[Federal Register Volume 79, Number 69 (Thursday, April 10, 2014)]
[Notices]
[Pages 19881-19882]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2014-08030]
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DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY
Quadrennial Energy Review: Notice of Public Meeting
AGENCY: Office of Energy Policy and Systems Analysis, Secretariat,
Quadrennial Energy Review Task Force, Department of Energy.
ACTION: Notice of public meeting.
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SUMMARY: At the direction of the President, the U.S. Department of
Energy (DOE or Department), as the Secretariat for the Quadrennial
Energy Review Task Force (QER Task Force), will convene a two part
public meeting to discuss and receive comments on issues related to the
Quadrennial Energy Review. The purpose of the meeting is to examine
energy infrastructure constraints in New England and regional
approaches to addressing them.
DATES: The Department, as the Secretariat for the QER Task Force, will
convene a two part meeting relating to the Quadrennial Energy Review.
Part 1 of the meeting will be held in Providence, Rhode Island and Part
2 will be held in Hartford, Connecticut. Both parts of the meeting will
occur on Monday, April 21, 2014. Part 1, in Providence, Rhode Island
will begin at 9 a.m. and end by 1 p.m. on Monday, April 21, 2014. Part
2, in Hartford, Connecticut will begin at 1 p.m. and run until 5 p.m.,
on Monday, April 21. Written comments are welcome, especially following
the public meetings, and should be submitted within 60 days of the
meetings.
ADDRESSES: Part 1, in Providence, Rhode Island, will be held at the
Rhode Island Convention Center, 1 Sabin St., Ballroom B, Providence, RI
02903.
The Hartford meeting will be held at the Phoenix Auditorium,
Connecticut Department of Energy and Environmental Protection, 79 Elm
St., Hartford, CT 06106.
You may submit written comments, to: [email protected] or by
U.S. mail to the Office of Energy Policy and Systems Analysis, EPSA-60,
QER Meeting Comments, U.S. Department of Energy, 1000 Independence
Avenue SW., Washington, DC 20585-0121.
For the April 21, 2014, Public Meeting, please title your comment
``Quadrennial Energy Review: Comment on the New England Regional
Infrastructure Constraints Public Meeting'' held April 21, 2014. Please
also indicate whether your comment relates to Part 1 (Providence) or
Part 2 (Hartford) of the meeting.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Ms. Adonica Renee Pickett, EPSA-90,
U.S. Department of Energy, Office of Energy Policy and Systems
Analysis, 1000 Independence Avenue SW., Washington, DC 20585-0121.
Telephone: (202) 586-9168 Email:[email protected].
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: On January 9, 2014, President Obama issued a
Presidential Memorandum--Establishing a Quadrennial Energy Review. To
accomplish this review, the Presidential Memorandum establishes a
Quadrennial Energy Review Task Force to be co-chaired by the Director
of the Office of Science and Technology Policy, and the Director of the
Domestic Policy Council. Under the Presidential Memorandum, the
Secretary of Energy shall provide support to the Task Force, including
support for coordination activities related to the preparation of the
Quadrennial Energy Review Report, policy analysis and modeling, and
stakeholder engagement.
The initial focus for the Quadrennial Energy Review will be our
Nation's infrastructure for transporting, transmitting, storing and
delivering energy. Our current infrastructure is increasingly
challenged by transformations in energy supply, markets, and patterns
of end use; issues of aging and capacity; impacts of climate change;
and cyber and physical threats. Any vulnerability in this
infrastructure may be exacerbated by the increasing interdependencies
of energy systems with water, telecommunications, transportation, and
emergency response systems. The first Quadrennial Energy Review Report
will serve as a roadmap to help address these challenges.
The Department of Energy has a broad role in energy policy
development and the largest role in implementing the Federal
Government's energy research and development portfolio. Many other
executive departments and agencies also play key roles in developing
and implementing policies governing energy resources and consumption,
as well as associated environmental impacts. In addition, non-Federal
actors are crucial contributors to energy policies. Because most energy
and related infrastructure is owned by private entities, investment by
and engagement of the private sector is necessary to develop and
implement effective policies. State and local policies; the views of
nongovernmental,
[[Page 19882]]
environmental, faith-based, labor, and other social organizations; and
contributions from the academic and non-profit sectors are also
critical to the development and implementation of effective energy
policies.
An interagency Quadrennial Energy Review Task Force, which includes
members from all relevant executive departments and agencies
(agencies), will develop an integrated review of energy policy that
integrates all of these perspectives. It will build on the foundation
provided in the Administration's Blueprint for a Secure Energy Future
of March 30, 2011, and Climate Action Plan released on June 25, 2013.
The Task Force will offer recommendations on what additional actions it
believes would be appropriate. These may include recommendations on
additional executive or legislative actions to address the energy
challenges and opportunities facing the Nation.
April 21, 2014 Public Meeting: New England Regional Energy
Infrastructure Constraints, Parts 1 and 2
On April 21, 2014, the DOE will hold a two part public meeting in
Providence, Rhode Island and Hartford, Connecticut. Each part of the
April 21, 2014 public meeting will feature a facilitated panel
discussion, followed by an open microphone session. Persons desiring to
speak at the open microphone sessions should come prepared to speak for
no more than 3 minutes and will be accommodated on a first- come,
first- serve basis, according to the order in which they register to
speak on a sign-in sheet available at the meeting location, immediately
prior to the meeting.
In advance of the meeting, DOE anticipates making publicly
available a briefing memorandum providing useful background information
regarding the topics under discussion at the meeting. DOE will post
this memorandum on its Web site: http://energy.gov.
Submitting comments via email. Submitting comments by email to the
QER email address will require you to provide your name and contact
information in the transmittal email. Your contact information will be
viewable to DOE staff only. Your contact information will not be
publicly viewable except for your first and last names, organization
name (if any), and submitter representative name (if any). Your contact
information will be publicly viewable if you include it in the comment
itself or in any documents attached to your comment. Any information
that you do not want to be publicly viewable should not be included in
your comment, nor in any document attached to your comment. Otherwise,
persons viewing comments will see only first and last names,
organization names, correspondence containing comments, and any
documents submitted with the comments.
Do not submit to the QER email address ([email protected])
information for which disclosure is restricted by statute, such as
trade secrets and commercial or financial information (hereinafter
referred to as Confidential Business Information (CBI)). Comments
submitted to the QER email address cannot be claimed as CBI. Comments
received through the email address will waive any CBI claims for the
information submitted. For information on submitting CBI, see the
Confidential Business Information section, below.
If you do not want your personal contact information to be publicly
viewable, do not include it in your comment or any accompanying
documents. Instead, provide your contact information in a cover letter.
Include your first and last names, email address, telephone number, and
optional mailing address. The cover letter will not be publicly
viewable as long as it does not include any comments.
Include contact information each time you submit comments, data,
documents, and other information to DOE. If you submit via mail or hand
delivery/courier, please provide all items on a CD, if feasible, in
which case it is not necessary to submit printed copies. No
telefacsimiles (faxes) will be accepted.
Comments, data, and other information submitted to DOE
electronically should be provided in PDF (preferred), Microsoft Word or
Excel, WordPerfect, or text (ASCII) file format. Provide documents that
are not secured, written in English, and are free of any defects or
viruses. Documents should not contain special characters or any form of
encryption and, if possible, they should carry the electronic signature
of the author.
Confidential Business Information. Pursuant to 10 CFR 1004.11, any
person submitting information that he or she believes to be
confidential and exempt by law from public disclosure should submit via
email, postal mail, or hand delivery/courier two well-marked copies:
One copy of the document marked ``confidential'' including all the
information believed to be confidential, and one copy of the document
marked ``non-confidential'' with the information believed to be
confidential deleted. Submit these documents via email or on a CD, if
feasible. DOE will make its own determination about the confidential
status of the information and treat it according to its determination.
Confidential information should be submitted to the Confidential QER
email address: [email protected].
Factors of interest to DOE when evaluating requests to treat
submitted information as confidential include: (1) A description of the
items; (2) whether and why such items are customarily treated as
confidential within the industry; (3) whether the information is
generally known by or available from other sources; (4) whether the
information has previously been made available to others without
obligation concerning its confidentiality; (5) an explanation of the
competitive injury to the submitting person which would result from
public disclosure; (6) when such information might lose its
confidential character due to the passage of time; and (7) why
disclosure of the information would be contrary to the public interest.
It is DOE's policy that all comments may be included in the public
docket, without change and as received, including any personal
information provided in the comments (except information deemed to be
exempt from public disclosure).
Issued in Washington, DC, on April 5, 2014.
Carl Pechman,
QER Secretariat, QER Interagency Task Force, U.S. Department of Energy.
[FR Doc. 2014-08030 Filed 4-9-14; 8:45 am]
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