[Federal Register Volume 74, Number 22 (Wednesday, February 4, 2009)]
[Notices]
[Pages 6018-6020]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: E9-2287]


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DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY

Federal Energy Regulatory Commission

[Docket No. IC09-716-001]


Commission Information Collection Activities (FERC-716); Comment 
Request; Submitted for OMB Review

January 28, 2009.
AGENCY: Federal Energy Regulatory Commission.

ACTION: Notice.

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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 of the information collection requirements. Any interested 
person may file comments directly with OMB

[[Page 6019]]

and should address a copy of those comments to the Commission as 
explained below. The Commission received no comments in response to the 
Federal Register notice (73FR70988, 11/24/2008) and has made this 
notation in its submission to OMB.

DATES: Comments on the collection of information are due by March 11, 
2009.

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 OMB Control No. 1902-0170 as a point 
of reference. The Desk Officer may be reached by telephone at 202-395-
7345.
    A copy of the comments should also be sent to the Federal Energy 
Regulatory Commission and should refer to Docket No. IC09-716-001. 
Comments may be filed either electronically or in paper format. Those 
persons filing electronically do not need to make a paper filing. 
Documents filed electronically via the Internet must be prepared in an 
acceptable filing format and in compliance with the Federal Energy 
Regulatory Commission submission guidelines. Complete filing 
instructions and acceptable filing formats are available at http://www.ferc.gov/help/submission-guide/electronic-media.asp. To file the 
document electronically, access the Commission's website and click on 
Documents & Filing, E-Filing (http://www.ferc.gov/docs-filing/efiling.asp), 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 acknowledgement to the sender's e-
mail address upon receipt of comments.
    For paper filings, an original and 2 copies of the comments should 
be submitted to the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, Secretary of 
the Commission, 888 First Street, NE., Washington, DC 20426, and should 
refer to Docket No. IC09-716-001.
    All comments may be viewed, printed or downloaded remotely via the 
Internet through FERC's homepage using the ``eLibrary'' link. For user 
assistance, contact [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: The FERC is combining the requirements from 
both FERC-716 (``Good Faith Request for Transmission Service and 
Response by Transmitting Utility Under Sections 211(a) and 213(a) of 
the Federal Power Act'' (OMB No. 1902-0170)) and FERC-716A 
(``Application for Transmission Services Under Section 211 of the 
Federal Power Act'' (OMB No. 1902-0168)) for publication purposes into 
a single notice. In addition, the requirements will be labeled FERC-716 
and consolidated into a single OMB control no. (OMB No. 1902-0170).
    The information collected under the requirements of FERC-716 ``Good 
Faith Request for Transmission Service and Response by Transmitting 
Utility Under Sections 211(a) and 213 (a) of the Federal Power Act'' 
(existing/current OMB No. 1902-0170) is used by the Commission to 
implement the statutory provisions of sections 211 and 213 of the 
Federal Power Act (FPA) as amended and added by the Energy Policy Act 
1992. For the initial process, the information is not filed with the 
Commission, however, the request and response may be analyzed as a part 
of a section 211 proceeding. This collection of information covers the 
information that must be contained in the request and in the response. 
Should the parties be unable to resolve outstanding issues, an 
application may be submitted to the FERC. The Commission may order 
transmission services under the authority of FPA 211.
    The Energy Policy Act of 1992 amended section 211 of the FPA and 
expanded the Commission's authority to order transmission service. 
Under the revised section 211, the Commission may order transmission 
services if it finds that such action would be in the public interest, 
would not unreasonably impair the continued reliability of electric 
systems affected by the order, and would meet the requirements of 
amended section 211 of the FPA.
    The Commission's policy statement under Public Law 93-3, Policy 
Statement Regarding Good Faith Requests for Transmission Services and 
Responses by Transmitting Utilities Under Section 211(a) and 213(a) of 
the Federal Power Act, as Amended, implemented a data exchange between 
a transmission requester and a transmitting utility prior to the 
submission of a section 211 request with the Commission. Components of 
the data exchange are identified in the Code of Federal Regulations 
(CFR), 18 CFR 2.20. The general policy sets forth standards by which 
the Commission determines whether and when a valid good faith request 
for transmission has been made under section 211 of the FPA. In 
developing the standards, the Commission sought to encourage an open 
exchange of information with a reasonable degree of specificity and 
completeness between the party requesting transmission services and the 
transmitting utility. As a result, 18 CFR 2.20 identifies twelve 
components of a good faith estimate and five components of a reply to a 
good faith request.
    Information in the data exchange is not filed as noted above with 
the Commission, unless negotiations between the transmission requestor 
and the transmitting utility have not been successful and the 
transmission requestor files a section 211 request (formerly FERC-716A, 
OMB No. 1902-0168, and incorporated herein) with the Commission.
    When negotiations are unsuccessful, the information collected for 
the ``Application for Transmission Services Under Section 211 of the 
Federal Power Act'' is used by the Commission to implement the 
statutory provisions of section 211 of the Federal Power Act (FPA) 16 
U.S.C. (824) as amended by the Energy Policy Act 1992 (Pub. L. 102-486) 
106 Stat. 2776. Under section 211, the Commission may order 
transmission services if it finds that such action would be in the 
public interest and would not unreasonably impair the continued 
reliability of systems affected by the order. The requirements are 
detailed in the Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) under 18 CFR Part 36.
    Action: The Commission is requesting a three-year extension of the 
current expiration date, with no change to the existing collection of 
data.
    Burden Statement: Public reporting burden for this collection is 
estimated as:

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                                                    Number of       Number of     Average burden   Total annual
         FERC Data collection--FERC-716            respondents    responses per     hours per      burden hours
                                                    annually       respondent        response           \1\
                                                            (1)             (2)            (3)       (1) x (2) x
                                                                                                             (3)
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Information exchange between parties...........               3               1            100               300

[[Page 6020]]

 
Application submitted to FERC if parties'                     3               1              2.5               8
 negotiations are unsuccessful.................
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    TOTAL \1\..................................               3               2  ...............             308
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    For the information exchange, the estimated cost burden \1\ to 
respondents is $18,228 (300 hours/2080 \2\ hours per year times 
$126,384 \3\ per year average per employee = $18,228). The cost per 
respondent is $6,076. For the application to FERC, the estimated cost 
burden \1\ to respondents is $486 (8 hours/2080 hours per year times 
$126,384 per year average per employee = $486). The cost per respondent 
is $162.
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    \1\ The figures may not be exact, due to rounding.
    \2\ Number of hours an employee works each year.
    \3\ Average annual salary per employee.
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    The reporting burden includes the total time, effort, or financial 
resources expended to generate, maintain, retain, disclose, or provide 
the information including: (1) Reviewing instructions; (2) developing, 
acquiring, installing, and utilizing technology and systems for the 
purposes of collecting, validating, verifying, processing, maintaining, 
disclosing and providing information; (3) adjusting the existing ways 
to comply with any previously applicable instructions and requirements; 
(4) training personnel to respond to a collection of information; (5) 
searching data sources; (6) completing and reviewing the collection of 
information; and (7) transmitting, or otherwise disclosing the 
information.
    The estimate of cost for respondents is based upon salaries for 
professional and clerical support, as well as direct and indirect 
overhead costs. Direct costs include all costs directly attributable to 
providing this information, such as administrative costs and the cost 
for information technology. Indirect or overhead costs are costs 
incurred by an organization in support of its mission. These costs 
apply to activities which benefit the whole organization, rather than 
any one particular function or activity.
    Comments are invited on: (1) Whether the proposed collection of 
information is necessary for the proper performance of the functions of 
the Commission, including whether the information will have practical 
utility; (2) the accuracy of the agency's estimates of the burden of 
the proposed collection of information, including the validity of the 
methodology and assumptions used; (3) ways to enhance the quality, 
utility and clarity of the information to be collected; and (4) ways to 
minimize the burden of the collection of information on those who are 
to respond, including the use of appropriate automated, electronic, 
mechanical, or other technological collection techniques or other forms 
of information technology, e.g. permitting electronic submission of 
responses.

Kimberly D. Bose,
Secretary.
[FR Doc. E9-2287 Filed 2-3-09; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6717-01-P