[Federal Register Volume 85, Number 129 (Monday, July 6, 2020)]
[Notices]
[Pages 40283-40284]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2020-14422]


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DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY

Federal Energy Regulatory Commission

[Docket No. PL19-4-000]


Commission Information Collection Activities; Request for 
Emergency Processing for FERC-6(PL)

AGENCY: Federal Energy Regulatory Commission.

ACTION: Notice of information collection and request for emergency 
processing.

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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 submitting an emergency request for the information 
collection, FERC-6(PL) (One-time Re-filing Under Docket PL19-4 of Page 
700 of Form No. 6 (Annual Report of Oil Pipeline Companies)), to the 
Office of Management and Budget (OMB) for approval.

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

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 
    Title: FERC-6(PL), One-Time Refiling Under Docket No. PL19-4 of 
Page 700 of Form 6 (Annual Report of Oil Pipeline Companies).
    OMB Control No.: TBD.
    Type of Request: Request for Emergency Processing and Approval 
Pursuant to 5 CFR 1320.13.
    Abstract: In the Energy Policy Act of 1992, Congress required the 
Commission to develop a simplified method for changing oil pipeline 
rates. In response, the Commission established an indexing methodology 
that allows oil pipelines to change rates based upon an annual 
industry-wide index.\1\ The Commission committed to review the index 
level every five years to ensure that the index level continues to 
reflect annual industry-wide cost changes.\2\ In Order No. 561 and each 
successive five-year review, the Commission calculated the index level 
based upon the Kahn Methodology, which determines the differences over 
the prior five-year period between changes in costs reported on page 
700

[[Page 40284]]

of FERC Form No. 6 \3\ and changes in the Producer Price Index for 
Finished Goods (PPI-FG). The index level is then set at PPI-FG plus (or 
minus) this differential. In the 2020 five-year review, the Commission 
will measure pipeline cost changes over the period from 2014-2019 in 
order to establish the index level for the five-year period from 2021-
2026.
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    \1\ Revisions to Oil Pipeline Regulations Pursuant to the Energy 
Policy Act of 1992, Order No. 561, FERC Stats. & Regs. 30,985, at 
30,947 (1993), order on reh'g, Order No. 561-A, FERC Stats. & Regs. 
31,000 (1994), aff'd, Ass'n of Oil Pipe Lines v. FERC, 83 F.3d 1424 
(D.C. Cir. 1996).
    \2\ Id.
    \3\ FERC Form No. 6 (OMB Control No. 1902-0022), the Annual 
Report of Oil Pipeline Companies, is required by 18 CFR 357.2.
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    On May 21, 2020, the Commission issued a Policy Statement on 
Determining Return on Equity for Natural Gas and Oil Pipelines (ROE 
Policy Statement), in which the Commission adopted a revised 
methodology for determining return on equity (ROE) used to calculate 
oil pipelines' Annual Cost of Service on page 700 of FERC Form No. 
6.\4\ The issuance of the ROE Policy Statement may affect the oil 
pipeline industry's 2019 costs reported on page 700 that the Commission 
will use in the 2020 five-year review. Thus, the ROE Policy Statement 
encouraged pipelines to file, on a one-time basis, updated page 700 
data for 2019 reflecting the Commission's revised methodology and 
solicited comments on this voluntary information collection pursuant to 
the PRA by June 26, 2020.
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    \4\ Inquiry Regarding the Commission's Policy for Determining 
Return on Equity, 171 FERC 61,155 (2020).
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    The Commission received five comments in response to the ROE Policy 
Statement, one of which addressed the information collection for oil 
pipelines. On June 11, 2020, Liquids Shippers Group filed a motion for 
reconsideration of the ROE Policy Statement and a request for expedited 
action (Motion). The Motion asserts that the voluntary information 
collection improperly gives pipelines discretion to file ROEs that are 
higher, which would increase the index level, while refraining from 
filing ROEs that are lower, which would decrease the index level. Thus, 
the Motion states that the information collection will bias the record 
in the five-year review proceeding.
    The Commission will address the Motion in due course. However, the 
Motion should not affect the Commission's request for OMB's emergency 
processing and approval of the FERC-6(PL). First, the Motion does not 
reference the PRA or the burdens the information collection would 
impose. Second, the Motion addresses the information collection from 
the perspective of shippers, rather than pipelines that will be subject 
to the information collection. Third, the Motion seeks to convert this 
voluntary information collection into a mandatory one and implementing 
a mandatory collection at this time would likely delay the five-year 
review. Fourth, the Commission will address the merits of Liquids 
Shippers Group's claims regarding the calculation of the index level in 
the five-year review proceeding itself, where the Commission has 
requested comments on this very issue.\5\ The effect of this data on 
the Commission's analysis in the five-year review will depend upon how 
many pipelines file updated page 700 data and the comments that the 
Commission receives.
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    \5\ Five-Year Review of the Oil Pipeline Index, 171 FERC 61,239 
at PP 2, 8.
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    Accordingly, the Commission requests that OMB review and approve 
FERC-6(PL) [the request to have pipelines voluntarily refile, on a one-
time basis, page 700 of their 2019 FERC Form No. 6] in order to reflect 
the ROE Policy Statement. The Commission requests emergency processing 
of this information collection because this collection is essential to 
the mission of the Commission and public harm is reasonably likely to 
occur if normal clearance procedures are followed.
    FERC submitted a formal request to OMB on June 29, 2020 for 
emergency approval of the one-time FERC-6(PL).\6\ The Commission 
requested an OMB decision on FERC-6(PL) by July 6, 2020.
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    \6\ The request pending at OMB (ICR 202005-1902-002) for 
approval of the voluntary re-filing of Page 700 of the FERC Form No. 
6 will be retracted. It is being replaced by the request for 
emergency approval of the FERC-6(PL).
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    Estimate of Annual Burden.\7\ The Commission estimates the annual 
public reporting burden and cost \8\ for the information collection as:
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    \7\ 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 of Code of Federal Regulations 1320.3.
    \8\ The Commission staff estimates that the industry's skill set 
and cost (for wages and benefits) for performing the ROE study and 
completing and filing FERC-6(PL) is comparable to the Commission's 
skill set and average cost. The FERC 2019 average salary plus 
benefits for one FERC full-time equivalent (FTE) is $167,091/year or 
$80.00/hour.
    \9\ The Commission staff has conservatively assumed a 100 
percent voluntary response rate.

                                             FERC-6(PL)--Estimated Annual Burden Due to Docket No. PL19-4\9\
                                                                [Figures may be rounded]
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                                                 Annual  number
                                    Number of     of  responses    Total number     Average burden      Total annual burden hours  and       Cost per
                                    potential          per         of responses   hours and cost ($)        total annual cost  ($)       respondent  ($)
                                   respondents     Respondent                        per response
                                            (1)             (2)    (1)*(2) = (3)  (4)...............  (3)*(4) = (5)....................  (5) / (1) = (6)
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Updated ROE Study..............             244               1              244  187.5 hrs.;         45,750 hrs.; $3,660,000..........          $15,000
                                                                                   $15,000.
Refile FERC Form No. 6, page                244               1              244  0.5 hrs.; $40.....  122 hrs.; $9,760.................               40
 700.
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    Total, Due to PL19-4.......             244               1              244  ..................  45,872 hrs.; $3,669,760..........           15,040
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    Dated: June 29, 2020.
Kimberly D. Bose,
Secretary.
[FR Doc. 2020-14422 Filed 7-2-20; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6717-01-P