Department of Energy August 29, 2005 – Federal Register Recent Federal Regulation Documents

This notice announces the availability, and opportunity for public review and comment, of the environmental assessment (EA) that supports the Department of Energy's (DOE) application to the Department of the Interior, filed with the Bureau of Land Management (BLM), for a Public Land Order to withdraw public lands within and surrounding the Caliente Rail Corridor. As applied for, the withdrawal would preclude surface entry and new mining claim locations for a 20 year period.

This notice announces a meeting of the Environmental Management Site-Specific Advisory Board (EMSSAB), Idaho National Laboratory. The Federal Advisory Committee Act (Pub. L. 92-463, 86 Stat. 770) requires that public notice of this meeting be announced in the Federal Register.

The Deputy Secretary of Energy confirmed and approved Rate Order No. WAPA-119 and Rate Schedule SNF-6, placing a non-firm power formula rate from the Stampede Powerplant of the Washoe Project (Stampede) of the Western Area Power Administration (Western) into effect on an interim basis. The provisional formula rate will be in effect until the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (Commission) confirms, approves, and places it into effect on a final basis or until replaced by other rates. The provisional rate will provide sufficient revenue to pay all annual costs, including interest expense, and repay power investment and irrigation aid, within the allowable periods.

The Administrator, Southwestern Power Administration (Southwestern), has prepared Current and Revised 2005 Power Repayment Studies that show the need for an increase in annual revenues to meet cost recovery criteria. Such increased revenues are required primarily due to significant increases in expected U.S. Army Corps of Engineers' generation investment and increases in operations and maintenance expenses at the project. The Administrator has developed a proposed Robert D. Willis rate schedule, which is supported by a power repayment study, to recover the required revenues. Beginning January 1, 2006, the proposed rates would increase annual revenues approximately 43.1 percent from $452,952 to $648,096.