[Federal Register Volume 81, Number 198 (Thursday, October 13, 2016)]
[Notices]
[Pages 70671-70673]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2016-24727]
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DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY
Federal Energy Regulatory Commission
[Docket No. IC16-17-000]
Commission Information Collection Activities (FERC-551); Comment
Request; Extension
AGENCY: Federal Energy Regulatory Commission.
ACTION: Notice of information collection and request for comments.
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SUMMARY: In compliance with the requirements of the Paperwork Reduction
Act of 1995, 44 U.S.C. 3506(c)(2)(A), the Federal Energy Regulatory
Commission (Commission or FERC) is soliciting public comment on the
currently approved information collection, FERC-551, Reporting of Flow
Volume and Capacity by Interstate Natural Gas Pipelines.
DATES: Comments on the collection of information are due December 12,
2016.
[[Page 70672]]
ADDRESSES: You may submit comments (identified by Docket No. IC16-17-
000) by either of the following methods:
eFiling at Commission's Web site: http://www.ferc.gov/docs-filing/efiling.asp.
Mail/Hand Delivery/Courier: Federal Energy Regulatory
Commission, Secretary of the Commission, 888 First Street NE.,
Washington, DC 20426.
Please reference the FERC-551 in your comments.
Instructions: All submissions must be formatted and filed in
accordance with submission guidelines at: http://www.ferc.gov/help/submission-guide.asp. For user assistance contact FERC Online Support
by email at [email protected], or by phone at: (866) 208-3676
(toll-free), or (202) 502-8659 for TTY.
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 http://www.ferc.gov/docs-filing/docs-filing.asp.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Ellen Brown may be reached by email at
[email protected], telephone at (202) 502-8663, and fax at (202)
273-0873.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Title: FERC-551, Reporting of Flow Volume and Capacity by
Interstate Natural Gas Pipelines.
OMB Control No.: 1902-0243.
Type of Request: Three-year extension of the FERC-551 information
collection requirements with no changes to the current reporting
requirements.
Abstract: The Commission has a statutory requirement to facilitate
price transparency in markets for the sale or transportation of
physical natural gas in interstate commerce, having due regard for the
public interest, the integrity of those markets, fair competition, and
the protection of consumers. FERC-551 uses the information provided by
pipelines as part of its overall implementation of the statutory
provisions of sections 23(a)(1) of the Natural Gas Act, 16 U.S.C. 717t-
2(a)(1); Section 316 of EPAct 2005; section 23 to the Natural Gas Act;
section 1281 of EPAct 2005 and section 220 to the Federal Power Act.
More specifically, the Commission uses the pipelines' FERC-551 postings
as part of fulfilling the transparency provisions of section 23(a)(1)
of the Natural Gas Act as mandated by Congress. FERC relies is part on
section 23(a)(1) of the Natural Gas Act, for authority to collect this
information. The data requirements for pipelines are in listed the Code
of Federal Regulations (CFR) under 18 CFR part 284.13, reporting
requirements for interstate pipelines. The Commission has directed the
data requirements under FERC-551 are to be posted on interstate
pipelines' Web sites and not filed on formatted/printed forms.
FERC is obligated to prescribe rules for the collection and
dissemination of information regarding the wholesale, interstate
markets for natural gas and electricity. The Commission is authorized
to adopt rules to assure the timely dissemination of information about
the availability and prices of natural gas and natural gas
transportation and electric energy and transmission service in such
markets.
The posting requirements are based on the Commission's authority
under section 23 of the NGA (as added by Energy Policy Act of 2005,
EPAct 2005), which directs the Commission, in relevant part, to obtain
and disseminate ``information about the availability and prices of
natural gas at wholesale and in interstate commerce.'' \1\ This
provision enhances the Commission's authority to ensure confidence in
the nation's natural gas markets. The Commission's market-oriented
policies for the wholesale natural gas industry require that interested
persons have broad confidence that reported market prices accurately
reflect the interplay of legitimate market forces. Without confidence
in the efficiency of price formation, the true value of transactions is
very difficult to determine. Further, price transparency facilitates
ensuring that jurisdictional prices are ``just and reasonable.'' \2\
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\1\ Section 23(a)(2) of the NGA, 15 U.S.C. 717t-2(a)(2) (2000 &
Supp. V 2005).
\2\ See sections 4 and 5 of the NGA, 15 U.S.C. 717c and 717d.
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The posting for FERC-551 occurs on a daily basis. The data must be
available for download for 90 days and must be retained by the pipeline
for 3 years.
The daily posting requirements for major non-interstate pipelines
prescribed in the Commission's Order No. 720 are no longer required.
The number of respondents used to develop the burden estimates does not
include any major non-interstate pipelines (18 CFR 284.14).
Type of Respondents: Interstate Natural Gas Pipelines.
Estimate of Annual Burden: \3\ The Commission estimates the total
public reporting burden and cost for this information collection as
follows:
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\3\ 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.
FERC-551: Reporting of Flow Volume and Capacity by Interstate Natural Gas Pipelines
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Annual number Total annual burden
Number of of responses Total number Average burden & cost hours & total annual Burden hours & cost per
respondents per respondent of responses per response \4\ cost respondent ($)
(1) (2) (1) * (2) = (4)..................... (3) * (4) = (5)......... (5) / (1)
(3)
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FERC-551.................. 169 365 61,685 0.5 hours; $30.22....... 30,842.50 hrs.; 182.5 hrs.; $11,030.30.
$1,864,120.70.
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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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\4\ The estimates for cost per response are derived using the
following formula: Average Burden Hours per Response x $60.44 per
hour = Average Cost per Response. This figure includes wages plus
benefits and comes from the Bureau of Labor Statistics (http://bls.gov/oes/current/naics2_22.htm data from May 2015) using
Management Analyst category (code #13-1111).
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Dated: October 6, 2016.
Kimberly D. Bose,
Secretary.
[FR Doc. 2016-24727 Filed 10-12-16; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6717-01-P