United States Government Publishing Office publisher pbl distributor dst United States Government Accountability Office author aut Government Organization text government publication eng GAOREPORTS Legislative Agency Publications gao legislative 2010-08-12 U.S. Government Printing Office 2001-05-02 monographic deposited born digital 38 p. GA 1.13:GAO-01-499 https://www.govinfo.gov/app/details/GAOREPORTS-GAO-01-499 P0b002ee180390f69 f:d01499 DGPO 2010-08-12 2011-03-28 GAOREPORTS-GAO-01-499 machine generated eng fdlp REPORT GAOREPORTS-GAO-01-499 GAO-01-499 Electric power generation Hydroelectric powerplants Licenses Other Written Product A00778 This report assesses the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) licensing process. Specifically, GAO examines (1) why the licensing process now takes longer and costs more than it did when FERC issued most original licenses several decades ago; (2) whether participants in the licensing process agree on the need for, and type of, further reforms to reduce time and costs; and (3) whether available time and cost data are sufficient to allow informed decisions on the effectiveness of recent reforms and the need for further reforms. GAO found that, since 1986, FERC has been required to give "equal consideration" to, and make tradeoffs among, hydropower generation and other competing resource needs. Additional environmental and land management laws have also placed additional requirements on other federal and state agencies participating in the licensing process to address specific resource needs. GAO found no agreement between FERC, federal and state land resource agencies, licensees, environmental groups, and other participants in the licensing process on the need for further reforms to reduce process-related time and costs. Finally, available time and cost data are insufficient to allow informed decisions on the effectiveness of recent reforms. Without complete and accurate time and cost data and the ability to link time and costs to projects, processes, and outcomes, FERC cannot assess the extent to which the observations and suggestions--or any recommended administrative reforms or legislative changes--might reduce the process' length and costs. https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/GAOREPORTS-GAO-01-499/html/GAOREPORTS-GAO-01-499.htm https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/GAOREPORTS-GAO-01-499/pdf/GAOREPORTS-GAO-01-499.pdf GAO-01-499 https://www.govinfo.gov/app/details/GAOREPORTS-GAO-01-499 Other Written Product GAO-01-499; Licensing Hydropower Projects: Better Time and Cost Data Needed to Reach Informed Decisions About Process Reforms; Electric power generation Hydroelectric powerplants Licenses