[Federal Register Volume 86, Number 89 (Tuesday, May 11, 2021)]
[Notices]
[Pages 25852-25854]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2021-09935]


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DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY

Federal Energy Regulatory Commission

[Docket No. IC21-20-000]


Commission Information Collection Activities (FERC-567, FERC-
576); Consolidated Comment Request; Extension

AGENCY: Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, Department of Energy.

ACTION: Notice of information collections and request for comments.

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SUMMARY: In compliance with the requirements of the Paperwork Reduction 
Act of 1995, the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (Commission or 
FERC) is soliciting public comment on the currently approved 
information collections, FERC-567 (Gas Pipeline Certificates: Annual 
Reports of System Flow Diagrams) and FERC-576 (Report of Service 
Interruptions or Damage to Facilities) which will be submitted to the 
Office of Management and Budget (OMB) for a review of the information 
collection requirements.

DATES: Comments on the collections of information are due July 12, 
2021.

ADDRESSES: You may submit copies of your comments (identified by Docket 
No. IC21-20-000 and the specific FERC collection number (FERC-567 or 
FERC-576)) by one of the following methods:
    Electronic filing through http://www.ferc.gov, is preferred.
     Electronic Filing: Documents must be filed 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 USPS mail or by hand (including courier) delivery:
    [cir] Mail via U.S. Postal Service Only: Addressed to: Federal 
Energy Regulatory Commission, Secretary of the Commission, 888 First 
Street NE, Washington, DC 20426.
    [cir] Hand (including courier) Delivery: Deliver to: Federal Energy 
Regulatory Commission, 12225 Wilkins Avenue, Rockville, MD 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.
    Comments: Comments are invited on: (1) Whether the collections 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 \1\ 
and cost of the

[[Page 25853]]

collections of information, including the validity of the methodology 
and assumptions used; (3) ways to enhance the quality, utility and 
clarity of the information collections; and (4) ways to minimize the 
burden of the collections of information on those who are to respond, 
including the use of automated collection techniques or other forms of 
information technology.
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    \1\ 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 
collections burden, reference 5 Code of Federal Regulations 1320.3.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The following information pertains to FERC-
567 only.
    Title: FERC-567, Gas Pipeline Certificates: Annual Reports of 
System Flow Diagrams.
    OMB Control No.: 1902-0005.
    Type of Request: Three-year extension of the FERC-567 information 
collection requirements with no changes to the current reporting 
requirements.
    Abstract: Per 18 Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) 260.8(a), each 
major interstate natural gas pipeline with a system delivery capacity 
exceeding 100,000 Mcf \2\ per day is required to submit, by June 1 of 
each year, diagrams reflecting operating conditions on the pipeline's 
main transmission system during the previous 12 months ending on 
December 31. The submitted information must include (i) configuration 
and location of installed pipeline facilities; (ii) receipt and 
delivery points between shippers, and pipeline companies; (iii) 
location of compressor stations on a pipeline system; (iv) pipeline 
diameters; (v) maximum allowable operating pressures; (vi) suction and 
discharge pressures at compressor stations; (vii) installed horsepower 
and volumes compressed at each compressor station; (viii) existing 
shippers currently nominating service under firm contracts on each 
pipeline company; and (ix) peak capacity on the system. The data is 
collected so that it's available in the event the Commission needs to 
confirm pipeline facility data.
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    \2\ Mcf is a unit of measurement for natural gas that equals 
1,000 cubic feet.
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    Type of Respondents: Natural gas pipeline companies with a system 
delivery capacity in excess of 100,000 Mcf per day.
    Estimate of Annual Burden: The Commission estimates the annual 
public reporting burden for the information collection as:
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    \3\ The number of respondents in the currently approved OMB 
inventory for FERC-567 is 197. Changes to the estimate were based on 
average number of respondents over the past three years.
    \4\ The Commission staff estimates that the average respondent 
for FERC-567 is similarly situated to the Commission, in terms of 
salary plus benefits. Based on FERC's 2020 annual average of 
$172,329 (for salary plus benefits), the average hourly cost is $83/
hour.

                                       FERC-567--Gas Pipeline Certificates: Annual Reports of System Flow Diagrams
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                                     Number of     Annual number
           Respondents              respondents    of responses    Total number of     Average burden and     Total annual burden hours      Cost per
                                        \3\       per respondent      responses       cost per response \4\     and total annual cost     respondent ($)
                                             (1)             (2)    (1) * (2) = (3)  (4)...................  (3) * (4) = (5)............       (5) / (1)
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Natural Gas Pipelines...........             124               1                124  4 hrs.; $332..........  496 hrs.; $41,168..........            $332
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    The following information pertains to FERC-576 only.
    Title: FERC-576, Report of Service Interruptions or Damage to 
Facilities.
    OMB Control No.: 1902-0004.
    Type of Request: Three-year extension of the FERC-576 information 
collection requirements with no changes to the current reporting 
requirements.
    Abstract: Per 18 CFR 260.9, natural gas pipeline companies must 
report (i) damage to any jurisdictional natural gas facilities other 
than liquefied natural gas facilities caused by a hurricane, earthquake 
or other natural disaster or terrorist activity that results in a loss 
of or reduction in pipeline throughput or storage deliverability; and 
(ii) serious interruptions of service to any shipper involving 
jurisdictional natural gas facilities other than liquefied natural gas 
facilities.
    The notifications, made to the Director, Division of Pipeline 
Certificates via email or fax as soon as feasibly possible, must state: 
(1) The location of the service interruption or damage to natural gas 
pipeline or storage facilities; (2) The nature of any damage to 
pipeline or storage facilities; (3) Specific identification of the 
facilities damaged; (4) The time the service interruption or damage to 
the facilities occurred; (5) The customers affected by the service 
interruption or damage to the facilities; (6) Emergency actions taken 
to maintain service; and (7) Company contact and telephone number. The 
information provided by these notifications are kept by the Commission 
and are not made part of the public record.
    In addition, if an incident requires reporting of the incident to 
the Department of Transportation under the Natural Gas Pipeline Safety 
Act of 1968, a copy of such report shall be submitted to the Director 
of the Commission's Division of Pipeline Certificates, within 30 days 
of the reportable incident. Natural gas companies must also send a copy 
of submitted reports to each state commission for the state(s) in which 
the reported service interruption occurred. If the Commission did not 
collect this information, it would lose a data point that assists in 
the monitoring of transactions, operations, and reliability of 
interstate pipelines.
    Type of Respondents: Natural gas companies experiencing service 
interruptions or damage to facilities.
    Estimate of Annual Burden: The Commission estimates the average 
annual burden and cost \5\ for this information collection as follows.
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    \5\ Costs (for wages and benefits) are based on wage figures 
from the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) for May 2020 (at https://www.bls.gov/oes/current/naics2_22.htm). Commission staff estimates 
that 20% of the work is performed by a manager, and 80% is performed 
by legal staff. The hourly costs for wages plus benefits are:
     Management (Occupational Code: 11-0000) is $97.89.
     Legal (Occupational Code: 23-0000) is $142.25. 
Therefore, the weighted hourly cost (for wages plus benefits) is 
$133.38 [(0.20 * $97.89) + (0.80 * $142.25)].

[[Page 25854]]



                                            FERC-576--Report of Service Interruptions or Damage to Facilities
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                                   Number of     Annual number                                                                               Cost per
                                  respondents    of responses    Total number of   Average burden hours and   Total annual burden hours   respondent \7\
                                      \6\       per respondent      responses        cost ($) per response      and total annual cost           ($)
                                           (1)             (2)    (1) * (2) = (3)  (4).....................  (3) * (4) = (5)............       (5) / (1)
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Notification of Incident--                  50               1                 50  1 hr.; $133.38..........  50 hrs.; $6,669............         $133.38
 Service Interruption.
Notification of Incident--                  22               1                 22  0.25 hrs.; $33.45.......  5.5 hrs.; $735.90..........           33.45
 Damage.
Submittal of DOT Incident                   10               1                 10  0.25 hrs.; $33.45.......  2.5 hrs.; $333.45..........           33.45
 Report.
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    Total.....................              82  ..............  .................  ........................  84 hrs.; $11,212.74........  ..............
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    Dated: May 5, 2021.
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    \6\ The total number of respondents in the currently approved 
OMB inventory for FERC-576 is 147. Changes to the estimate were 
based on average number of respondents over the past three years.
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Kimberly D. Bose,
Secretary.
[FR Doc. 2021-09935 Filed 5-10-21; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6717-01-P