities
and piping modifications at two existing
meter stations in La Paz County,
Arizona, and Imperial County,
California, respectively. The project
would enable the transport of 495,000
dekatherms per day to the United
States/Mexico border. North Baja states
that the purpose of the project is to
create capacity to meet growing market
demand and provide transportation of
feed gas for the Energia Costa Azul
liquefied natural gas terminal in Baja
California, Mexico.
The EA assesses the potential
environmental effects of the
construction and operation of the North
Baja XPress Project in accordance with
the requirements of the National
Environmental Policy Act (NEPA). The
FERC staff concludes that approval of
the proposed project, with appropriate
FERC’s 2019 average cost for salary plus benefits,
the average hourly cost is $80/hour.
6 Every cost figure in this column is rounded to
the nearest dollar.
E:\FR\FM\14SEN1.SGM
14SEN1
]]>Agencies
[Federal Register Volume 85, Number 178 (Monday, September 14, 2020)]
[Notices]
[Pages 56597-56598]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2020-20170]
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY
Federal Energy Regulatory Commission
[Docket No. IC20-10-000]
Commission Information Collections Activities (Ferc Form Nos. 2
And 2-A); Comment Request; Extension; Errata Notice
AGENCY: Federal Energy Regulatory Commission.
ACTION: Errata notice for information collections and request for
comments.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
SUMMARY: In compliance with the requirements of the Paperwork Reduction
Act of 1995, the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (Commission or
FERC) is soliciting public comment on currently approved information
collections, FERC Form No. 2 (Annual Report for Major Natural Gas
Companies) and FERC Form No. 2-A (Annual Report for Non-Major Natural
Gas Companies). This notice corrects and replaces the 30-day notice
published on July 20, 2020. The 60-day notice was published on April
30, 2020 and the initial 30-day notice published on July 20, 2020. The
intial 30-day notice erroneously omitted the burden associated with a
Final rule approved September 9, 2019. In order to correct the
previously published notices, FERC is providing the opportunity for an
additional 30-day comment period.
DATES: Comments on the collections of information are due October 14,
2020.
ADDRESSES: You may submit written comments on FERC Form Nos. 2 and 2-A
to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) through www.reginfo.gov/public/do/PRAMain, Attention: Federal Energy Regulatory Commission Desk
Officer. Please identify the OMB control numbers (1902-0028 and 1902-
0030) in the subject line. Your comments should be sent within 30 days
of publication of this notice in the Federal Register.
Please submit copies of your comments to the Commission (identified
by Docket No. IC20-10-000) by one of the following methods:
eFiling at Commission's Website: https://www.ferc.gov.
U.S. Postal Service Mail: Persons unable to file
electronically may mail similar pleadings to the Federal Energy
Regulatory Commission, 888 First Street NE, Washington, DC 20426.
Effective 7/1/2020, delivery of filings other than by
eFiling or the U.S. Postal Service should be delivered to Health and
Human Services, 12225 Wilkins Avenue, Rockville, Maryland 20852.
Instructions: All submissions must be formatted and filed in
accordance with submission guidelines at: https://www.ferc.gov/filing-instructions. For user assistance, contact FERC Online Support by email
at [email protected], or by phone at: (866) 208-3676 (toll-
free).
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
[email protected] and telephone at (202) 502-8663.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Title: FERC Form No. 2, Annual Report for Major Natural Gas
Companies, and FERC Form No. 2-A, Annual Report for Non-Major Natural
Gas Companies.
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 collections requirements without a change
to the current reporting and recordkeeping requirements.
Abstract: Pursuant to sections 8, 10 and 14 of the Natural Gas Act
(NGA), (15 U.S.C. 717g, 717i, and 717m), the Commission is authorized
to conduct investigations and collect and record data, and to prescribe
rules and regulations concerning accounts, records and memoranda as
necessary or appropriate for purposes of administering the NGA. The
Commission may prescribe a system of accounts for jurisdictional
companies and, after notice and opportunity for hearing, may determine
the accounts in which particular outlays and receipts will be entered,
charged or credited.
The Commission collects FERC Form Nos. 2 and 2-A information as
prescribed in 18 CFR 260.1 and 18 CFR 260.2. These forms provide
information concerning a company's current performance, compiled using
the Commission's Uniform System of Accounts (USofA).\1\ FERC Form No. 2
is filed by ``Major'' natural gas companies that have combined natural
gas transported or stored for a fee that exceeds 50 million Dekatherms
in each of the three previous calendar years. FERC Form No. 2-A is
filed by ``Non-Major'' natural gas companies that do not meet the
filing threshold for the FERC Form No. 2, but have total gas sales or
volume transactions that exceeds 200,000 Dekatherms in each of the
three previous calendar years.\2\
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\1\ See 18 CFR part 201 (Uniform System of Accounts Prescribed
for Natural Gas Companies Subject to the Provisions of the Natural
Gas Act).
\2\ FERC Form Nos. 2 and 2-A are part of the ``Forms Refresh''
effort, which is a separate activity and not addressed here. See
Revisions to the Filing Process for Commission Forms, 166 FERC ]
61,027 (2019) (started in Docket No. AD15-11-000 and ongoing in
Docket No. RM19-12-000). OMB issued its decisions on the Forms
Refresh Final Rule in Docket No. RM19-12-000 on June 27, 2019.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
The forms provide information concerning a company's financial and
operational information. 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.
The information collected assists the Commission in the
administration of its jurisdictional responsibilities and is used by
Commission staff, state regulatory agencies, customers, financial
analysts 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. The
information is made available to the public, interveners and all
interested parties to assist in the proceedings before the Commission.
For financial information to be useful to the Commission, it must be
understandable, relevant, reliable and timely. The Form Nos. 2 and 2-A
financial statements are prepared in accordance with the Commission's
USofA and related regulations, and provide data that enables the
Commission to develop and monitor cost-based rates, analyze costs of
different services and classes of assets, and compare costs across
lines of business. The use of the USofA permits natural gas companies
to account for
[[Page 56598]]
similar transactions and events in a consistent manner, and to
communicate those results to the Commission on a periodic basis.
Comparability of data and financial statement analysis for a particular
entity from one period to the next, or between entities, within the
same industry, would be difficult to achieve if each company maintained
its own accounting records using dissimilar accounting methods and
classifications to record similar transactions and events. In summary,
without the information collected in the forms, it would be difficult
for the Commission to ensure, as required by the NGA, that a pipeline's
rates remain just and reasonable, respond to Congressional and outside
inquires, and make decisions in a timely manner. On April 30, 2020, the
Commission published a Notice in the Federal Register in Docket No.
IC20-10-000 requesting public comments.\3\ The Commission received no
public comments.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\3\ 85 FR 23954.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
Note: This notice replaces and corrects the 30-day notice published
on July 20, 2020 (85FR43831); no public comments were received. The
burden and cost estimates have been corrected to include the industry
burden of preparing and submitting in XBRL carried over from RM19-12
(approved by OMB 9/2019). The changes are reflected within the table
below.
Type of Respondent: Major and Non-Major Natural Gas Companies.
Estimate of Annual Burden: \4\ The Commission estimates the annual
public reporting burden and cost \5\ for the information collections as
shown in the following table:
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\4\ Burden is defined as 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
collections burden, refer to 5 Code of Federal Regulations 1320.3.
\5\ The Commission staff believes the FERC FTE (full-time
equivalent) average cost for wages plus benefits is representative
of the corresponding cost for the industry respondents. Based upon
the FERC's 2019 average cost for salary plus benefits, the average
hourly cost is $80/hour.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Annual number
Information collections (FERC Form Number of of responses Total number Average burden & cost Total annual burden Annual cost
No.) respondents per of responses ($) per response hours & cost ($) \6\ per
respondent respondent ($)
(1) (2) (1) * (2) = (4)..................... (3) * (4) = (5)........ (5) / (1)
(3)
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Form No. 2--representing 100 respondents
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Burden to Comply with Filing 100 1 100 1,671.67 hrs.; $133,734. 167,167 hrs.; 133,734
Requirement. $13,373,360.
Burden to Prepare and Submit in XBRL 100 1 100 42.66 hrs.; $3,413...... 4,266 hrs.; $341,280... 3,413
(represented using the same number
of respondents and responses
normally received annually).
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Form No. 2 Total................. 100 1 100 1,714.32 hrs.; $137,147. 171,433 hrs.; 137,147
$13,714,700.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Form No. 2-A--representing 81 respondents
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Burden to Comply with Filing 81 1 81 296 hrs.; $23,680....... 23,976 hrs.; $1,918,080 23,680
Requirement.
Burden to Prepare and Submit in XBRL 81 1 81 42.66 hrs.; $3,413...... 3,455.46 hrs.; $276,453 3,413
(represented using the same number
of respondents and responses
normally received annually).
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Form No. 2-A Total............... 81 1 81 338.66 hrs.; $27,093.... 27,431.46 hrs.; $2,194, 27,093
533.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
The number of annual responses related to the FERC Form
Nos. 2 and 2-A is 181 responses.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\6\ Every cost figure in this column is rounded to the nearest
dollar.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
The industry burden of complying with the filing
requirement is 167,167 hours (rounded) for FERC Form No. 2 and 23,976
hours for FERC Form No. 2-A.
The industry burden of preparing and submitting in XBRL
carried over from RM19-12 (approved by OMB 9/2019) 100 hours per form
for the first year plus 14 hours per form for the remaining 2 years.
The annual estimated total XBRL hours (100 + 14 + 14 = 128; 128 hrs./3
yrs. = 42.66 hrs. per respondent per response) is 4,266 hours for FERC
Form No. 2 and 3,455.46 hours for FERC Form No. 2-A.
Comments: Comments are invited on: (1) Whether the 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 and cost of the collections of information, including the
validity of the methodology 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: September 8, 2020.
Kimberly D. Bose,
Secretary.
[FR Doc. 2020-20170 Filed 9-11-20; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6717-01-P
