[Federal Register Volume 87, Number 127 (Tuesday, July 5, 2022)]
[Notices]
[Pages 39814-39815]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2022-14234]


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DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY

Federal Energy Regulatory Commission

[Docket No. IC22-12-000]


Commission Information Collection Activities (Ferc-729); 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-729 (Electric Transmission Facilities), 
which will be submitted to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) 
for review.

DATES: Comments on the collection of information are due August 4, 
2022.

ADDRESSES: Send written comments on FERC-729 to the Office of 
Management and Budget (OMB) through www.reginfo.gov/public/do/PRAMain, 
Attention: Federal Energy Regulatory Commission Desk Officer. Please 
identify the OMB Control Number 1902-0238 (Electric Transmission 
Facilities) in the subject line. Your comments should be sent within 30 
days of publication of this notice in the Federal Register.
    Please submit copies of your comments (identified by Docket No. 
IC22-12-000 and FERC-729) to the Commission as noted below. 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 to: Federal Energy 
Regulatory Commission, 12225 Wilkins Avenue, Rockville, MD 20852.
    Please reference the specific collection number(s) (FERC-729) and/
or title(s) (Electric Transmission Facilities) in your comments.
    Instructions: OMB submissions must be formatted and filed in 
accordance with submission guidelines at: www.reginfo.gov/public/do/PRAMain. Using the search function under the ``Currently Under Review 
field,'' select ``Federal Energy Regulatory Commission,'' click 
``submit,'' and select ``comment'' to the right of the subject 
collection. FERC 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] and telephone at (202) 502-8663.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 
    Title: FERC-729, Electric Transmission Facilities.
    OMB Control No.: 1902-0238.
    Type of Request: Three-year extension of the existing information 
collection.
    Abstract: This information collection consists of the filing 
requirements for entities seeking to construct electric transmission 
facilities pursuant to the Commission's authority under section 216 of 
the Federal Power Act (FPA).\1\ Specifically, section 216(b) of the FPA 
authorizes the Commission, under certain circumstances, to issue 
permits for the construction of electric transmission facilities within 
national interest electric transmission corridors designated by the 
Secretary of Energy.
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    \1\ 16 U.S.C. 824p.
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    The purpose of the Commission's part 50 regulations \2\ is to 
provide for efficient and timely review of requests for permits for the 
siting of proposed electric transmission facilities under section 216 
of the FPA. The regulations include filing requirements associated with 
the Commission's pre-filing and application review processes. For the 
Commission's pre-filing process, the regulations require applicants to 
file a pre-filing request \3\ and subsequent information after the 
commencement of the pre-filing process,\4\ including a finalized 
Project Participation Plan, a summary of project alternatives, draft 
resource reports, and monthly status reports. After the conclusion of 
the pre-filing process, the regulations require applicants to file an 
application consisting of general project

[[Page 39815]]

information \5\ and ten exhibits,\6\ including project maps, an 
environmental report, engineering data, and system analysis data.
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    \2\ 18 CFR part 50.
    \3\ 18 CFR part 50(c).
    \4\ 18 CFR part 50(e).
    \5\ 18 CFR part 50.6.
    \6\ 18 CFR part 50.7.
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    The Commission published a 60-day notice for this information 
collection request in the Federal Register on April 15, 2022 (87 FR 
22524), and received no comments on the 60-day notice.
    Type of Respondent: Entities proposing to construct electric 
transmission facilities pursuant to the Commission's authority under 
section 216 of the FPA.
    Estimate of Annual Burden: The Commission estimates the annual 
public reporting burden \7\ for the information collection as:
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    \7\ ``Burden'' is the total time, effort, or financial resources 
expended by persons to generate, maintain, retain, or disclose or 
provide information to or for a Federal agency. For further 
explanation of what is included in the information collection 
burden, refer to 5 CFR 1320.3.

                                         FERC-729 (OMB Control No. 1902-0238): Electric Transmission Facilities
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                                                                               Annual number of                      Average burden &     Total annual
                                                               Number of        responses per     Total number of        cost per        burden hours &
                                                              respondents         respondent         responses         response \8\    total annual cost
                                                                         (1)                (2)    (1) * (2) = (3)                (4)    (3) * (4) = (5)
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Electric Transmission Facilities.........................                  1                  1                  1              9,600              9,600
                                                                                                                             $835,200           $835,200
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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.
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    \8\ FERC staff estimates that industry costs for salary plus 
benefits are similar to Commission costs. The cost figure is the 
FY2021 FERC average annual salary plus benefits ($180,702/year or 
$87/hour).

    Dated: June 28, 2022.
Kimberly D. Bose,
Secretary.
[FR Doc. 2022-14234 Filed 7-1-22; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6717-01-P