[Federal Register Volume 80, Number 198 (Wednesday, October 14, 2015)]
[Notices]
[Pages 61812-61813]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2015-26082]


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DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY

Federal Energy Regulatory Commission

[Docket No. IC16-1-000]


Commission Information Collection Activities (FERC-725K); Comment 
Request; Extension

AGENCY: Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, Energy.

ACTION: Notice of information collection and request for comments.

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SUMMARY: In compliance with the requirements of the Paperwork Reduction 
Act of 1995, 44 U.S.C. 3506(c)(2)(A), the Federal Energy Regulatory 
Commission (Commission or FERC) is soliciting public comment on the 
currently approved information collection, FERC-725K (Mandatory 
Reliability Standards for the SERC Region).

DATES: Comments on the collection of information are due [insert date 
that is 60 days after publication in the Federal Register].

ADDRESSES: You may submit comments (identified by Docket No. IC16-1-
000) by either of the following methods:
     eFiling at Commission's Web site: http://www.ferc.gov/docs-filing/efiling.asp.
     Mail/Hand Delivery/Courier: Federal Energy Regulatory 
Commission, Secretary of the Commission, 888 First Street NE., 
Washington, DC 20426.
    Instructions: All submissions must be formatted and filed in 
accordance with submission guidelines at: http://www.ferc.gov/help/submission-guide.asp. For user assistance contact FERC Online Support 
by email at [email protected], or by phone at: (866) 208-3676 
(toll-free), or (202) 502-8659 for TTY.
    Docket: Users interested in receiving automatic notification of 
activity in this docket or in viewing/downloading comments and 
issuances in this docket may do so at http://www.ferc.gov/docs-filing/docs-filing.asp.

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

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
    Title: Mandatory Reliability Standards for the SERC Region.
    OMB Control No.: 1902-0260.
    Type of Request: Three-year extension of the FERC-725K information 
collection requirements with no changes to the current reporting 
requirements.
    Abstract: Section 215 of the Federal Power Act (FPA) requires a 
Commission-certified Electric Reliability Organization (ERO) to develop 
mandatory and enforceable Reliability Standards, which are subject to 
Commission review and approval. Once approved, the Reliability 
Standards may be enforced by NERC, subject to Commission oversight, or 
by the Commission independently.
    Reliability Standards that NERC proposes to the Commission may 
include Reliability Standards that are proposed by a Regional Entity to 
be effective in that region. In Order No. 672, the Commission noted 
that:

    As a general matter, we will accept the following two types of 
regional differences, provided they are otherwise just, reasonable, 
not unduly discriminatory or preferential and in the public 
interest, as required under the statute: (1) a regional difference 
that is more stringent than the continent-wide Reliability Standard, 
including a regional difference that addresses matters that the 
continent-wide Reliability Standard does not; and (2) a regional 
Reliability Standard that is necessitated by a physical difference 
in the Bulk-Power System.

    When NERC reviews a regional Reliability Standard that would be 
applicable on an interconnection-wide basis and that has been proposed 
by a Regional Entity organized on an interconnection-wide basis, NERC 
must rebuttably presume that the regional Reliability Standard is just, 
reasonable, not unduly discriminatory or preferential, and in the 
public interest. In turn, the Commission must give ``due weight'' to 
the technical expertise of NERC and of a Regional Entity organized on 
an interconnection-wide basis.
    On April 19, 2007, the Commission accepted delegation agreements 
between NERC and each of the eight Regional Entities. In the order, the 
Commission accepted SERC as a Regional Entity organized on less than an 
interconnection-wide basis. As a Regional Entity, SERC oversees Bulk-
Power System reliability within the SERC Region, which covers a 
geographic area of approximately 560,000 square miles in a sixteen-
state area in the southeastern and central United States (all of 
Missouri, Alabama, Tennessee, North Carolina, South Carolina, Georgia, 
Mississippi, and portions of Iowa, Illinois, Kentucky, Virginia, 
Oklahoma, Arkansas, Louisiana, Texas and Florida). The SERC Region is 
currently geographically divided into five subregions that are 
identified as Southeastern, Central, VACAR, Delta, and Gateway.
    Type of Respondents: Entities registered with the North American

[[Page 61813]]

Electric Reliability Corporation (within the SERC region).
    Estimate of Annual Burden \1\: The Commission estimates the annual 
public reporting burden for the information collection as:
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    \1\ The Commission defines burden as the total time, effort, or 
financial resources expended by persons to generate, maintain, 
retain, or disclose or provide information to or for a Federal 
agency. For further explanation of what is included in the 
information collection burden, reference 5 Code of Federal 
Regulations 1320.3.
    \2\ The $66.45 hourly cost figure (including benefits) comes 
from the cost of an engineer as posted on the Bureau of Labor 
Statistics (BLS) Web site: http://www.bls.gov/oes/current/naics2_22.htm#11-0000 (wage category 17-2071).
    \3\ Both figures for PC respondents are not to be totaled. They 
represent the same set of respondents.
    \4\ The $66.45 hourly cost figure (including benefits) comes 
from the cost of an engineer as posted on the Bureau of Labor 
Statistics (BLS) Web site: http://www.bls.gov/oes/current/naics2_22.htm#11-0000 (wage category 17-2071).
    \5\ Both figures for GO respondents are not to be totaled. They 
represent the same set of respondents.
    \6\ The hourly cost for GOs uses the hourly reporting cost of 
$66.45 per hour is based on the cost (including benefits) of an 
engineer to implement the requirements of the rule.
    \7\ The record retention cost of $37.50 per hour (including 
benefits) comes from Commission staff research on record retention 
requirements (wage category 43-4199 for information and record 
clerks).

                                              FERC-725K: Mandatory Reliability Standard for the SERC Region
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                                                                                                                       Total annual
                                            Number of       Annual number of   Total number of     Average burden    burden hours and       Cost per
                                         respondents (1)     responses per        responses         and cost per    total annual cost    respondent ($)
                                                             respondent (2)      (1)*(2)=(3)      response \2\ (4)     (3)*(4)=(5)          (5)/(1)
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PCs: Design and Document Automatic                 \3\ 21                  1                 21                  8                168               $532
 UFLS Program.........................                                                                        $532        \4\ $11,172
PCs: Provide Documentation and Data to             \3\ 21                  1                 21                 16                336             $1,064
 SERC.................................                                                                      $1,064            $22,344
GOs: Provide Documentation and Data to            \5\ 104                  1                104                 16              1,664             $1,064
 SERC.................................                                                                      $1,064       \6\ $110,656
GOs: Record Retention.................            \5\ 104                  1                104                  4                416               $150
                                                                                                              $150        \7\ $15,600
    Total.............................  .................  .................  .................                125              2,584             $2,810
                                                                                                                             $159,772
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    Comments: Comments are invited on: (1) Whether the 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 and 
cost of the collection of information, including the validity of the 
methodology and assumptions used; (3) ways to enhance the quality, 
utility and clarity of the information collection; and (4) ways to 
minimize the burden of the collection of information on those who are 
to respond, including the use of automated collection techniques or 
other forms of information technology.

    Dated: October 7, 2015.
Kimberly D. Bose,
Secretary.
[FR Doc. 2015-26082 Filed 10-13-15; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6717-01-P