Department of Energy February 7, 2008 – Federal Register Recent Federal Regulation Documents

Bonneville Power Administration (BPA) proposes a revised methodology for determining the average system cost (ASC) of resources for regional electric utilities that participate in the Residential Exchange Program (REP) authorized by section 5(c) of the Pacific Northwest Electric Power Planning and Conservation Act (Northwest Power Act). The ASC methodology is used in the determination of monetary benefits paid by BPA to utilities participating in the REP. The Northwest Power Act authorizes the BPA Administrator to determine utilities' ASCs based on a methodology developed by BPA in consultation with the Northwest Power and Conservation Council, BPA customers and state regulatory agencies in the Pacific Northwest. The existing methodology was adopted by BPA and approved by the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC or Commission) in 1984 (1984 ASC Methodology). On August 1, 2007, the Administrator initiated a series of public meetings in which informal comment was taken on 17 specific issues pertaining to the 1984 ASC Methodology. Based in part on public comment, the methodology proposed by BPA in this notice redefines the types of capital and expense items includable in ASC, establishes new data sources from which ASCs are to be derived, and changes the nature and timing of BPA's procedures for review of ASC filings by utilities participating in the REP. This notice also contains detailed procedures for public participation in the consultation proceeding. This consultation proceeding is intended to facilitate the compilation of a full record upon which the Administrator will base his decision for a final ASC Methodology. Although preliminary informal comments have already been made by some groups and members of the public, this notice formally solicits public comment. With the issuance of this proposal, BPA welcomes different approaches, new ideas and other types of feedback from interested parties. This proposal was developed with guidance from public workshops and is meant to provide a foundation that will facilitate further ideas and approaches. In order to participate in the REP during FY 2009, a Pacific Northwest utility must notify BPA of its intent to participate by February 22, 2008. A utility also must submit an ASC filing (an Appendix 1) to BPA by March 3, 2008, or BPA will use the corresponding Appendix 1 from its WP-07 Supplemental Power Rate Adjustment Proceeding as the base filing to determine the utility's ASCs for FY 2009. During the comment period on the proposed ASC Methodology, interested parties will have the opportunity to participate in an expedited process for determining exchanging utilities' ASCs for FY 2009 based on the proposed methodology. In addition to the comments submitted, BPA expects to learn through this expedited process where improvements or changes to the proposed methodology can be made. Workshops will be held during the comment period to help facilitate feedback and explore different ideas. BPA strives to develop, in concert with the region, an ASC Methodology that will be legally sustainable, efficient, and durable over time.

Pursuant to section 215 of the Federal Power Act (FPA), the Commission approves eight Critical Infrastructure Protection (CIP) Reliability Standards submitted to the Commission for approval by the North American Electric Reliability Corporation (NERC). The CIP Reliability Standards require certain users, owners, and operators of the Bulk-Power System to comply with specific requirements to safeguard critical cyber assets. In addition, pursuant to section 215(d)(5) of the FPA, the Commission directs NERC to develop modifications to the CIP Reliability Standards to address specific concerns.