[Federal Register Volume 85, Number 93 (Wednesday, May 13, 2020)]
[Notices]
[Pages 28621-28623]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2020-10256]


-----------------------------------------------------------------------

DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY

Federal Energy Regulatory Commission

[Docket No. IC20-06-000]


Commission Information Collection Activities (FERC-725A(1B)); 
Comment Request; Extension

AGENCY: Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, Department of Energy.

ACTION: Notice of information collection and request for comments.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------

SUMMARY: In compliance with the requirements of the Paperwork Reduction 
Act of 1995, the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (Commission or 
FERC) is soliciting public comment on the currently approved 
information collection FERC-725A(1B) (Certification of Electric 
Reliability Organization; Procedures for Electric Reliability 
Standards) and submitting the information collection 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.

DATES: Comments on the collection of information are due June 12, 2020.

ADDRESSES: Send written comments on FERC-725A(1B) to OMB through 
www.reginfo.gov/public/do/PRAMain. Attention: Federal Energy Regulatory 
Commission Desk Officer. Please identify the OMB control number (1902-
0292) in the subject line. Your comments should be sent within 30 days 
of publication of this notice in the Federal Register. Please submit 
copies of your comments to the Commission (identified by Docket No. 
IC20-06-000) by either of the following methods:
     eFiling at Commission's Website: http://www.ferc.gov/docs-filing/efiling.asp.

[[Page 28622]]

     Mail/Hand Delivery/Courier: Federal Energy Regulatory 
Commission, Secretary of the Commission, at Health and Human Services, 
12225 Wilkins Avenue, Rockville, Maryland 20852.

Instructions

    OMB submissions: Must be formatted and filed in accordance with 
submission guidelines at www.reginfo.gov/public/do/PRAMain. Using the 
search function under the Currently Under Review field select Federal 
Energy Regulatory Commission; click ``submit'' and select omment to the 
right of the subject collection.
    FERC 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).
    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] and telephone at (202) 502-8663.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
    Title: FERC-725A(1B), (Mandatory Reliability Standards for the Bulk 
Power System).
    OMB Control No.: 1902-0292.
    Type of Request: Three-year extension of the FERC-725A(1B) 
information collection requirements with no changes to the current 
reporting and recordkeeping requirements.
    Abstract: The FERC-725A(1B) Under section 215 of the Federal Power 
Act (FPA), the Commission proposes to approve Reliability Standards 
TOP-010-1 (Real-time Reliability Monitoring and Analysis Capabilities) 
submitted by North American Electric Corporation (NERC). In this order, 
the Reliability Standards build on monitoring, real-time assessments 
and support effective situational awareness. The Reliability Standards 
accomplish this by requiring applicable entities to: (1) Provide 
notification to operators of real-time monitoring alarm failures; (2) 
provide operators with indications of the quality of information being 
provided by their monitoring and analysis capabilities; and (3) address 
deficiencies in the quality of information being provided by their 
monitoring and analysis capabilities. FERC-725A(1B) address situational 
awareness objectives by providing for operator awareness when key 
alarming tools are not performing as intended. These collections will 
improve real-time situational awareness capabilities and enhance 
reliable operations by requiring reliability coordinators, transmission 
operators, and balancing authorities to provide operators with an 
improved awareness of system conditions analysis capabilities, 
including alarm availability, so that operators may take appropriate 
steps to ensure reliability. These functions include planning, 
operations, data sharing, monitoring, and analysis.
    Type of Respondent: Balancing Authority (BA),Transmission 
Operations (TOP) and Reliability Coordinators (RC).
    Estimate of Annual Burden: \1\ The Commission estimates the total 
annual burden and cost \2\ for this information collection in the table 
below.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \1\ Burden is 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.
    \2\ Costs (for wages and benefits) are based on wage figures 
from the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) for May 2019 (at https://www.bls.gov/oes/current/naics2_22.htm) and benefits information (at 
https://www.bls.gov/news.release/ecec.nr0.htm).

                                           FERC-725A(1B), Changes Due to TOP-010-1 in Docket No. IC20-6-000 3
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                                                    Annual  number
                                   Requirements &      Number of     of  responses   Total number    Average burden &     Total annual       Cost per
             Entity                    period        respondents 4        per        of responses   cost per response    burden hours &     respondent
                                                                      respondent                            5          total annual cost        ($)
                                 .................             (1)             (2)     (1) * (2) =  (4)..............  (3) * (4) = (5)..       (5) / (1)
                                                                                               (3)
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
BA \6\.........................  Annual reporting.              98               1              98  42 hrs.;           4,116 hrs.;             $2,696.40
                                                                                                     $2,696.40.         $264,247.20.
TOP \7\........................  Annual reporting.             169               1             169  40 hrs.;           6,760 hrs.;              2,568.00
                                                                                                     $2,568.00.         $433,992.00.
BA/TOP.........................  Annual Record                 267               1             267  2 hrs.; $75.38...  534 hrs.;                  $75.38
                                  Retention.                                                                            $20,126.46.
                                                   ------------------------------------------------                   ----------------------------------
Total Burden Hours Per Year....  .................  ..............  ..............  ..............  .................  11,410 hrs.;       ..............
                                                                                                                        $718,365.66 per
                                                                                                                        year, (starting
                                                                                                                        in year 2).
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Averaging One-Time Burden and Responses for FERC-725A(1B), TOP-010-1 in 
Docket No. IC20-6-000

--For purposes of this OMB clearance, the annual burden and record 
retention of 11,410 hrs.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \3\ Our estimates are based on the NERC Compliance Registry 
Summary of Entities and Functions as of April 24, 2020, which 
indicates there are registered as BA and TOP.
    \4\ The number of respondents is the number of entities in which 
a change in burden from the current standards to the proposed 
exists, not the total number of entities from the current or 
proposed standards that are applicable.
    \5\ The estimated hourly costs (salary plus benefits) are based 
on Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) information, as of May 2019 (at 
http://www.bls.gov/oes/current/naics2_22.htm, with updated benefits 
information for March 2019 at http://www.bls.gov/news.release/ecec.nr0.htm), for an electrical engineer (code 17-2071, $68.17/
hour), and for information and record clerks record keeper (code 43-
4199, $40.84/hour). The hourly figure for engineers is used for 
reporting; the hourly figure for information and record clerks is 
used for document retention.
    \6\ Balancing Authority (BA). The following Requirements and 
associated measures apply to balancing authorities: Requirement R1: 
A revised data specification and writing the required operating 
process/operating procedure; and Requirement R2: Quality monitoring 
logs and the data errors and corrective action logs.
    \7\ Transmission Operations (TOP). The following Requirements 
and associated measures apply to transmission operators: Requirement 
R1: A revised data specification and writing the required operating 
process/operating procedure; and Requirement R3: Alarm process 
monitor performance logs to maintain performance logs and corrective 
action plans.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

Summary and Response to Public Comment

    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

[[Page 28623]]

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: May 7, 2020.
Kimberly D. Bose,
Secretary.
[FR Doc. 2020-10256 Filed 5-12-20; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6717-01-P