[Federal Register Volume 84, Number 138 (Thursday, July 18, 2019)]
[Notices]
[Pages 34384-34386]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2019-15294]



[[Page 34384]]

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DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY

Federal Energy Regulatory Commission

[Docket No. IC19-22-000]


Commission Information Collection Activities (FERC Form Nos. 1, 
1-F, and 3-Q); Comment Request; Extension

AGENCY: Federal Energy Regulatory Commission.

ACTION: Notice of information collections and request for comments.

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SUMMARY: In compliance with the requirements of the Paperwork Reduction 
Act of 1995 (PRA), the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (Commission 
or FERC) is soliciting public comment on the currently approved 
information collections FERC Form Nos. 1 (Annual Report of Major 
Electric Utilities, Licensees, and Others), 1-F (Annual Report for 
Nonmajor Public Utilities and Licensees), and 3-Q (Quarterly Financial 
Report of Electric Utilities, Licensees, and Natural Gas Companies), 
and submitting the information collections to the Office of Management 
and Budget (OMB) for review. Any interested person may file comments 
directly with OMB and should address a copy of those comments to the 
Commission as explained below. On May 7, 2019, the Commission published 
a Notice in the Federal Register in Docket No. IC19-22-000 requesting 
public comments. The Commission received one public comment and will 
indicate that in its submittals to OMB.

DATES: Comments on the collections of information are due August 19, 
2019.

ADDRESSES: Comments filed with OMB, identified by OMB Control Nos.: 
1902-0021 (FERC Form No. 1), 1902-0029 (FERC Form No. 1-F), and 1902-
0205 (FERC Form No. 3-Q) should be sent via email to the Office of 
Information and Regulatory Affairs: [email protected]. Attention: 
Federal Energy Regulatory Commission Desk Officer.
    A copy of the comments should also be sent to the Commission, in 
Docket No. IC19-22-000, by either of the following methods:
     eFiling at Commission's website: 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 by email at 
[email protected], telephone at (202) 502-8663, and fax at (202) 
273-0873.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 
    Titles: FERC Form Nos. 1 (Annual Report of Major Electric 
Utilities, Licensees, and Others), 1-F (Annual Report for Nonmajor 
Public Utilities and Licensees), and 3-Q (Quarterly Financial Report of 
Electric Utilities, Licensees, and Natural Gas Companies).
    OMB Control Nos.: 1902-0021 (FERC Form No. 1), 1902-0029 (FERC Form 
No. 1-F), and 1902-0205 (FERC Form No. 3-Q).
    Type of Request: Three-year extensions of the FERC Form Nos. 1, 1-
F, and 3-Q with no changes to the current reporting and recordkeeping 
requirements.\1\
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    \1\ FERC Form Nos. 1, 1-F, and 3-Q are part of the ``Forms 
Refresh'' effort, which is a separate activity and not addressed 
here. See Revisions to the Filing Process for Commission Forms, 
Order No. 859, 167 FERC ] 61,241 (2019) (started in Docket No. AD15-
11 and ongoing in Docket No. RM19-12).
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FERC Form No. 1, Annual Report of Major Electric Utilities, Licensees, 
and Others

    Abstract: The FERC Form No. 1 is a comprehensive financial and 
operating report submitted annually for electric rate regulation, 
market oversight analysis, and financial audits by Major electric 
utilities, licensees and others. Major is defined as having in each of 
the last three consecutive calendar years, sales or transmission 
services that exceed one of the following: (1) One million megawatt-
hours of total sales; (2) 100 megawatt-hours of sales for resale; (3) 
500 megawatt-hours of power exchanges delivered; or (4) 500 megawatt-
hours of wheeling for others (deliveries plus losses).\2\
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    \2\ As detailed in 18 CFR 101 (Uniform System of Accounts 
Prescribed for Public Utilities and Licensees Subject to the 
Provision of the Federal Power Act, General Instructions) and 18 CFR 
141.1.
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    The FERC Form No. 1 is designed to collect financial and 
operational information and is made available to the public. The FERC 
Form No. 1 includes a basic set of financial statements:
     Comparative Balance Sheet,
     Statement of Income,
     Statement of Retained Earnings,
     Statement of Cash Flows,
     Statements of Accumulated Comprehensive Income,
     Comprehensive Income, and Hedging Activities, and
     Notes to Financial Statements.
    Supporting schedules contain:
     Supplementary information and outlines of corporate 
structure and governance,
     Information on formula rates, and
     Description of important changes during the year.
    Other schedules provide:
     Information on revenues and the related quantities of 
electric sales and electricity transmitted,
     Account balances for all electric operation and 
maintenance expenses,
     Selected plant cost data, and
     Other statistical information.
    Type of Respondent: Major electric utilities.
    Estimate of Annual Burden: \3\ The Commission estimates the annual 
burden and cost \4\ for FERC Form No. 1 as follows:
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    \3\ Burden is defined 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, refer to Title 5 Code of Federal Regulations 
1320.3.
    \4\ The Commission staff believes the FERC FTE (full-time 
equivalent) average cost for wages plus benefits is representative 
of the corresponding cost for the industry respondents. The FERC 
2018 average salary plus benefits for one FERC FTE is $164,820/year 
(or $79.00/hour).

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                                                                     FERC Form No. 1
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                                             Number of                                                                                       Cost per
         Number of  respondents            responses per   Total number   Average burden hours & average    Total annual burden hours &     respondent
                                            respondent     of responses       cost per response  ($)          total annual cost  ($)            ($)
(1)                                                  (2)     (1) x (2) =  (4)...........................  (3) x (4) = (5)...............     (5) / (1) =
                                                                     (3)                                                                             (6)
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207.....................................               1             207  1,168 hrs.; $92,272...........  241,776 hrs.; $19,100,304.....         $92,272
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FERC Form No. 1-F, Annual Report for Nonmajor Public Utilities and 
Licensees

    OMB Control No.: 1902-0029.
    Abstract: The FERC Form No. 1-F is a financial and operating report 
submitted annually for electric rate regulation, market oversight 
analysis, and financial audits by Nonmajor electric utilities and 
licensees. Nonmajor is defined as utilities and licensees that are not 
classified as Major, and having total sales in each of the last three 
consecutive years of 10,000 megawatt-hours or more.\5\
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    \5\ As detailed in 18 CFR 101 (Uniform System of Accounts 
Prescribed for Public Utilities and Licensees Subject to the 
Provision of the Federal Power Act, General Instructions) and 18 CFR 
141.2.
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    The FERC Form No.1-F is designed to collect financial and 
operational information and is made available to the public. The FERC 
Form No.1-F includes a basic set of financial statements:
     Comparative Balance Sheet,
     Statement of Retained Earnings,
     Statement of Cash Flows,
     Statement of Comprehensive Income and Hedging Activities, 
and
     Notes to Financial Statements.
    Supporting schedules contain:
     Supplementary information and include revenues and the 
related quantities of electric sales and electricity transmitted,
     Account balances for all electric operation and 
maintenance expenses,
     Selected plant cost data; and
     Other statistical information.
    Type of Respondent: Nonmajor electric utilities.
    Estimate of Annual Burden: The estimated annual burden and cost 
follow. (The estimated hourly cost used for the FERC Form No. 1-F is 
$79 (for wages plus benefits) and is described above, under the FERC 
Form No. 1.):

                                                                    FERC Form No. 1-F
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                                             Number of                                                                                       Cost per
         Number of  respondents            responses per   Total number       Average burden hours &        Total annual burden hours &     respondent
                                            respondent     of responses   average cost per response  ($)      total annual cost  ($)            ($)
(1)                                                  (2)     (1) * (2) =  (4)...........................  (3) * (4) = (5)...............       (5) / (1)
                                                                     (3)
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5.......................................               1               5  122 hrs.; $9,638..............  610 hrs.; $48,190.............          $9,638
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Comments

    One commenter, the Bureau of Economic Analysis (BEA), filed 
comments in response to the 60-day notice, broadly supporting the 
collection, outlining the manner in which BEA utilizes the FERC Form 
Nos. 1 and 1-F data, and expressing interest in additional data.\6\ 
There were no comments filed in opposition to the collection.
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    \6\ The BEA comment is posted in FERC's eLibrary at https://elibrary.ferc.gov/idmws/common/OpenNat.asp?fileID=15275219.
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    BEA states that it uses FERC tabulations indirectly, as they are 
used to estimate the U.S. Census Bureau's Construction Value Put-In 
Place (VPIP) for electric utilities. BEA explains that Census VPIP 
serves a major source data input to the national income and product 
account (NIP A) structures investment estimates. According to BEA, NIPA 
estimates for electric structures rely upon the VPIP source data. As a 
result, BEA states that estimates of utility industry structures 
investment for the BEA Fixed Assets Accounts rely in turn upon the NIPA 
structures estimates and also directly upon selected Commission data 
sets published by the Energy Information Administration. BEA notes that 
while it uses this information indirectly through the VPIP program, BEA 
considers it an indispensable data source to the NIPA estimates.
    BEA offers that it would like to explore receiving line items from 
Forms 1 and 1-F aggregated to industry totals, similar to the method 
and timing used to provide information to the Census Bureau. According 
to BEA, these tabulations would be used by BEA for, among other things, 
estimating industry gross output and changes in intermediate inputs. 
BEA explains that it would use the aggregated FERC data as well for the 
fixed asset account nonresidential structure investment, capital stock, 
and ultimately for consumption of fixed capital (depreciation) 
estimates that depend upon the NIPA structures estimates.
    BEA states that it has in the past used items such as plant in 
service by type of utility; subsidiary and nonutility investments; 
allowance for funds used during construction; plant held for future 
use; plant leased to others; construction work in progress; 
depreciation; and other plant-related schedules because they are useful 
in estimating total industry plant-in-service. BEA further states that, 
in general, income statement and balance sheet data support utility 
industry investment by industry estimates. BEA notes that tabulations 
by legal form of ownership are also useful in the estimation of 
investment by legal form of organization for utility industries. BEA 
also expressed interest in plant-in-service separately identified for 
electric generation (by type of generation--hydro, nuclear, etc.), 
transmission, and distribution.
    BEA requests that the Commission consider the inclusion of 
additional questions on the electric utility survey forms. 
Specifically, BEA suggests offering new questions that ask for capital 
expenditures for new versus replacement fixed assets, intangibles, and 
equipment and structures separately (excluding land). According to BEA, 
these questions would provide additional useful information to BEA that 
would lead to improved estimates

[[Page 34386]]

of capital spending at BEA and for Census/VPIP.
    Finally, BEA offers that more detailed information about equipment 
and structures leased from others under operating leases would be 
useful for statistical purposes.

Commission Response

    As discussed above, the public utilizes the data in FERC Form Nos. 
1 and 1-F to assist in monitoring the rates, the financial condition of 
entities and in assessing energy markets. BEA's comments in support of 
the collection of the FERC Form Nos. 1 and 1-F data provide tangible 
examples of this utilization and reflect the public benefit of 
reporting this information. As further discussed above, the instant 
request to review and approve contains no changes to the reporting 
requirements for the existing information collections.

FERC Form No. 3-Q, Quarterly Financial Report of Electric Utilities, 
Licensees, and Natural Gas Companies

    OMB Control No.: 1902-0205.
    Abstract: The FERC Form No. 3-Q is a quarterly financial and 
operating report for rate regulation, market oversight analysis, and 
financial audits which supplements the (a) FERC Form Nos. 1 and 1-F, 
for the electric industry, or the (b) FERC Form No. 2 (Annual Report 
for Major Natural Gas Companies; OMB Control No. 1902-0028) and FERC 
Form No. 2-A (Annual Report for Nonmajor Natural Gas Companies; OMB 
Control No. 1902-0030), for the natural gas industry. The FERC Form No. 
3-Q is submitted for all Major and Nonmajor electric utilities, 
licensees, and natural gas companies.\7\
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    \7\ 18 CFR 260.1(b) states that for natural gas companies as 
defined by the Natural Gas Act, Major pertains to a company whose 
combined gas transported or stored for a fee exceed 50 million Dth 
in each of the three previous calendar years. 18 CFR 260.2(b) states 
that for natural gas companies as defined by the Natural Gas Act, 
Nonmajor pertains to a company not meeting the filing threshold for 
FERC Form No. 2, but having total gas sales or volume transactions 
exceeding 200,000 Dth in each of the three previous calendar years.
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    FERC Form No. 3-Q includes a basic set of financial statements:
     Comparative Balance Sheet,
     Statement of Income and Statement of Retained Earnings,
     Statement of Cash Flows,
     Statement of Comprehensive Income and Hedging Activities, 
and
     Supporting schedules containing supplementary information.
    Electric respondents report:
     Revenues and the related quantities of electric sales and 
electricity transmitted,
     Account balances for all electric operation and 
maintenance expenses,
     Selected plant cost data; and
     Other statistical information.
    Natural gas respondents include:
     Monthly and quarterly quantities of gas transported and 
associated revenues,
     Storage, terminaling and processing services,
     Natural gas customer accounts and details of service, and
     Operational expenses, depreciation, depletion and 
amortization of gas plant.
    Type of Respondent: Major and nonmajor electric utilities, 
licensees, and natural gas companies.
    Estimate of Annual Burden: The estimated annual burden and cost (as 
rounded) follow. (The estimated hourly cost used for the FERC Form No. 
3-Q is $79 (for wages plus benefits) and is described above, under the 
FERC Form No. 1.):

                                                                    FERC Form No. 3-Q
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                                                       Annual  number                                              Total annual burden     Annual  cost
                                          Number of     of  responses   Total number    Average burden hours  &   hours  & total annual         per
                                         respondents   per respondent   of responses       cost per response               cost           respondent ($)
                                                  (1)             (2)     (1) * (2) =  (4).....................  (3) * (4) = (5)........       (5) / (1)
                                                                                  (3)
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FERC 3-Q (electric)..................             212               3             636  168 hrs.; $13,272.......  106,848 hrs.;                   $39,816
                                                                                                                  $8,440,992.
FERC 3-Q (natural gas)...............             165               3             495  167 hrs.; $13,193.......  82,665 hrs.; $6,530,535          39,579
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    Total for FERC 3-Q...............  ..............  ..............           1,131  ........................  189,513 hrs.;            ..............
                                                                                                                  $14,971,527.
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    Comments: Comments are invited on: (1) Whether the collections of 
information are 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 and cost of the collections of information, including the 
validity of the methodology and assumptions used; (3) ways to enhance 
the quality, utility and clarity of the information collections; and 
(4) ways to minimize the burden of the collections of information on 
those who are to respond, including the use of automated collection 
techniques or other forms of information technology.

    Dated: July 11, 2019.
Kimberly D. Bose,
Secretary.
[FR Doc. 2019-15294 Filed 7-17-19; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6717-01-P