[Federal Register Volume 69, Number 32 (Wednesday, February 18, 2004)]
[Notices]
[Pages 7624-7625]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: E4-309]


-----------------------------------------------------------------------

DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY

Federal Energy Regulatory Commission

[Docket No. IC03-537-001, FERC-537]


Commission Information Collection Activities, Proposed 
Collection; Comment Request; Submitted For OMB Review

February 11, 2004.
AGENCY: Federal Energy Regulatory Commission.

ACTION: Notice.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------

SUMMARY: In compliance with the requirements of section 3507 of the 
Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, 44 U.S.C. 3507, the Federal Energy 
Regulatory Commission (Commission) has submitted the information 
collection described below to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) 
for review and extension of the current expiration date. Any interested 
person may file comments directly with OMB and should address a copy of 
those comments to the Commission as explained below. The Commission 
received no comments in response to an earlier Federal Register notice 
of October 6, 2003 (68 FR 57679-80), and has made this notation in its 
submission to OMB.

DATES: Comments on the collection of information are due by March 17, 
2004.

ADDRESSES: Address comments on the collection of information to the 
Office of Management and Budget, Office of Information and Regulatory 
Affairs, Attention: Federal Energy Regulatory Commission Desk Officer. 
Comments to OMB should be filed electronically, c/o [email protected] and include the OMB Control No. as a point of 
reference. The Desk Officer may be reached by telephone at 202-395-
7856. A copy of the comments should also be sent to the Federal Energy 
Regulatory Commission, Office of the Executive Director, ED-30, 
Attention: Michael Miller, 888 First Street, NE., Washington, DC 20426. 
Comments may be filed either in paper format or electronically. Those 
persons filing electronically do not need to make a paper filing. For 
paper filings, such comments should be submitted to the Office of the 
Secretary, Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, 888 First Street, NE., 
Washington, DC 20426 and should refer to Docket No. IC03-537-001.
    Documents filed electronically via the Internet must be prepared in 
WordPerfect, MS Word, Portable Document Format, or ASCII format. To 
file the document, access the

[[Page 7625]]

Commission's Web site at www.ferc.gov and click on ``Make an E-
filing,'' and then follow the instructions for each screen. First time 
users will have to establish a user name and password. The Commission 
will send an automatic acknowledgment to the sender's e-mail address 
upon receipt of comments. User assistance for electronic filings is 
available at (202) 502-8258 or by e-mail to [email protected]. Comments 
should not be submitted to the e-mail address.
    All comments are available for review at the Commission or may be 
viewed on the Commission's Web site at http://www.ferc.gov, using the 
``eLibrary'' link. Enter the docket number excluding the last three 
digits in the docket number field to access the document. For 
assistance, contact FERC Online Support at [email protected] 
or toll-free at (866)208-3676, or for TTY, contact (202)502-8659.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Michael Miller may be reached by 
telephone at (202)502-8415, by fax at (202)273-0873, and by e-mail at 
[email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Description

    The information collection submitted for OMB review contains the 
following:
    1. Collection of Information: FERC-537 ``Gas Pipeline Certificates: 
Construction, Acquisition and Abandonment.''
    2. Sponsor: Federal Energy Regulatory Commission.
    3. Control No.: 1902-0060.
    The Commission is now requesting that OMB approve and reinstate 
with a three-year extension of the expiration date, with no changes to 
the existing collection. The information filed with the Commission is 
mandatory.
    4. Necessity of the Collection of Information: Submission of the 
information is necessary to enable the Commission to carry out its 
responsibilities in implementing the statutory provisions of the 
Natural Gas Policy Act of 1978 (NGPA), and the Natural Gas Act (NGA). 
Under the NGA, natural gas pipeline companies must obtain Commission 
authorization to undertake the construction or extension of any 
facilities, or to acquire or operate any such facilities, or to acquire 
or operate any such facilities or extensions in accordance with section 
7(c) of the NGA. A natural gas company must also obtain Commission 
approval under section 7(b) of the NGA prior to abandoning any 
jurisdictional facility or service. Under the NGPA interstate and 
intrastate pipelines must obtain authorization for certain 
transportation arrangements.
    The information collected is necessary to certificate interstate 
pipelines engage the transportation and sale of natural gas, and the 
construction, acquisition, and operation of facilities to be used in 
those activities, to authorize the abandonment of facilities and 
services and to authorize certain NGPA transactions. If a certificate 
is granted, the natural gas company can construct, acquire, or operate 
facilities plus engage in transportation or sale of natural gas. 
Conversely, approval of an abandonment application permits the pipeline 
to cease service and/or discontinue the operation of such facilities. 
Authorization under NGPA section 311(a) allows the interstate or 
intrastate pipeline applicants to render certain transportation 
services. The Commission implements the filing requirements in the Code 
of Regulations (CFR) under 18 CFR parts 157.5-.11; 157.13-.20; 157.22; 
157.53; 157.201-.209; 157.211; 157.214-.218; 284.8; 284.11; 284.126; 
284.221; 284.223-.224; 284.227.
    5. Respondent Description: The respondent universe currently 
comprises 76 companies (on average per year) subject to the 
Commission's jurisdiction.
    6. Estimated Burden: 210,234 total hours, 76 respondents (average 
per year), 10.2 responses per respondent, and 271.2 hours per response 
(average).
    7. Estimated Cost Burden to respondents: 210,234 hours / 2080 hours 
per years x $107,185 per year = $11,829,807. The cost per respondent is 
equal to $155.655.

    Statutory Authority: Section 311 Natural Gas Policy Act of 1978 
(NGPA), 15 U.S.C. 33301-3432, and the Natural Gas Act (NGA) 15 
U.S.C. 717-717w.

Linda Mitry,
Acting Secretary.
[FR Doc. E4-309 Filed 2-17-04; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6717-01-P