Commission Information Collection Activities (Ferc-725z); Comment Request; Extension, 62089-62091 [2022-22225]
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Federal Register / Vol. 87, No. 197 / Thursday, October 13, 2022 / Notices
Filed Date: 10/6/22.
Accession Number: 20221006–5050.
Comment Date: 5 p.m. ET 10/27/22.
Docket Numbers: ER23–27–000.
Applicants: New York Independent
System Operator, Inc.
Description: Tariff Amendment:
Notice of Cancellation of EPCA SA No.
2592 among NYISO, Roaring Brook,
NYPA to be effective 12/6/2022.
Filed Date: 10/6/22.
Accession Number: 20221006–5052.
Comment Date: 5 p.m. ET 10/27/22.
Docket Numbers: ER23–28–000.
Applicants: PJM Interconnection,
L.L.C.
Description: § 205(d) Rate Filing:
Amendment to ISA/CSA, SA Nos. 5562/
5563; Queue No. AB2–032/AB2–153 to
be effective 1/16/2020.
Filed Date: 10/6/22.
Accession Number: 20221006–5061.
Comment Date: 5 p.m. ET 10/27/22.
Docket Numbers: ER23–29–000.
Applicants: Cargill Power Markets,
LLC.
Description: Tariff Amendment:
Notice of Cancellation of MBR Tariff to
be effective 10/7/2022.
Filed Date: 10/6/22.
Accession Number: 20221006–5067.
Comment Date: 5 p.m. ET 10/27/22.
Docket Numbers: ER23–30–000.
Applicants: Baron Winds LLC.
Description: Baseline eTariff Filing:
Application for Market Based Rate
Authority to be effective 12/5/2022.
Filed Date: 10/6/22.
Accession Number: 20221006–5132.
Comment Date: 5 p.m. ET 10/27/22.
Docket Numbers: ER23–31–000.
Applicants: Pattersonville Solar
Facility LLC.
Description: Compliance filing: Notice
of Succession and Revisions to MarketBased Rate Tariff to be effective 10/7/
2022.
Filed Date: 10/6/22.
Accession Number: 20221006–5133.
Comment Date: 5 p.m. ET 10/27/22.
The filings are accessible in the
Commission’s eLibrary system (https://
elibrary.ferc.gov/idmws/search/
fercgensearch.asp) by querying the
docket number.
Any person desiring to intervene or
protest in any of the above proceedings
must file in accordance with Rules 211
and 214 of the Commission’s
Regulations (18 CFR 385.211 and
385.214) on or before 5:00 p.m. Eastern
time on the specified comment date.
Protests may be considered, but
intervention is necessary to become a
party to the proceeding.
eFiling is encouraged. More detailed
information relating to filing
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requirements, interventions, protests,
service, and qualifying facilities filings
can be found at: https://www.ferc.gov/
docs-filing/efiling/filing-req.pdf. For
other information, call (866) 208–3676
(toll free). For TTY, call (202) 502–8659.
Dated: October 6, 2022.
Debbie-Anne A. Reese,
Deputy Secretary.
[FR Doc. 2022–22228 Filed 10–12–22; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6717–01–P
DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY
Federal Energy Regulatory
Commission
[Docket Nos. IC22–24–000 and RD22–2–000]
Commission Information Collection
Activities (Ferc–725z); Comment
Request; Extension
Federal Energy Regulatory
Commission, DOE.
ACTION: Notice of information collection
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 the currently
approved information collection, FERC–
725Z (Mandatory Reliability Standards:
IRO Reliability Standards), which will
be submitted to the Office of
Management and Budget (OMB) for
review. No comments were received on
the 60-day notice published on August
3, 2022 for IC22–24–000. This notice
includes modifications of Reliability
Standard IRO–008 (version update)
included in FERC–725Z as published in
Docket No. RD–22–2–000. The burden
totals have been merged to include the
new updated version of IRO–008–3.
DATES: Comments on the collection of
information are due November 14, 2022.
ADDRESSES: Send written comments on
FERC–725Z to OMB through
www.reginfo.gov/public/do/PRAMain.
Attention: Federal Energy Regulatory
Commission Desk Officer. Please
identify the OMB Control Number
(1902–0276) in the subject line of your
comments. Comments should be sent
within 30 days of publication of this
notice to www.reginfo.gov/public/do/
PRAMain.
Please submit copies of your
comments to the Commission. You may
submit copies of your comments
(identified by Docket No. IC22–24–000)
by one of the following methods:
Electronic filing through https://
www.ferc.gov, is preferred.
SUMMARY:
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62089
• Electronic Filing: Documents must
be filed in acceptable native
applications and print-to-PDF, but not
in scanned or picture format.
• For those unable to file
electronically, comments may be filed
by USPS mail or by hand (including
courier) delivery.
Æ Mail via U.S. Postal Service Only:
Addressed to: Federal Energy
Regulatory Commission, Secretary of the
Commission, 888 First Street NE,
Washington, DC 20426.
Æ Hand (including courier) delivery:
Deliver to: Federal Energy Regulatory
Commission, Secretary of the
Commission, 12225 Wilkins Avenue,
Rockville, MD 20852.
Instructions: OMB submissions must
be formatted and filed in accordance
with submission guidelines at
www.reginfo.gov/public/do/PRAMain.
Using the search function under the
‘‘Currently Under Review’’ field, select
Federal Energy Regulatory Commission;
click ‘‘submit,’’ and select ‘‘comment’’
to the right of the subject collection.
FERC submissions must be formatted
and filed in accordance with submission
guidelines at: https://www.ferc.gov. 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/ferconline/overview.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
Ellen Brown may be reached by email
at DataClearance@FERC.gov, telephone
at (202) 502–8663.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Title: FERC–725Z (Mandatory
Reliability Standards: IRO Reliability
Standards).
OMB Control No.: 1902–0276.
Type of Request: Extension for the
currently approved information
collection and approval of revisions
made by Docket No. RD22–2 (IRO–008–
3 version update).
Abstract: On August 8, 2005, The
Electricity Modernization Act of 2005,
which is Title XII of the Energy Policy
Act of 2005 (EPAct 2005), was enacted
into law.1 Under section 215 of the
Federal Power Act (FPA) implemented
in 18 CFR 40, the Commission requires
a Commission-certified Electric
Reliability Organization (ERO) to
develop mandatory and enforceable
1 The Energy Policy Act of 2005 (EPAct), Public
Law No 109–58, Title XII, Subtitle A, 119 Stat. 594,
941 (2005), codified at 16 U.S.C. 824o (2000).
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Federal Register / Vol. 87, No. 197 / Thursday, October 13, 2022 / Notices
Reliability Standards,2 which are
subject to Commission review and
approval. In 2006, the Commission
established a process to select and
certify an ERO and, subsequently,
certified the North American Electric
Reliability Corporation (NERC) as the
ERO.3
The ERO develops proposed
Reliability Standards 4 and, if approved
by NERC, submits them to the
Commission for review and approval.
When the standards are approved by the
Commission, the Reliability Standards
become mandatory and must be
enforced by the ERO, subject to
Commission oversight.
The IRO Reliability Standards (IRO–
001–4, IRO–002–7, IRO–008–2, IRO–
009–2, IRO–010–2, IRO–014–3, IRO–
017–1, and IRO–018–1) mentioned
below are included in FERC–725Z:
IRO–001–4
The purpose of IRO–001–4 is to
establish the responsibility of Reliability
Coordinators to act or direct other
entities to act.
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IRO–002–7
In a joint petition dated May 30, 2019,
the North American Electric Reliability
Corporation (‘‘NERC’’) and Western
Electricity Coordinating Council
(‘‘WECC’’) requested Commission
approval for Reliability Standard IRO–
002–6 (now IRO–002–7) (Reliability
Coordination, Monitoring and Analysis).
NERC and WECC stated that the
‘‘Reliability Standard IRO–002–7
reflects the addition of a regional
Variance containing additional
requirements applicable to Reliability
Coordinators providing service to
entities in the Western
Interconnection.’’ NERC maintains that
the data exchange capability
2 The Federal Power Act (as modified by the
EPAct) states ‘‘[t]he terms ‘‘reliability standard’’
means a requirement, approved by the Commission
under this section, to provide for reliable operation
of the bulk-power system. The term includes
requirements for the operation of existing bulkpower system facilities, including cybersecurity
protection, and the design of planned additions or
modifications to such facilities to the extent
necessary to provide for reliable operation of the
bulk-power system, but the term does not include
any requirement to enlarge such facilities or to
construct new transmission capacity or generation
capacity.’’
3 North American Electric Reliability Corp., 116
FERC ¶ 61,062, order on reh’g and compliance, 117
FERC ¶ 61,126 (2006), order on compliance, 118
FERC ¶ 61,190, order on reh’g, 119 FERC ¶ 61,046
(2007), aff’d sub nom. Alcoa Inc. v. FERC, 564 F.3d
1342 (D.C. Cir. 2009).
4 The NERC Standard Processes Manual,
Appendix 3A of the NERC Rules Of Procedure,
(posted at https://www.nerc.com/FilingsOrders/us/
RuleOfProcedureDL/SPM_Clean_Mar2019.pdf)
describes the process for developing, modifying,
withdrawing, or retiring a Reliability Standard.
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requirement in Reliability Standard
IRO–002–7, Requirement R1 is covered
by Reliability Standard IRO–008–2.
IRO–008–3 as Approved in Docket No.
RD22–2 (Formerly IRO–008–2)
Requirement R1 obligates the
reliability coordinator (RC) to perform
operational planning analyses to assess
whether the planned operations for the
next-day will exceed System Operating
Limits and Interconnection Reliability
Operating Limits within its wide area.
NERC asserts that ‘‘to perform the
required operational planning analyses,
the Reliability Coordinator must have
the data it deems necessary from those
entities that possess it.’’ The revisions in
IRO–008–3 apply to the RC and requires
RCs to perform analyses and
assessments to prevent instability,
uncontrolled separation, or cascading.
NERC added a new requirement
requiring an RC to use its SOL
methodology when determining SOL
exceedances for its analyses and
assessments and further revised a
requirement requiring the RC to use its
SOL risk-based notification framework
when communicating SOL or IROL
exceedances.
IRO–009–2
Currently effective IRO–009–2,
applicable to reliability coordinators, is
to prevent instability, uncontrolled
separation, or cascading outages that
adversely impact the reliability of the
interconnection by ensuring prompt
action to prevent or mitigate instances
of exceeding Interconnection Reliability
Operating Limits (IROLs).
IRO–010–2
Additionally, regarding data
exchange, NERC cites Reliability
Standard IRO–010–2 (Reliability
Coordinator Data Specification and
Collection) and its stated purpose of
preventing instability, uncontrolled
separation, or cascading outages ‘‘by
ensuring the Reliability Coordinator has
the data it needs to monitor and assess
the operation of its Reliability
Coordinator Area.’’ NERC states that
under Reliability Standard IRO–010–2,
Requirements R1, R2, and R3, the
reliability coordinator must specify the
data necessary for it to perform its
operational planning analyses and
provide the specifications to the entities
from which it needs data who then must
comply with the data request using a
mutually agreeable format and security
protocols.
IRO–014–3
The purpose of Reliability Standard
IRO–014–3 is to ensure that each
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Reliability Coordinator’s operations are
coordinated such that they will not
adversely impact other Reliability
Coordinator Areas and to preserve the
reliability benefits of interconnected
operations.
IRO–017–1
The purpose of IRO–017–1 (Outage
Coordination) is to ensure that outages
are properly coordinated in the
Operations Planning time horizon and
Near-Term Transmission Planning
Horizon. Reliability coordinators,
planning coordinators, balancing
authorities, transmission owners, and
transmission planners are applicable
entities for IRO–017–1.
IRO–018–1
IRO–018–1 (Reliability Coordinator
Real-time Reliability Monitoring and
Analysis Capabilities), requirement R3,
requires reliability coordinators to have
an alarm process monitor that provides
notification to system operators when
the failure of a real-time monitoring
alarm processor has occurred.
All IRO Standards build on
monitoring real-time assessments and
supporting effective situational
awareness. The Reliability Standards
accomplish this by requiring applicable
entities to: (1) provide notification to
operators of real-time monitoring alarm
failures; (2) provide operators with
indications of the quality of information
being provided by their monitoring and
analysis capabilities; and (3) address
deficiencies in the quality of
information being provided by their
monitoring and analysis capabilities.
NERC observes that the performance
of the requirements it cites is premised
on the existence of data exchange
capabilities, regardless of whether a
separate requirement expressly requires
the reliability coordinator to have data
exchange capabilities in place.
Type of Respondents: Reliability
coordinators (RC), planning
coordinators (PC), balancing authorities
(BA), transmission owners (TO),
transmission planners (TP),
Transmission Operators (TOP) are
included entities for FERC–725Z.
Estimate of Annual Burden: 5 The
Commission presents the estimates in
the annual public reporting burden and
cost 6 as follows.
5 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
collection burden, refer to 5 Code of Federal
Regulations 1320.3.
6 The hourly cost figures, for salary plus benefits,
for the standards are based on Bureau of Labor
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Federal Register / Vol. 87, No. 197 / Thursday, October 13, 2022 / Notices
Due to the version update of IRO–
008–2 (now IRO–008–3) in Docket No.
RD22–2, the burden increased to 977
annual responses and 53,142 annual
burden hours.
FERC–725Z—REPORTING AND RECORDKEEPING REQUIREMENTS FOR RELIABILITY STANDARDS IRO–001, IRO–002,
IRO–008, IRO–009, IRO–010, IRO–014, IRO–017, AND IRO–018
Information collection requirements
IRO–001–4 ......................................................
Number of
respondents
& type of
entity
Annual
number of
responses per
respondent
Total number
of responses
Average burden hours
& cost per response
($)
Total annual burden
hours & total annual cost
($)
Total annual
burden cost
(1)
(2)
(1) * (2) = (3)
(4)
(3) * (4) = (5)
(5)/(1)
12 (RC) ......
168 (TOP) ..
12 (RC) ......
12 (RC) ......
1
1
1
1
12
168
12
12
24 hrs. $1,731.60 ......
12 hrs. $865.80 .........
24 hrs., $1,731.60 .....
160 hrs., $11,544 ......
288 hrs. $20,779.20 .......
2,016 hrs. $145,454.40 ..
288 hrs., $20,779.20 ......
1,920 hrs., $138,528 ......
$1,731.60
865.80
1,731.60
11,544
12 (RC) ......
12 (RC) ......
12 (RC) ......
12 (RC) ......
63 (PC) .......
204 (TP) .....
1
1
1
1
1
1
12
12
12
12
63
204
12 hrs. $865.80 .........
24 hrs., $1,731.60 .....
12 hrs., $865.80 ........
1,200 hrs., $86,580 ...
96 hrs., $6,926.40 .....
96 hrs., $6,926.40 .....
865.80
1,731.60
865.80
86,580
6,926.40
6,926.40
IRO–018–1 ......................................................
326 (TO) .....
96 (BA) .......
12 (RC) ......
1
1
1
326
96
12
8 hrs., $577.20 ..........
8 hr., $577.20 ............
34 hrs., $2,453.10 .....
144 hrs. $10,389.60 .......
288 hrs., $20,779.20 ......
144 hrs., $10,389.60 ......
14,400 hrs., $1,038,960
6,048 hrs., $436,363.20
19,584 hrs.,
$1,412,985.60.
2,608 Hrs., $188,167.20
758 hrs., $54,689.70 ......
288 hrs., $20,779.20 ......
Total for FERC–725Z ...............................
....................
........................
953
....................................
IRO–002–7
IRO–008–2
below.
IRO–009–2
IRO–010–3
IRO–014–3
IRO–017–1
......................................................
(now IRO–008–3) See table
......................................................
......................................................
......................................................
......................................................
In reviewing FERC–725Z for the IRO
Reliability Standards, the number of
entities/respondents was checked and
broken down into type of entity for each
reliability standard. In the past,
combining reliability standards caused
48,774 hrs.,
$3,519,044.10.
577.20
577.20
2,453.10
........................
responses. Staff looked at each
reliability standard as its own unique
project and in doing so eliminated the
multiple entity count by making a more
accurate representation of the number of
responses.7
the same reliability standard to be
inadvertently accounted for multiple
times, resulting in the previously
recorded 6,686 responses. These
numbers were revised and updated to
provide the new calculated total of 953
FERC–725Z (MODIFICATIONS DUE TO RD22–2) 8
Ongoing Estimate Year 3 Ongoing
IRO–008–3 .............................................................................
RC (12)
1
12
32 hrs., $2784 ............
384 hrs. $33,408.
1
12
16 hrs., $1,392 ...........
144 hrs. $16,704.
One-Time Estimate Years 1 and 2
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.
IRO–008–3 .............................................................................
RC (12)
Sub-Total for FERC–725Z (as modified in RD22–2) .....
........................
........................
24
.....................................
528 hrs. $50,112.
Sub-Total for IRO–008–3 One-time ...............................
........................
........................
12
.....................................
2,304 hrs., $200,448.
Sub-Total for IRO–008–3 Ongoing .................................
........................
........................
12
.....................................
2,064 hrs., $179,568.
Total for FERC–725 Z .............................................
........................
........................
977
.....................................
53,142 hrs., $3,834,195.3.
Comments: Comments are invited on:
(1) whether the 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 and cost of the collection
of information, including the validity of
the methodology and assumptions used;
(3) ways to enhance the quality, utility
and clarity of the information collection;
and (4) ways to minimize the burden of
the collection of information on those
who are to respond, including the use
of automated collection techniques or
other forms of information technology.
Dated: October 6, 2022.
Debbie-Anne A. Reese,
Deputy Secretary.
Statistics (BLS) information (at https://www.bls.gov/
oes/current/naics2_22.htm), as of May 2021, and
benefits information for March 2021 (at https://
www.bls.gov/news.release/ecec.nr0.htm). For salary
plus benefits, for reporting requirements, an
electrical engineer (code 17–2071) is $72.15/hour
(wages plus benefits) for the information collection
requirements.
7 According to the NERC Registry list of May 6,
2022.
8 FERC staff estimates that industry costs for
salary plus benefits are similar to Commission
costs. The FERC 2021 average salary plus benefits
for one FERC full-time equivalent (FTE) is
$180,703/year (or $87.00/hour) posted by the
Bureau of Labor Statistics for the Utilities sector
(available at https://www.bls.gov/oes/current/
naics3_221000.htm).
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[FR Doc. 2022–22225 Filed 10–12–22; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6717–01–P
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]]>Agencies
[Federal Register Volume 87, Number 197 (Thursday, October 13, 2022)]
[Notices]
[Pages 62089-62091]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2022-22225]
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY
Federal Energy Regulatory Commission
[Docket Nos. IC22-24-000 and RD22-2-000]
Commission Information Collection Activities (Ferc-725z); Comment
Request; Extension
AGENCY: Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, DOE.
ACTION: Notice of information collection 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 the currently approved
information collection, FERC-725Z (Mandatory Reliability Standards: IRO
Reliability Standards), which will be submitted to the Office of
Management and Budget (OMB) for review. No comments were received on
the 60-day notice published on August 3, 2022 for IC22-24-000. This
notice includes modifications of Reliability Standard IRO-008 (version
update) included in FERC-725Z as published in Docket No. RD-22-2-000.
The burden totals have been merged to include the new updated version
of IRO-008-3.
DATES: Comments on the collection of information are due November 14,
2022.
ADDRESSES: Send written comments on FERC-725Z to OMB through
www.reginfo.gov/public/do/PRAMain. Attention: Federal Energy Regulatory
Commission Desk Officer. Please identify the OMB Control Number (1902-
0276) in the subject line of your comments. Comments should be sent
within 30 days of publication of this notice to www.reginfo.gov/public/do/PRAMain.
Please submit copies of your comments to the Commission. You may
submit copies of your comments (identified by Docket No. IC22-24-000)
by one of the following methods:
Electronic filing through https://www.ferc.gov, is preferred.
Electronic Filing: Documents must be filed in acceptable
native applications and print-to-PDF, but not in scanned or picture
format.
For those unable to file electronically, comments may be
filed by USPS mail or by hand (including courier) delivery.
[cir] Mail via U.S. Postal Service Only: Addressed to: Federal
Energy Regulatory Commission, Secretary of the Commission, 888 First
Street NE, Washington, DC 20426.
[cir] Hand (including courier) delivery: Deliver to: Federal Energy
Regulatory Commission, Secretary of the Commission, 12225 Wilkins
Avenue, Rockville, MD 20852.
Instructions: OMB submissions must be formatted and filed in
accordance with submission guidelines at www.reginfo.gov/public/do/PRAMain. Using the search function under the ``Currently Under Review''
field, select Federal Energy Regulatory Commission; click ``submit,''
and select ``comment'' to the right of the subject collection.
FERC submissions must be formatted and filed in accordance with
submission guidelines at: https://www.ferc.gov. 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/ferc-online/overview.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Ellen Brown may be reached by email at
[email protected], telephone at (202) 502-8663.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Title: FERC-725Z (Mandatory Reliability Standards: IRO Reliability
Standards).
OMB Control No.: 1902-0276.
Type of Request: Extension for the currently approved information
collection and approval of revisions made by Docket No. RD22-2 (IRO-
008-3 version update).
Abstract: On August 8, 2005, The Electricity Modernization Act of
2005, which is Title XII of the Energy Policy Act of 2005 (EPAct 2005),
was enacted into law.\1\ Under section 215 of the Federal Power Act
(FPA) implemented in 18 CFR 40, the Commission requires a Commission-
certified Electric Reliability Organization (ERO) to develop mandatory
and enforceable
[[Page 62090]]
Reliability Standards,\2\ which are subject to Commission review and
approval. In 2006, the Commission established a process to select and
certify an ERO and, subsequently, certified the North American Electric
Reliability Corporation (NERC) as the ERO.\3\
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\1\ The Energy Policy Act of 2005 (EPAct), Public Law No 109-58,
Title XII, Subtitle A, 119 Stat. 594, 941 (2005), codified at 16
U.S.C. 824o (2000).
\2\ The Federal Power Act (as modified by the EPAct) states
``[t]he terms ``reliability standard'' means a requirement, approved
by the Commission under this section, to provide for reliable
operation of the bulk-power system. The term includes requirements
for the operation of existing bulk-power system facilities,
including cybersecurity protection, and the design of planned
additions or modifications to such facilities to the extent
necessary to provide for reliable operation of the bulk-power
system, but the term does not include any requirement to enlarge
such facilities or to construct new transmission capacity or
generation capacity.''
\3\ North American Electric Reliability Corp., 116 FERC ]
61,062, order on reh'g and compliance, 117 FERC ] 61,126 (2006),
order on compliance, 118 FERC ] 61,190, order on reh'g, 119 FERC ]
61,046 (2007), aff'd sub nom. Alcoa Inc. v. FERC, 564 F.3d 1342
(D.C. Cir. 2009).
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The ERO develops proposed Reliability Standards \4\ and, if
approved by NERC, submits them to the Commission for review and
approval. When the standards are approved by the Commission, the
Reliability Standards become mandatory and must be enforced by the ERO,
subject to Commission oversight.
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\4\ The NERC Standard Processes Manual, Appendix 3A of the NERC
Rules Of Procedure, (posted at https://www.nerc.com/FilingsOrders/us/RuleOfProcedureDL/SPM_Clean_Mar2019.pdf) describes the process
for developing, modifying, withdrawing, or retiring a Reliability
Standard.
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The IRO Reliability Standards (IRO-001-4, IRO-002-7, IRO-008-2,
IRO-009-2, IRO-010-2, IRO-014-3, IRO-017-1, and IRO-018-1) mentioned
below are included in FERC-725Z:
IRO-001-4
The purpose of IRO-001-4 is to establish the responsibility of
Reliability Coordinators to act or direct other entities to act.
IRO-002-7
In a joint petition dated May 30, 2019, the North American Electric
Reliability Corporation (``NERC'') and Western Electricity Coordinating
Council (``WECC'') requested Commission approval for Reliability
Standard IRO-002-6 (now IRO-002-7) (Reliability Coordination,
Monitoring and Analysis). NERC and WECC stated that the ``Reliability
Standard IRO-002-7 reflects the addition of a regional Variance
containing additional requirements applicable to Reliability
Coordinators providing service to entities in the Western
Interconnection.'' NERC maintains that the data exchange capability
requirement in Reliability Standard IRO-002-7, Requirement R1 is
covered by Reliability Standard IRO-008-2.
IRO-008-3 as Approved in Docket No. RD22-2 (Formerly IRO-008-2)
Requirement R1 obligates the reliability coordinator (RC) to
perform operational planning analyses to assess whether the planned
operations for the next-day will exceed System Operating Limits and
Interconnection Reliability Operating Limits within its wide area. NERC
asserts that ``to perform the required operational planning analyses,
the Reliability Coordinator must have the data it deems necessary from
those entities that possess it.'' The revisions in IRO-008-3 apply to
the RC and requires RCs to perform analyses and assessments to prevent
instability, uncontrolled separation, or cascading. NERC added a new
requirement requiring an RC to use its SOL methodology when determining
SOL exceedances for its analyses and assessments and further revised a
requirement requiring the RC to use its SOL risk-based notification
framework when communicating SOL or IROL exceedances.
IRO-009-2
Currently effective IRO-009-2, applicable to reliability
coordinators, is to prevent instability, uncontrolled separation, or
cascading outages that adversely impact the reliability of the
interconnection by ensuring prompt action to prevent or mitigate
instances of exceeding Interconnection Reliability Operating Limits
(IROLs).
IRO-010-2
Additionally, regarding data exchange, NERC cites Reliability
Standard IRO-010-2 (Reliability Coordinator Data Specification and
Collection) and its stated purpose of preventing instability,
uncontrolled separation, or cascading outages ``by ensuring the
Reliability Coordinator has the data it needs to monitor and assess the
operation of its Reliability Coordinator Area.'' NERC states that under
Reliability Standard IRO-010-2, Requirements R1, R2, and R3, the
reliability coordinator must specify the data necessary for it to
perform its operational planning analyses and provide the
specifications to the entities from which it needs data who then must
comply with the data request using a mutually agreeable format and
security protocols.
IRO-014-3
The purpose of Reliability Standard IRO-014-3 is to ensure that
each Reliability Coordinator's operations are coordinated such that
they will not adversely impact other Reliability Coordinator Areas and
to preserve the reliability benefits of interconnected operations.
IRO-017-1
The purpose of IRO-017-1 (Outage Coordination) is to ensure that
outages are properly coordinated in the Operations Planning time
horizon and Near-Term Transmission Planning Horizon. Reliability
coordinators, planning coordinators, balancing authorities,
transmission owners, and transmission planners are applicable entities
for IRO-017-1.
IRO-018-1
IRO-018-1 (Reliability Coordinator Real-time Reliability Monitoring
and Analysis Capabilities), requirement R3, requires reliability
coordinators to have an alarm process monitor that provides
notification to system operators when the failure of a real-time
monitoring alarm processor has occurred.
All IRO Standards build on monitoring real-time assessments and
supporting effective situational awareness. The Reliability Standards
accomplish this by requiring applicable entities to: (1) provide
notification to operators of real-time monitoring alarm failures; (2)
provide operators with indications of the quality of information being
provided by their monitoring and analysis capabilities; and (3) address
deficiencies in the quality of information being provided by their
monitoring and analysis capabilities.
NERC observes that the performance of the requirements it cites is
premised on the existence of data exchange capabilities, regardless of
whether a separate requirement expressly requires the reliability
coordinator to have data exchange capabilities in place.
Type of Respondents: Reliability coordinators (RC), planning
coordinators (PC), balancing authorities (BA), transmission owners
(TO), transmission planners (TP), Transmission Operators (TOP) are
included entities for FERC-725Z.
Estimate of Annual Burden: \5\ The Commission presents the
estimates in the annual public reporting burden and cost \6\ as
follows.
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\5\ 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
collection burden, refer to 5 Code of Federal Regulations 1320.3.
\6\ The hourly cost figures, for salary plus benefits, for the
standards are based on Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) information
(at https://www.bls.gov/oes/current/naics2_22.htm), as of May 2021,
and benefits information for March 2021 (at https://www.bls.gov/news.release/ecec.nr0.htm). For salary plus benefits, for reporting
requirements, an electrical engineer (code 17-2071) is $72.15/hour
(wages plus benefits) for the information collection requirements.
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[[Page 62091]]
Due to the version update of IRO-008-2 (now IRO-008-3) in Docket
No. RD22-2, the burden increased to 977 annual responses and 53,142
annual burden hours.
FERC-725Z--Reporting and Recordkeeping Requirements for Reliability Standards IRO-001, IRO-002, IRO-008, IRO-009, IRO-010, IRO-014, IRO-017, and IRO-018
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Number of Annual number
Information collection respondents & of responses Total number Average burden hours & Total annual burden hours & Total annual
requirements type of entity per respondent of responses cost per response ($) total annual cost ($) burden cost
(1)............ (2) (1) * (2) = (4)...................... (3) * (4) = (5)............. (5)/(1)
(3)
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IRO-001-4..................... 12 (RC)........ 1 12 24 hrs. $1,731.60........ 288 hrs. $20,779.20......... $1,731.60
168 (TOP)...... 1 168 12 hrs. $865.80.......... 2,016 hrs. $145,454.40...... 865.80
IRO-002-7..................... 12 (RC)........ 1 12 24 hrs., $1,731.60....... 288 hrs., $20,779.20........ 1,731.60
IRO-008-2 (now IRO-008-3) See 12 (RC)........ 1 12 160 hrs., $11,544........ 1,920 hrs., $138,528........ 11,544
table below.
IRO-009-2..................... 12 (RC)........ 1 12 12 hrs. $865.80.......... 144 hrs. $10,389.60......... 865.80
IRO-010-3..................... 12 (RC)........ 1 12 24 hrs., $1,731.60....... 288 hrs., $20,779.20........ 1,731.60
IRO-014-3..................... 12 (RC)........ 1 12 12 hrs., $865.80......... 144 hrs., $10,389.60........ 865.80
IRO-017-1..................... 12 (RC)........ 1 12 1,200 hrs., $86,580...... 14,400 hrs., $1,038,960..... 86,580
63 (PC)........ 1 63 96 hrs., $6,926.40....... 6,048 hrs., $436,363.20..... 6,926.40
204 (TP)....... 1 204 96 hrs., $6,926.40....... 19,584 hrs., $1,412,985.60.. 6,926.40
326 (TO)....... 1 326 8 hrs., $577.20.......... 2,608 Hrs., $188,167.20..... 577.20
96 (BA)........ 1 96 8 hr., $577.20........... 758 hrs., $54,689.70........ 577.20
IRO-018-1..................... 12 (RC)........ 1 12 34 hrs., $2,453.10....... 288 hrs., $20,779.20........ 2,453.10
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Total for FERC-725Z....... ............... .............. 953 ......................... 48,774 hrs., $3,519,044.10.. ..............
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In reviewing FERC-725Z for the IRO Reliability Standards, the
number of entities/respondents was checked and broken down into type of
entity for each reliability standard. In the past, combining
reliability standards caused the same reliability standard to be
inadvertently accounted for multiple times, resulting in the previously
recorded 6,686 responses. These numbers were revised and updated to
provide the new calculated total of 953 responses. Staff looked at each
reliability standard as its own unique project and in doing so
eliminated the multiple entity count by making a more accurate
representation of the number of responses.\7\
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\7\ According to the NERC Registry list of May 6, 2022.
FERC-725Z (Modifications Due to RD22-2) \8\
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Ongoing Estimate Year 3 Ongoing
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IRO-008-3.......................... RC (12) 1 12 32 hrs., $2784................. 384 hrs. $33,408.
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One-Time Estimate Years 1 and 2
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IRO-008-3.......................... RC (12) 1 12 16 hrs., $1,392................ 144 hrs. $16,704.
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Sub-Total for FERC-725Z (as .............. .............. 24 ............................... 528 hrs. $50,112.
modified in RD22-2).
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Sub-Total for IRO-008-3 One- .............. .............. 12 ............................... 2,304 hrs., $200,448.
time.
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Sub-Total for IRO-008-3 Ongoing .............. .............. 12 ............................... 2,064 hrs., $179,568.
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Total for FERC-725 Z....... .............. .............. 977 ............................... 53,142 hrs., $3,834,195.3.
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Comments: Comments are invited on: (1) whether the 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 and
cost of the collection of information, including the validity of the
methodology and assumptions used; (3) ways to enhance the quality,
utility and clarity of the information collection; and (4) ways to
minimize the burden of the collection of information on those who are
to respond, including the use of automated collection techniques or
other forms of information technology.
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\8\ FERC staff estimates that industry costs for salary plus
benefits are similar to Commission costs. The FERC 2021 average
salary plus benefits for one FERC full-time equivalent (FTE) is
$180,703/year (or $87.00/hour) posted by the Bureau of Labor
Statistics for the Utilities sector (available at https://www.bls.gov/oes/current/naics3_221000.htm).
Dated: October 6, 2022.
Debbie-Anne A. Reese,
Deputy Secretary.
[FR Doc. 2022-22225 Filed 10-12-22; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6717-01-P
