[Federal Register Volume 68, Number 190 (Wednesday, October 1, 2003)]
[Notices]
[Pages 56626-56628]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 03-24872]


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DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY

Energy Information Administration


Agency Information Collection Activities: Proposed Collection; 
Comment Request

AGENCY: Energy Information Administration (EIA), Department of Energy 
(DOE).

ACTION: Agency information collection activities: proposed collection; 
comment request.

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SUMMARY: The EIA is soliciting comments on the proposed one-year 
extension to the Form EIA-1605, ``Voluntary Reporting of Greenhouse 
Gases,'' (long form) and the Form EIA-1605EZ, ``Voluntary Reporting of 
Greenhouse Gases,'' (short form).

DATES: Comments must be filed by December 1, 2003. If you anticipate 
difficulty in submitting comments within that period, contact the 
person listed below as soon as possible.

ADDRESSES: Send comments to Stephen E. Calopedis. To ensure receipt of 
the comments by the due date, submission by FAX (202-586-3045) or e-
mail ([email protected]) is recommended. The mailing 
address is Energy Information Administration, EI-81, Forrestal 
Building, U.S. Department of Energy, Washington, DC 20585. 
Alternatively, Stephen Calopedis may be contacted by telephone at 202-
586-1156.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Requests for additional information or 
copies of any forms and instructions should be directed to Stephen 
Calopedis at the address listed above or can be obtained at http://www.eia.doe.gov/oiaf/1605/forms.html.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

I. Background

II. Current Actions

III. Request for Comments

I. Background

    The Federal Energy Administration Act of 1974 (Pub. L. 93-275, 15 
U.S.C. 761 et seq.) and the DOE Organization Act (Pub. L. 95-91, 42 
U.S.C. 7101 et seq.) require the EIA to carry out a centralized, 
comprehensive, and unified energy information program. This program 
collects, evaluates, assembles, analyzes, and disseminates information 
on energy resource reserves, production, demand, technology, and 
related economic and statistical information. This information is used 
to assess the adequacy of energy resources to meet near and longer term 
domestic demands.
    The EIA, as part of its effort to comply with the Paperwork 
Reduction Act of 1995 (Pub. L. 104-13, 44 U.S.C. chapter 35), provides 
the general public and other Federal agencies with opportunities to 
comment on collections of energy information conducted by or in 
conjunction with the EIA. Any comments received help the EIA to prepare 
data requests that maximize the utility of the information collected, 
and to assess the impact of collection requirements on the public. 
Also, the EIA will later seek approval by the Office of Management and 
Budget (OMB) under section 3507(a) of the Paperwork Reduction Act of 
1995.
    The Voluntary Reporting of Greenhouse Gases collections are 
conducted pursuant to section 1605(b) of the Energy Policy Act of 1992 
(Pub. L. 102-486, 42 U.S.C. 13385) under General Guidelines issued by 
the DOE's Office of Policy & International Affairs. These forms are 
designed to collect voluntarily reported data on greenhouse gas 
emissions, achieved reductions of these emissions, and increased carbon 
fixation as well as information on commitments to reduce greenhouse gas 
emissions and sequester carbon in future years.
    Please refer to the proposed forms and instructions for more 
information about the purpose, who must report, when to report, where 
to submit, the elements to be reported, detailed instructions, 
provisions for confidentiality, and uses (including possible 
nonstatistical uses) of the information. For instructions on obtaining 
materials, see the FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT section.

II. Current Actions

    EIA will be requesting a one-year extension with no changes for the 
Voluntary Reporting of Greenhouse Gases Program, Forms EIA-1605 and 
EIA-1605EZ.
    This request for a one-year extension of the expiration date of the 
existing Forms EIA-1605 and EIA-1605EZ is being made to ensure that a 
data collection instrument is in place while the Guidelines to the 
Voluntary Reporting of Greenhouse Gases Program are in the process of 
being revised . A one-year extension, rather than a three-year 
extension, is being proposed because EIA anticipates significant 
changes to the data collection forms and data elements to result from 
the revisions to the program guidelines.

Revised Guidelines for the Voluntary Reporting of Greenhouse Gases 
Program

    On February 14, 2002, President Bush announced a series of programs 
and initiatives to address the issue of global climate change, 
including a greenhouse gas intensity reduction goal, energy technology 
research programs, targeted tax incentives to advance the development 
and adoption of new technologies, and voluntary programs to promote 
actions to reduce greenhouse gases. In addition, the President directed 
the Secretary of Energy, in consultation with the Secretary of 
Commerce, the Secretary of Agriculture, and the Administrator of the 
Environmental Protection Agency, to

[[Page 56627]]

propose improvements to the current Voluntary Reporting of Greenhouse 
Gases Program required under section 1605(b) of the Energy Policy Act 
of 1992. These improvements are to enhance measurement accuracy, 
reliability, and verifiability, working with and taking into account 
emerging domestic and international approaches. The President also 
directed the Secretary of Energy to recommend reforms to ensure that 
businesses and individuals that register reductions are not penalized 
under a future climate policy and to give transferable credits to 
companies that can show real emissions reductions.
    The purposes of the proposed revised Guidelines are to: (1) 
establish revised procedures and reporting requirements for filing 
voluntary reports, and (2) encourage corporations, Government agencies, 
non-profit organizations, individuals and other private and public 
entities to submit annual reports of their total entity-wide greenhouse 
gas emissions, net emission reductions, and carbon sequestration 
activities that are complete, reliable and consistent.
    On May 6, 2002 (67 FR 30370), the Department of Energy solicited 
public comments on various issues relevant to its efforts to implement 
the President's directives. After consideration of these public 
comments, the Secretaries of Energy, Commerce and Agriculture, and the 
Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency wrote the 
President on July 8, 2002, stating that improvements to the existing 
Voluntary Greenhouse Gas Reporting Program should:
    1. Develop fair, objective, and practical methods for reporting 
baselines, reporting boundaries, calculating real results, and awarding 
transferable credits for actions that lead to real reductions.
    2. Standardize widely accepted, transparent accounting methods.
    3. Support independent verification registry reports.
    4. Encourage reporters to report greenhouse gas intensity 
(emissions unit of output) as well as emissions reductions.
    5. Encourage corporate or entity-wide reporting.
    6. Provide credits for actions to remove carbon dioxide from the 
atmosphere as well as for actions to reduce emissions.
    7. Develop a process for evaluating the extent to which past 
reductions may qualify for credits.
    8. Develop a process for evaluating the extent to which past 
reductions may qualify for credits.
    9. Factor in international strategies as well as State-level 
efforts.
    10. Minimize transactions costs for reporters and administrative 
costs for the Government, where possible, without compromising the 
foregoing recommendations.
    The DOE also held four public workshops (67 FR 64106) in the fall 
of 2002 to enable interested persons to discuss and provide comments on 
possible improvements to the program guidelines. Public comments 
submitted to DOE's Office of Policy and International Affairs on 
possible revisions to the Voluntary Reporting of Greenhouse Gases 
Program Guidelines are available at http://www.pi.energy.gov/enhancingGHGregistry/index.html.

Process for Finalizing and Implementing Revised Program Guidelines

    DOE's Office of Policy and International Affairs plans to issue 
proposed revised general guidelines for public comment during the fall 
of 2003. In parallel with this effort, DOE's Office of Policy and 
International Affairs intends to issue for public comment proposed 
technical guidelines in the fall of 2003. The technical guidelines will 
specify the methods and factors to be used in measuring and estimating 
greenhouse gas emissions and emission reductions under the revised 
general guidelines. DOE plans to issue in final form all necessary 
guidelines during 2004. Upon finalization and issuance of the revised 
guidelines, EIA plans to develop and issue new reporting forms and 
instructions for reporting under the revised program guidelines. It is 
important to note here that it is not the intent of this notice to 
solicit comment on the guideline revision process above, but rather to 
merely extend the expiration date on the existing data collection, 
forms EIA-1605 and EIA-1605-EZ, so that EIA has an existing data 
collection instrument in place while the guideline revision process is 
on-going.

III. Request for Comments

    Prospective respondents and other interested parties should comment 
on the actions discussed in item II. The following guidelines are 
provided to assist in the preparation of comments. Please indicate to 
which form(s) your comments apply.

General Issues

    A. Is the proposed collection of information necessary for the 
proper performance of the functions of the agency and does the 
information have practical utility? Practical utility is defined as the 
actual usefulness of information to or for an agency, taking into 
account its accuracy, adequacy, reliability, timeliness, and the 
agency's ability to process the information it collects.
    B. What enhancements can be made to the quality, utility, and 
clarity of the information to be collected?

As a Potential Respondent to the Request for Information

    A. What actions could be taken to help ensure and maximize the 
quality, objectivity, utility, and integrity of the information to be 
collected?
    B. Are the instructions and definitions clear and sufficient? If 
not, which instructions need clarification?
    C. Can the information be submitted by the due date?
    D. Public reporting burden for this collection is estimated to 
average 40 hours per response on Form EIA-1605 (long form) and 4 hours 
per response on Form EIA-1605EZ (short form). The estimated burden 
includes the total time necessary to provide the requested information. 
In your opinion, how accurate is this estimate?
    E. The agency estimates that the only cost to a respondent is for 
the time it will take to complete the collection. Will a respondent 
incur any start-up costs for reporting, or any recurring annual costs 
for operation, maintenance, and purchase of services associated with 
the information collection?
    F. What additional actions could be taken to minimize the burden of 
this collection of information? Such actions may involve the use of 
automated, electronic, mechanical, or other technological collection 
techniques or other forms of information technology.
    G. Does any other Federal, State, or local agency collect similar 
information? If so, specify the agency, the data element(s), and the 
methods of collection.

As a Potential User of the Information To Be Collected

    A. What actions could be taken to help ensure and maximize the 
quality, objectivity, utility, and integrity of the information 
disseminated?
    B. Is the information useful at the levels of detail to be 
collected?
    C. For what purpose(s) would the information be used? Be specific.
    D. Are there alternate sources for the information and are they 
useful? If so, what are their weaknesses and/or strengths?
    Comments submitted in response to this notice will be summarized 
and/or included in the request for OMB approval of the form. They also 
will become a matter of public record.


[[Page 56628]]


    Statutory Authority: Section 3507(h)(1) of the Paperwork 
Reduction Act of 1995 (Pub. L. 104-13, 44 U.S.C. chapter 35).

    Issued in Washington, DC, September 25, 2003.
Nancy J. Kirkendall,
Director, Statistics and Methods Group, Energy Information 
Administration.
[FR Doc. 03-24872 Filed 9-30-03; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6450-01-P