[Federal Register Volume 85, Number 173 (Friday, September 4, 2020)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Pages 55201-55219]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2020-15866]


=======================================================================
-----------------------------------------------------------------------

DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY

Federal Energy Regulatory Commission

18 CFR Parts 37 and 38

[Docket Nos. RM05-5-029, RM05-5-030]


Standards for Business Practices and Communication Protocols for 
Public Utilities

AGENCY: Federal Energy Regulatory Commission.

ACTION: Notice of proposed rulemaking.

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

SUMMARY: The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (Commission) proposes 
to amend its regulations to incorporate by reference, with certain 
enumerated exceptions, the latest version (Version 003.3) of the 
Standards for Business Practices and Communication Protocols for Public 
Utilities adopted by the Wholesale Electric Quadrant (WEQ) of the North 
American Energy Standards Board (NAESB). The WEQ Version 003.3

[[Page 55202]]

Standards also include, in their entirety, the WEQ-023 Modeling 
Business Practice Standards contained in the WEQ Version 003.1 
Standards, which address the technical issues affecting Available 
Transfer Capability and Available Flowgate Capability calculation for 
wholesale electric transmission services, with the addition of certain 
revisions and corrections. The revisions made by NAESB in the WEQ 
Version 003.3 Standards are designed to aid public utilities with the 
consistent and uniform implementation of requirements promulgated by 
the Commission as part of the pro forma Open Access Transmission 
Tariff.

DATES: Comments are due November 3, 2020.

ADDRESSES: Comments, identified by docket numbers RM05-5-029 and RM05-
5-030, may be filed electronically at http://www.ferc.gov in acceptable 
native applications and print-to-PDF, but not in scanned or picture 
format. For those unable to file electronically, comments may be filed 
by mail or hand-delivery to: Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, 
Secretary of the Commission, 888 First Street NE, Washington, DC 20426. 
The Comment Procedures Section of this document contains more detailed 
filing procedures.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
Michael P. Lee (technical issues), Office of Energy Policy and 
Innovation, Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, 888 First Street NE, 
Washington, DC 20426, (202) 502-6548
Peter Whitman (technical issues), Office of Energy Policy and 
Innovation, Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, 888 First Street NE, 
Washington, DC 20426, (202) 502-6225
Michael A. Chase (legal issues), Office of the General Counsel, Federal 
Energy Regulatory Commission, 888 First Street NE, Washington, DC 
20426, (202) 502-6205
Mark Bennett (legal issues), Office of the General Counsel, Federal 
Energy Regulatory Commission, 888 First Street NE, Washington, DC 
20426, (202) 502-8524

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Table of Contents

 
 
                                                         Paragraph Nos.
 
I. Overview..........................................                  1
II. Background.......................................                  2
    A. NAESB and Past Standards......................                  2
    B. Summary of NAESB WEQ Version 003.3............                  8
III. Discussion......................................                 15
    A. Internet Security.............................                 16
        1. Cybersecurity.............................                 16
        2. Accreditation Requirements for Authorized                  21
         Certificate Authorities.....................
    B. Parallel Flow Visualization...................                 23
    C. Revisions to WEQ OASIS Business Practice                       30
     Standards in Light of Commission Policies.......
        1. Overview..................................                 30
        2. Posting of Third Party Offers of Planning                  31
         Redispatch Services.........................
        3. Information for Firm Transmission Service                  32
         Curtailments................................
    D. Revised and New Standards Designed To                          40
     Complement NERC Reliability Standards and
     Developments....................................
        1. Available Transfer Capacity...............                 41
        2. Standards To Ensure Electronic Tagging (e-                 73
         Tagging)....................................
        3. E-Tagging Commercial Timing...............                 75
    E. Revisions to WEQ Business Practice Standards                   77
     Not Requested by Commission or Developed To
     Comply With a Commission Directive..............
        1. OASIS Transparency, Consistency, and                       78
         Efficiency Changes..........................
IV. Implementation Schedule..........................                 84
V. Incorporation by Reference........................                 87
VI. Environmental Analysis...........................                113
VII. Regulatory Flexibility Act Certification........                114
VIII. Comment Procedures.............................                117
IX. Document Availability............................                121
 

I. Overview

    1. On March 30, 2020, the North American Energy Standards Board 
(NAESB) filed a report (NAESB WEQ Version 003.3 Report) with the 
Commission informing the Commission that it had adopted and published 
the Wholesale Electric Quadrant (WEQ) Version 003.3 Business Practice 
Standards for Public Utilities (WEQ Version 003.3 Standards).\1\ NAESB 
states that the WEQ Version 003.3 Standards include newly created 
standards as well as modifications to existing standards developed 
through the NAESB Business Practice Standards development or minor 
correction processes. The WEQ Version 003.3 Standards include revisions 
related to the surety assessment on cybersecurity performed by Sandia 
National Laboratories (Sandia) designed to strengthen the practices and 
cybersecurity protections established within the standards. NAESB also 
revised its OASIS suite of standards,\2\ including additions and 
revisions to support new OASIS functionality that will allow for the 
posting of third party offers of planning redispatch services as well 
as providing additional information regarding the curtailment of firm 
transmission service. In addition, the WEQ Version 003.3 Standards 
include additions and revisions to the NAESB WEQ-023 Modeling Business 
Practice Standards. We address the changes proposed by NAESB in their 
entirety herein.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \1\ See Docket No. RM05-5-029, Report of the North American 
Energy Standards Board on Wholesale Electric Quadrant Business 
Practice Standards Version 003.3 under RM05-5-000 (Mar. 30, 2020) 
(NAESB WEQ Version 003.3 Report).
    \2\ The OASIS suite of standards are the WEQ-001 OASIS Business 
Practice Standards, the WEQ-002 OASIS Standards and Communication 
Protocols Business Practice Standards, the WEQ-003 OASIS Data 
Dictionary Business Practice Standards, and the WEQ-013 OASIS 
Implementation Guide Business Practice Standards.

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

[[Page 55203]]

II. Background

A. NAESB and Past Standards

    2. NAESB is a non-profit standards development organization 
established in late 2001 (as the successor to the Gas Industry 
Standards Board (GISB), which was established in 1994) and serves as an 
industry forum for the development of business practice standards and 
communication protocols for the wholesale and retail natural gas and 
electricity industry sectors. Since 1995, NAESB's predecessor GISB and 
subsequently NAESB itself have been accredited members of the American 
National Standards Institute (ANSI), complying with ANSI's requirements 
that its standards reflect a consensus of the affected industries.\3\
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \3\ Prior to the establishment of NAESB in 2001, the 
Commission's development of business practice standards for the 
wholesale electric industry was aided by two ad hoc industry working 
groups established during the rulemaking proceeding that resulted in 
issuance of Order No. 889 and the creation of the OASIS, while 
GISB's efforts involved the development of business practice 
standards for the wholesale natural gas industry. Once formally 
established, NAESB took over the standards development previously 
handled by GISB and by the electric working groups.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    3. NAESB's standards include business practices intended to 
standardize and streamline the transactional processes of the natural 
gas and electric industries, as well as communication protocols and 
related standards designed to improve the efficiency of communication 
within each industry. NAESB supports all three quadrants of the gas and 
electric industries--wholesale gas, wholesale electric, and retail 
markets quadrant.\4\ All participants in the gas and electric 
industries are eligible to join NAESB and participate in standards 
development.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \4\ The retail gas quadrant and the retail electric quadrant 
were combined into the retail markets quadrant. NAESB continues to 
refer to these working groups as ``quadrants'' even though there are 
now only three quadrants.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    4. NAESB develops its standards under a consensus process so that 
the standards draw support from a wide range of industry members. 
NAESB's procedures are designed to ensure that all persons choosing to 
participate can have input into the development of a standard, 
regardless of whether they are members of NAESB, and each standard 
NAESB adopts must be supported by a consensus of the relevant industry 
segments. Standards that fail to gain consensus support are not 
adopted. NAESB's consistent practice has been to submit a report to the 
Commission after it has revised existing business practice standards or 
has developed and adopted new business practice standards. NAESB's 
standards are initially voluntary standards, which become mandatory for 
public utilities upon incorporation by reference by the Commission.
    5. NAESB filed its WEQ Version 003.2 Business Practices Standards 
(WEQ 003.2 Standards) on December 8, 2017, in Docket No. RM05-5-027.\5\ 
After consideration of the December 8 filing, the Commission issued the 
WEQ Version 003.2 NOPR on May 16, 2019, wherein the Commission proposed 
to incorporate the WEQ Version 003.2 Standards, with certain enumerated 
exceptions.\6\ The Commission announced that NAESB's WEQ-023 Modeling 
Business Practice Standards would be addressed separately, only 
incorporating by reference the WEQ-023 Modeling Business Practice 
Standards that were moved from the WEQ-001 OASIS Business Practice 
Standards by the changes made to the WEQ Version 003.1 Standards.\7\
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \5\ See Docket No. RM05-5-027, Report of the North American 
Energy Standards Board on Wholesale Electric Quadrant Business 
Practice Standards Version 003.2 under RM05-5 (Dec. 8, 2017).
    \6\ See Standards for Bus. Practices & Commc'n Protocols for 
Pub. Utils., Notice of Proposed Rulemaking, 167 FERC ] 61,127 (2019) 
(WEQ Version 003.2 NOPR).
    \7\ See Standards for Bus. Practices & Commc'n Protocols for 
Pub. Utils., Notice of Proposed Rulemaking, 156 FERC ] 61,055, at P 
42 (2016) (WEQ Version 003.1 NOPR); WEQ Version 003.2 NOPR, 167 FERC 
] 61,127 at P 2.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    6. On February 4, 2020, the Commission issued Order No. 676-I,\8\ 
in which it amended its regulations under the Federal Power Act (FPA) 
\9\ to incorporate by reference into its regulations as mandatory 
enforceable requirements, with certain enumerated exceptions, the 
latest version (Version 003.2) of the Standards for Business Practices 
and Communication Protocols for Public Utilities adopted by NAESB. The 
WEQ Version 003.2 Standards included the changes proposed in WEQ 
Version 003.1 Standards, which were the subject of an earlier notice of 
proposed rulemaking.\10\
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \8\ Standards for Bus. Practices & Commc'n Protocols for Pub. 
Utils., Order No. 676-I, 85 FR 10571 (Feb. 25, 2020), 170 FERC ] 
61,062 (2020).
    \9\ 16 U.S.C. 791a, et seq. (2018).
    \10\ NAESB filed WEQ Version 003.1 of the Standards for Business 
Practices and Communication Protocols for Public Utilities as a 
package on October 26, 2015 (October 2015 Filing). See, e.g., WEQ 
Version 003.1 NOPR 167 FERC ] 61, 127.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    7. Among the NAESB Business Practice Standards incorporated by 
reference in Order No. 676-I, the Commission incorporated by reference 
the WEQ-022 Electric Industry Registry (EIR) Business Practice 
Standards but did not to incorporate by reference in its entirety the 
WEQ-023 Modeling Business Practice Standards. The Commission only 
incorporated by reference the WEQ-023 Modeling Business Practice 
Standards that were moved from the WEQ-001 OASIS Business Practice 
Standards by the changes made to the WEQ Version 003.1 Standards.\11\ 
The Commission declined to adopt the remaining WEQ-023 Modeling 
Business Practice Standards as they were the subject of a separate 
proceeding.\12\
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \11\ The following WEQ-023 Modeling Business Practice Standards 
were incorporated by reference in Order No. 676-I: WEQ-023-5; WEQ-
023-5.1; WEQ-023-5.1.1; WEQ-023-5.1.2; WEQ-023-5.1.2.1; WEQ-023-
5.1.2.2; WEQ-023-5.1.2.3; WEQ-023-5.1.3; WEQ-023-5.2; WEQ-023-6; 
WEQ-023-6.1; WEQ-023-6.1.1; WEQ-023-6.1.2; and WEQ-023-A Appendix A.
    \12\ See Commission proceeding at Docket No. AD15-5-000.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

B. Summary of NAESB WEQ Version 003.3

    8. NAESB's WEQ Version 003.3 Report notified the Commission that it 
had adopted and published the WEQ Version 003.3 Standards for Public 
Utilities. NAESB reports that the WEQ Version 003.3 Standards include 
newly created standards as well as modifications to existing standards 
developed through the NAESB Business Practice Standards development or 
minor correction processes.\13\ The WEQ Version 003.3 Standards include 
additions and revisions to the NAESB WEQ-023 Modeling Business Practice 
Standards, which the Commission proposes will now be addressed herein.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \13\ See NAESB WEQ Version 003.3 Report, Transmittal at 1-2.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    9. NAESB's WEQ Version 003.3 Standards include modifications, 
reservations, and/or additions to the following set of existing 
standards: \14\
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \14\ Id. at 3.

------------------------------------------------------------------------
             WEQ                      Business practice standards
------------------------------------------------------------------------
000..........................  Abbreviations, Acronyms, and Definition
                                of Terms
001..........................  Open Access Same-Time Information System
                                (OASIS)
002..........................  OASIS Standards and Communication
                                Protocols (S&CP)

[[Page 55204]]

 
003..........................  OASIS S&CP Data Dictionaries
004..........................  Coordinate Interchange
008..........................  Transmission Loading Relief (TLR)--
                                Eastern Interconnection Business
                                Practice Standards
013..........................  OASIS Implementation Guide
023..........................  Modeling
------------------------------------------------------------------------

    10. The WEQ Version 003.3 Standards also include revisions related 
to the surety assessment on cybersecurity performed by Sandia. NAESB 
responded to a U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) request that NAESB act 
on an expedited basis to ensure the cybersecurity standards developed 
in response to the surety assessment were included in the WEQ Version 
003.3 Standards.\15\ NAESB reports that the changes strengthen the 
practices and cybersecurity protections established within the 
standards by aligning security requirements with other cybersecurity 
guidelines, mitigating potential vulnerabilities, and incorporating 
more secure communication and encryption methodologies.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \15\ Id. at 3-4.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    11. To support directives contained in Order No. 890,\16\ NAESB 
also revised the OASIS suite of standards. The WEQ Version 003.3 
Standards include additions and revisions to support new OASIS 
functionality that will allow for the posting of third party offers of 
planning redispatch services (WEQ-001-13.2) as well as providing 
additional information regarding the curtailment of firm transmission 
service (WEQ-001-28) prescribed in the OASIS suite of standards.\17\ In 
response to Order No. 676-I, NAESB also revised the standards as 
necessary to conform with the Commission's Dynegy policy, and stated 
that any standards from these efforts will be incorporated into future 
versions of the WEQ Business Practice Standards.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \16\ Preventing Undue Discrimination & Preference in 
Transmission Serv., Order No. 890, 118 FERC ] 61,119, order on 
reh'g, Order No. 890-A, 121 FERC ] 61,297 (2007), order on reh'g, 
Order No. 890-B, 123 FERC ] 61,299 (2008), order on reh'g, Order No. 
890-C, 126 FERC ] 61,228, order on clarification, Order No. 890-D, 
129 FERC ] 61,126 (2009).
    \17\ NAESB WEQ Version 003.3 Report at 4. WEQ-001-13.2 adds new 
Third Party Offers for Planning Redispatch Services Business 
Practice Standards to allow for posting of third-party offers of 
planning redispatch services. WEQ-001-28 adds new Curtailment 
Posting Requirements Business Practice Standards for the posting of 
additional information on OASIS regarding firm transmission 
curtailments.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    12. The WEQ Version 003.3 Standards also include changes that were 
made to support consistency with the North American Electric 
Reliability Corporation (NERC) Reliability Standards, including NERC's 
retirement of the NERC Interchange Scheduling and Coordination 
Reliability Standards and retirement of the NERC Modeling, Data, and 
Analysis Reliability Standards. NAESB coordinated with NERC to make 
modifications and revisions pertaining to electronic tagging (e-
Tagging),\18\ and, as well, the calculation of ATC and AFC.\19\
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \18\ With respect to e-Tagging, NAESB also modified the WEQ-004 
Coordinate Interchange Business Practice Standards' Commercial 
Timing Tables to clarify commercial timing requirements.
    \19\ NAESB WEQ Version 003.3 Report at 4.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    13. The WEQ Version 003.3 Standards also include additions, 
revisions, and reservations made to the WEQ-008 Transmission Load 
Relief (TLR)--Eastern Interconnection Business Practice Standards, 
which NAESB advises completes the standards development effort for the 
Parallel Flow Visualization (PFV) enhanced congestion management 
process.\20\ The PFV standards are the culmination of a multi-year 
coordination effort between NAESB, NERC, and EIDSN, Inc.,\21\ and the 
standards are designed to improve upon the congestion management 
procedures for the Eastern Interconnection through the use of real-time 
data in calculations for transmission loading relief obligations.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \20\ Id.
    \21\ Comprised of North American Reliability Coordinators, 
Transmission Operators, Transmission Owners, and Balancing 
Authorities, EIDSN, Inc. manages the Electric Information Network 
(EInet), a data-sharing network for its members to promote the 
reliable and efficient operation of the Eastern and Quebec 
Interconnections. See EIDSN, Inc., Our Mission, https://eidsn.org/.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    14. Moreover, as part of the standards development process, NAESB 
made five additional revisions to the OASIS suite of standards that 
were not made in response to Commission orders.\22\ First, NAESB 
modified the OASIS suite of standards to improve OASIS query 
functionalities. Second, NAESB modified the OASIS suite of standards 
for new OASIS functionality to fully document all encumbrances to 
unconditional firm transmission service, such as untagged pseudo-ties. 
Third, NAESB modified the OASIS suite of standards to expand notice 
functionality and establish requirements for providing dynamic 
notification to transmission customers of the renewal deadline for 
rollover rights for point-to-point transmission service. Fourth, NAESB 
modified WEQ-001 OASIS Business Practice Standards for use of Next Hour 
Market Service and the 0-NX transmission product codes. Fifth, NAESB 
modified the OASIS suite of standards to modify Network Integration 
Transmission Service (NITS) requirements. Finally, NAESB revised the 
OASIS suite of standards to make three minor corrections.\23\
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \22\ NAESB WEQ Version 003.3 Report at 5.
    \23\ Minor corrections were made to the WEQ-001 OASIS Business 
Practice Standards and the WEQ-003 OASIS Data Dictionary Business 
Practice Standards.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

III. Discussion

    15. As discussed below, with certain enumerated exceptions, we 
propose to incorporate by reference (into the Commission's regulations 
at 18 CFR 38.1(b)) the NAESB WEQ Version 003.3 Standards.\24\ While the 
Commission only recently incorporated Version 003.2 in its regulations, 
we are proposing to move forward on Version 003.3 because this Version 
of the standards contains a number of major initiatives whose 
incorporation by reference will improve the security and the efficiency 
of business transactions. These include enhanced cybersecurity 
standards resulting from an assessment by Sandia, improved 
methodologies for resolving transmission loading relief, and standards 
for determining available transfer capacity.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \24\ Consistent with our past practice, we do not propose to 
incorporate by reference into the Commission's regulations the 
following standards: Standards of Conduct for Electric Transmission 
Providers (WEQ-009); Contracts Related Standards (WEQ-010); and WEQ/
WGQ eTariff Related Standards (WEQ-014). We do not propose to 
incorporate by reference standard WEQ-009 because it contains no 
substantive standards and merely serves as a placeholder for future 
standards. We do not propose to incorporate by reference standard 
WEQ-010 because this standard contains an optional NAESB contract 
regarding funds transfers and the Commission does not require 
utilities to use such contracts. We are not proposing to incorporate 
by reference standard WEQ-014, because the Commission has already 
adopted standards and protocols for electronic tariff filings based 
on the NAESB Standards.

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

[[Page 55205]]

A. Internet Security

1. Cybersecurity
    16. The WEQ Version 003.3 Standards include revisions undertaken by 
NAESB at the request of the DOE to develop standards that address the 
cybersecurity-related recommendations made by Sandia contained within 
its surety assessment.\25\ In response to the Sandia surety assessment, 
NAESB proposed changes to improve cybersecurity in the WEQ-000 
Abbreviations, Acronyms, and Definition of Terms Business Practice 
Standards, the WEQ-001 OASIS Business Practice Standards, and the WEQ-
002 OASIS Standards and Communication Protocols Business Practice 
Standards.\26\
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \25\ The Sandia surety assessment also focused on the Wholesale 
Gas Quadrant (WGQ) and Retail Markets Quadrant (RMQ) Internet 
Electronic Transport and Electronic Delivery Mechanism Standards; 
and a high-level dependency analysis between the gas and electric 
markets to evaluate the different security paradigms employed by the 
markets.
    \26\ See Appendix I.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    17. These proposed changes, which are listed in Appendix I, 
represent NAESB's response to Sandia's surety assessment on 
cybersecurity. In recognition of the stand-alone nature of these 
proposed changes, and that DOE requested that NAESB act on an expedited 
basis to ensure the cybersecurity standards were included in the WEQ 
Version 003.3 Standards, the Commission is proposing to incorporate 
these standards by reference with an implementation timeline different 
from the rest of the proposed modifications included in the WEQ Version 
003.3 Standards. As discussed in more detail below, the Commission 
proposes that industry filers submit compliance filings for these 
revised cybersecurity standards, set forth in Appendix I, nine months 
after the publication of a final rule in this proceeding, with 
implementation required no sooner than three months after compliance 
filings are submitted to the Commission, for a total implementation 
period of at least 12 months.
    18. For the revised cybersecurity standards, NAESB modified the 
OASIS suite of standards, including WEQ-001 OASIS Business Practice 
Standards and WEQ-002 OASIS Standards and Communication Protocols 
Business Practice Standards to: (1) Align the standards' security 
requirements with other cybersecurity guidelines and best practices; 
(2) remove legacy functionality that potentially provides a vehicle for 
cyber-attacks; and (3) incorporate more secure communication and 
encryption methodologies.\27\ Specifically, NAESB revised WEQ-001-
13.1.3 to include a reference to 18 CFR 37.7.\28\ NAESB revised WEQ-
002-5 to require transmission providers or the agent to whom a 
transmission provider has delegated the responsibility of meeting any 
requirements associated with OASIS, referred to as a Transmission 
Services Information Provider (TSIP), to apply industry-recognized best 
practices in the implementation and maintenance of OASIS nodes and 
supporting infrastructure. Included in these modifications is a 
requirement that TSIPs implement guidelines for user passwords and 
authentication aligned with National Institute of Standards and 
Technology (NIST) Special Publication (SP) 800-63B. WEQ-002-5 was also 
modified to require TSIPs to use cryptographic models that conform to 
the NIST Federal Information Processing Standards (FIPS) Publication 
140-3.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \27\ NAESB WEQ Version 003.3 Report at 9.
    \28\ See 18 CFR 37.7 (Auditing Transmission Service 
Information).
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    19. To protect OASIS nodes, NAESB further revised WEQ-002-5 to 
require TSIPs to: (1) Incorporate firewalls, intrusion detection, and 
intrusion prevention systems; (2) ensure OASIS applications are secure 
against common industry recognized vulnerabilities; (3) apply software 
patches and updates in a timely fashion, ideally within seven days of 
availability; and (4) perform quarterly vulnerability scans and 
penetration testing as well as annual business continuity and disaster 
recovery exercises.\29\ Additionally, WEQ-002-5 includes a requirement 
that, at least on an annual basis, TSIPs review their OASIS nodes and 
make any necessary changes to implementation to conform with updates to 
the industry recognized best practices.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \29\ NAESB WEQ Version 003.3 Report at 8.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    20. NAESB revised WEQ-002-2.3 to require the use of Transportation 
Layer Security (TLS) Version 1.2 or higher, consistent with NIST 800-52 
which now requires the use of TLS Version 1.2, and the utilization of 
TLS Version 1.3 by January 1, 2024. WEQ-002-2.3 and WEQ-002-5.1.1 were 
revised to require the use of a Hypertext Transfer Protocol Secure 
(HTTPS) connection to access information posted on OASIS, including the 
use of server-side only HTTPS connections to access information that 
must be made publicly available. All references within the standards to 
Hypertext Transfer Protocol (HTTP) were removed or modified to 
HTTPS.\30\ Finally, NAESB revised WEQ-002-2.3 and WEQ-002-2.4 to remove 
language that required the use of communication protocols and internet 
tools to support private internet and dial-up internet connections, 
which were deemed outdated and no longer utilized by the industry.\31\
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \30\ Id. at 7-8.
    \31\ Id. at 8.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

2. Accreditation Requirements for Authorized Certificate Authorities
    21. In response to the Sandia surety assessment, NAESB revised the 
specification document, titled the NAESB Accreditation Requirements for 
Authorized Certificate Authorities, which establishes technical 
requirements for issuing digital certificates under the WEQ-012 Public 
Key Infrastructure (PKI) Business Practice Standards.\32\ NAESB reports 
that the new version of the specification document enables secure 
electronic commercial transactions via data encryption and entity 
authentication. NAESB states the revisions will help to ensure that the 
digital certificates issued by NAESB Authorized Certificate Authorities 
under the WEQ-012 PKI Business Practice Standards will continue to 
provide secure communications necessary to carry out commercial 
transactions, including e-Tagging as well as the accessing OASIS nodes 
and the NAESB EIR.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \32\ The NAESB Accreditation Requirements for Authorized 
Certificate Authorities is a 33-paged specification document that is 
not a standard, and, as such, membership ratification is not 
required per the NAESB process. The specification document became 
effective for industry use on February 19, 2020. See NAESB, NAESB 
Accreditation Requirements for Authorized Certification Authorities, 
https://www.naesb.org/PKI/AssuranceLevel/.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    22. NAESB's cybersecurity-related changes to the WEQ-000 
Abbreviations, Acronyms, and Definition of Terms Business Practice 
Standards, the WEQ-001 OASIS Business Practice Standards, and the WEQ-
002 OASIS Standards and Communication Protocols Business Practice 
Standards appear reasonable and do not appear inconsistent with any 
Commission directives or findings in other orders. Accordingly, we 
propose to incorporate by reference, into the Commission's regulations 
at 18 CFR 38.1(b), NAESB's revised cybersecurity standards in WEQ-000, 
WEQ-001, and WEQ-002, as set forth in the WEQ Version 003.3 Standards.

B. Parallel Flow Visualization

    23. NAESB's WEQ Version 003.3 Standards include modifications to 
the WEQ-008 Transmission Loading Relief

[[Page 55206]]

(TLR)--Eastern Interconnection Business Practice Standards to improve 
the congestion management process by incorporating PFV.\33\ This 
standards development effort was the result of a multi-year 
coordination effort beginning in 2006 \34\ between NAESB, NERC, and 
EIDSN, Inc. According to NAESB, a recent field trial of the PFV process 
conducted by EIDSN, Inc. indicated that it provides a more accurate 
model of the electric system than the current process. NAESB also 
asserts that the field trial shows that the PFV process provides a 
better analysis of the impacts on flowgates and assigns transmission 
loading relief obligations more accurately.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \33\ See NAESB WEQ Version 003.3 Report at 12. To support PFV, 
NAESB also made consistency changes to the WEQ-000 Abbreviations, 
Acronyms, and Definition of Terms Business Practice Standards, the 
WEQ-001 OASIS Business Practice Standards, the WEQ-002 OASIS 
Standards and Communication Protocols Business Practice Standards, 
the WEQ-004 Coordinate Interchange Business Practice Standards, and 
the WEQ-013 OASIS Implementation Guide Business Practice Standards.
    \34\ The PFV standards development process was the subject of 
eight previous status reports filed with the Commission in Docket 
No. EL14-82-000.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    24. The current congestion management procedure for the Eastern 
Interconnection considers e-Tags, market flows, and the network and 
native load (NNL) calculations to allocate relief obligations on a pro-
rata basis. However, this process can sometimes cause a deviation 
between the actual, real-time impacts and the calculated NNL impacts 
used for relief obligation as the NNL calculation uses static data and 
assumes that all generators in the Eastern Interconnection have firm 
transmission service. Under the PFV enhanced congestion management 
process, the market flows and NNL calculation are replaced by the 
generation-to-load impact, which uses real-time data reported by the 
balancing authorities to determine the calculated energy flows on a 
flowgate and assign relief obligations during a transmission loading 
relief event.
    25. The revised WEQ-008 Transmission Loading Relief (TLR)--Eastern 
Interconnection Business Practice Standards require a balancing 
authority to elect one of two different methodologies for assigning 
curtailment priorities: Tag Secondary Network Transmission Service 
Method (TSNTS Method) or Generator Prioritization Method (GP Method). 
In the TSNTS Method, e-Tags are used to establish curtailment priority 
and entities using this methodology must tag not only inter-balancing 
authority transactions but also intra-balancing authority transactions, 
including pseudo-ties. Under the GP Method, a generator schedule is 
used, which lists the firm and non-firm transmission priorities of each 
generator to determine the assignment of curtailments. The revised WEQ-
008 Transmission Loading Relief (TLR)--Eastern Interconnection Business 
Practice Standards also allow entities with seams agreements 
incorporated into their tariffs or other governing documents to submit 
to the Interchange Distribution Calculator (IDC) tool \35\ overrides to 
transmission priorities for those flowgates that are documented in the 
agreements.\36\
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \35\ The revised WEQ-008 Transmission Loading Relief (TLR)--
Eastern Interconnection Business Practice Standards define the IDC 
as ``[a] tool used by the [Reliability Coordinators] in the Eastern 
Interconnection which calculates the distribution of energy flows 
over specific flowgates and is used for assigning relief obligations 
and curtailments.'' The revised standards require the IDC to support 
the display of all impacts, including generation-to-load impacts, 
and other interchange transactions and intra-balancing authority 
transactions. The impacts on a flowgate are to be displayed at the 
user specified level of granularity, including the amount of impact, 
amount of transaction or output, and priority of transaction.
    \36\ NAESB WEQ Version 003.3 Report at 13.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    26. For entities opting to use the TSNTS Method, relief obligations 
are assigned through curtailments utilizing the expanded e-Tagging 
requirements. Together, the expanded, real-time data provided to the 
IDC tool under both the TSNTS Method and the GP Method results in a 
more accurate calculation of system impacts and provides reliability 
coordinators in the Eastern Interconnection an improved view of the 
current operating state of the bulk electric system through increased 
visibility of the source and magnitude of parallel interchange flows.
    27. In addition, the revised WEQ-008 Transmission Loading Relief 
(TLR)--Eastern Interconnection Business Practice Standards establish a 
System Data Exchange (SDX) as a central repository administered by an 
association of reliability coordinators in the Eastern Interconnection 
that is a data source for the IDC. The SDX supports data submission for 
dynamic schedules and pseudo-ties for the two new methodologies (i.e., 
the TSNTS Method and the GP Method) for assigning curtailment 
priorities.
    28. The revised WEQ-008 Transmission Loading Relief (TLR)--Eastern 
Interconnection Business Practice Standards specify the process for 
balancing authorities to make an initial declaration of which of the 
two methodologies will be used for assigning curtailment priorities, 
the process for subsequent switching between methodologies (which 
requires a minimum of 180 calendar days' advance notice to the affected 
load serving entities), and the process for designating network 
resources when balancing authority areas are consolidated. Conforming 
changes are also made to the WEQ-008 Transmission Loading Relief 
(TLR)--Eastern Interconnection Business Practice Standards which 
describe in detail the steps to be taken when transmission loading 
relief procedures are invoked, primarily to ensure that generation-to-
load impacts, lower priority secondary network transmission service, 
transactions using non-firm grandfathered transmission service, non-
firm point-to-point intra balancing authority transactions not tagged, 
non-firm pseudo-ties, and transactions for dynamic schedules that use 
lower priority non-firm transmission service are included in the 
calculation when assigning curtailment and relief obligations.
    29. NAESB's revisions to WEQ-008 Transmission Loading Relief 
(TLR)--Eastern Interconnection Business Practice Standards do not 
appear inconsistent with any Commission directives or findings in other 
orders. Accordingly, we propose to incorporate by reference, into the 
Commission's regulations at 18 CFR 38.1(b), NAESB's revised standards 
that modify the WEQ-008 Transmission Loading Relief (TLR)--Eastern 
Interconnection Business Practice Standards, as set forth in the WEQ 
Version 003.3 Standards.

C. Revisions to WEQ OASIS Business Practice Standards in Light of 
Commission Policies

1. Overview
    30. The NAESB WEQ Version 003.3 Standards contain three 
modifications to the OASIS suite of standards that NAESB developed to 
ensure consistency with certain policies articulated by the Commission 
in Order Nos. 676-I and 890. NAESB addressed the final two directives 
contained in FERC Order No. 890. First, NAESB modified pertinent 
standards \37\ to support new OASIS functionality that allows for the 
posting of third party offers of planning redispatch services, as well 
as provide additional information regarding the curtailment of firm 
transmission

[[Page 55207]]

service.\38\ NAESB also revised WEQ-001 to strike the preamble language 
in WEQ-001-9 and WEQ-001-10 consistent with Commission Action in Order 
No. 676-I.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \37\ NAESB modified the WEQ-000 Abbreviations, Acronyms, and 
Definition of Terms Business Practice Standards, the WEQ-001 OASIS 
Business Practice Standards, the WEQ-002 OASIS Standards and 
Communication Protocols Business Practice Standards, the WEQ-003 
OASIS Data Dictionary Business Practice Standards, and the WEQ-013 
OASIS Implementation Guide Business Practice Standards.
    \38\ NAESB WEQ Version 003.3 Report at 4.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

2. Posting of Third Party Offers of Planning Redispatch Services
    31. Order No. 890 required that ``transmission providers modify 
their OASIS to allow for the posting of third party offers to supply 
planning redispatch,'' \39\ and the Commission reiterated the directive 
in Order 890-B.\40\ In response, NAESB modified the OASIS suite of 
standards to clarify the roles and responsibilities of the third party 
providing the redispatch service, the transmission customer acquiring 
the planning redispatch service, and the transmission provider that 
provides the platform on OASIS for posting the planning redispatch 
service offer. As part of these OASIS suite of standards modifications, 
NAESB established two new OASIS templates \41\ to support the posting 
by a transmission provider of third party offers of planning redispatch 
service. The first new template is dedicated to capturing generator 
information that may be used in a planning redispatch offer, including 
the identification of the generating unit(s) and the host balancing 
authority area. The second new template provides planning redispatch 
offer parameters, such as the identification of the redispatch 
generator, the amount of capacity over time, cost, and the flowgate(s) 
where congestion can be relieved. NAESB reports that the new process 
increases efficiency for third parties by allowing the third parties to 
reference a generator as part of a redispatch offer and no longer 
requires third parties to reproduce the same generator information each 
time an offer is made. Accordingly, we propose to incorporate by 
reference, into the Commission's regulations at 18 CFR 38.1(b), NAESB's 
revised OASIS suite of standards \42\ that established two new OASIS 
templates that support the optional posting by a transmission provider 
of third party offers of planning redispatch service, as set forth in 
NAESB's WEQ Version 003.3 Business Practice Standards.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \39\ Order No. 890, 118 FERC ] 61,119 at P 1139.
    \40\ Order No. 890-B, 123 FERC ] 61,299 at P 131.
    \41\ See WEQ 013-3.9 and WEQ 013-3.10.
    \42\ NAESB modified the WEQ-000 Abbreviations, Acronyms, and 
Definition of Terms Business Practice Standards, the WEQ-001 OASIS 
Business Practice Standards, the WEQ-002 OASIS Standards and 
Communication Protocols Business Practice Standards, the WEQ-003 
OASIS Data Dictionary Business Practice Standards, and the WEQ-013 
OASIS Implementation Guide Business Practice Standards.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

3. Information for Firm Transmission Service Curtailments
    32. Order No. 890 requires transmission providers to post to OASIS 
``all circumstances and events contributing to the need for a firm 
service curtailment, specific services and customers curtailed 
(including the transmission provider's own retail loads), and the 
duration of the curtailment.'' \43\ In response, NAESB made additional 
modifications to the OASIS suite of standards, as well as consistency 
changes to WEQ-000 Abbreviations, Acronyms, and Definition of Terms 
Business Practice Standards. NAESB's changes to the standards included 
modifications to existing templates and the creation of two new 
templates to provide the mechanism for transmission providers to post 
the required additional information regarding the curtailment of firm 
transmission service, including the curtailment of non-firm 
transmission service that preceded any firm transmission curtailments.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \43\ Order No. 890, 118 FERC ] 61,119 at P 1627.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    33. NAESB states that three issues arose as part of this standards 
development process. First, NAESB states that the information needed to 
meet the posting requirements is contained in two separate tools: The 
Interchange Distribution Calculator (IDC) tool for the Eastern 
Interconnection, managed by EIDSN, Inc., and the Enhanced Curtailment 
Calculator (ECC) tool for the Western Interconnection, managed by 
California Independent System Operator (CAISO). Although both the IDC 
and ECC tools produce information to be posted to OASIS in accordance 
with the standards, NAESB states that its members determined that the 
need for a mechanism to transfer data from the tools to OASIS should be 
addressed as part of any industry implementation rather than through 
standards modifications.
    34. Second, as part of the Order No. 890 standards development 
efforts, NAESB and its stakeholders examined FERC Order Nos. 845 \44\ 
and 845-A to gauge their potential effect on the NAESB effort.\45\ 
NAESB and its stakeholders concluded, absent specific direction from 
the Commission to the contrary, that the issues raised in these orders 
were separate and distinct from the directive in FERC Order 890; NAESB 
therefore completed the Order No. 890 standards development 
requirements.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \44\ Reform of Generator Interconnection Procedures & 
Agreements, Order No. 845, 163 FERC ] 61,043 (2018).
    \45\ As part of FERC Order No. 845, the Commission declined to 
impose additional requirements on transmission providers to post on 
OASIS certain, specific information regarding congestion and 
curtailments. Order No. 845, 163 FERC ] 61,043 at P 271. The 
Commission confirmed this decision in FERC Order No. 845-A, 
reiterating that transmission providers already publish data related 
to congestion and curtailments and noting that a significant amount 
of curtailment data is available through the NERC TLR logs. Id. P 
92.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    35. Third, NAESB notes that the standards include a requirement 
that transmission providers post information related to the curtailment 
of non-firm transmission in order to provide transmission customers 
with complete transparency regarding all firm transmission 
curtailments. NAESB states its stakeholders largely concluded that 
posting information about non-firm curtailments to OASIS fully 
addresses the directive in FERC Order No. 890 that information be 
posted regarding all circumstances contributing to the need for firm 
transmission service curtailment.
    36. NAESB's revised standards appear consistent with the 
Commission's directive in Order No. 890. In Order No. 890, the 
Commission required ``transmission providers, working through NAESB, to 
develop a detailed template for the posting of additional information 
on OASIS regarding firm transmission curtailments.'' \46\ Moreover, the 
Commission further stated that ``Transmission providers need not 
implement this new OASIS functionality and any related business 
practices until NAESB develops appropriate standards.'' \47\ NAESB 
states that it does not intend to develop standards to facilitate the 
required posting of this additional information on OASIS, but instead 
``by consensus it was determined that the issue should be addressed as 
part of any industry implementation rather than through standards 
modifications.'' \48\
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \46\ Order No. 890, 118 FERC ] 61,119 at P 1627.
    \47\ Id.
    \48\ NAESB WEQ Version 003.3 Report at 11.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    37. NAESB states that the information needed to meet the posting 
requirements is contained in the IDC and ECC tools for Eastern 
Interconnection and Western Interconnection and that the need for a 
mechanism to transfer data from the tools to OASIS, should be addressed 
as part of any industry implementation rather than through NAESB within 
a standards modification and development process.
    38. NAESB's modifications and consistency changes to address the

[[Page 55208]]

directive in FERC Order No. 890 appear reasonable and do not appear 
inconsistent with any Commission directives or findings in other 
orders. Accordingly, we propose to incorporate by reference, into the 
Commission's regulations at 18 CFR 38.1(b), NAESB's modifications to 
the OASIS suite of standards,\49\ as well as consistency changes to 
WEQ-000 Abbreviations, Acronyms, and Definition of Terms Business 
Practice Standards to support the final FERC Order No. 890 directive, 
as set forth in the WEQ Version 003.3 Standards.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \49\ NAESB modified the WEQ-001 OASIS Business Practice 
Standards, the WEQ-002 OASIS Standards and Communication Protocols 
Business Practice Standards, the WEQ-003 OASIS Data Dictionary 
Business Practice Standards, and the WEQ-013 OASIS Implementation 
Guide Business Practice Standards.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

4. WEQ-001-9 and WEQ-001-10 Preambles
    39. In Order No. 676-I, the Commission declined to adopt through 
its incorporation by reference process the preamble language in WEQ-
001-9 and WEQ-001-10. The Commission declined to incorporate by 
reference the two preambles because they appeared to permit 
transmission providers the option to implement their own entity-
specific procedures, which does not help ensure consistency across the 
bulk power system.\50\ In the WEQ Version 003.3 Standards, NAESB 
proposes to make the changes to each of these Business Practice 
Standards to reflect the Commission's Order No. 676-I decision not to 
incorporate by reference the preamble language. Accordingly, we propose 
to incorporate by reference, into the Commission's regulations at 18 
CFR 38.1(b), NAESB's revised WEQ-001-9 and WEQ-001-10, as set forth in 
the WEQ Version 003.3 Standards.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \50\ Order No. 676-I, 170 FERC ] 61,062 at PP 37-38.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

D. Revised and New Standards Designed To Complement NERC Reliability 
Standards and Developments

    40. The WEQ Version 003.3 Standards include additions and revisions 
to the WEQ-001 OASIS Business Practice Standards, WEQ-004 Coordinate 
Interchange Business Practice Standards, and WEQ-023 Modeling Business 
Practice Standards, which result from NAESB coordination with NERC. 
NAESB developed these additions and revisions in response to NERC's 
proposal, initiated via two separate Standards Requests, that NAESB 
review the retirements proposed by NERC within the NERC Modeling, Data, 
and Analysis (MOD) Reliability Standards \51\ as well as the NERC 
Interchange Scheduling and Coordination (INT) Reliability Standards 
\52\ in the interest of continued coordination between the 
organizations.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \51\ In a February 19, 2014 petition, NERC proposed to retire 
Reliability Standards MOD-001-1a, MOD-004-1, MOD-008-1, MOD-028-2, 
MOD-029-1a, and MOD-030-2 and requested approval of new Reliability 
Standard MOD-001-2. Generally, the ``MOD A'' series of NERC 
Reliability Standards pertain to transmission system modeling. The 
Commission issued a notice of proposed rulemaking in Docket No. 
RM14-7-000 that addressed NERC's proposal. Modeling, Data, & 
Analysis Reliability Standards, Notice of Proposed Rulemaking, 147 
FERC ] 61,208 (2014) (MOD A NOPR). On June 7, 2019, NERC filed a 
notice of withdrawal of its petition and, after not receiving any 
protests, was deemed granted. Simultaneously, NERC proposed to 
retire the current version of the NERC MOD A standards: MOD-001-1a 
(Available Transmission System Capability), MOD-004-1 (Capacity 
Benefit Margin), MOD-008-1 (Transmission Reliability Margin 
Calculation Methodology), MOD-028-2 (Area Interchange Methodology), 
MOD-029-2a (Rated System Path Methodology), and MOD-030-3 (Flowgate 
Methodology).
    \52\ NERC submitted Standards Request R19008, requesting that 
NAESB review retirements proposed within NERC Reliability Standards 
INT-004-3.1, INT-006-5, INT-009-3, and INT-010-2.1.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

1. Available Transfer Capacity
a. Introduction
    41. Available Transfer Capacity (ATC) is defined to be ``[a] 
measure of the transfer capability remaining in the physical 
transmission network for further commercial activity over and above 
already committed uses.'' \53\ Since Order Nos. 888 and 889 were issued 
in 1996, ATC has been a key component of the Commission's open access 
transmission policy. The Commission has emphasized the important role 
of ATC, stating that ``the calculation of ATC is one of the most 
critical functions under the open access transmission tariff (OATT) 
because it determines whether transmission customers can access 
alternative power supplies.'' \54\ The Commission has noted the broad 
range of transmission customers affected by ATC calculations, including 
loads, power producers, and power marketers.\55\
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \53\ NERC defines the components of ATC as ``Total Transfer 
Capability, less Existing Transmission Commitments (including retail 
customer service), less a Capacity Benefit Margin, less a 
Transmission Reliability Margin plus postbacks and counterflow.'' 
AFC is defined as ``A measure of the flow capability remaining on a 
Flowgate for further commercial activity over and above already 
committed uses. It is defined as Total Flowgate Capability less 
Existing Transmission Commitments (ETC), less a Capacity Benefit 
Margin, less a Transmission Reliability Margin, plus Postbacks, and 
plus counterflows.'' See NERC ``Glossary of Terms Used in NERC 
Reliability Standard,'' http://nerc.com/files/glossary_of_terms.pdf. 
The Commission's regulations contain similar language. See 18 CFR 
37.6(b)(1).
    \54\ Mandatory Reliability Standards for the Calculation of 
Available Transfer Capability, Capacity Benefit Margins, 
Transmission Reliability Margins, Total Transfer Capability, & 
Existing Transmission Commitments & Mandatory Reliability Standards 
for the Bulk-Power Sys., Order No. 729, 129 FERC ] 61,155, at P 2 
(2009).
    \55\ Order No. 890, 118 FERC ] 61,119 at P 195.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    42. In Order No. 890, the Commission found that transmission owners 
utilized a variety of ATC calculation methodologies and very few clear 
rules governed their use.\56\ The complexity created by these multiple 
approaches presented obstacles to calculating ATC consistently and 
accurately. In Order No. 890, the Commission adopted a number of 
reforms addressing the potential for remaining undue discrimination in 
the determination of ATC by requiring consistency in how ATC is 
evaluated, as well as providing greater transparency about how a 
transmission provider calculates and allocates ATC.\57\ In Order No. 
890, the Commission directed industry to develop Reliability Standards, 
using the NERC Reliability Standards development procedures that 
provide for consistency and transparency in the methodologies used by 
transmission owners to calculate ATC.\58\ Additionally, the Commission 
directed public utilities, working through NAESB, to develop workable 
Business Practice Standards to improve the consistency and transparency 
of ATC calculations,\59\ while reducing the opportunity for 
transmission providers to exercise excessive discretion that could 
undermine the overarching policy goal of ensuring non-discriminatory, 
open access.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \56\ Id. P 62.
    \57\ Id. P 69.
    \58\ Id. P 196.
    \59\ Id.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    43. In response, NERC worked with industry to develop Reliability 
Standards improving consistency and transparency of ATC calculation 
methodologies, which NERC would audit and enforce. NERC submitted its 
MOD standards to the Commission in April 2006.\60\ The MOD standards 
related to ATC eventually became known as the MOD A Reliability 
Standards. The MOD A Reliability Standards helped to standardize the 
methodologies and system data needed for traditional transmission 
system operation and expansion planning, reliability assessment and the 
calculation of available transfer capability, as well as helping to 
enable nondiscriminatory access to the transmission system.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \60\ Id. P 9.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    44. In February 2014, NERC petitioned the Commission to permit it

[[Page 55209]]

to retire its MOD A ATC Reliability Standards.\61\ NERC argued that ATC 
and AFC values are commercial in nature. NERC also asked that the 
Commission approve MOD-001-2 which would replace, consolidate and 
improve upon the MOD A standards in addressing the reliability issues 
associated with the determination of ATC and AFC. At the same time, 
NERC requested that NAESB develop business practice standards for the 
commercial aspects of ATC and AFC.\62\ NAESB first developed the WEQ-
023 Modeling Business Practice Standards through its stakeholder 
process and submitted them to the Commission as part of the WEQ Version 
003.1 Standards, filed with the Commission in its October 2015 
Filing.\63\ The Commission, however, did not incorporate most of those 
standards by reference, because it was still considering NERC's 
proposed retirement of MOD A Reliability Standards and had initiated a 
proceeding to consider proposed changes to the calculation of ATC.\64\
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \61\ Petition of NERC for Approval of Proposed Reliability 
Standard MOD-001-2 & Ret. of Reliability Standards MOD-001-1a, MOD-
004-1, MOD-008-1, MOD-028-2, MOD-029-1a & MOD-030-2, Docket No. 
RM14-7-000 (Feb. 10, 2014).
    \62\ See, NAESB MOD Effort Status Report under RM05-5, et al., 
Docket No. RM14-7 (Dec. 19, 2014). The Commission subsequently held 
a workshop to discuss actions the Commission could take to ensure 
that Transmission Providers continue to calculate ATC in a manner 
that ensures nondiscriminatory access to wholesale electric 
transmission services. See Supplemental Notice of Workshop--New 
Date, Docket No. AD15-5-000 (Mar. 31, 2015). The Transcript of the 
April 21, 2015 technical workshop on available transmission 
capability held in Washington, DC is available in eLibrary under 
Docket No. AD15-5-000.
    \63\ Report of the N. American Energy Standards Bd. on Version 
003.1 of the Wholesale Elec. Quadrant Bus. Practice Standards under 
RM05-5, Docket No. RM05-5-025 (Oct. 26, 2015).
    \64\ See Available Transfer Capability Standards for Wholesale 
Elec. Transmission Services, Docket No. AD15-5-000 (Dec. 30, 2014) 
(noticing a Commission staff workshop to discuss actions the 
Commission could take to ensure that transmission providers continue 
to calculate and post ATC in a manner that ensures nondiscriminatory 
access to wholesale electric transmission services).
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    45. In WEQ Version 003.3, NAESB made additional revisions and 
included new standards to the WEQ-023 Modeling Business Practice 
Standards: WEQ-023-1 (General Requirements), WEQ-023-2 (ATC 
Requirements), WEQ-023-3 (CBM Scheduling Requirements), WEQ-023-4 (TRM 
Requirements), which were all developed as a result of NAESB's review 
of NERC Reliability Standards MOD-001-1a, MOD-004-1, MOD-008-1, MOD-
028-2, MOD-029-2a, and MOD-030-3, and the proposed NERC Reliability 
Standard MOD-001-2.
b. NAESB Standards
    46. In response to NERC's proposed retirement of the MOD A 
Reliability Standards NAESB developed the WEQ-023 Modeling Business 
Practice Standards. They are composed of six subordinate sections and 
an appendix. WEQ-023-1 includes general requirements and lists the 
three allowable methodologies for calculating ATC or AFC. WEQ-023-2 
describes these three allowable methodologies: area interchange, rated 
system path, and flowgate. WEQ-023-3 describes the calculation of 
capacity benefit margin (CBM), for those transmission providers that 
use CBM. Similarly, WEQ-023-4 describes the calculation of transmission 
reliability margin (TRM), for those transmission providers that use 
TRM. WEQ-023-5 describes how postbacks should be used. WEQ-023-6 
requires a description and posting of grandfathered agreements. 
Finally, WEQ-023-A includes a table and examples for the use of 
postback conditions in calculation of ATC or AFC. As noted above, the 
latter two requirements and the Appendix were incorporated by reference 
in Order No. 676-I.
    47. NAESB states that these modifications ensure that all 
commercially relevant requirements needed by the industry to calculate 
ATC and AFC are included in the WEQ-023 Modeling Business Practice 
Standards. The WEQ-023 Modeling Business Practice Standards, in part, 
incorporate forty-five requirements and sub-requirements previously 
included in NERC Reliability Standard MOD-001-2. The WEQ-023 Modeling 
Business Practice Standards also include two new requirements not 
previously included in the NERC Reliability Standards addressing 
contract path management. These two requirements, which are contained 
in WEQ-023-1.4 and WEQ-023-1.4.1, limit the amount of firm transmission 
service across a path between balancing authorities to the contract 
path limit for that given path.
    48. NAESB also modified WEQ-001-13.1.5 to replace references to the 
NERC MOD-A Reliability Standards with references to WEQ-023 Modeling 
Business Practice Standards \65\ and made consistency changes to WEQ-
000 Abbreviations, Acronyms, and Definition of Terms Business Practice 
Standards.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \65\ WEQ-001-13.1.5 revisions include new links to the Available 
Transfer Capability Implementation Document--ATCID, as specified in 
1a Business Practice Standard WEQ-023-1.3, previously NERC MOD-001-
1a; the CBM Implementation Document--CBMID, as specified in Business 
Practice Standard WEQ-023-1.5, which was previously NERC MOD-004-1, 
and the TRM Implementation Document--TRMID as specified in Business 
Practice Standard WEQ-023-1.6; previously NERC MOD-008-1.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

c. Commission Proposal
    49. The Commission stated in Order No. 729 that calculation of ATC 
is one of the most critical functions under the OATT, because it 
determines whether transmission customers can access alternative power 
supplies. It found that the improved transparency and consistency of 
ATC calculation methodologies would limit transmission service 
providers' wide discretion in calculating ATC and ensure that customers 
are treated fairly in seeking alternative power supplies.\66\ Because 
of the importance of the ATC calculation and as a result of the 
proposed retirement of NERC's MOD A Reliability Standards, the 
Commission is proposing to revise its regulations to establish the 
general criteria transmission owners must use in calculating ATC. The 
Commission also is proposing to adopt the NAESB standards as they 
appear generally consistent with those criteria. The Commission, 
however, seeks comment herein on whether the NAESB standards could be 
improved by providing additional detail to further protect transmission 
customers. We seek comment on whether the proposed regulatory text 
included below will provide a clear basis for establishing that 
transmission provider ATC calculations must be transparent, consistent, 
and not unduly discriminatory or preferential. We also seek comment on 
whether we should develop additional new regulations to maintain the 
current level of detail related to ATC calculations; if so, what level 
of detail those regulations should have.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \66\ See Order No. 729, 129 FERC ] 61,155 at P 2.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

i. Proposed Regulation
    50. The Commission is proposing to revise its regulations governing 
the calculation of ATC and TTC in 18 CFR 37.6(b)(2)(i):

    (2) Calculation methods, availability of information, and 
requests. (i) Information used to calculate any posting of ATC and 
TTC must be dated and time-stamped and all calculations shall be 
performed according to consistently applied methodologies referenced 
in the Transmission Provider's transmission tariff and shall be 
based on Commission-approved Reliability Standards, business 
practice and electronic communication standards, and related 
implementation documents, as well as current industry practices, 
standards and criteria. Transmission Providers shall calculate ATC 
and TTC in coordination with

[[Page 55210]]

and consistent with capability and usage on neighboring systems, 
calculate system capability using factors derived from operations 
and planning data for the time frame for which data are being posted 
(including anticipated outages), and update ATC and TTC calculations 
as inputs change. Such calculations shall be conducted in a manner 
that is transparent, consistent, and not unduly discriminatory or 
preferential.\67\
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \67\ Proposed regulatory text to be added to 18 CFR 
37.6(b)(2)(i) is indicated by underlining.

    51. This proposed regulation, in conjunction with the WEQ-023 
Modeling Business Practice Standards, will help ensure that all 
transmission customers will be treated fairly when seeking alternative 
power supplies,\68\ and will provide for comparable and not unduly 
discriminatory or preferential treatment of native load customers and 
transmission service customers. As the Commission stated in Order No. 
729, ``the potential for discrimination and decline in reliability 
level does not lie primarily in the choice of an available transfer 
capability calculation methodology, but rather in the consistent 
application of its components, input and exchange data, and modeling 
assumptions.'' \69\ We preliminarily find that this proposed regulation 
will ensure that transmission owners implement the NAESB standards in a 
way that helps to ensure non-discriminatory treatment to all 
transmission customers.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \68\ See Order No. 729, 129 FERC ] 61,155 at P 2.
    \69\ Id. P 11 (citing Order No. 890, 118 FERC ] 61,119 at P 
1029).
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

ii. NAESB Standards
    52. We propose to incorporate by reference these WEQ-023 Modeling 
Business Practice Standards into the Commission's regulations at 18 CFR 
38.1(b). However, as discussed below, we have concerns that certain of 
these business practice standards may lack the detail currently 
provided by the currently enforceable NERC MOD A Reliability Standards. 
Because the calculation of ATC determines whether transmission 
customers can access alternative power supplies,\70\ these calculations 
have significant commercial implications. Accordingly, we request 
parties to submit comments on whether the NAESB Business Practice 
Standards WEQ-023-1 (General Requirements), WEQ-023-2 (ATC 
Requirements), WEQ-023-3 (CBM Scheduling Requirements), and WEQ-023-4 
(TRM Requirements), as explained in the paragraphs below, provide 
sufficient details to protect transmission customers. Further, we seek 
comment on whether the Commission should start its own process to adopt 
more specific regulations regarding ATC calculations or by modifying 
the pro forma OATT or, alternatively, ask NAESB to consider providing 
additional details and more specific requirements in further revisions 
to these standards in a subsequent WEQ Version filing.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \70\ Id. P 2.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    53. The currently effective NERC Reliability Standard MOD-001-1a 
(General Requirements), which NERC proposes to retire, provides both 
transparency into and consistency of ATC computations for transmission 
customers. It includes nine requirements, and the loss or replacement 
of Requirements R3 through R7 may raise concerns regarding both 
transparency and consistency. For example, Requirements R3.6, R3.6.1, 
and R3.6.2 of MOD-001-1a require each Transmission Service Provider 
\71\ to describe in its ATC Implementation Document (ATCID) how it 
accounts for generation and transmission outages. Although NAESB's 
proposed revisions in WEQ-023-1.1.1.2 and WEQ-023-1.3.2 require the 
Transmission Service Provider to describe how it accounts for outages, 
these requirements provide significantly less detail than MOD-001-1a 
regarding the means by which the outages should be accounted. This lack 
of detail raises concerns of consistency in the ATCID, as specified in 
WEQ-023-1.3. We seek comment as to whether these changes could reduce 
transparency and consistency in ATC calculations, and if so, how this 
should be remedied.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \71\ NERC defines a Transmission Service Provider as ``The 
entity that administers the transmission tariff and provides 
Transmission Service to Transmission Customers under applicable 
Transmission Service agreements.'' See NERC ``Glossary of Terms Used 
in NERC Reliability Standard,'' http://nerc.com/files/glossary_of_terms.pdf.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    54. Requirements R3.2, R3.2.1, and R3.2.2 of MOD-001-1a require 
each Transmission Service Provider to describe how counterflows are 
accounted for in its ATCID. NAESB's proposed revisions in WEQ-023-1 do 
not require the inclusion of this description in the ATCID, despite the 
fact counterflows are a key variable in the determination of ATC. We 
seek comment on whether additional information on the incorporation of 
counterflows is necessary for increased transparency in ATC 
calculations, and if so, how this should be remedied.
    55. Requirement R3.5 of MOD-001-1a requires each Transmission 
Service Provider to describe how it allocates transfer or flowgate 
capability among multiple lines or sub-paths, among multiple owners or 
users, or between Transmission Service Providers in its ATCID. NAESB's 
proposed revisions in WEQ-023-1 do not appear to require a Transmission 
Service Provider to describe how ATC or AFC will be allocated. We seek 
comment on whether the potential absence of a description of allocation 
of ATC may reduce transparency and thereby increase discretion and the 
potential for discrimination to occur, and if so, how this should be 
remedied.
    56. Requirements R4 and R5 of MOD-001-1a require each Transmission 
Service Provider to notify certain entities before implementing a new 
ATCID and to make that document publicly available. NAESB does not 
appear to have proposed new requirements for sharing changes before 
implementation in WEQ-023-1.7, which could lead to a potential 
transparency concern. We seek comment as to whether not sharing changes 
before implementation will reduce transparency for transmission 
customers, and if so, how this should be remedied.
    57. Of particular note, Requirements R6 and R7 of MOD-001-1a 
obligate each Transmission Operator to use assumptions no more limiting 
that those used in its planning of operations calculations. Ensuring 
that the criteria a Transmission Service Provider uses to plan and 
operate its system are consistent with the criteria used in scheduling 
commercial transactions provides an assurance that transmission 
customers will have access to transfer capability that is physically 
available. We seek comment on whether the potential absence of such a 
requirement in the NAESB WEQ-023-1 Modeling Business Practice Standards 
raises consistency issues and could create additional discretion and 
the potential for the consistency of ATC calculations to decline, and 
if so, how this should be remedied.
    58. The currently effective NERC Reliability Standard MOD-004-1 
(Capacity Benefit Margin), which NERC also proposes to retire, provides 
transparency and consistency for transmission customers. This standard 
includes 12 requirements, and the loss or replacement of several of 
these existing NERC requirements in the NAESB WEQ-023 Modeling Business 
Practice Standards raise concerns for the Commission. For example, 
Requirements R1.1, R1.2, and R1.3 of MOD-004-1 currently obligate a 
Transmission Service Provider to provide descriptions of how CBM values 
are determined and allocated. WEQ-023-1.5, simply requires a

[[Page 55211]]

Transmission Service Provider that maintains CBM to post a CBM 
Implementation Document (CBMID) that describes the process to schedule 
CBM. We seek comment as to whether eliminating the description of the 
development of CBM values and the allocation of CBM risks a reduction 
of detail and transparency to users of CBM or other transmission 
customers. Similarly, Requirements R3, R3.1, and R3.2 of MOD-004-1 
provide detail on how load-serving entities determine that their CBM 
needs are set aside. NAESB WEQ-023-1.5 does not appear to address 
whether load-serving entities retain a role in the CBM determination 
process. The currently effective Requirements R5, R5.1, and R5.2 of 
MOD-004-1 require that at least every 13 months a Transmission Service 
Provider updates CBM for the future 13-month period, and to provide 
some details on how it calculates CBM. NAESB WEQ-023-1.5 does not 
include requirements related to the updating of CBM values or details 
of its calculation. We seek comment on whether this potential absence 
will decrease transparency in the ATC calculations, and if so, how this 
should be remedied.
    59. Requirements R7, R8, R9, R9.1, and R9.2 of MOD-004-1 currently 
require a Transmission Service Provider to notify load-serving entities 
if they were allocated CBM, and to provide supporting data and 
documentation. The NAESB WEQ-023 Modeling Business Practice Standards 
do not appear to include requirements for notification or public 
posting, but rather in WEQ-023-1.7 provide that information shall be 
available within 45 days of a request. We seek comment on whether the 
net effect of these changes may raise concerns regarding the 
transparency to users of CBM or other transmission customers, and if 
so, how this should be remedied.
    60. The currently effective NERC Reliability Standard MOD-008-1 
(Transmission Reliability Margin), again, which NERC proposes to 
retire, provides detail, transparency and accuracy for transmission 
customers. This NERC Reliability Standard includes five requirements, 
and the loss or replacement of several of these existing NERC 
requirements within the NAESB WEQ-023 Modeling Business Practice 
Standards raise concerns. Specifically, Requirements R1, R1.1, R1.2, 
and R1.3 provide detail regarding the information that the Transmission 
Service Provider must represent in its Transmission Reliability Margin 
Implementation Document (TRMID), including the components of 
uncertainty considered in establishing TRM. NAESB WEQ-023-4.1 requires 
only that a Transmission Operator that determines TRM maintain a TRMID 
that specifies the components it includes in TRM, but without 
specification as to these inputs. We seek comment on whether this 
potential lack of detail could lead to inconsistency and increased 
discretion, and if so, how this should be remedied.
    61. Requirement R4 of MOD-008-1 requires the Transmission Service 
Provider to update TRM at least once every 13 months. NAESB WEQ-023-4 
does not include specific requirements to update TRM values. We seek 
comment on whether the potential lack of such requirements could 
contribute to insufficient transparency and discretion, and if so, how 
this should be remedied.
    62. As discussed above, the NERC MOD A Reliability Standards 
include the three ``ATC methodology'' standards, which contain the 
specific requirements applicable to each entity that selects and 
implements that ATC methodology. NERC proposes to retire each of the 
three. The first of these three ATC methodology standards, NERC 
Reliability Standard MOD-028-2 (Area Interchange Methodology), 
describes the area interchange methodology for determining available 
transfer capability. NERC used this standard to increase consistency 
and reliability in the development and documentation of transfer 
capability calculation for short-term use performed by entities using 
the area interchange methodology to support analysis and system 
operations.\72\ The Area Interchange Methodology is described in WEQ-
023-2.1. MOD-028-2 consists of eleven requirements. We seek comment on 
how three of these MOD-028-2 requirements, Requirements R2.2, R3, and 
R6, are reflected in NAESB WEQ-023-2.1. MOD-028-2 Requirement R1 
provides details regarding the content that a Transmission Service 
Provider is required to include in its ATCID, specifically with respect 
to its methodology for determining Total Transfer Capability (TTC). The 
NAESB standard WEQ-023-2.1 only requires a general description of these 
factors and appears to provide a lesser degree of detail regarding 
certain components of the determination such as source/sink and point 
of delivery (POD)/point of receipt (POR).
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \72\ See, e.g., Order No. 729, 129 FERC ] 61,155 at P 54.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    63. MOD-028-2 Requirement R2.2 currently requires each Transmission 
Operator to calculate TTC using a model that meets a scope specified in 
the requirement and includes rating information specified by the 
generator owners and transmission owners whose equipment is represented 
in the model. In addition, MOD-028-2 Requirement R2.2 requirement 
obligates a transmission provider to use a transmission model that 
contains the modeling data and topology for immediately adjacent and 
beyond Reliability Coordination areas when computing TTC. WEQ-023-2.1 
does not appear to require the models to use data and topology for 
either immediately adjacent or beyond Reliability Coordination areas. 
We seek comment as to whether the potential absence of this requirement 
in NAESB's Area Interchange Methodology, WEQ-023-2.1 could raise 
coordination issues for transmission customers when scheduling 
transactions across areas, and if so, how this should be remedied.
    64. MOD-028-2 Requirement R3 details the information that a 
Transmission Operator must include from adjacent and other Transmission 
Service Providers in its determination of TTC for the on-peak and off-
peak intra-day and next-day time periods, including expected generation 
and transmission outages, additions, and retirements, load forecasts, 
and unit commitment and dispatch order. NAESB WEQ-023-2.1 does not 
appear to include such a coordination requirement. We seek comment as 
to whether the removal of such a coordination requirement could 
potentially constitute a lack of specificity in the NAESB Business 
Practice Standards that could detract from the usefulness of computed 
ATC values, and if so, how this should be remedied.
    65. MOD-028-2 Requirement R6 provides details on the process by 
which each Transmission Operator must establish TTC, which it must 
communicate to the Transmission Service Provider, including the 
representation of neighboring area system operating limits. The NAESB 
WEQ-023-2.1 Modeling Business Practice Standards appear to provide no 
guidance on the process for establishing TTC. We seek comment on 
whether NAESB WEQ-023-2.1, Area Interchange Methodology, should include 
additional guidance in the calculation of TTC will increase 
transparency and consistency in ATC calculations, and if so, how this 
should be remedied.
    66. The second of the three ATC methodology standards, NERC 
Reliability Standard MOD-029-2a (Rated System Path Methodology) 
describes the rated system path methodology for determining ATC. This

[[Page 55212]]

NERC Reliability Standard provides consistency, accuracy and 
transparency in the development and documentation of transfer 
capability calculations for short-term use performed by entities used 
the rated system path methodology supports analysis and system 
operations.\73\ This NERC Reliability Standard includes eight 
requirements, and we seek comment on how two of the requirements, 
Requirements R1 and R4, are addressed in the NAESB WEQ-023 Modeling 
Business Practice Standards. The Rated System Path Methodology is 
described in WEQ-023-2.2.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \73\ Id. P 62.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    67. First, under MOD-029-2a Requirement R1, a Transmission Operator 
must calculate total transfer capability using a model that meets 
detailed scope and criteria specified in the requirement. However, WEQ-
023-2.2.1 only requires that an entity choosing to use the rated system 
path methodology must use the lesser of the maximum allowable 
contractual allocation or the Transmission Operator's reliability 
limit. The NAESB WEQ-023-2.2 Modeling Business Practice Standards do 
not appear to have standards that account for geographic 
specifications, time period consistency, remedial action systems, and 
in-service elements that are not present. Similarly, MOD-029-2a 
Requirement R2 lists a detailed process by which the Transmission 
Operator must establish total transfer capability, however, NAESB WEQ-
023-2.2 does not appear to describe a similar process in its standards. 
We seek comment as to whether these potential discrepancies could lead 
to an inappropriate decrease in modeling consistency or accuracy and, 
if so, how this should be remedied.
    68. MOD-029-2a Requirement R4 requires the Transmission Operator to 
make available to the Transmission Service Provider the appropriate 
most recent value for TTC and the TTC study report within seven days of 
its finalization. The NAESB WEQ-023 Modeling Business Practice 
Standards includes a standard, WEQ-023-1.7, under which certain 
specified entities with a reliability need may request clarification of 
a transmission provider's total transfer capability, or its ATCID, 
CBMID, or TRMID, and receive the requested information within 45 days, 
and under WEQ-023-2.2.2 the Transmission Operator shall provide the 
Transmission Service Provider with the most current values of TTC 
within seven calendar days of their establishment. We seek comment as 
to whether these provisions in the WEQ-023-2.2 are sufficient to 
maintain the transparency and data availability provided under the 
current MOD A standards, and if not, how this should be remedied.
    69. The third of the three ATC ``methodology'' standards, NERC 
Reliability Standard MOD-030-3 (Flowgate Methodology), describes the 
flowgate methodology for determining available transfer capability and 
has eleven requirements. The purpose of this NERC Reliability Standard 
is to provide consistency, accuracy, and reliability in the development 
and documentation of transfer capability calculations for short-term 
use performed by entities using the flowgate methodology to support 
analysis and system operations.\74\ The Flowgate Methodology is 
described in WEQ-023-2.3.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \74\ Id. P 66.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    70. MOD-030-3 Requirements R1 and R2 provide detail regarding the 
information a Transmission Service Provider must include in its ATCID. 
Requirement R1 includes the criteria used to determine which facilities 
should be considered potential flowgates, and what information is to be 
used about adjacent balancing authority areas. Requirement R2 contains 
a list of minimum characteristics used to identify a particular set of 
transmission facilities as a flowgate. We seek comment on whether an 
appropriate degree of transparency and consistency in the 
identification of flowgates is maintained through WEQ-023-1.1.1.3.1 and 
elsewhere under the NAESB WEQ-023 Modeling Business Practice Standards 
and if so, how this should be remedied.
    71. MOD-030-3 Requirements R3.2 and R3.3 require each Transmission 
Operator to provide a transmission model that meets specified criteria 
and establish requirements for daily and monthly updates of the 
modeling values used in AFC calculations, including adjacent areas. We 
seek comment as to whether a requirement to update available flowgate 
capability calculations is necessary in NAESB WEQ-023-2.3 or elsewhere 
in the NAESB WEQ-023 Modeling Business Practice Standards. Similarly, 
Requirement R4 details how a Transmission Service Provider shall 
represent the sources and sinks associated with transmission service 
when conducting AFC calculations. These NERC requirements do not appear 
to be carried into the NAESB WEQ-023-2.3 Modeling Business Practice 
Standards. We seek comment on whether these omissions could lead to a 
reduction of calculation accuracy or an unwarranted increase in 
discretion and if so, how this should be remedied.
    72. As discussed above, we seek comment on the adequacy of the 
NAESB WEQ-023 Modeling Business Practice Standards to replace the 
existing NERC MOD A Reliability Standards when their proposed 
retirement becomes effective, and whether to encourage NAESB to include 
additional detail or other further modifications in future versions of 
the Modeling Business Practice Standards. In summary, while we propose 
to incorporate these standards by reference, we also seek comments on: 
(i) The overall effectiveness of the standards in NAESB's WEQ-023 
Modeling Business Practice Standards; (ii) whether the NAESB Business 
Practice Standards sufficiently limit transmission provider discretion 
over ATC; (iii) whether customer concerns expressed in response to the 
April 2015 technical workshop regarding inconsistencies between 
transmission systems in treatment of outages need to be addressed; (iv) 
whether the posting and sharing of data and information used in 
determining ATC is sufficiently transparent; (v) whether the 
specificity of modeling requirements is sufficient to ensure 
nondiscriminatory access; (vi) whether the ATC calculation components 
described correspond with operations, modeling, and planning data used 
by Transmission Providers; (vii) whether the level of detail required 
in the ATCID is sufficient to ensure nondiscriminatory access; and 
(viii) whether the Commission should seek to address the concerns 
raised in response to these comments through a new request to NAESB and 
its stakeholder process.
2. Standards To Ensure Electronic Tagging (e-Tagging)
    73. The WEQ Version 003.3 Standards modify the WEQ-004 Coordinate 
Interchange Business Practice Standards to ensure e-Tagging 
transactions will continue to function as needed for commercial 
purposes. The WEQ-004 Coordinate Interchange Business Practice 
Standards revisions incorporate commercially relevant requirements 
proposed for retirement by NERC from the NERC INT Reliability Standards 
\75\ and include a requirement to register

[[Page 55213]]

pseudo-ties in the NAESB Electric Industry Registry (EIR).\76\
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \75\ In addition to its proposed retirement of the MOD A 
Reliability Standards in its RM19-17-000 petition, NERC proposed to 
retire currently-effective Reliability Standards and requirements in 
other categories, including INT-004-3.1 and INT-010-2.1 (in their 
entirety), and INT-006-5, Requirements R3.1, R4 and R5, and INT-009-
3, Requirement R2.
    \76\ The NAESB EIR tool serves as the central repository for 
information utilized by the wholesale electric industry in 
commercial scheduling and transmission management operations. See 
NAESB WEQ Version 003.3 Report, Transmittal at 17-18.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    74. NAESB's revised WEQ-004 Coordinate Interchange Business 
Practice Standards to ensure e-Tagging transactions continue to 
function as needed for commercial purposes do not appear inconsistent 
with any Commission directives or findings in other orders. 
Accordingly, we propose to incorporate by reference, into the 
Commission's regulations at 18 CFR 38.1(b), NAESB's revised standards 
modify the WEQ-004 Coordinate Interchange standards to ensure e-Tagging 
transactions will continue to function as needed for commercial 
purposes, as set forth in NAESB's WEQ Version 003.3 Standards.
3. E-Tagging Commercial Timing
    75. The WEQ Version 003.3 Standards also revise the Appendix D--
Commercial Timing Tables \77\ in the WEQ-004 Coordinate Interchange 
Business Practice Standards. The Appendix D--Commercial Timing Tables 
were revised to ensure entities do not receive additional time to 
conduct market assessments beyond the prescribed timing parameters. The 
revisions therefore provide additional clarity as to the timing 
requirements for conducting e-Tagging transactions and correct an 
unrelated typographical error in Appendix A--e-Tagging Service 
Performance Requirements and Failure Procedures.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \77\ WEQ-004-D includes two tables that establish timing 
requirements regarding the submittal and commercial assessments of 
e-Tags for the Eastern Interconnection and Western Interconnection, 
respectively. These tables are complementary to timing tables 
regarding reliability assessments of e-Tags for the Eastern 
Interconnection and Western Interconnection included as part of NERC 
Reliability Standard INT-006-4.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    76. NAESB's revised WEQ-004 Coordinate Interchange Business 
Practice Standards, Appendix D--Commercial Timing Tables, and corrected 
Appendix A--e-Tagging Service Performance Requirements and Failure 
Procedures provide additional clarity regarding the timing requirements 
for conducting e-Tagging transactions, and do not appear inconsistent 
with any Commission directives or findings in other orders. 
Accordingly, we propose to incorporate by reference, into the 
Commission's regulations at 18 CFR 38.1(b), NAESB's revised standards 
that modify the Appendix D--Commercial Timing Tables, WEQ-004 
Coordinate Interchange Business Practice Standards, as set forth in 
NAESB's WEQ Version 003.3 Standards.

E. Revisions to WEQ Business Practice Standards Not Requested by 
Commission or Developed To Comply With a Commission Directive

    77. In addition to the standards revisions that NAESB made to 
comply with various Commission directives and requests, the WEQ Version 
003.3 Standards also include revisions undertaken by NAESB to support 
the Parallel Flow Visualization (PFV) congestion management process 
(described above), as well as changes to the OASIS suite of standards 
that support transparency, consistency, and efficiency.
OASIS Transparency, Consistency, and Efficiency Changes
    78. The WEQ Version 003.3 Standards include additions, revisions, 
and reservations intended to increase transparency, consistency, and/or 
efficiency for the industry in the utilization of OASIS. As a result, 
the WEQ Version 003.3 Standards include changes to the OASIS suite of 
standards. First, the OASIS suite of standards was modified to provide 
additional query functionality within OASIS by accommodating multiple 
query variables.\78\ These changes allow for multiple transmission 
service requests and transmission service reservations to be returned 
in a single query response, reducing the need for a transmission 
customer or transmission provider to conduct multiple queries.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \78\ The WEQ-001 OASIS Business Practice Standards, the WEQ-002 
OASIS Standards and Communication Protocols Business Practice 
Standards, the WEQ-003 OASIS Data Dictionary Business Practice 
Standards, and the WEQ-013 OASIS Implementation Guide Business 
Practice Standards.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    79. Second, the OASIS suite of standards was modified \79\ to 
establish a mechanism within OASIS to document all encumbrances to 
unconditional firm transmission service, such as untagged pseudo-ties. 
NAESB states this new mechanism provides increased visibility regarding 
encumbrances on OASIS, which will serve to prevent encumbered 
unconditional firm transmission capacity from being released as non-
firm ATC or AFC. Further, NAESB states the new mechanism will result in 
improved transparency regarding encumbrances which will help to ensure 
that any encumbered capacity is only used for its intended purpose.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \79\ The WEQ-000 Abbreviations, Acronyms, and Definition of 
Terms Business Practice Standards, the WEQ-001 OASIS Business 
Practice Standards, the WEQ-002 OASIS Standards and Communication 
Protocols Business Practice Standards, the WEQ-003 OASIS Data 
Dictionary Business Practice Standards, and the WEQ-013 OASIS 
Implementation Guide Business Practice Standards.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    80. Third, the OASIS suite of standards was revised \80\ to provide 
new functionality and improve efficiencies regarding dynamic 
notifications to transmission customers and rollover rights renewal. 
The HTTP format for dynamic notifications was replaced with a generic 
email format that could be utilized for any status notifications 
deadline.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \80\ The WEQ-001 OASIS Business Practice Standards, the WEQ-002 
OASIS Standards and Communication Protocols Business Practice 
Standards, the WEQ-003 OASIS Data Dictionary Business Practice 
Standards, and the WEQ-013 OASIS Implementation Guide Business 
Practice Standards.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    81. Fourth, the WEQ-001 OASIS Business Practice Standards were 
modified to provide clarity regarding the use of Next Hour Market 
Service and the 0-NX transmission product code.\81\ NAESB states the 
revised standards clarify that the 0-NX transmission product code is 
the lowest curtailment priority and can be used for purposes outside of 
the identification of Next Hour Market Service.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \81\ The WEQ-001 OASIS Business Practice Standards.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    82. Fifth, modifications were made to NITS-related standards \82\ 
within the WEQ OASIS suite of standards. NITS allows transmission 
customers the ability to integrate and economically dispatch network 
resources to serve network load, making the treatment of these 
customers comparable to how the transmission provider would utilize its 
own system to serve its native load customers. NAESB states substantive 
changes provide increased flexibility in the use of scheduling rights, 
improve efficiencies to the query functionality, support the use of 
fractional megawatt values in generator attributes, and create new 
dynamic notifications.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \82\ The WEQ-001 OASIS Business Practice Standards, the WEQ-002 
OASIS Standards and Communication Protocols Business Practice 
Standards, the WEQ-003 OASIS Data Dictionary Business Practice 
Standards, and the WEQ-013 OASIS Implementation Guide Business 
Practice Standards.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    83. Accordingly, we propose to incorporate by reference into the 
Commission's regulations at 18 CFR 38.1(b) NAESB's additions, 
revisions, and reservations to the OASIS suite of standards, which 
include the WEQ-001 OASIS Business Practice Standards, the WEQ-002 
OASIS Standards and Communication Protocols Business Practice 
Standards, the WEQ-003 OASIS Data Dictionary Business Practice 
Standards, and WEQ-013 OASIS Implementation Guide Business

[[Page 55214]]

Practice Standards, as set forth in NAESB's WEQ Version 003.3 
Standards.

IV. Implementation Schedule

    84. As discussed briefly above, the Commission proposes to 
incorporate by reference into its regulations the proposed NAESB 
Business Practice Standards that address the revisions related to the 
surety assessment on cybersecurity performed by Sandia on a different 
timeline than for the remainder of the changes proposed by NAESB in WEQ 
Version 003.3. The Commission proposes that industry filers submit 
compliance filings on proposed cybersecurity nine months after the 
publication of a final rule in this proceeding, with implementation 
required no sooner than three months after compliance filings are 
submitted to the Commission, for a total implementation period of at 
least 12 months.
    85. The Commission notes that for the WEQ Version 003.3 Standards 
that pertain to OASIS, NAESB includes in its Business Practice 
Standards WEQ 002-6, a 12-month implementation period. WEQ 002-6 
provides a nine-month proposed timeline for transmission providers to 
implement all changes required to support the OASIS-related standards 
and an additional three months following this implementation period for 
transmission customers to complete any necessary actions. WEQ-002-6 
also requires OASIS nodes to maintain full support for queries and 
uploads as formatted under the past version of the OASIS-related 
standards during the full 12-month proposed implementation timeline.
    86. The Commission proposes to implement the WEQ Version 003.3 
Standards, other than those related to cybersecurity,\83\ under an 18-
month implementation timeline. Nonetheless, the Commission acknowledges 
that based upon when the Commission issues a final rule, industry may 
be required to incorporate certain changes proposed under WEQ Version 
003.3 Standards while also implementing changes required by Order No. 
676-I.\84\ There is the potential for industry to be required to 
incorporate the changes made in the WEQ 003.2 Standards as adopted by 
the Commission in Order No. 676-I either immediately prior to or 
simultaneously with the changes required in the WEQ Version 003.3 
Business Practice Standards based upon when the Commission decides to 
issue a final rule herein.\85\ Given this possibility, the Commission 
requests comments on how best to proceed with the implementation of the 
remaining WEQ 003.3 Business Practice Standards, including the 
standards related to PFV and OASIS, but not those related to 
cybersecurity, to be incorporated by reference. Specifically, rather 
than being implemented on the separate timeline for the cybersecurity, 
as described herein: Should the Commission require the industry to 
implement WEQ Version 003.2 prior to WEQ Version 003.3. Alternatively, 
should the Commission cancel the implementation obligation of WEQ 
Version 003.2 and instead require implementation of all accepted WEQ 
Version 003.3 standards, including WEQ Version 003.2 changes, within 18 
months.\86\ Please provide comment as to a preferred approach and 
timeline for implementation of these various WEQ Standards.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \83\ A complete list of the specific cybersecurity business 
practice standards is included at Appendix I.
    \84\ The Commission is not proposing an implementation timeline 
for the ATC-related standards at this time. The implementation of 
NAESB's ATC-related standards under WEQ-023 will be coordinated with 
the retirement of the NERC MOD A standards being addressed in Docket 
Nos. RM19-16-000 and RM19-17-000.
    \85\ On April 3, 2020, the Commission issued a notice granting 
an 18-month extension to implement the changes incorporated by 
reference in Order No. 676-I.
    \86\ This would include all WEQ Version 003.3 standards except 
for the cybersecurity standards which have an earlier implementation 
timeline, as discussed herein, as well as the implementation of the 
NAESB ATC-related standards contained in WEQ-023, which will be 
coordinated with the retirement of the NERC MOD A standards.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

V. Incorporation by Reference

    87. The Office of the Federal Register requires agencies 
incorporating material by reference to discuss, in the preamble of the 
proposed rule, the ways that the materials it incorporates by reference 
are reasonably available to interested parties and how interested 
parties can obtain the materials.\87\ The regulations also require 
agencies to summarize in the preamble of the proposed rule the material 
it incorporates by reference. The standards we are proposing to 
incorporate by reference in this NOPR consist of 14 suites of business 
practice standards applicable to public utilities that own, operate, or 
control facilities used for the transmission of electric energy in 
interstate commerce or for the sale of electric energy at wholesale in 
interstate commerce and any non-public utility that seeks voluntary 
compliance with jurisdictional transmission tariff reciprocity 
conditions. These can be summarized as follows.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \87\ 1 CFR 51.5. See Incorporation by Reference, 79 FR 66267 
(Nov. 7, 2014).
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    88. The WEQ-000 Abbreviations, Acronyms, and Definition of Terms 
Business Practice Standards provide a single location for all 
abbreviations, acronyms, and defined terms referenced in the WEQ 
Business Practice Standards. These standards provide common 
nomenclature for terms within the wholesale electric industry, thereby 
reducing confusion and opportunities for misinterpretation or 
misunderstandings among industry participants.
    89. The OASIS suite of business practice standards (WEQ-001 Open 
Access Same-Time Information Systems (OASIS), WEQ-002 OASIS Standards 
and Communication Protocols, WEQ-003 OASIS Data Dictionary, and WEQ-013 
OASIS Implementation Guide) support the FERC posting and reporting 
requirements that provide information about each transmission 
provider's performance of the requirements of its pro forma OATT. The 
OASIS system is used for scheduling transmission on the bulk power 
system, comprises the computer systems and associated communications 
facilities that public utilities are required to provide for the 
purpose of making available to all transmission users comparable 
interactions, and provides transmission service information and any 
back-end supporting systems or user procedures that collectively 
perform the transaction processing functions for handling requests on 
OASIS. These standards establish business practices and communication 
protocols that provide for consistent implementation across OASIS sites 
as well as consistent methods for posting to OASIS.
    90. The WEQ-001 OASIS Business Practice Standards define the 
general and specific transaction processing requirements and related 
business processes required for OASIS. The standards detail 
requirements related to standard terminology for transmission and 
ancillary services, attribute values defining transmission service 
class and type, ancillary and other services definitions, OASIS 
registration procedures, procurement of ancillary and other services, 
path naming, next hour market service, identical transmission service 
requests, redirects, resales, transfers, OASIS postings, procedures for 
addressing ATC or AFC methodology questions, rollover rights, 
conditional curtailment option reservations, auditing usage of Capacity 
Benefit Margin, coordination of requests for service across multiple 
transmission systems, consolidation, preemption and right-of-first 
refusal process, and NITS requests.
    91. The WEQ-002 OASIS Standards and Communication Protocols 
Business Practice Standards define the technical standards for OASIS. 
These standards

[[Page 55215]]

detail network architecture requirements, information access 
requirements, OASIS and point-to-point interface requirements, 
implementation, and NITS interface requirements.
    92. The WEQ-003 OASIS Data Dictionary Business Practice Standards 
define the data element specifications for OASIS.
    93. The WEQ-004 Coordinate Interchange Business Practice Standards 
define the commercial processes necessary to facilitate interchange 
transactions via Request for Interchange (RFI) and specify the 
arrangements and data to be communicated by the entity responsible for 
authorizing the implementation of such transactions (the entities 
responsible for balancing load and generation).
    94. The WEQ-005 Area Control Error (ACE) Equation Special Cases 
Business Practice Standards define commercial-based requirements 
regarding the obligations of a balancing authority to manage the 
difference between scheduled and actual electrical generation within 
its control area. Each balancing authority manages its ACE in 
accordance with the NERC Reliability Standards. These standards detail 
requirements for jointly owned utilities, supplemental regulation 
service, and load or generation transfer by telemetry.
    95. The WEQ-006 Manual Time Error Correction Business Practice 
Standards define the commercial based procedures to be used for 
reducing time error to within acceptable limits of true time. These 
standards have subsequently been marked reserved by NAESB. In Order No. 
676-I, the Commission incorporated by reference WEQ Version 003.1 of 
the Manual Time Error Correction Business Practice Standards, 
effectively rejecting NAESB's proposal to retire these standards.\88\
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \88\ Order No. 676-I, 170 FERC ] 61,062 at P 46.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    96. The WEQ-007 Inadvertent Interchange Payback Business Practice 
Standards define the methods in which inadvertent energy is paid back, 
mitigating the potential for financial gain through the misuse of 
paybacks for inadvertent interchange. Inadvertent interchange is 
interchange that occurs when a balancing authority cannot fully balance 
generation and load within its area. The standards allow for the 
repayment of any imbalances through bilateral in-kind payback, 
unilateral in-kind payback, or other methods as agreed to.
    97. The WEQ-008 Transmission Loading Relief--Eastern 
Interconnection Business Practice Standards define the business 
practices for cutting transmission service during a TLR event. These 
standards detail requirements for the use of interconnection-wide TLR 
procedures, interchange transaction priorities for use with 
interconnection-wide TLR procedures, and the Eastern Interconnection 
procedure for physical curtailment of interchange transactions.
    98. The WEQ-011 Gas/Electric Coordination Business Practice 
Standards define communication protocols intended to improve 
coordination between the gas and electric industries in daily 
operational communications between transportation service providers and 
gas-fired power plants. The standards include requirements for 
communicating anticipated power generation fuel for the upcoming day as 
well as any operating problems that might hinder gas-fired power plants 
from receiving contractual gas quantities.
    99. The WEQ-012 Public Key Infrastructure (PKI) Business Practice 
Standards establish the cybersecurity framework for parties partaking 
in transactions via a transmission provider's OASIS or e-Tagging 
system. The NAESB PKI framework secure wholesale electric market 
electronic commercial communications via encryption of data and the 
electronic authentication of parties to a transaction using a digital 
certificate issued by a NAESB certified certificate authority. The 
standards define the requirements for parties utilizing the digital 
certificates issued by the NAESB certificate authorities.
    100. The WEQ-013 OASIS Implementation Guide Business Practice 
Standards detail the implementation of the OASIS Business Practice 
Standards. The standards detail requirements related to point-to-point 
OASIS transaction processing, OASIS template implementation, preemption 
and right-of-first-refusal processing, NITS application and 
modification of service processing, and secondary network transmission 
service.
    101. The WEQ-015 Measurement and Verification of Wholesale 
Electricity Demand Response Business Practice Standards define a common 
framework for transparency, consistency, and accountability applicable 
to the measurement and verification of wholesale electric market demand 
response practices. The standards describe performance evaluation 
methodology and criteria for the use of equipment, technology, and 
procedures to quantify the demand reduction value--the measurement of 
reduced electrical usage by a demand resource.
    102. The WEQ-021 Measurement and Verification of Energy Efficiency 
Products Business Practice Standards define a common framework for 
transparency, consistency, and accountability applicable to the 
measurement and verification of wholesale electric market energy 
efficiency practices. The standards establish energy efficiency 
measurement and verification criteria and define requirements for 
energy efficiency resource providers for the measurement and 
verification of energy efficiency products and services offered in the 
wholesale electric markets.
    103. The WEQ-022 EIR Business Practice Standards define the 
business requirements for entities utilizing the NAESB managed EIR, a 
wholesale electric industry tool that serves as the central repository 
for information needed in the scheduling of transmission through 
electronic transactions. The standards describe the roles within EIR, 
registration requirements, and cybersecurity.
    104. The WEQ-023 Modeling Business Practice Standards provide 
technical details concerning the calculation of ATC for wholesale 
electric transmission services. The WEQ-023 standards are intended to 
address the aspects of certain of the NERC MOD A Reliability Standards 
relating to modeling, data and analysis that are included in the NERC's 
proposed retirement of its MOD A Reliability Standards.
    105. In addition, NAESB has adopted an additional eight suites of 
standards that, consistent with our past decisions, we are not 
proposing to incorporate by reference.\89\
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \89\ The suites of NAESB business practice standards we are not 
proposing to incorporate by reference in this NOPR are: (1) The WEQ-
009 Standards of Conduct for Electric Transmission Providers, which 
NAESB has now eliminated as they duplicate the Commission's 
regulations; (2) the WEQ-010 Contracts Related Business Practice 
Standards that establish model contracts for the wholesale electric 
industry, and which the Commission has not incorporated as they are 
not mandatory; (3) the WEQ-014 WEQ/WGQ eTariff Related Business 
Practice Standards, which provide an implementation guide describing 
the various mechanisms, data tables, code values/reference tables, 
and technical specifications used in the submission of electronic 
tariff filings to the Commission, which the Commission has not 
incorporated as these submittals are governed by the Commission's 
eTariff regulations; and (4) the WEQ-016, WEQ-017, WEQ-018, WEQ-019, 
and WEQ-020 Business Practice Standards that were developed as part 
of the Smart Grid implementation and which the Commission adopted as 
non-mandatory guidance in 18 CFR 2.27. See Standards for Business 
Practices and Communication Protocols for Public Utilities, Order 
676-H, 148 FERC ] 61,205, at P 90 (2014).
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    106. Our regulations provide that copies of the standards 
incorporated by reference may be purchased from the North American 
Energy Standards

[[Page 55216]]

Board, 801 Travis Street, Suite 1675, Houston, TX 77002, Phone: (713) 
356-0060, website: http://www.naesb.org/. Copies of the standards may 
be inspected at the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, Public 
Reference and Files Maintenance Branch, 888 First Street NE, 
Washington, DC 20426, Phone: (202) 502-8371, website: http://www.ferc.gov.\90\
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \90\ 18 CFR 284.12 (2019).
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    107. NAESB is a private consensus standards developer that develops 
voluntary wholesale and retail standards related to the energy 
industry. The procedures used by NAESB make its standards reasonably 
available to those affected by the Commission regulations, which 
generally is comprised of entities that have the means to acquire the 
information they need to effectively participate in Commission 
proceedings.\91\ NAESB provides a free electronic read-only version of 
the standards for a three business day period or, in the case of a 
regulatory comment period, through the end of the comment period.\92\ 
Participants can join NAESB, for an annual membership cost of $7,500, 
which entitles them to full participation in NAESB and enables them to 
obtain these standards at no additional cost.\93\ Non-members may 
obtain a complete set of Standards Manuals, Booklets, and Contracts 
from any of the quadrants (WEQ, WGQ, or Retail) on CD for $2,000 and 
the Individual Standards Manual or Booklets for each standard by email 
for $250 per manual or booklet.\94\ In addition, NAESB considers 
requests for waivers of the charges on a case by case basis based on 
need.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \91\ As a private, consensus standards developer, NAESB needs 
the funds obtained from its membership fees and sales of its 
standards to finance the organization. The parties affected by these 
Commission regulations generally are highly sophisticated and have 
the means to acquire the information they need to effectively 
participate in Commission proceedings.
    \92\ Procedures for non-members to evaluate work products before 
purchasing are available at https://www.naesb.org/misc/NAESB_Nonmember_Evaluation.pdf. See Incorporation by Reference, 79 
FR at 66271, n.51 & 53 (citing to NAESB's procedure of providing no-
cost, no-print electronic access), NAESB Comment at 1, http://www.regulations.gov/#!documentDetail;D=OFR-2013-0001-0023).
    \93\ North American Energy Standards Board, NAESB Membership 
Application, https://www.naesb.org/pdf4/naesbapp.pdf.
    \94\ North American Energy Standards Board, NAESB Materials 
Order Form, https://www.naesb.org//pdf/ordrform.pdf.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

VI. Information Collection Statement

    108. The following collection of information contained in this 
proposed rule is subject to review by the Office of Management and 
Budget (OMB) under section 3507(d) of the Paperwork Reduction Act of 
1995, 44 U.S.C. 3507(d).\95\ OMB's regulations require approval of 
certain information collection requirements imposed by agency 
rules.\96\ Upon approval of a collection(s) of information, OMB will 
assign an OMB control number and an expiration date. Respondents 
subject to the filing requirements of this rule will not be penalized 
for failing to respond to these collections of information unless the 
collections of information display a valid OMB control number.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \95\ 44 U.S.C. 3507(d).
    \96\ 5 CFR 1320.11.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    109. The Commission solicits comments on the Commission's need for 
this information, whether the information will have practical utility, 
the accuracy of the provided burden estimates, ways 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.
    110. The following burden estimate is based on the projected costs 
for the industry to implement the new and revised business practice 
standards adopted by NAESB and proposed to be incorporated by reference 
in this NOPR.\97\ The NERC Compliance Registry, as of April 28, 2020, 
identifies approximately 162 in the United States that are subject to 
this proposed rulemaking.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \97\ Commission staff estimates that industry is similarly 
situated in terms of hourly cost (wages plus benefits). Based on the 
Commission average cost (wages plus benefits) for 2020, $83.00/hour 
is used.

                                                         Docket Nos. RM05-5-029 and RM05-05-030
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                                       Annual  number
                                          Number of     of  responses   Total number   Average burden  (hrs.) & cost     Total annual  burden hours &
                                         respondents         per        of responses          ($) per response              total annual cost  ($)
                                                         respondent
                                                  (1)             (2)     (1) * (2) =  (4)..........................  (3) * (4) = (5)
                                                                                  (3)
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
FERC-516E............................             162               1             162  6 hrs.; $498.................  972 hrs.; $80,676
FERC-717.............................             162               1             162  30 hrs.; $2,490..............  4,860 hrs.; $403,380
                                      ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
    Total............................  ..............  ..............             324  $2,988.......................  5,832 hrs.; $484,056
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

    Costs to Comply with Paperwork Requirements:
    The estimated annual costs are as follows:

    FERC-516E: 162 entities x 1 response/entity x (6 hours/response x 
$83.00/hour) = $80,676
    FERC-717: 162 entities x 1 response/entity x (30 hours/response x 
$83.00/hour) = $403,380

    Titles: FERC-516E, Electric Rate Schedule and Tariff Filings and 
FERC-717, Standards for Business Practices and Communication Protocols 
for Public Utilities.
    Action: Proposed amendment to regulations pertaining to the 
existing collections of information FERC-516E and FERC-717.
    OMB Control Nos: 1902-0290 (FERC-516E) and 1902-0173 (FERC-717).
    Respondents: Business or other for profit, and not for profit 
institutions.
    Frequency of Responses: On occasion.
    Necessity of the Information: This proposed rule, if implemented, 
will amend its regulations to incorporate by reference, with certain 
enumerated exceptions, the latest version (Version 003.3) of the 
Standards for Business Practices and Communication Protocols for Public 
Utilities adopted by the Wholesale Electric Quadrant (WEQ) of the North 
American Energy Standards Board (NAESB). WEQ Version 003.3 includes 
standards developed in accordance with recommendations of the 
Department of Energy sponsored cybersecurity surety assessment of the 
NAESB Business Practice Standards that was conducted in 2019. 
Additional standards were developed in response to the directives from 
FERC Order No. 890, such as the standards developed to support Parallel 
Flow Visualization,

[[Page 55217]]

intended to improve congestion management procedures for the Eastern 
Interconnection. The WEQ Version 003.3 Standards also include, in their 
entirety, the WEQ-023 Modeling Business Practice Standards contained in 
the WEQ Version 003.1 Standards, which address the technical issues 
affecting ATC and AFC calculation for wholesale electric transmission 
services, with the addition of certain revisions and corrections. The 
revisions made by NAESB in the WEQ Version 003.3 Standards are designed 
to aid public utilities with the consistent and uniform implementation 
of requirements promulgated by the Commission as part of the pro forma 
Open Access Transmission Tariff.
    Internal Review: The Commission has reviewed NAESB's proposal and 
has made a preliminary determination that the proposed revisions are 
both necessary and useful. In addition, the Commission has assured 
itself, by means of its internal review, that there is specific, 
objective support for the burden estimates associated with the 
information requirements.
    111. Interested persons may obtain information on the reporting 
requirements by contacting the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, 
Office of the Executive Director, 888 First Street NE, Washington, DC 
20426 [Attention: Ellen Brown, email: [email protected], phone: 
(202) 502-8663].
    112. Comments concerning the information collections proposed in 
this NOPR and the associated burden estimates should be sent to the 
Commission at this docket and be email to the Office of Management and 
Budget, Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs [Attention: Desk 
Officer for the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission]. For security 
reasons, comments should be sent by email to OMB at the following email 
address: [email protected]. Please refer to the appropriate 
docket number of this notice of proposed rulemaking Docket Nos. RM05-5-
029 and RM05-5-030 in your and OMB Control Nos. 1902-0290 (FERC-516E) 
and 1902-0173 (FERC-717) in your submission.

VII. Environmental Analysis

    113. 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.\98\ The 
actions proposed here fall within categorical exclusions in the 
Commission's regulations for rules that are clarifying, corrective, or 
procedural, for information gathering, analysis, and dissemination, and 
for sales, exchange, and transportation of electric power that requires 
no construction of facilities.\99\ Therefore, an environmental 
assessment is unnecessary and has not been prepared in this NOPR.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \98\ Regulations Implementing the National Environmental Policy 
Act, Order No. 486, FERC Stats. & Regs. ] 30,783 (1987) (cross-
referenced at 41 FERC ] 61,284).
    \99\ See 18 CFR 380.4(a)(2)(ii); 380.4(a)(5); 380.4(a)(27).
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

VIII. Regulatory Flexibility Act Certification

    114. The Regulatory Flexibility Act of 1980 (RFA) \100\ generally 
requires a description and analysis of proposed rules that will have 
significant economic impact on a substantial number of small entities. 
The RFA does not mandate any particular outcome in a rulemaking. It 
only requires consideration of alternatives that are less burdensome to 
small entities and an agency explanation of why alternatives were 
rejected.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \100\ 5 U.S.C. 601-612.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    115. The Small Business Administration (SBA) revised its size 
standards (effective January 22, 2014) for electric utilities from a 
standard based on megawatt hours to a standard based on the number of 
employees, including affiliates. Under SBA's standards, some 
transmission owners will fall under the following category and 
associated size threshold: Electric bulk power transmission and 
control, at 500 employees.\101\ The Commission estimates that 24 of the 
162 respondents are small or 14.8% of the respondents affected by this 
NOPR.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \101\ 13 CFR 121.201, Sector 22 (Utilities), NAICS code 221121 
(Electric Bulk Power Transmission and Control).
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    116. The Commission estimates that the impact on these entities is 
consistent with the paperwork burden of $2,988 per entity used 
above.\102\ The Commission does not consider $2,988 to be a significant 
economic impact. Based on the above, the Commission certifies that 
implementation of the proposed Business Practice Standards will not 
have a significant impact on a substantial number of small entities. 
Accordingly, no initial regulatory flexibility analysis is required.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \102\ 36 hours at $83.00/hour = $2,988.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

IX. Comment Procedures

    117. The Commission invites interested persons to submit comments 
on the matters and issues proposed in this document to be adopted, 
including any related matters or alternative proposals that commenters 
may wish to discuss. Comments are due November 3, 2020. Comments must 
refer to Docket Nos. RM05-5-029 and RM05-5-030, and must include the 
commenter's name, the organization they represent, if applicable, and 
their address in their comments.
    118. The Commission encourages comments to be filed electronically 
via the eFiling link on the Commission's website at http://www.ferc.gov. The Commission accepts most standard word processing 
formats. Documents created electronically using word processing 
software should be filed in native applications or print-to-PDF format 
and not in a scanned format. Commenters filing electronically do not 
need to make a paper filing.
    119. Commenters that are not able to file comments electronically 
must send an original of their comments to: Federal Energy Regulatory 
Commission, Secretary of the Commission, 888 First Street NE, 
Washington, DC 20426.
    120. All comments will be placed in the Commission's public files 
and may be viewed, printed, or downloaded remotely as described in the 
Document Availability section below. Commenters on this proposal are 
not required to serve copies of their comments on other commenters.

X. Document Availability

    121. 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 the Commission's Home Page (http://www.ferc.gov). At 
this time, the Commission has suspended access to the Commission's 
Public Reference Room due to the President's March 13, 2020 
proclamation declaring a National Emergency concerning the Novel 
Coronavirus Disease (COVID-19).
    122. From the Commission'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.
    123. User assistance is available for eLibrary and the Commission's 
website during normal business hours from the Commission's 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

[[Page 55218]]

the Public Reference Room at [email protected].

List of Subjects

18 CFR Part 37

    Electric utilities, Reporting and recordkeeping requirements.

18 CFR Part 38

    Business practice standards, Electric utilities, Incorporation by 
reference.

    By direction of the Commission.

    Issued: July 16, 2020.
Nathaniel J. Davis, Sr.,
Deputy Secretary.
    In consideration of the foregoing, the Commission proposes to amend 
parts 37 and 38, chapter I, title 18, Code of Federal Regulations, as 
follows:

PART 37--OPEN ACCESS SAME-TIME INFORMATION SYSTEMS

0
1. The authority citation for part 37 continues to read as follows:

    Authority: 16 U.S.C. 791-825r, 2601-2645; 31 U.S.C. 9701; 42 
U.S.C. 7101-7352.

0
2. Amend Sec.  37.6, by revising paragraph (b)(2)(i) to read as 
follows:


Sec.  37.6  Information to be posted on the OASIS.

* * * * *
    (b) * * *
    (2) * * *
    (i) Information used to calculate any posting of ATC and TTC must 
be dated and time-stamped and all calculations shall be performed 
according to consistently applied methodologies referenced in the 
Transmission Provider's transmission tariff and shall be based on 
Commission-approved Reliability Standards, business practice and 
electronic communication standards, and related implementation 
documents, as well as current industry practices, standards and 
criteria. Transmission Providers shall calculate ATC and TTC in 
coordination with and consistent with capability and usage on 
neighboring systems, calculate system capability using factors derived 
from operations and planning data for the time frame for which data are 
being posted (including anticipated outages), and update ATC and TTC 
calculations as inputs change. Such calculations shall be conducted in 
a manner that is transparent, consistent, and not unduly discriminatory 
or preferential.
* * * * *

PART 38--STANDARDS FOR PUBLIC UTILITY BUSINESS OPERATIONS AND 
COMMUNICATIONS

0
3. The authority citation for part 38 continues to read as follows:

    Authority: 16 U.S.C. 791-825r, 2601-2645; 31 U.S.C. 9701; 42 
U.S.C. 7101-7352.

0
4. Revise Sec.  38.1 to read as follows:


Sec.  38.1  Incorporation by reference of North American Energy 
Standards Board Wholesale Electric Quadrant standards.

    (a) Any public utility that owns, operates, or controls facilities 
used for the transmission of electric energy in interstate commerce or 
for the sale of electric energy at wholesale in interstate commerce and 
any non-public utility that seeks voluntary compliance with 
jurisdictional transmission tariff reciprocity conditions must comply 
with the business practice and electronic communication standards 
promulgated by the North American Energy Standards Board (NAESB) 
Wholesale Electric Quadrant (WEQ) that are incorporated by reference in 
paragraph (b) of this section.
    (b) The material cited in this paragraph (b) was approved by the 
Director of the Federal Register for incorporation by reference in this 
section in accordance with 5 U.S.C. 552(a) and 1 CFR part 51. Copies of 
the material may be obtained from North American Energy Standards Board 
(NAESB), 801 Travis Street, Suite 1675, Houston, TX 77002, Tel: (713) 
356-0060. NAESB's website is at www.naesb.org. The material may be 
inspected at the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, Public Reference 
and Files Maintenance Branch, 888 First Street NE, Washington, DC 
20426, Tel: (202) 502-8371, www.ferc.gov, or at the National Archives 
and Records Administration (NARA). For information on the availability 
of this material at NARA, email [email protected], or go to: 
www.archives.gov/federal-register/cfr/ibr-locations.html. The NAESB WEQ 
Business Practice Standards; Standards and Models approved for 
incorporation by reference are:
    (1) WEQ-000, Abbreviations, Acronyms, and Definition of Terms 
([WEQ] Version 003.1, September 30, 2015) (including only the 
definitions of Interconnection Time Monitor, Time Error, and Time Error 
Correction);
    (2) WEQ-000, Abbreviations, Acronyms, and Definition of Terms 
([WEQ] Version 003.3, Mar. 30, 2020);
    (3) WEQ-001, Open Access Same-Time Information Systems (OASIS), 
[OASIS] Version 2.2 ([WEQ] Version 003.3, Mar. 30, 2020) (with minor 
corrections applied April 26, 2019 and March 20, 2020);
    (4) WEQ-002, Open Access Same-Time Information Systems (OASIS) 
Business Practice Standards and Communication Protocols (S&CP), [OASIS] 
Version 2.2 ([WEQ] Version 003.3, Mar. 30, 2020);
    (5) WEQ-003, Open Access Same-Time Information Systems (OASIS) Data 
Dictionary, [OASIS] Version 2.2 ([WEQ] Version 003.3, Mar. 30, 2020) 
(with minor corrections applied July 3, 2019);
    (6) WEQ-004, Coordinate Interchange ([WEQ] Version 003.3, Mar. 30, 
2020);
    (7) WEQ-005, Area Control Error (ACE) Equation Special Cases ([WEQ] 
Version 003.3, Mar. 30, 2020);
    (8) WEQ-006, Manual Time Error Correction ([WEQ] Version 003.1, 
Sept. 30, 2015);
    (9) WEQ-007, Inadvertent Interchange Payback ([WEQ] Version 003.3, 
Mar. 30, 2020);
    (10) WEQ-008, Transmission Loading Relief (TLR)--Eastern 
Interconnection ([WEQ] Version 003.3, Mar. 30, 2020);
    (11) WEQ-011, Gas/Electric Coordination ([WEQ] Version 003.3, Mar. 
30, 2020);
    (12) WEQ-012, Public Key Infrastructure (PKI) ([WEQ] Version 003.3, 
Mar. 30, 2020);
    (13) WEQ-013, Open Access Same-Time Information Systems (OASIS) 
Implementation Guide, [OASIS] Version 2.2 ([WEQ] Version 003.3, Mar. 
30, 2020);
    (14) WEQ-015, Measurement and Verification of Wholesale Electricity 
Demand Response ([WEQ] Version 003.3, Mar. 30, 2020);
    (15) WEQ-021, Measurement and Verification of Energy Efficiency 
Products ([WEQ] Version 003.3, Mar. 30, 2020);
    (16) WEQ-022, Electric Industry Registry ([WEQ] Version 003.3, Mar. 
30, 2020); and
    (17) WEQ-023, Modeling. ([WEQ] Version 003.3, Mar. 30, 2020).

    NOTE:  The Following Appendix Will Not Be Published in the Code 
of Federal Regulations.

Appendix I

[[Page 55219]]



        Standards Affected by the Proposed Revisions to Implement
  Recommendations Following Sandia's Surety Assessment on Cybersecurity
------------------------------------------------------------------------
                Standard                            Revisions
------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                WEQ-000-1
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Deleted seven abbreviations/acronyms...  DNS--Domain Name Service
                                         IPCP--Internet Protocol Control
                                          Protocol
                                         NTP--Network Time Protocol
                                         PPP--Point to Point Protocol
                                         SLIP--Serial Line Internet
                                          Protocol
                                         SNMP--Simple Network Management
                                          Protocol
                                         SSL--Secure Sockets Layer
Added one abbreviation/acronym.........  OWASP--Open Web Application
                                          Security Project
------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                 WEQ-001
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Revised one standard...................  WEQ-001-13.1.3.3
------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                 WEQ-002
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Revised 14 standards...................  WEQ-002-2.3
                                         WEQ-002-2.4
                                         WEQ-002-4.2.1.1
                                         WEQ-002-4.2.1.2
                                         WEQ-002-4.2.1.3
                                         WEQ-002-4.2.2
                                         WEQ-002-5
                                         WEQ-002-5.1.1
                                         WEQ-002-5.1.2
                                         WEQ-002-5.1.3
                                         WEQ-002-5.6
                                         WEQ-002-101.2.3.1
                                         WEQ-002-101.3.3.2
                                         WEQ-002-101.3.3.3
------------------------------------------------------------------------

[FR Doc. 2020-15866 Filed 9-3-20; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6717-01-P