[Federal Register Volume 76, Number 121 (Thursday, June 23, 2011)]
[Notices]
[Pages 36909-36910]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2011-15696]


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DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY

Federal Energy Regulatory Commission

[Docket No. IC11-549B-000]


Commission Information Collection Activities (FERC-549B); Comment 
Request; Extension

AGENCY: Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, DOE.

ACTION: Notice of proposed information collection and request for 
comments.

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SUMMARY: In compliance with the requirements of section 3506(c)(2)(A) 
of the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, 44 USC 3506(c)(2)(A) (2006), 
(Pub. L. 104-13), the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (Commission 
or FERC) is soliciting public comment on the proposed information 
collection described below.

DATES: Comments in consideration of the collection of information are 
due August 22, 2011.

ADDRESSES: Commenters must send an original of their comments to: 
Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, Secretary of the Commission, 888 
First Street, NE., Washington, DC 20426. Comments may be filed either 
on paper or on CD/DVD, and should refer to Docket No. IC11-549B-000. 
Documents must be prepared in an acceptable filing format and in 
compliance with Commission submission guidelines at http://www.ferc.gov/help/submission-guide.asp. eFiling and eSubscription are 
not available for Docket No. IC11-549B-000, due to a system issue.
    All comments and FERC issuances may be viewed, printed or 
downloaded remotely through FERC's eLibrary at http://www.ferc.gov/docs-filing/elibrary.asp, by searching on Docket No. IC11-549B. For 
user assistance, contact FERC Online Support by e-mail at 
[email protected], or by phone at: (866) 208-3676 (toll-free), 
or (202) 502-8659 for TTY.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Ellen Brown may be reached by e-mail 
at [email protected], telephone at (202) 502-8663, and fax at 
(202) 273-0873.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The information collected under the 
requirements of FERC-549B, ``Gas Pipeline Rates: Capacity 
Information,'' includes both the Index of Customers (IOC) report under 
Commission regulations at 18 Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) 
284.13(c) and three capacity reporting requirements. One of these is in 
Commission regulations at 18 CFR 284.13(b) and requires reports on firm 
and interruptible services. The second is at 18 CFR 284.13(d)(1) and 
requires pipelines make information on capacity and flow information 
available on their Internet Web sites. The third is at 18 CFR 
284.13(d)(2) and requires an annual filing of peak day capacity.

Capacity Reports Under 284.13(b) and 284.13(d)(1)

    On April 4, 1992, in Order No. 636 (RM91-11-000), the Commission 
established a capacity release mechanism under which shippers could 
release firm transportation and storage capacity on either a short- or 
long-term basis to other shippers wanting to obtain capacity. Pipelines 
posted available firm and interruptible capacity information on their 
electronic bulletin boards (EBBs) to inform potential shippers.
    On August 3, 1992, in Order No. 636-A (RM91-11-002), the Commission 
determined through staff audits, that the efficiency of the capacity 
release mechanism could be enhanced by standardizing the content and 
format of capacity release information and the methods by which 
shippers accessed this information, which pipelines posted to their 
EBBs
    On March 29, 1995, through Order 577 (RM95-5-000), the Commission 
amended Sec.  284.243(h) of its regulations to allow shippers the 
ability to release capacity without having to comply with the 
Commission's advance posting and bidding requirements.
    On February 9, 2000, in Order No. 637 (RM98-10-000), to create 
greater substitution between different forms of capacity and to enhance 
competition across the pipeline grid, the Commission revised its 
capacity release regulations regarding scheduling, segmentation and 
flexible point rights, penalties, and reporting requirements. This 
resulted in more reliable capacity information availability and price 
data that shippers needed to make informed decisions in a competitive 
market as well as to improve shipper's and the Commission's ability to 
monitor the market for potential abuses.

Peak Day Annual Capacity Report Under 284.13(d)(2)

    18 CFR 284.13(d)(2) requires an annual peak day capacity report of 
all interstate pipelines, including natural gas storage only companies. 
This report is generally a short report showing the peak day design 
capacity or the actual peak day capacity achieved, with a short 
explanation, if needed. The regulation states:

    An interstate pipeline must make an annual filing by March 1 of 
each year showing the estimated peak day capacity of

[[Page 36910]]

the pipeline's system, and the estimated storage capacity and 
maximum daily delivery capability of storage facilities under 
reasonably representative operating assumptions and the respective 
assignments of that capacity to the various firm services provided 
by the pipeline.

    This annual report/filing is publicly available, while other more 
specific interstate pipeline and storage capacity details are filed as 
CEII, such as the Annual System Flow Diagram (FERC-567) which are not 
publicly available.

Index of Customers Under 284.13(c)

    In Order 581, issued September 28, 1995 (Docket No. RM95-4-000), 
the Commission established the IOC quarterly information requirement. 
This Order required the reporting of five data elements in the IOC 
filing: the customer name, the rate schedule under which service is 
rendered, the contract effective date, the contract termination date, 
and the maximum daily contract quantity, for either transportation or 
storage service, as appropriate.
    In a notice issued separate from Order 581 in Docket No. RM95-4-
000, issued February 29, 1996, the Commission, through technical 
conferences with industry, determined that the IOC data reported should 
be in tab delimited format on diskette and in a form as proscribed in 
Appendix A of the rulemaking. In a departure from past practice, a 
three-digit code, instead of a six-digit code, was established to 
identify the respondent.
    In Order 637, issued February 9, 2000 (Docket Nos. RM98-10-000 and 
RM98-12-000), the Commission required the filing of: the receipt and 
delivery points held under contract and the zones or segments in which 
the capacity is held, the common transaction point codes, the contract 
number, the shipper identification number, an indication whether the 
contract includes negotiated rates, the names of any agents or asset 
managers that control capacity in a pipeline rate zone, and any 
affiliate relationship between the pipeline and the holder of capacity. 
It was stated in the Order that the changes to the Commission's 
reporting requirements would enhance the reliability of information 
about capacity availability and price that shippers need to make 
informed decisions in a competitive market as well as improve shippers' 
and the Commission's ability to monitor marketplace behavior to detect, 
and remedy anti-competitive behavior. Order 637 required a pipeline 
post the information quarterly on its Internet websites instead of on 
the outdated EBBs.
    Action: The Commission is requesting a three-year extension of the 
FERC-549B reporting requirements, with no changes.
    Burden Statement: The estimated annual public reporting burden for 
this collection is estimated as:

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                                       Number of           Number of
      FERC-549B requirement           respondents        responses per      Average burden       Total annual
                                       annually           respondent      hours per response     burden hours
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                                                 (1)                 (2)                 (3)     (1) x (2) x (3)
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Capacity Reports under 284.13(b)                 129                   6                 145             112,230
 and 284.13(d)(1)...............
Peak Day Annual Capacity Report                  129                   1                  10               1,290
 under 284.13(d)(2).............
Index of Customers under                         129                   4                   3               1,548
 284.13(c)......................
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    Total.......................  ..................  ..................  ..................             115,068
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     The total estimated annual cost burden to respondents is 
$7,876,183 (115,068 hours/2,080 hours \1\ per year, times $142,372 
\2\). The estimated annual burden per respondent is $61,056 (rounded).
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    \1\ Estimated number of hours an employee works each year.
    \2\ Estimated average annual cost 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 estimate 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.

    Dated: June 16, 2011.
Kimberly D. Bose,
Secretary.
[FR Doc. 2011-15696 Filed 6-22-11; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6717-01-P