[Federal Register Volume 59, Number 122 (Monday, June 27, 1994)]
[Unknown Section]
[Page 0]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 94-15370]


[[Page Unknown]]

[Federal Register: June 27, 1994]


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DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY

Federal Energy Regulatory Commission

18 CFR Part 250

[Docket No. RM87-5-016 and Order No. 497-6]

 

Inquiry Into Alleged Anticompetitive Practices Related to 
Marketing Affiliates of Interstate Pipelines

    Issued June 17, 1994.

AGENCY: Federal Energy Regulatory Commission.

ACTION: Final rule; Order extending sunset date.

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SUMMARY: The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (Commission) is 
issuing an order extending the date on which its reporting requirements 
for transportation and affiliate transactions expire. The Commission is 
extending the date to coordinate with the effective date of revised 
regulations.

EFFECTIVE DATE: June 30, 1994.

ADDRESSES: Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, 825 North Capitol 
Street, NE., Washington, DC 20426.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Michael Goldenberg, Federal Energy 
Regulatory Commission, 825 North Capitol Street, NE., Washington, DC 
20426 (202) 208-2294.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: In addition to publishing the full text of 
this document in the Federal Register, the Commission also provides all 
interested persons an opportunity to inspect or copy the contents of 
this document during normal business hours in Room 3104, 941 North 
Capitol Street NE., Washington DC 20426.
    The Commission Issuance Posting System (CIPS), an electronic 
bulletin board service, provides access to the texts of formal 
documents issued by the Commission. CIPS is available at no charge to 
the user and may be accessed using a personal computer with a modem by 
dialing (202) 208-1397. To access CIPS, set your communications 
software to use 300, 1200 or 2400 bps, full duplex, no parity, 8 data 
bits, and 1 stop bit. CIPS can also be accessed at 9600 bps by dialing 
(202) 208-1781. The full text of this notice will be available on CIPS 
for 30 days from the date of issuance. The complete text on diskette in 
WordPerfect format may also be purchased from the Commission's copy 
contractor, La Dorn Systems Corporation, also located in Room 3104, 941 
North Capitol Street, NE., Washington DC 20426.

I. Introduction

    In the Matter of: Before Commissioners: Elizabeth Anne Moler, 
Chair; Vicky A. Bailey, William L. Massey, and Donald F. Santa, Jr.

    In a companion order in Docket No. RM94-6-000, the Federal Energy 
Regulatory Commission (Commission) is issuing a final rule revising its 
standards of conduct and reporting requirements for transportation and 
affiliate transactions. The final rule continues some of the existing 
reporting requirements under Order No. 497.\1\ To prevent a regulatory 
gap between the termination of the existing reporting requirements and 
the effective date of new reporting requirements, the Commission is 
extending the sunset date for the existing reporting requirements from 
June 30, 1994 until July 31, 1994.
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    \1\Inquiry Into Alleged Anticompetitive Practices Related to 
Marketing Affiliates of Interstate Pipelines, Order No. 497, 53 FR 
22139 (June 14, 1988), FERC Stats. & Regs. [Regulations Preambles 
1986-1990] 30,820 (1988), order on rehearing, Order No. 497-A, 54 
FR 52781 (Dec. 22, 1989), FERC Stats. & Regs. [Regulations Preambles 
1986-1990] 30,868 (1989), order extending sunset date, Order No. 
497-B, 55 FR 53291 (Dec. 28, 1990), FERC Stats. & Regs. [Regulations 
Preambles 1986-1990] 30,908 (1990), order extending sunset date and 
amending final rule, Order No. 497-C, 57 FR 9 (Jan. 2, 1992), III 
FERC Stats. & Regs 30,934 (1991), reh'g denied, 57 FR 5815, 58 FERC 
61,139 (1992), aff'd in part and remanded in part, Tenneco Gas v. 
Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, 969 F.2d 1187 (D.C. Cir. 
1992), order on remand, Order No. 497-D, 57 FR 58978 (Dec. 14, 
1992), III FERC Stats. & Regs. 30,958 (1992), order on reh'g and 
extending sunset date, Order No. 497-E, 59 F.R. 243 (Jan. 4, 1994), 
III FERC Stats. & Regs. 30,987 (Dec. 23, 1994), order on reh'g, 
Order No. 497-F, 59 FR 15336 (Apr. 1, 1994), 66 FERC 61,347 (1994).
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II. Reporting Requirements

    This order does not change the reporting burden under the current 
Order No. 497 regulations. The order merely extends these requirements 
until the effective date of the Commission's new regulations to prevent 
a regulatory gap.

III. Discussion

    In Order No. 497-E, the Commission extended the sunset date for the 
reporting requirements under Sec. 250.16 of the Commission regulations 
until June 30, 1994. On December 23, 1993, the Commission issued a 
Notice of Proposed Rulemaking in Docket No. RM94-6-000 which proposed 
to revise these reporting requirements significantly.\2\
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    \2\Standards of Conduct and Reporting Requirements for 
Transportation and Affiliate Transactions, 59 FR 268 (Jan. 4, 1994), 
IV FERC Stats. & Regs. [Proposed Regulations] 32,504 (Dec. 23, 
1993).
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    Contemporaneously with this order, the Commission is issuing a 
final rule in Docket No. RM94-6-000 which significantly revises the 
marketing affiliate reporting requirements. The final rule continues 
some of the reporting requirements from the previous regulations, in 
particular the requirement that pipelines maintain transportation 
discount information for both affiliates and non-affiliates.
    Section 553(d) of the Administrative Procedure Act (APA)3 
generally requires that a rule is to be effective not less than 30 days 
after publication in the Federal Register unless good cause is shown to 
shorten the time period. Because the final rule continues some of the 
reporting requirements from the existing rule, a gap between the 
termination of the old requirements and the implementation of the new 
could result in a loss of information.4 Rather than preventing 
this regulatory gap by requiring pipelines to undertake expedited 
implementation of the final rule in Docket No. RM94-6-000, the 
Commission finds it preferable to extend the current reporting 
requirements for only one month, until July 31, 1994, which will 
correlate with the August 1, 1994 effective date of the new 
regulations.
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    \3\5 U.S.C. 553(d).
    \4\In a motion filed May 20, 1994, Indicated Companies (Conoco, 
Inc., Amoco Production Company, Anadarko Petroleum Corporation, GPM 
Gas Corporation, Marathon Oil Company, Meridian Oil, Inc., Natural 
Gas Clearinghouse, Pennzoil Exploration and Production Company, 
Pennzoil Petroleum Company, Pennzoil Gas Marketing Company, Phillips 
Petroleum Company, Shell Gas Trading Company, Union Pacific Fuels, 
Inc., Vastar Resources, Inc., and Vastar Gas Marketing, Inc.) noted 
the potential for a regulatory gap and requested that the Commission 
act to prevent it. Hadson Gas Systems, Inc. filed an answer in 
support and the Interstate Natural Gas Association of America 
opposed the motion.
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IV. Environmental Analysis

    The Commission is required to prepare an Environmental Assessment 
or an Environmental Impact Statement for any action that may have a 
significant adverse effect on the human environment.5 The 
Commission has categorically excluded certain actions from these 
requirements as not having a significant effect on the human 
environment.6 The action taken here falls within the categorical 
exclusions provided in the Commission's regulations.7 Therefore, 
an environmental assessment is unnecessary and has not been prepared in 
this rulemaking.
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    \5\Order No. 486, Regulations Implementing the National 
Environmental Policy Act, 52 FR 47897 (Dec. 17, 1987), FERC Stats. & 
Regs. Preambles 1986-1990 30,783 (1987).
    \6\18 CFR 380.4.
    \7\See 18 CFR 380.4(a)(2)(ii), 380.4(a)(5).
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V. Regulatory Flexibility Act Certification

    The Regulatory Flexibility Act of 1980 (RFA)8 generally 
requires a description and analysis of final rules that will have 
significant economic impact on a substantial number of small entities. 
The regulations extend the reporting requirements on interstate natural 
gas pipelines. Since these pipelines are not small entities, the 
regulations will not have significant economic impact on small 
entities. Thus, pursuant to section 605(b) of the RFA, the Commission 
hereby certifies that the regulations proposed herein will not have a 
significant impact on a substantial number of small entities.
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    \8\5 U.S.C. 601-612.
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VI. Information Collection Requirement

    Office of Management and Budget (OMB) regulations require approval 
of certain information collection requirements imposed by agency 
rules.9 This final rule neither contains new information 
collection requirements nor makes any changes to existing information 
collection requirements. Therefore, it is not subject to OMB approval.
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    \9\5 CFR 1320.14.
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VII. Effective Date

    Section 553(d) of the Administrative Procedure Act (APA)10 
generally requires that a rule is to be effective not less than 30 days 
after publication in the Federal Register unless good cause is found to 
shorten the time period. The sunset date for the current reporting 
requirements will expire on June 30, 1994 before the APA's 30 day 
publication requirement is fulfilled, which would result in a gap in 
the reporting requirements. To prevent such a gap, Secs. 250.16 (a)(3), 
(c)(1), and (d)(1) will be revised, effective June 30, 1994, to 
continue the current reporting requirements until July 31, 1994.
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    \1\05 U.S.C. 553(d).
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List of Subjects in 18 CFR Part 250

    Natural gas, Reporting and recordkeeping requirements.

    By the Commission.
Lois D. Cashell,
Secretary.
    In consideration of the foregoing, the Commission amends Part 250, 
Chapter I, Title 18, Code of Federal Regulations, as set forth below.

PART 250--FORMS

    1. The authority citation for Part 250 continues to read as 
follows:

    Authority: 15 U.S.C. 717-717w, 3301-3432; 42 U.S.C. 7101-7352.

    2. In Sec. 250.16, paragraphs (a)(3), (c)(1), and (d)(1) are 
revised to read as follows:


Sec. 250.16   Format of compliance plan for transportation services and 
affiliate transactions.

    (a) Who must comply. * * *
    (3) Maintain all information required under this section from the 
time the information is received until July 31, 1994.
* * * * *
    (c) What to maintain. (1) An interstate pipeline must maintain the 
information in paragraph (b)(2) of this section for all requests for 
transportation services made by non-affiliated shippers or in which a 
non-affiliated shipper is involved from the time the information is 
received until July 31, 1994.
* * * * *
    (d) When to file. (1) The information in paragraph (b)(1) of this 
section and entries in the log specified in paragraph (b)(2) of this 
section relating to transportation requests for which transportation 
has commenced 30 days or more previously, which have been denied, or 
which have been pending for more than six months, must be filed with 
the Commission by September 19, 1988, and thereafter as required by 
paragraphs (d)(2) and (d)(4) of this section until the earlier of: 90 
days after the Commission has determined that the pipeline is in full 
compliance with the requirements of Order No. 636; or July 31, 1994. 
This requirement applies to transportation service that commenced or 
transportation requests that were denied after July 14, 1988, or that 
were pending for six months or more on July 14, 1988.
* * * * *
[FR Doc. 94-15370 Filed 6-24-94; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6717-01-P