[Senate Report 114-190]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]


                                                     Calendar No. 335
                                                       
114th Congress  }                                           {  Report
                                 SENATE
 1st Session    }                                           {  114-190

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                   MAHONEY LAKE HYDROELECTRIC PROJECT

                                _______
                                

               December 16, 2015.--Ordered to be printed

                                _______
                                

  Ms. Murkowski, from the Committee on Energy and Natural Resources, 
                        submitted the following

                              R E P O R T

                         [To accompany S. 2046]

    The Committee on Energy and Natural Resources, to which was 
referred the bill (S. 2046) to authorize the Federal Energy 
Regulatory Commission to issue an order continuing a stay of a 
hydroelectric license for the Mahoney Lake hydroelectric 
project in the State of Alaska, and for other purposes, having 
considered the same, reports favorably thereon without 
amendment and recommends that the bill do pass.

                                Purpose

    The purpose of S. 2046 is to direct the Federal Energy 
Regulatory Commission to issue an order continuing a stay of a 
hydroelectric license for the Mahoney Lake hydroelectric 
project in the State of Alaska.

                          BACKGROUND AND NEED

    The Mahoney Lake Hydroelectric Project was first proposed 
in the 1990s as a 9.6 MW lake-tap project. In 2002, Congress 
directed the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (Commission) 
to grant a stay for the project's construction until not later 
than 6 years after the Commission received written notice that 
the Swan-Tyee electrical transmission intertie was completed. 
The Commission received written notice of the completion of the 
Swan-Tyee electrical transmission intertie on October 4, 2011, 
thus requiring the Commission to lift the stay no later than 
October 4, 2017.
    Currently, the Southeast Alaska Power Authority (SEAPA) is 
reviewing potential power sources to meet the City of 
Ketchikan's projected power needs over the next decade. As part 
of that study, SEAPA is considering the merits of a number of 
projects, including the construction of Mahoney Lake. In order 
to keep the Mahoney Lake hydropower project viable as a 
potential renewable energy project, the Cape Fox Native 
Corporation of Ketchikan, Alaska Power and Telephone Company, 
and the City of Saxman seek an additional stay of the license 
for the Mahoney Lake project, along with a potential extension 
of the construction start deadline.

                          LEGISLATIVE HISTORY

    S. 2046 was introduced by Senator Murkowski on September 
17, 2015. The Committee on Energy and Natural Resources held a 
full committee hearing on October 8, 2015 to consider the bill.
    At its business meeting on November 19, 2015, the Committee 
on Energy and Natural Resources, on a voice vote, ordered S. 
2046 favorably reported without amendment.

            COMMITTEE RECOMMENDATION AND TABULATION OF VOTES

    The Senate Committee on Energy and Natural Resources, in 
open business session on November 19, 2015, by a majority voice 
vote of a quorum present, recommends that the Senate pass S. 
2046.

                      SECTION-BY-SECTION ANALYSIS

Section 1. Stay and Reinstatement of FERC License No. 11393 for the 
        Mahoney Lake Hydroelectric Project.

    Section 1(a) defines key terms.
    Section 1(b) directs the Commission, at the request of the 
licensee, to issue a stay of license.
    Section 1(c) directs the Commission, at the request of the 
licensee, to lift the stay of the license and make the 
effective date of the license the day the stay is lifted. Such 
request by the licensee must be made within 10 years of the 
date of enactment of this Act.
    Section 1(d) directs the Commission, at the request of the 
licensee, to extend the time period for project construction 
commencement for up to six years. Such extension is to be 
undertaken after reasonable notice and in accordance with the 
good faith, due diligence, and public interest requirements of 
section 13 of the Federal Power Act.
    Section 1(e) clarifies that S. 2046 does not prioritize or 
create any advantage or disadvantage for the Mahoney Lake 
Hydroelectric Project.

                   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, December 9, 2015.
Hon. Lisa Murkowski,
Chairman, Committee on Energy and Natural Resources,
U.S. Senate, Washington, DC.
    Dear Madam Chairman: The Congressional Budget Office has 
prepared the enclosed cost estimate for S. 2046, a bill to 
authorize the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission to issue an 
order continuing a stay of a hydroelectric license for the 
Mahoney Lake hydroelectric project in the state of Alaska, and 
for other purposes.
    If you wish further details on this estimate, we will be 
pleased to provide them. The CBO staff contact is Megan 
Carroll, who can be reached at 226-2860.
            Sincerely,
                                                        Keith Hall.
    Enclosure.

S. 2046--A bill to authorize the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission 
        to issue an order continuing a stay of a hydroelectric license 
        for the Mahoney Lake hydroelectric project in the state of 
        Alaska, and for other purposes

    CBO estimates that implementing S. 2046 would have no net 
effect on the federal budget. The bill would direct the Federal 
Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC), at the request of the 
licensee of the Mahoney Lake hydroelectric project in Alaska 
(number 11393), to issue an order to continue a stay of the 
license for that project. The bill also would direct FERC, upon 
the licensee's request, to subsequently lift that stay and 
extend for up to three consecutive two-year periods the 
deadline for beginning construction of the hydroelectric 
project.
    Enacting S. 2046 could have a minor impact on FERC's 
workload; however, because FERC recovers 100 percent of its 
costs through user fees, any change in that agency's costs 
(which are controlled through annual appropriation acts) would 
be offset by an equal change in fees that the commission 
charges, resulting in no net change in federal spending.
    Enacting S. 2046 would not affect direct spending or 
revenues; therefore, pay-as-you-go procedures do not apply. CBO 
estimates that enacting S. 2046 would not increase net direct 
spending or on-budget deficits in any of the four consecutive 
10-year periods beginning in 2026.
    S. 2046 contains no intergovernmental or private-sector 
mandates as defined in the Unfunded Mandates Reform Act and 
would impose no costs on state, local, or tribal governments.
    The CBO staff contact for this estimate is Megan Carroll. 
The estimate was approved by H. Samuel Papenfuss, Deputy 
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 S. 2046. 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 program. Therefore, there would be no impact on personal 
privacy.
    Little, if any, additional paperwork would result from the 
enactment of S. 2046, as ordered reported.

                   CONGRESSIONALLY DIRECTED SPENDING

    S. 2046, as ordered reported, does not contain any 
congressionally directed spending items, limited tax benefits, 
or limited tariff benefits as defined in rule XLIV of the 
Standing Rules of the Senate.

                        EXECUTIVE COMMUNICATIONS

    The letter from the Chairman of the Federal Energy 
Regulatory Commission on S. 2046, follows:


                        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 the bill as ordered 
reported.