[Senate Report 105-135]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
Calendar No. 254
105th Congress Report
SENATE
1st Session 105-135
_______________________________________________________________________
EXTENSION OF HYDROELECTRIC PROJECT IN THE STATE OF NEW YORK
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November 4, 1997.--Ordered to be printed
_______________________________________________________________________
Mr. Murkowski, from the Committee on Energy and Natural Resources,
submitted the following
R E P O R T
[To accompany H.R. 848]
The Committee on Energy and Natural Resources, to which was
referred the Act (H.R. 848) to extend the deadline under the
Federal Power Act applicable to the construction of the AuSable
Hydroelectric Project in New York, and for other purposes,
having considered the same, reports favorably thereon without
amendment and recommends that the Act do pass.
purpose of the measure
The purpose of H.R. 848 is to extend the deadline contained
in the Federal Power Act for the commencement of construction
of the FERC-licensed AuSable hydroelectric project (project
number 10836) located in the State of New York.
background and need
Section 13 of the Federal Power Act requires a licensee to
commence the construction of a hydroelectric project within two
years of the date of the issuance of the license. That deadline
can be extended by the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission
(FERC) one time for as much as two additional years. If
construction has not commenced at the end of the time period,
the license is terminated by the FERC. Thus, in the absence of
this legislation, the FERC would terminate the license at the
end of the time period authorized under the Federal Power Act
for commencement of construction.
It is very difficult for a hydroelectric project sponsor to
secure financing until it has a power sales contract, and
generally a licensee cannot secure a contract until it has been
granted a license.
H.R. 848 would extend the time allowed to begin
construction of hydroelectric project numbered 10836 for three
consecutive two-year periods. This assures the project
additional time to secure a contract and financing.
legislative history
H.R. 848 was passed by the House on June 10, 1997. A
hearing was held by the Subcommittee on Water and Power on
October 7, 1997.
committee recommendation and tabulation of votes
The Senate Committee on Energy and Natural Resources, in
open business session on October 22, 1997, by a voice vote with
a quorum present, recommends that the Senate pass the bill
without amendment.
cost and budgetary considerations
The following estimate of costs of this measure has been
provided by the Congressional Budget Office:
U.S. Congress,
Congressional Budget Office,
Washington, DC, October 24, 1997.
Hon. Frank H. Murkoswki,
Chairman, Committee on Energy and Natural Resources, U.S. Senate,
Washington, DC.
Dear Mr. Chairman: The Congressional Budget Office has
prepared the enclosed cost estimate for H.R. 848, an act to
extend the deadline under the Federal Power Act applicable to
the construction of the AuSable hydroelectric project in New
York, and for other purposes.
If you wish further details on this estimate, we will be
pleased to provide them. The CBO staff contact for this
estimate is Kim Cawley.
Sincerely,
James L. Blum
(For June E. O'Neill, Director).
Enclosure.
congressional budget office cost estimate
H.R. 848--An act to extend the deadline under the Federal Power Act
applicable to the construction of the AuSable hydroelectric
project in New York, and for other purposes
CBO estimates that enacting H.R. 848 would have no net
effect on the federal budget. The legislation contains no
intergovernmental or private-sector mandates as defined in the
Unfunded Mandates Reform Act of 1995 and would not affect the
budgets of state, local, or tribal governments.
H.R. 848 would extend for up to six years the deadline for
construction of a hydroelectric project currently subject to
licensing by the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC).
The proposed extension is for FERC project number 10836. This
provision may have a minor impact on FERC's workload. Because
FERC recovers 100 percent of its costs through user fees, any
change in its administrative costs would be offset by an equal
change in the fees that the commission charges. Hence, the
provision would have no net budgetary impact.
Because FERC's administrative costs are limited in annual
appropriations, enactment of this legislation would not affect
direct spending or receipts. Therefore, pay-as-you-go
procedures would not apply.
The CBO staff contact for this estimate is Kim Cawley. This
estimate was approved by Paul N. Van de Water, Assistant
Director for Budget Analysis.
regulatory impact evaluation
In compliance with paragraph 11(b) of rule XXVI of the
Standing Rules of the Senate, the Committee makes the following
evaluation of the regulatory impact which would be incurred in
carrying out this measure.
The bill is not a regulatory measure in the sense of
imposing Government-established standards or significant
economic responsibilities on private individuals and
businesses.
No personal information would be collected in administering
the provisions of the bill. Therefore, there would be no impact
on personal privacy.
Little, if any, additional paperwork would result from the
enactment of this measure.
executive communications
The pertinent communications received by the Committee from
the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission setting forth
Executive agency relating to this measure are set forth below:
Statement of Kristina Nygaard, Assistant General Counsel, Hydroelectric
Licensing, Federal Energy Regulatory Commission
Mr. Chairman and Members of the Subcommittee: My name is
Kristina Nygaard, and I am Assistant General Counsel for
Hydroelectric Licensing at the Federal Energy Regulatory
Commission. I am appearing before you as a Commission staff
witness and do not seek for individual members of the
Commission.
Thank you for the opportunity to be here today to comment
on a bill affecting the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission's
regulation of non-federal hydropower projects pursuant to Part
I of the Federal Power Act and related statutes.
H.R. 848 would extend the statutory deadline for the start
of construction of the licensed project.
h.r. 848 and h.r. 1184: extending deadlines to commence project
construction
The two projects in question are the 800-kilowatt AuSable
Project (FERC No. 10836), to be located in Clinton and Essex
Counties, New York, and the 4-megawatt Bear Creek Project (FERC
No. 10371), to be located in Skagit County, Washington. Both
projects have received the maximum four years for commencement
of construction. H.R. 848 and section 1 of H.R. 1184 would
respectively require and authorize the Commission, upon the
request of the licensee and in accordance with the good faith,
due diligence, and public interest requirements of Section 13
of the Federal Power Act, to extend the deadline for up to six
additional years, for a total of ten years from the date of
licensing.
As a general principle, we do not support the enactment of
bills requiring construction deadline extensions for individual
projects. However, if such extensions are authorized by the
Congress, as a matter of policy we would object to granting a
licensee more than ten years from the issuance date of the
license to commence construction. In our view, ten years is a
more than reasonable period for a licensee to secure financing
and complete final design of a licensed project. Since the two
bills in question would not extend the deadline beyond the ten-
year mark, we have no specific objections to them. I understand
that section 4 of S. 439, the omnibus hydro bill approved by
the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee on September
24, would give the Commission generic authority to extend
construction commencement deadlines for up to ten years. In
addition to extending commencement of construction deadlines,
H.R. 848 and 1184 provide for the reinstatement of the licenses
in question if they have expired, as one of them has. Attached
to my testimony are detailed comments about the bills and the
projects they concern.
Appendix to Testimony of Kristina Nygaard
h.r. 848
H.R. 848 would reinstate the license for Project No. 10836
and would require the Commission, upon the request of the
licensee and in accordance with the good faith, due diligence,
and public interest requirements of Section 13 of the Federal
Power Act, to extend for up to six years (10 years after
licensing) the deadline for commencement of project
construction.
project no. 10836
On October 27, 1992, the Commission issued a license to
Friends of Keesville Company to construct, operate, and
maintain the 800-kilowatt AuSable Project No. 10836, to be
located in Clinton and Essex Counties, New York. The deadline
for the commencement of project construction, originally
October 26, 1994, was extended to October 26, 1996. The license
was terminated on February 5, 1997, for failure to commence
construction.
changes in existing law
In compliance with paragraph 12 of rule XXVI of the
Standing Rules of the Senate, the Committee notes that no
changes in existing law are made by H.R. 848, as ordered
reported.