Department of Energy April 2014 – Federal Register Recent Federal Regulation Documents

The Department of Energy (DOE) invites public comment on a proposed extension of a collection of information that DOE is developing for submission to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) pursuant to the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995. Comments are invited on: (a) Whether the proposed collection of information is necessary for the proper performance of the functions of the agency, including whether the information shall have practical utility; (b) the accuracy of the agency's estimate of the burden of the proposed collection of information, including the validity of the methodology and assumptions used; (c) ways to enhance the quality, utility, and clarity of the information to be collected; and (d) ways to minimize the burden of the collection of information on respondents, including through the use of automated collection techniques or other forms of information technology.

In accordance with Section 743 of Division C of the Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2010 (Pub. L. 111-117), the Department of Energy (DOE) is publishing this notice to advise the public on the availability of the FY 2013 Service Contract inventory. This inventory provides information on service contract actions over $25,000 that DOE completed in FY 2013. The information is organized by function to show how contracted resources are distributed throughout the agency. The inventory has been developed in accordance with guidance issued on November 5, 2010, by the Office of Management and Budget's Office of Federal Procurement Policy (OFPP). OFPP's guidance is available at https://www.whitehouse.gov/sites/default/files/omb/ procurement/memo/service-contract-inventories-guidance- 11052010.pdf. On December 19, 2011, OFPP issued additional guidance available at https://www.whitehouse.gov/sites/default/files/omb/ procurement/memo/service-contract-inventory-guidance.pdf. Except for minor changes to reporting deadlines, the guidance for preparing and analyzing FY 2013 inventories is essentially unchanged from OFPP's November 5, 2010, guidance for preparing the FY 2010 inventory. DOE has posted its inventory and a summary of the inventory at: https://energy.gov/management/downloads/service-contract-inven tory.

The Western Area Power Administration (Western), an element of the Department of Energy (DOE), pursuant to the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, intends to extend for three years without change, an information collection request with the Office of Management and Budget (OMB). Western's current OMB control number 1910-5136 for its Applicant Profile Data form (APD) expires on September 30, 2014.

This notice announces a teleconference call of the State Energy Advisory Board (STEAB). The Federal Advisory Committee Act (Pub. L. 92-463; 86 Stat.770) requires that public notice of these meetings be announced in the Federal Register.

The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (Commission) is proposing, as part of a series of orders, to revise its regulations at section 284.12 to better coordinate the scheduling of natural gas and electricity markets in light of increased reliance on natural gas for electric generation, as well as to provide additional flexibility to all shippers on interstate natural gas pipelines. The proposed revisions in this Notice of Proposed Rulemaking deal principally with revision of the operating day and scheduling practices used by interstate pipelines to schedule natural gas transportation service. These proposed revisions affect the business practices of the natural gas industry, which the industry has developed through the North American Energy Standards Board, and which the Commission has incorporated by reference into its regulations. The Commission, therefore, is providing the natural gas and electric industries with six months to reach consensus on standards, consistent with the Commission's guidance, including any revisions or modifications to the proposals provided herein.