[Federal Register Volume 86, Number 16 (Wednesday, January 27, 2021)]
[Notices]
[Pages 7289-7290]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2021-01756]


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DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY

Federal Energy Regulatory Commission

[Docket No. IC21-6-000]


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

AGENCY: Federal Energy Regulatory Commission.

ACTION: Notice of information collection and request for comments.

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SUMMARY: In compliance with the requirements of the Paperwork Reduction 
Act of 1995, the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (Commission or 
FERC) is soliciting public comment on the currently approved 
information collection FERC-725S (Emergency Preparedness and Operations 
(EOP) Reliability Standards) and submitting the information collection 
to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) for review. Any interested 
person may file comments directly with OMB and should address a copy of 
those comments to the Commission as explained below.

DATES: Comments on the collection of information are due February 26, 
2021.

ADDRESSES: You may submit comments (identified by Docket No. IC21-6-
000) by one of the following methods:
     eFiling at Commission's Website: http://www.ferc.gov.
     U.S. Postal Service Mail: Persons unable to file 
electronically may mail similar pleadings to the Federal Energy 
Regulatory Commission, 888 First Street NE, Washington, DC 20426.
     Effective 7/1/2020, delivery of filings other than by 
eFiling or the U.S. Postal Service should be delivered to Federal 
Energy Regulatory Commission, Office of the Secretary, 12225 Wilkins 
Avenue, Rockville, Maryland 20852.
    Instructions: All submissions must be formatted and filed in 
accordance with submission guidelines at: http://www.ferc.gov. For user 
assistance, contact FERC Online Support by email at 
[email protected], or by phone at (866) 208-3676 (toll-free).
    Docket: Users interested in receiving automatic notification of 
activity in this docket or in viewing/downloading comments and 
issuances in this docket may do so at http://www.ferc.gov.

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

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 
    Title: FERC-725S, Emergency Preparedness and Operations (EOP) 
Reliability Standards.
    OMB Control No.: 1902-0270.
    Type of Request: Three-year approval of the FERC-725S information 
collection requirements with no changes to the current reporting 
requirements.
    Abstract: The Electricity Modernization Act of 2005, which is Title 
XII of the Energy Policy Act of 2005 (EPAct 2005), added a new section

[[Page 7290]]

215 to the Federal Power Act (FPA).\1\ FPA section 215 requires a 
Commission-certified Electric Reliability Organization (ERO) to develop 
mandatory and enforceable Reliability Standards, subject to Commission 
review and approval. Section 215 of the FPA requires a Commission-
certified ERO to develop mandatory and enforceable Reliability 
Standards, subject to Commission review and approval. In 2006, the 
Commission certified North American Electric Reliability Corporation 
(NERC) as the ERO pursuant to section 215 of the FPA. FERC-725S 
consists of Emergency Preparedness and Operations (EOP) Reliability 
Standards, EOP-004-4 (Event Reporting), EOP-005-3 (System Restoration 
from Blackstart Resources), EOP-006-3 (System Restoration 
Coordination), EOP-008-2 (Loss of Control Center Functionality), EOP-
010-1 (Geomagnetic Disturbance Operations), and EOP-011-1 (Emergency 
Operations). These Reliability Standards enhance reliability by:
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    \1\ 16 U.S.C. 824o. The approved Reliability Standards are 
available on the Commission's eLibrary document retrieval system on 
the NERC website, www.nerc.com.
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    (1) Providing accurate reporting of events to NERC's event analysis 
group to analyze the impact on the reliability of the bulk electric 
system (Reliability Standard EOP-004-4).
    (2) delineating the roles and responsibilities of entities that 
support system restoration from blackstart resources which generate 
power without the support of the bulk electric system (Reliability 
Standard EOP-005-3).
    (3) clarifying the procedures and coordination requirements for 
reliability coordinator personnel to execute system restoration 
processes (Reliability Standard EOP-006-3).
    (4) refining the required elements of an operating plan used to 
continue reliable operations of the bulk electric system in the event 
that primary control center functionality is lost (Reliability Standard 
EOP-008-2).
    (5) addressing the effects of operating Emergencies by ensuring 
each Transmission Operator and Balancing Authority has developed 
Operating Plan(s) to mitigate operating Emergencies, and that those 
plans are coordinated within a Reliability Coordinator Area (EOP-010-
1).
    (6) streamlining the requirements for Emergency operations of the 
Bulk Electric System. Attachment 1, which is incorporated into 
Requirements R2 and R6, provides the process and descriptions of the 
levels used by the Reliability Coordinator when communicating the 
condition of a Balancing Authority that is experiencing an Energy 
Emergency (EOP-011-1).
    The 60-day notice was published on November 18, 2020 (85 FR 73477), 
and no comments were received.
    Type of Respondents: Public utilities subject to the FPA.
    Estimate of Annual Burden \2\ and cost: \3\ With the exception of 
adjustments due to the Commission's recent experience with this 
information collection, the Commission estimates there will be no 
changes in the annual public reporting burden for the FERC-735S, as 
follows:
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    \2\ Burden is defined as the total time, effort, or financial 
resources expended by persons to generate, maintain, retain, or 
disclose or provide information to or for a Federal agency. For 
further explanation of what is included in the information 
collection burden, refer to 5 Code of Federal Regulations 1320.3.
    \3\ Commission staff estimates that the industry's skill set and 
cost (for wages and benefits) for FERC-725S are approximately the 
same as the Commission's average cost. The FERC 2020 average salary 
plus benefits for one FERC full-time equivalent (FTE) is $172,329/
year (or $83.00/hour).
    \4\ The number of respondents is based on NERC compliance 
registration information as of October 2, 2020.

                                                                        FERC-725S
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                                          Number of     Annual number
 Reliability standard and associated     respondents    of responses    Total number     Average burden & cost    Total annual burden &      Cost per
             requirement                     \4\       per respondent   of responses         per response           total annual cost     respondent ($)
                                                  (1)             (2)     (1) * (2) =  (4).....................  (3) * (4) = (5)........       (5) / (1)
                                                                                  (3)
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EOP-010-1............................             181               1             181  20 hrs.; $1,660.........  3,620 hrs.; $300,460...          $1,660
EOP-011-1............................              12               1              12  1,500 hrs.; $124,500....  18,000 hrs.; $1,494,000         124,500
EOP-004-4, EOP-005-3, EOP-006-3, EOP-             280               1             280  250.58 hrs.; $20,798....  70,162.4 hrs.;                   20,798
 008-2.                                                                                                           $5,234,440.
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    Total EOP........................             473  ..............  ..............  ........................  91,782 hrs.; $7,028,900  ..............
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    Comments: Comments are invited on: (1) Whether the collection of 
information is necessary for the proper performance of the functions of 
the Commission, including whether the information will have practical 
utility; (2) the accuracy of the agency's estimate of the burden and 
cost of the collection of information, including the validity of the 
methodology and assumptions used; (3) ways to enhance the quality, 
utility and clarity of the information collection; and (4) ways to 
minimize the burden of the collection of information on those who are 
to respond, including the use of automated collection techniques or 
other forms of information technology.

    Dated: January 21, 2021.
Nathaniel J. Davis, Sr.,
Deputy Secretary.
[FR Doc. 2021-01756 Filed 1-26-21; 8:45 am]
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