[Federal Register Volume 59, Number 132 (Tuesday, July 12, 1994)]
[Unknown Section]
[Page 0]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 94-16843]


[[Page Unknown]]

[Federal Register: July 12, 1994]


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DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY

Federal Energy Regulatory Commission

18 CFR Part 284

[Docket No. RM93-4-003; Order No. 563-B]

 

Standards for Electronic Bulletin Boards Required Under Part 284 
of the Commission's Regulations

    Issued: July 1, 1994.

AGENCY: Federal Energy Regulatory Commission.

ACTION: Final rule; order denying clarification and rehearing.

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SUMMARY: The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (Commission) is 
issuing an order denying a request for clarification and rehearing of 
Order No. 563-A with respect to a proposed Index of Purchasers. The 
Commission finds the request is premature because the Commission has 
not made a final determination on this issue.

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

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Michael Goldenberg, Office of the General Counsel, Federal Energy 
Regulatory Commission, 825 North Capitol Street, NE., Washington, DC 
20426, (202) 208-2294.
Marvin Rosenberg, Office of Economic Policy, Federal Energy Regulatory 
Commission, 825 North Capitol Street, NE., Washington, DC 20426, (202) 
208-1283.
Brooks Carter, Office of Pipeline and Producer Regulation, Federal 
Energy Regulatory Commission, 825 North Capitol Street, NE., 
Washington, DC 20426, (202) 208-0666.

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.

Order Denying Clarification and Rehearing; Order No. 563-B

Standards for Electronic Bulletin Boards Required Under Part 284 of the 
Commission's Regulations

[Docket No. RM93-4-003]

    Before Commissioners: Elizabeth Anne Moler, Chair; Vicky A. 
Bailey, James J. Hoecker, William L. Massey, and Donald F. Santa, 
Jr.

    Issued: July 1, 1994.

    On June 1, 1994, ANR Pipeline Company (ANR) filed a request for 
clarification or, in the alternative, for rehearing of Order No. 563-
A.1 ANR seeks clarification that the Commission will not require 
all pipelines to provide an electronic Index of Purchasers, or, in the 
alternative, rehearing of the Commission's decision adopting this 
requirement. The Commission denies the request for clarification and 
rehearing as premature.
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    \1\Standards For Electronic Bulletin Boards Required Under Part 
284 of the Commission's Regulations, Order No. 563, 59 FR 516 (Jan. 
5, 1994), III FERC Stats. & Regs. Preambles 30,988 (Dec. 23, 1993), 
order on reh'g, Order No. 563-A, 59 FR 23624 (May 6, 1994), III FERC 
Stats. & Regs. Preambles 30,994 (May 2, 1994).
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Background

    In Order No. 563, the Commission adopted a final rule establishing 
standards governing the electronic dissemination of information 
relating to transportation of natural gas. The standards generally 
reflected consensus agreements reached by industry Working Groups 
composed of members from all facets of the gas industry.
    Parties had proposed to include in the standards an electronic 
Index of Purchasers which would disclose certain information about the 
capacity rights of shippers on pipelines. The Working Groups, however, 
were unable to reach consensus on an approach, and a number of 
participants submitted alternative approaches. One proposal, supported 
by 44 participants, was to replace some of the Commission's reporting 
requirements relating to firm and interruptible transportation with an 
electronic Index composed of nine data elements, available in 
downloadable form.2
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    \2\The proposal would replace the Commission's initial and 
subsequent reports (but not the annual reports and bypass reports) 
and the requirement to include an Index of Purchasers in pipeline 
tariffs.
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    In Order No. 563-A, the Commission found that this proposal had 
significant merit because it would provide useful information to the 
market about capacity, while setting the stage for reducing filing 
burdens and streamlining the Commission's reporting requirements. The 
Commission expressed interest in pursuing this proposal further and 
instructed Commission staff to work with the industry Working Groups to 
develop a final proposal by September 30, 1994.
    ANR contends the Commission's order is not clear on whether the 
Index of Purchasers will be adopted upon the submission of the 
September 30, 1994 report, without an opportunity for further comment. 
It argues that the Commission should clarify whether this proposal is 
still open for discussion.
    In addition, ANR questions whether the Index of Purchasers is 
needed to promote the Commission's capacity release objectives. It 
agrees that such an Index does offer the advantage of reducing 
reporting and tariff requirements, but maintains that, if the 
Commission adopts the Index for that reason, it should do so only if it 
concomitantly eliminates the other reporting requirements. Finally, ANR 
argues that if the Commission requires information not covered by the 
existing reporting requirements, the Commission must justify the 
inclusion of such information. In particular, ANR contends the 
Commission should not require dissemination of competitively sensitive 
information.

Discussion

    The Commission denies ANR's request that the Commission clarify 
that pipelines will not have to adopt the Index of Purchasers and ANR's 
alternative request for rehearing. ANR's requests at this point are 
premature.
    In Order No. 563-A, the Commission only expressed interest in 
pursuing the Index of Purchasers proposal, but did not make a final 
determination on the issue. After receiving the September 30, 1994 
report from the Working Group, the Commission will evaluate the 
proposal and determine how best to proceed. As the Commission stated in 
Order No. 563-A, the Commission will comply with the Administrative 
Procedure Act and will provide notice and an opportunity for comment 
prior to making any changes or revisions to the standards.3 Thus, 
ANR will have the opportunity to have its views considered at the 
appropriate time.
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    \3\Order No. 563-A, III FERC Stats. & Regs. Preambles at 31,036-
37.
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    The Commission orders:
    The request for clarification and rehearing is denied.

    By the Commission.
Lois D. Cashell,
Secretary.
[FR Doc. 94-16843 Filed 7-11-94; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6717-01-P