[Federal Register Volume 80, Number 142 (Friday, July 24, 2015)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Pages 43944-43949]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2015-17919]


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DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY

Federal Energy Regulatory Commission

18 CFR Parts 2 and 157

[Docket No. RM12-11-003; Order No. 790-B]


Revisions to Auxiliary Installations, Replacement Facilities, and 
Siting and Maintenance Regulations

AGENCY: Federal Energy Regulatory Commission.

ACTION: Final rule, order on clarification.

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SUMMARY: The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (Commission) is 
amending its regulations to: Provide pre-granted authority under a new 
paragraph to abandon or replace auxiliary facilities, subject to 
certain conditions; permit auxiliary facilities that cannot meet the 
conditions for the pre-granted abandonment authority in the new 
paragraph to be abandoned under the blanket certificate regulations, 
subject to those regulations' requirements; and permit replacement 
facilities constructed under the regulations to be abandoned under the 
blanket certificate regulations, subject to those regulations' 
requirements.

DATES: This rule will become effective October 7, 2015.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Katherine Liberty, Office of the General Counsel, Federal Energy 
Regulatory Commission, 888 First Street NE., Washington, DC 20426, 
(202) 502-6491, [email protected].

Gordon Wagner, Office of the General Counsel, Federal Energy Regulatory 
Commission, 888 First Street NE., Washington, DC 20426, (202) 502-8947, 
[email protected].

Howard Wheeler, Office of Energy Projects, Federal Energy Regulatory 
Commission, 888 First Street NE., Washington, DC 20426, (202) 502-8688, 
[email protected].

Shannon Jones, Office of Energy Projects, Federal Energy Regulatory 
Commission, 888 First Street NE., Washington, DC 20426, (202) 502-6410, 
[email protected].


SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

ORDER NO. 790-B

Table of Contents

 
                                                              Paragraph
                                                                 Nos.
 
I. Discussion..............................................            4
    A. Section 2.55(a) Auxiliary Facilities................            9
    B. Section 2.55(b) Replacements........................           14
II. Information Collection Statement.......................           18
III. Environmental Analysis................................           23
IV. Regulatory Flexibility Act.............................           24
V. Document Availability...................................           26
VI. Effective Date and Congressional Notification..........           29
 

Order No. 790-B

Final Rule

Order on Rehearing and Clarification

    1. On November 20, 2014, the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission 
(Commission) issued Order No. 790-A,\1\ which affirmed, inter alia, the 
Commission's clarification in Order No. 790 \2\ that auxiliary 
facilities installed under section 2.55(a) of the Commission's 
regulations \3\ may only utilize rights-of-way, facility sites, and 
work spaces authorized for the construction and operation of interstate 
transmission facilities.
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    \1\ Revisions to Auxiliary Installations, Replacement 
Facilities, and Siting and Maintenance Regulations, Order No. 790-A, 
79 FR 70056 (Nov. 25, 2014), FERC Stats. & Regs. ] 31,361 (2014) 
(cross-referenced at 149 FERC ] 61,144 (2014)).
    \2\ Order No. 790, 78 FR 72794-801 (Dec. 4, 2013), FERC Stats. & 
Regs. ] 31,351 (2013) (cross-referenced at 145 FERC ] 61,154 
(2013)).
    \3\ 18 CFR 2.55 (2014).
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    2. On December 22, 2014, National Fuel Gas Supply Corporation and 
Empire Pipeline, Inc. (collectively, National Fuel) filed a request 
that the Commission revise its part 157, subpart F, blanket certificate 
regulations to provide a mechanism under those regulations for the 
abandonment of auxiliary facilities that were constructed under section 
2.55(a) and replacement facilities that were constructed under section 
2.55(b). National Fuel also requests clarification that in addition to 
authorizing new auxiliary installations, section 2.55(a) also 
authorizes the replacement of existing auxiliary facilities without the 
need for abandonment authority under section 7(b) of the Natural Gas 
Act (NGA).
    3. As discussed below, this order responds to National Fuel's 
requests by (1) adopting a new subsection 2.55(a)(3) to provide pre-
granted authority to abandon or replace auxiliary facilities, subject 
to certain conditions; (2) amending part 157 to provide authority, 
subject to the blanket certificate regulations' conditions, to abandon 
section 2.55(a) auxiliary facilities that cannot meet the conditions 
for the pre-granted abandonment authority being added to section 
2.55(a) and to abandon section 2.55(b) replacement facilities.

I. Discussion

    4. In Order No. 790-A, the Commission explained that section 2.55 
facilities are installed under the certificate authority that 
authorized the interstate transmission pipeline facilities being 
augmented or replaced. The Commission further explained that because 
section 2.55 auxiliary and replacement facilities are certificated 
facilities, a company needs prior authorization under NGA section 7(b) 
to abandon such facilities. The Commission stated that in many 
instances companies should be able to rely on their part 157, subpart 
F, blanket certificate authority to abandon section 2.55 facilities. In 
view of this statement, National Fuel believes it is the Commission's 
intent that companies be able to rely on their part 157 blanket 
certificate authority to abandon facilities installed under section 
2.55.
    5. National Fuel points out, however, that section 157.202(b)(3) of 
the blanket certificate regulations states that a ``facility'' for 
purposes of the blanket program does not include a facility ``described 
under section 2.55,'' and that section 157.216 states that blanket 
certificate abandonment authority is limited to facilities that ``did 
or could

[[Page 43945]]

now qualify'' for construction authorization under the blanket 
provisions. National Fuel therefore requests that the Commission revise 
its blanket certificate regulations to ensure that companies will be 
able to rely on part 157 blanket certificate authority to abandon 
section 2.55 auxiliary and replacement facilities. National Fuel 
stresses that without clear blanket certificate authority to abandon 
section 2.55 facilities that did or could now qualify for construction 
authorization under the blanket provisions, companies will be subject 
to the burden of having to file an NGA section 7(b) application for 
abandonment authorization for each individual facility.
    6. In view of the Commission's statement in Order No. 790-A that 
NGA section 7(b) authority is required for the abandonment of section 
2.55 facilities, National Fuel also seeks clarification on whether 
section 7(b) abandonment authority is needed to retire an auxiliary 
facility that is being replaced.
    7. The Commission affirms its statement in Order No. 790-A that NGA 
section 7(b) authority is required for the abandonment of section 2.55 
facilities, which includes the retirement of section 2.55 facilities 
that will be replaced. However, for the reasons discussed below, the 
Commission believes section 2.55(a) can be amended to include pre-
granted authority to abandon section 2.55 facilities in certain 
situations and agrees that the blanket certificate regulations should 
be amended so that companies can rely on their blanket certificate 
authority to abandon auxiliary and replacement facilities that were or 
could have been constructed under section 2.55, provided the 
abandonment facilities meet the blanket program criteria.
    8. Therefore, the Commission will amend: (1) Section 2.55(a) to 
provide pre-granted authorization to retire auxiliary facilities that 
are being replaced or permanently abandon the auxiliary facilities if 
there will be no need to go outside an authorized right-of-way, 
facility site, or work space,\4\ and (2) part 157, subpart F, to permit 
the use of blanket certificate authority, subject to the blanket 
program's conditions, to abandon section 2.55(a) auxiliary facilities 
if a company is unable to exercise the new pre-granted abandonment 
authority in section 2.55(a)(3) and to abandon section 2.55(b) 
replacement facilities.\5\ In view of the revisions and additions to 
section 2.55 since its original provisions were proposed in 1948,\6\ 
the Commission also is changing the current heading for section 2.55, 
``Definition of terms used in section 7(c).'' The revised heading for 
section 2.55 will read ``Auxiliary installations and replacement 
facilities.''
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    \4\ As the Commission has previously explained in this 
rulemaking proceeding, the certificate authority for section 2.55 
auxiliary and replacement facilities is a type of blanket 
certificate that was both a precursor of and a complement to part 
157, subpart F, blanket certificate authority. Order No. 790, FERC 
Stats. & Regs. ] 31,351 at P 16; Order No. 790-A, ] 31,361 at P 13. 
However, unlike activities under section 2.55, which must comply 
with previously established environmental conditions, activities 
under part 157 that will involve ground disturbance or change 
operational air or noise emissions are subject to a project-specific 
environmental review in order to comply with the conditions in 
section 157.206(b). Because of this safeguard, blanket projects are 
permitted to use new rights-of-way and other previously undisturbed 
areas. In addition, environmental assessment reports are prepared 
for companies' larger-scale blanket projects to confirm that section 
157.206(b)'s standard conditions will be adequate to ensure that the 
blanket project will have no significant adverse environmental 
impacts.
    \5\ As discussed herein, section 2.55 facilities are 
jurisdictional, and therefore cannot be abandoned without prior 
authorization under NGA section 7(b). While the certificate 
authorization for the transmission facilities being augmented or 
replaced by section 2.55 facilities is the predicate for the 
certificate authority to construct section 2.55 facilities, the 
underlying certificate authorization does not include pre-granted 
abandonment authority. Note that although a company cannot abandon a 
newer facility which replaces an older facility without first 
securing authorization to do so, section 2.55(b) operates to provide 
pre-granted authority for the older facility. This final rule's 
regulatory changes are prospective only, and therefore do not 
operate to retroactively authorize any previous abandonments of 
section 2.55 facilities. However, consistent with the Commission's 
prior assurances in this proceeding regarding instances where 
companies may have mistakenly relied on section 2.55 to install 
auxiliary facilities that utilized new rights-of-way or other areas 
that had not been subject to the Commission's prior environmental 
review and approval, the Commission similarly does not intend to 
look back to pursue enforcement action with respect to earlier 
abandonments of auxiliary facilities unless it comes to the 
Commission's attention that remedial environmental measures need to 
be taken. See Order No. 790-A at P 42.
    \6\ Filing of Applications for Certificates of Public 
Convenience and Necessity, Notice of Proposed Rulemaking, NOPR, 13 
FR 6253, at 6254 (October 23, 1948).
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A. Section 2.55(a) Auxiliary Facilities

    9. Auxiliary installations under section 2.55(a) are limited to 
facilities that will serve ``only for the purpose of obtaining more 
efficient operation or more economical operation of the authorized or 
proposed transmission facilities'' (emphasis added).\7\ Further, to add 
an auxiliary facility to a transmission pipeline system, a company 
cannot rely on section 2.55(a) unless its activities are confined to 
the permanent right-of-way, facility site, and temporary work space 
surveyed and authorized by the Commission in its environmental review 
of the transmission system.\8\ In addition, because section 2.55 
facilities are constructed and operated under the certificate 
authorization for the transmission facilities being augmented or 
replaced, section 2.55 activities must not result in a violation of any 
environmental conditions applicable to the certificate authorizing the 
transmission facilities. Therefore, to install auxiliary facilities 
under section 2.55(a), a company must:
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    \7\ As examples of auxiliary facilities that serve only to make 
pipeline operation more efficient or economical, section 2.55(a) 
lists ``[v]alves; drips; pig launchers/receivers; yard and station 
piping; cathodic protection equipment; gas cleaning, cooling and 
dehydration equipment; residual refining equipment; water pumping, 
treatment and cooling equipment; electrical and communication 
equipment; and buildings.''
    \8\ The Commission acknowledged in Order No. 790 that it was not 
aware of any section 2.55(a) auxiliary installation activities 
outside authorized areas that approached the scale of certain 
section 2.55(b) replacement activities that had taken place outside 
authorized areas. However, as the Commission explained, section 
2.55(a) auxiliary installations also must be restricted to 
previously authorized areas because ``the issues raised for sections 
2.55(a) and (b) activities are the same.'' Order No. 790, FERC 
Stats. & Regs. ] 31,351 at P 20 (footnotes omitted).

    conform to the conditions of the certificate authorizing 
construction of the transmission facilities (e.g., all required 
mitigation measures, such as erosion control or revegetation 
protocols, that applied to the case-specific certificate or Part 157 
blanket certificate authority under which the transmission 
facilities were constructed).\9\
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    \9\ Order No. 790, FERC Stats. & ] 31,351 at P 33.

    10. The Commission believes these limitations will be sufficient to 
obviate the need for further environmental review if section 2.55(a) is 
amended to include pre-granted authority for companies to abandon, or 
to retire and replace, auxiliary facilities ``as described in section 
2.55(a),'' regardless of whether the facilities to be abandoned or 
replaced were installed under section 2.55. Therefore, the Commission 
will add a new paragraph to section 2.55(a)(3) to provide pre-granted 
authority to abandon or replace auxiliary facilities if the auxiliary 
facilities were or could have been installed under section 2.55(a) \10\ 
and all activities are confined to areas previously reviewed and 
approved by the Commission in conjunction with its authorization of the 
augmented transmission facilities.
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    \10\ Note that auxiliary facilities installed under case-
specific or blanket certificate authority can also qualify for the 
pre-granted authority under section 2.55(a)(3) if such facilities 
comply with the section 2.55 spatial constraints.
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    11. Auxiliary facilities, by definition, serve exclusively to 
enhance the efficiency or economy of the operation of a transmission 
system; thus, the

[[Page 43946]]

abandonment or replacement of auxiliary facilities should not result in 
a reduction or abandonment of service supplied by that system.\11\ 
Nevertheless, the abandonment or replacement of auxiliary facilities 
under new section 2.55(a)(3) will be authorized only if there will be 
no adverse impact on customers' certificated services.\12\
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    \11\ Because section 2.55(b) provides authority to abandon the 
existing facilities being replaced under that subsection, section 
2.55(b)(1)(i) provides that a replacement project is authorized only 
if the abandonment of the existing facilities ``will not result in a 
reduction or abandonment of service.''
    \12\ The pre-granted abandonment authority provided by new 
subsection 2.55(a)(3) will satisfy the requirement set forth in NGA 
section 7(b) that ``no natural-gas company shall abandon all or any 
portion of its facilities subject to the jurisdiction of the 
Commission, or any service rendered by means of such facilities, 
without the permission and approval of the Commission first had and 
obtained.''
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    12. Further, like the section 2.55(a) authority to install 
auxiliary facilities, the new section 2.55(a)(3) pre-granted authority 
will be available only if a company's abandonment or replacement 
activities will not result in a violation of the conditions on the 
certificate authorizing the augmented transmission facilities, in 
particular, the environmental mitigation conditions. For example, if 
the auxiliary facilities a company plans to abandon or replace are 
cathodic protection equipment located in a pipeline right-of-way, the 
case-specific or part 157 blanket certificate authorization for 
construction of the pipeline generally would have been conditioned on 
the company's compliance with an Upland Erosion Control, Revegetation, 
and Maintenance Plan \13\ and Wetland and Waterbody Construction and 
Mitigation Procedures.\14\ Just as the company would have been required 
to ensure compliance with these environmental certificate conditions to 
install the cathodic equipment under section 2.55(a), the company will 
need to similarly ensure that any exercise of the new section 
2.55(a)(3) authority to abandon or replace the cathodic protection 
equipment will also comply with these environmental certificate 
conditions.\15\
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    \13\ See http://www.ferc.gov/industries/gas/enviro/plan.pdf.
    \14\ See http://www.ferc.gov/industries/gas/enviro/procedures.pdf.
    \15\ A company should seek guidance from staff if it is 
uncertain whether or how an environmental mitigation condition on 
the construction and operation of transmission facilities at a given 
location will apply to its abandonment of auxiliary facilities.
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B. Section 2.55(b) Replacements

    13. Replacements under section 2.55(b), like auxiliary facility 
activities under section 2.55(a), are restricted to areas previously 
subject to the Commission's environmental review and approval.\16\ 
Also, replacements under section 2.55(b), like auxiliary facility 
activities under section 2.55(a), must conform to the conditions on the 
case-specific or part 157 blanket certificate authorization of the 
affected transmission facilities.
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    \16\ As the Commission explained in Order No. 790, FERC Stats. & 
Regs. ] 31,351 at P 15, ``[i]n the case of section 2.55(b) 
replacement facilities, an environmental review was performed prior 
to construction of the existing facilities to be replaced.''
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    14. As discussed earlier in this proceeding, replacement projects 
under section 2.55(b) can be much larger in scale than auxiliary 
installations under section 2.55(a).\17\ Further, section 2.55(b) can 
be used without prior notice to the Commission and shippers for 
replacing facilities upon which existing services are dependent,\18\ 
necessitating section 2.55(b)(1)(i)'s condition limiting replacement 
projects to situations where companies can ensure that the abandonment 
of existing facilities will not result in a reduction or cessation of 
service. In view of these considerations, even though activities under 
section 2.55 are restricted to areas subject to the Commission's prior 
environmental review and approval, the Commission cannot find, as it 
has above for section 2.55(a) auxiliary facilities, that it would be 
consistent with the public interest to provide pre-granted authority to 
abandon section 2.55(b) replacement facilities. However, abandonment 
authority for section 2.55(b) replacements can be provided under 
section 157.216 of the part 157 blanket certificate regulations, since 
blanket abandonments provide for environmental review.\19\ In addition, 
the blanket provisions afford an opportunity for public input under the 
prior notice provisions applicable to larger abandonment projects and 
also require that a company be able to demonstrate the facility it is 
planning to abandon (be it original or a replacement) is no longer 
needed to meet its service obligations.\20\
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    \17\ Id. at P 39. The Commission has explained the original 
intent for section 2.55(b) as follows:
    The types of construction activities being conducted under 
section 2.55 are replacements that should only involve basic 
maintenance or repair to relatively minor facilities where the 
Commission has determined that no significant impact to the 
environment will occur. The Commission believes that the existing 
right-of-way that was used to construct the original facilities 
should be sufficient for these types of activities. Pipelines may 
use their blanket certificate authority to perform projects 
involving more extensive work that would need additional workspace, 
including the use of other unrelated rights-of-way. This would allow 
for the required additional environmental scrutiny. Therefore, those 
projects should be done under the pipeline's blanket certificate.
    Id. at P 7, citing Order No. 603-A, FERC Stats. & Regs. ] 31,081 
at 31,922 (1999).
    \18\ The only notice requirement applicable to replacements 
under section 2.55(b) is the requirement that a company give the 
Commission at least 30 days prior notice if the cost of a 
replacement project will exceed the blanket certificate regulations' 
current automatic cost limit. See section 2.55(b)(1)(iii) and (2). 
There is no public notice requirement under section 2.55(a).
    \19\ In general, a facility is replaced as it approaches the end 
of its useful life, a lifespan which may be measured in decades for 
cathodically protected pipeline. Given this lifespan, by the time a 
replaced facility reaches the end of its useful life, there may have 
been changes in the use of land proximate to the replaced facility 
that were not contemplated in the Commission's review of the initial 
project proposal, and thus not accounted for in the certificate 
conditions. Accordingly, the Commission finds it prudent to revisit 
potential environmental impacts prior to the abandonment of certain 
replaced facilities.
    \20\ Even when a company obtains written consent from all 
customers whose services during the last year depended on the 
facilities to be abandoned under section 157.216, the abandonment is 
subject to the blanket certificate regulations' prior notice 
provisions if the current cost of constructing the facilities to be 
abandoned would exceed the blanket certificate regulations' current 
automatic cost limit. 18 CFR 157.216(b)(2) (2014).
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    15. National Fuel observes that section 157.202(b)(3) states that a 
``facility,'' for the purposes of the blanket program, ``does not 
include the items described'' in section 2.55, and section 157.216 
states that the blanket abandonment authority described in that section 
is limited to facilities that ``did or could now qualify'' for 
construction under the blanket certificate regulations. Because these 
sections operate to exclude the items described in section 2.55 from 
eligibility for blanket certificate abandonment authorization, we will 
revise the blanket certificate regulations to allow companies to use 
the automatic and prior notice provisions of section 157.216 to abandon 
(1) replacement facilities that were or could have been constructed 
under section 2.55(b); and (2) auxiliary facilities that cannot be 
abandoned under new subsection 2.55(a)(3)'s pre-granted authority 
because their abandonment will require going out outside areas 
previously reviewed and approved by the Commission in authorizing the 
augmented transmission facilities.
    16. As a result of these revisions to the blanket certificate 
regulations, a company will need to file an application for case-
specific authority to abandon section 2.55 facilities only when the 
abandonment cannot qualify under the automatic or prior notice 
provisions of section 157.216 because the current cost to construct the 
facilities would exceed the blanket regulations' applicable cost 
limits, or because the company cannot obtain necessary customer consent 
as

[[Page 43947]]

required by section 157.216, or because the project cannot satisfy the 
section 157.206(b)'s environmental requirements.\21\
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    \21\ When a company relies on the automatic or prior notice 
provisions of section 157.216 to abandon a section 2.55 auxiliary or 
replacement facility, it will have to identify the abandonment in 
accordance with section 157.216(d) in the annual report of blanket 
certificate activities required by section 157.207. Section 
157.216(d)(2) requires facilities abandoned under that section to be 
identified in a company's annual report by the ``docket number(s) of 
the certificate(s) authorizing the construction and operation of the 
facilities to be abandoned.'' Since the Commission does not assign 
docket numbers to facilities put in place under section 2.55, 
companies' annual reports of blanket certificate activities should 
identify the docket number(s) associated with the transmission 
facilities that were augmented or replaced by the section 2.55 
facilities abandoned under section 157.216. If section 2.55 
facilities are abandoned under section 157.216's prior notice 
provisions, the company's annual report should also include the 
docket number that was assigned to its prior notice filing.
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II. Information Collection Statement

    17. The Paperwork Reduction Act (PRA) \22\ requires each federal 
agency to seek and obtain Office of Management and Budget (OMB) 
approval before undertaking a collection of information directed to ten 
or more persons or contained in a rule of general applicability.\23\ 
The OMB regulations implementing the PRA require approval of certain 
information collection requirements imposed by agency rules.\24\ We 
expect a net decrease in the reporting burden due to this rule's 
amendment of section 2.55(a) to provide pre-granted authority for 
companies to abandon or replace auxiliary facilities and amendment of 
the part 157 regulations to extend blanket certificate authority to the 
abandonment of certain section 2.55 auxiliary and replacement 
facilities. Companies must identify facilities abandoned under section 
157.216 in the annual report submitted pursuant to section 157.207. 
While the expanded authority this rule provides under section 156.216 
can be expected to increase the number of facilities abandoned under 
that section, companies can be expected to account for these additional 
facilities in the annual report with minimal, ministerial efforts. 
Consequently, this rule will substantially reduce current burdens on 
companies by eliminating the additional information that would 
otherwise need to be submitted in an NGA section 7(b) case-specific 
abandonment application.\25\
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    \22\ 44 U.S.C. 3501-3520 (2012).
    \23\ OMB's regulations provide at 5 CFR 1320.3(c)(4)(i) (2014) 
that ``[a]ny recordkeeping, reporting, or disclosure requirement 
contained in a rule of general applicability is deemed to involve 
ten or more persons.''
    \24\ 5 CFR part 1320 (2014).
    \25\ FERC-537 (Gas Pipeline Certificates: Construction, 
Acquisition and Abandonment, OMB Control No. 1902-0060) covers both 
the abandonment application requirements of part 157 and the annual 
reports under 18 CFR 157.207. The expanded part 157 abandonment 
authority, as well as the new section 2.55(a)(3) pre-granted 
authority to abandon and replace auxiliary facilities, will be 
covered under FERC-537.
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    18. The Commission solicits comments from the public on the 
Commission's need for this information, whether the information will 
have practical utility, the accuracy of the burden estimates, 
recommendations to enhance the quality, utility, and clarity of the 
information to be collected, and any suggested methods for minimizing 
respondents' burden, including the use of automated information 
techniques. The burden estimates are for implementing the information 
collection requirements of this Final Rule. The Commission asks that 
any revised burden estimates submitted by commenters include the 
details and assumptions used to generate the estimates.
    19. The collection of information modified by this Final Rule falls 
under FERC-537 (Gas Pipeline Certificates: Construction, Acquisition, 
and Abandonment). The following estimates of reporting burden are 
related only to this Final Rule. Public Reporting Burden: The estimated 
average annual burden changes made in Docket RM12-11-003 follow.
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    \26\ The estimates for cost per response are derived using the 
following formula: Average Burden Hours per Response x $72 per Hour 
= Average Cost per Response. The cost per hour figure is the FERC 
average salary plus benefits for Fiscal Year 2015. Subject matter 
experts found that industry employment costs closely resemble FERC's 
regarding the FERC-537 information collection.

                                             RM12-11-003 Final Rule
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                                               Number of     Average       Total
                                                  Number of    responses      burden       annual       Total
                                                 respondents      per       hours per      burden    annual cost
                                                               respondent    response      hours
                                                         (1)          (2)          (3)  (1)x(2)x(3)     ($) \26\
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                                    FERC-537
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Pre-Granted Auxiliary Approval (18 CFR 2.55)...            3            1            5           15       $1,080
Additional Blanket Certificate Abandonment                 2            1           25           50        3,600
 Applications..................................
Eliminated Blanket Certificate Abandonment                -3            1           25          -75       -5,400
 Applications..................................
Eliminated Case-Specific Abandonment                      -2            1          160         -320      -23,040
 Applications..................................
Net Change due to RM12-11-003..................  ...........  ...........  ...........         -330      -23,760
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    Title: FERC-537 (Gas Pipeline Certificates: Construction, 
Acquisition and Abandonment)
    Action: Proposed revisions to information collection
    OMB Control No.: 1902-0060.
    Respondents: Business or other for-profit enterprise (Natural Gas 
Companies).
    Frequency of Responses: Ongoing and annual.
    Necessity of Information and Internal Review: The Commission has 
determined that the proposed revisions are necessary to establish more 
efficient means to abandon auxiliary and replacement facilities. These 
requirements conform to the Commission's plan for efficient information 
collection, communication, and management within the natural gas 
industry. The Commission has assured itself, by means of its internal 
review, that there is specific, objective support for the burden 
estimates associated with the abandonment requirements.
    20. Interested persons may obtain information on the reporting 
requirements by contacting the following: Federal Energy Regulatory 
Commission, 888 First Street, NE., Washington, DC 20426 [Attention: 
Ellen Brown, Office of the Executive Director, email: 
[email protected], phone: (202) 502-8663, fax: (202) 273-0873].

[[Page 43948]]

    21. Comments concerning the collection of information and the 
associated burden estimate should be sent to the Commission and to the 
Office of Management and Budget, Office of Information and Regulatory 
Affairs, Washington, DC 20503 [Attention: Desk Officer for the Federal 
Energy Regulatory Commission, telephone: (202) 395-0710, fax: (202) 
395-4718]. For security reasons, comments to OMB should be submitted by 
email to: [email protected]. Comments submitted to OMB should 
include OMB Control Number 1902-0060 (FERC-537).

III. Environmental Analysis

    22. The Commission is required to prepare an Environmental 
Assessment or an Environmental Impact Statement for any action that may 
have a significant adverse effect on the human environment. The 
Commission has categorically excluded certain actions from these 
requirements as not having a significant effect on the human 
environment. Generally, the regulatory actions taken in this rulemaking 
proceeding fall within the categorical exclusions in the Commission's 
regulations for actions that are clarifying, corrective, or procedural, 
and for information gathering, analysis, and dissemination. Although 
this rule alters the procedures by which companies may obtain 
abandonment authorization for certain types of facilities, it will not 
result in any additional abandonment activities and therefore will not 
have a significant adverse effect on the human environment. 
Accordingly, an environmental review is not necessary and has not been 
prepared in connection with this rulemaking.

IV. Regulatory Flexibility Act

    23. The Regulatory Flexibility Act of 1980 (RFA) generally requires 
a description and analysis of agency rules that will have a significant 
economic impact on a substantial number of small entities. The RFA 
mandates consideration of regulatory alternatives that accomplish the 
stated objectives of a proposed rule and that minimize any significant 
economic impact on a substantial number of small entities. The SBA 
Office of Size Standards develops the numerical definition of a small 
business. The SBA has established a size standard for companies 
transporting natural gas, stating that a firm is small if its annual 
receipts (and the receipts of its affiliates) are less than or equal to 
$27.5 million.\27\
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    \27\ See 13 CFR 121.201 for Subsector 486, NAICS code 486210 
(Pipeline Transportation of Natural Gas).
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    24. The final rule provides less burdensome and less costly options 
for specified natural gas companies, the majority of which are not 
small businesses. The reporting requirements, which provide pre-granted 
abandonment authority under certain conditions and clarify the 
regulations, will reduce the burden and cost on those companies (large 
or small). The Commission estimates that an average of five projects 
per year will benefit from the less burdensome, streamlined 
requirements. Three of those five projects are expected to save $1,440 
each, by using the new pre-granted approval in 18 CFR 2.55 (rather than 
the more burdensome blanket certificate abandonment application). In 
addition, two of those five filers are expected to save $9,720 each, by 
using the additional blanket certificate applications (rather than the 
case-specific abandonment applications). Accordingly, the Commission 
certifies that this Final Rule should not have a significant economic 
impact on a substantial number of small entities.

V. Document Availability

    25. In addition to publishing the full text of this document in the 
Federal Register, the Commission provides all interested persons an 
opportunity to view and/or print the contents of this document via the 
Internet through FERC's Home Page (http://www.ferc.gov) and in FERC's 
Public Reference Room during normal business hours (8:30 a.m. to 5:00 
p.m. Eastern time) at 888 First Street NE., Room 2A, Washington, DC 
20426.
    26. From FERC's Home Page on the Internet, this information is 
available on eLibrary. The full text of this document is available on 
eLibrary in PDF and Microsoft Word format for viewing, printing, and/or 
downloading. To access this document in eLibrary, type the docket 
number excluding the last three digits of this document in the docket 
number field.
    27. User assistance is available for eLibrary and the FERC's Web 
site during normal business hours from FERC Online Support at (202) 
502-6652 (toll free at 1-866-208-3676) or email at 
[email protected], or the Public Reference Room at (202) 502-
8371, TTY (202) 502-8659. Email the Public Reference Room at 
[email protected].

VI. Effective Date and Congressional Notification

    28. These regulations are effective October 7, 2015. The Commission 
has determined, with the concurrence of the Administrator of the Office 
of Information and Regulatory Affairs of OMB, that this rule is not a 
``major rule'' as defined in section 351 of the Small Business 
Regulatory Enforcement Fairness Act of 1996. This final rule is being 
submitted to the Senate, House of Representatives, Government 
Accountability Office, and Small Business Administration.

List of Subjects

18 CFR Part 2

    Administrative practice and procedure, Reporting and recordkeeping 
requirements.

18 CFR Part 157

    Administrative practice and procedure, Natural gas, Reporting and 
recordkeeping requirements.

    By the Commission.

    Issued: July 16, 2015.
Nathaniel J. Davis, Sr.,
Deputy Secretary.
    In consideration of the foregoing, the Commission amends parts 2 
and 157, chapter I, title 18, Code of Federal Regulations, as follows:

PART 2--GENERAL POLICY AND INTERPRETATIONS

0
1. The authority citation for part 2 continues to read as follows:

    Authority:  5 U.S.C. 601; 15 U.S.C. 717-717z, 3301-3432; 16 
U.S.C. 792-828c, 2601-2645, 42 U.S.C. 4321-4370h, 7101-7352.

0
2. Amend Sec.  2.55 by revising the section heading and adding 
paragraph (a)(3) to read as follows:


Sec.  2.55  Auxiliary installations and replacement facilities.

* * * * *
    (a) * * *
    (3) Abandonment or replacement of auxiliary installations. 
Authorization to abandon or replace auxiliary facilities that were or 
could be installed under paragraph (a)(1) of this section is pre-
granted under section 7(b) of the Natural Gas Act, and no reporting is 
required, provided that:
    (i) All activities will be confined to areas, including temporary 
work space, previously authorized by the Commission for the 
construction and operation of facilities at that location;
    (ii) All activities will comply with applicable conditions on 
certificate authorizations for the construction and

[[Page 43949]]

operation of facilities at that location; and
    (iii) The abandonment or replacement will have no adverse impact on 
customers' certificated services.
* * * * *

PART 157--APPLICATIONS FOR CERTIFICATES OF PUBLIC CONVENIENCE AND 
NECESSITY AND FOR ORDERS PREMITTING AND APPROVING ABANDONMENT UNDER 
SECTION 7 OF THE NATURAL GAS ACT

0
3. The authority citation for part 157 continues to read as follows:

    Authority:  15 U.S.C. 717-717z.

0
4. Amend Sec.  157.202 by adding a sentence at the end of paragraph 
(b)(2)(i) and revising paragraph (b)(3) to read as follows:


Sec.  157.202  Definitions.

* * * * *
    (b) * * *
    (2)(i) * * * Finally, for purposes of abandonment under Sec.  
157.216, eligible facilities include auxiliary installations that do 
not qualify for pre-granted abandonment authority under Sec.  
2.55(a)(3) and replacement facilities constructed under Sec.  2.55(b).
* * * * *
    (3) Facility, for purposes of construction under this subpart, does 
not include an auxiliary facility that qualifies for construction under 
Sec.  2.55(a) of this chapter or a replacement facility that qualifies 
for construction under Sec.  2.55(b).
* * * * *

0
5. Amend Sec.  157.216 by revising paragraphs (a)(2) and (b)(2) to read 
as follows:


Sec.  157.216  Abandonment.

    (a) * * *
    (2)(i) An auxiliary facility as described in Sec.  2.55(a) of this 
chapter when the abandonment:
    (A) Will not exceed the cost limit in Sec.  157.208(d) for 
activities under the automatic provisions;
    (B) Will have no adverse impact on customers' certificated 
services; and
    (C) Cannot satisfy the right-of-way, facility site, and work space 
limitations for the pre-granted abandonment authority in Sec.  
2.55(a)(3);
    (ii) A replacement facility that was or could have been constructed 
under Sec.  2.55(b) of this chapter, provided the current cost to 
construct the facilities would not exceed the cost limit in Sec.  
157.208(d) for activities under the automatic provisions and the 
certificate holder obtains the written consent of each customer served 
using the facility during the past 12 months;
    (iii) Any other facility that did or could now qualify for 
automatic authorization as described in Sec.  157.203(b), provided the 
certificate holder obtains the written consent of each customer served 
using the facility during the past 12 months.
    (b) * * *
    (2)(i) An auxiliary facility as described in Sec.  2.55(a) of this 
chapter when the abandonment:
    (A) Will exceed the cost limit in Sec.  157.208(d) for activities 
under the prior notice provisions;
    (B) Will have no adverse impact on customers' certificated 
services; and
    (C) Cannot satisfy the right-of-way, facility site, and work space 
limitations for the pre-granted abandonment authority in Sec.  
2.55(a)(3).
    (ii) A replacement facility that was or could have been constructed 
under Sec.  2.55(b) of this chapter, provided the current cost to 
construct the facilities would not exceed the cost limit in Sec.  
157.208(d) for activities under the prior notice provisions and the 
certificate holder obtains the written consent of each customer served 
using the facility during the past 12 months;
    (iii) Any other facility that did or could now qualify for prior 
notice authorization as described in Sec.  157.203(c), provided the 
certificate holder obtains the written consent of each customer served 
using the facility during the past 12 months.
* * * * *
[FR Doc. 2015-17919 Filed 7-23-15; 8:45 am]
 BILLING CODE 6717-01-P