UNITED STATES OF AMERICA 

FEDERAL ENERGY REGULATORY COMMISSION 

18 CFR Parts 260 and 284 

(Docket No. RM05-12-000) 

Modification of Natural Gas Reporting Regulations 

(May 27, 2005) 

AGENCY: Federal Energy Regulatory Commission. 

ACTION: Notice of Proposed Rulemaking. 

SUMMARY: The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (Commission) is proposing 

to amend its regulations to standardize the filing format for reporting natural gas service 

interruptions and emergency natural gas sale, transportation and exchange. The 

Commission is also proposing to modernize the filing method, develop a tracking method 

for filings, and develop an electronic notification system to notify appropriate 

Commission staff when the information is filed with the Commission. In addition, the 

Commission seeks comment on affording Critical Energy Infrastructure Information 

(CEII) protection where applicable. These modifications are the result of a review 

conducted by the Commission’s Information Assessment Team (FIAT) of the 

Commission’s current information collections by evaluating their original purposes and 

current uses, and to propose ways to reduce the reporting burden on industry through the 

elimination, reduction, streamlining or reformatting of current collections. The 

modification of the regulations to modernize the filing method and standardize the filing 
Docket No. RM05-12-000 - 2 - 

format should streamline the process and reduce the burden of filing information under 

FERC-576 “Report of Natural Gas Service Interruptions” and FERC-588 “Emergency 

Natural Gas Sale, Transportation and Exchange Transactions.” In addition, the 

Commission proposes to provide CEII protection for the information contained on both 

information collection requirements and seeks comment on this proposal. The 

Commission believes these modifications will not in any way prejudice the rights of any 

participant in those proceedings or anyone interested in the Commission’s natural gas 

program. 

DATES: Comments are due [insert date 45 days after publication in the FEDERAL 

REGISTER]

ADDRESSES: Comments may be filed electronically via the eFiling link on the 

Commission's web site at http://www.ferc.gov. Commenters unable to file comments 

electronically must send an original and 14 copies of their comments to: The Federal 

Energy Regulatory Commission, Office of the Secretary, 888 First Street N.E., 

Washington, DC, 20426. Refer to the Comment Procedures section of the preamble for 

additional information on how to file comments. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Michael Miller (Technical Information) 

Office of Executive Director 

Federal Energy Regulatory Commission 

888 First Street, NE 

Washington, DC 20426 

(202) 502-8415 
Doc

ket No. RM05-12-000 - 3 - 

Michael McGehee (Technical Information) 

Office of Energy Projects 

Federal Energy Regulatory Commission 

888 First Street, NE 

Washington, DC 20426 

(202) 502-8962 

Jacqueline Holmes (Legal Information) 

Office of the General Counsel 

Federal Energy Regulatory Commission 

888 First Street, NE 

Washington, DC 20426 

(202) 502-8198 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
UNITED STATES OF AMERICA 

FEDERAL ENERGY REGULATORY COMMISSION 

Modifications of Natural Gas Reporting Docket No. RM05-12-000 

Regulations 

NOTICE OF PROPOSED RULEMAKING 

(May 27, 2005) 

Introduction

The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (Commission) has reviewed its 

natural gas regulations in order to determine whether they contain any outdated 

requirements or impose any unnecessary burdens on persons subject to the Commission’s 

jurisdiction. This review was conducted by the FERC Information Assessment Team 

(FIAT) that was tasked by the Chairman to assess the Commission’s information needs. 

Goal 2 of the tasks identified by the team to meet this mission included identifying all of 

the Commission’s current information collections, through forms and filing requirements 

(electric, hydropower, natural gas, oil and general), and evaluate their original purposes 

and current uses, and propose ways to reduce the reporting burden on industry through 

elimination, reduction, streamlining or reformatting of current collections. The 

modification of the regulations proposed in this rule will modernize the filing method and 

standardize the filing format to ensure greater filing efficiency for the information filed 

under FERC-576 “Report of Natural Gas Service Interruptions” and FERC-588 

“Emergency Natural Gas Sale, Transportation and Exchange Transactions.” In addition, 
Docket No. RM05-12-000 - 2 -

because information filed under both information collections reference the location of 

energy facilities, the Commission is proposing to limit access to this information under its 

Critical Energy Infrastructure Information (CEII) procedures. The Commission believes 

that these modifications would not in any way prejudice the rights of any participant in 

those proceedings or anyone interested in the Commission’s natural gas program. 

Background

1. Under the Natural Gas Act (NGA) (Public Law 75-688)1

 a natural gas company 

must obtain the Commission’s authorization to engage in the transportation or exchange 

of natural gas in interstate commerce. The Commission oversees the continuity of 

service in the transportation of natural gas in interstate commerce. Under section 7(d) of 

the NGA,2

 the Commission may issue a temporary certificate in cases of emergency to 

ensure maintenance of adequate service or to serve particular customers without notice or 

hearing. Section 10(a) of the NGA3

 requires natural gas pipeline companies to file 

reports with the Commission as prescribed by rules or regulations or by order as 

appropriate, to assist the Commission in performing its regulatory duties. The provisions 

of section 16 of the NGA4

 authorize the Commission to prescribe forms, statements, 

declarations and reports, including the information they are to contain and the time 

frames for filing the information. 

 

1

 15 U.S.C. 717-717w. (2000). 

2

 15 U.S.C. 717f. (2000). 

3

 15 U.S.C. 717i. (2000). 

4

 15 U.S.C. 717o. (2000). 
Docket No. RM05-12-000 - 3 -

2. The information filed under FERC-576 “Report of Natural Gas Service 

Interruptions” notifies the Commission in a timely manner of any interruption to service 

or possible hazard to public health or safety. The Commission, in response to timely 

notification of a serious interruption, may contact other pipelines to determine available 

supply, and if necessary, authorize transportation or construction of facilities to alleviate 

the problem. The information collected identifies serious interruptions of service to any 

wholesale customer involving facilities operated under the Commission’s certificate 

authorization. The information collected may include: (1) the date of service 

interruption; (2) the date of reporting of the interruption to the Commission; (3) location 

of the interruption; (4) brief description of the facility involved and the cause of the 

interruption; (5) customer(s) affected; (6) duration of the interruption, and (7) volumes of 

natural gas interrupted. 

3. FERC-588 “Emergency Natural Gas Sale, Transportation and Exchange 

Transactions” is also authorized by the provisions of the NGA. However, section 7(c) (1) 

(B) of the NGA exempts from certificate requirements “temporary acts or operations for 

which the issuance of a certificate will not be required in the public interest.”5

 The 

Natural Gas Policy Act (NGPA) (Public Law 95-621)6

 also provides for the reporting of 

non-certificated interstate transactions involving intrastate pipelines and local distribution 

companies. 

 5

 15 U.S.C. 717f. (2000). 

6

 15 U.S.C. 3301-3432. (2000). 
Docket No. RM05-12-000 - 4 -

4. An emergency is defined as any situation in which an actual or expected shortage 

of gas supply or capacity would require an interstate pipeline company, intrastate pipeline 

company, local distribution company or Hinshaw pipeline to curtail deliveries of gas or 

provide less than the projected level of service to any customer. These situations include 

a sudden, unanticipated loss of natural gas supply or capacity, sudden, anticipated loss of 

natural gas supply or capacity, or any situation in which the participant, in good faith, 

determines that immediate action is required for the protection of life or health or the 

maintenance of physical property. Respondents are to file a report within forty-eight 

hours after the commencement of the transportation, sale or exchange of deliveries of 

natural gas commence, a request to extend the sixty-day term of the emergency 

transportation, if needed, and a termination report. 

Discussion

5. In this Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NOPR) the Commission is proposing to 

amend Parts 260 and 284 of its regulations governing interruptions of natural gas service 

to wholesale customers involving certificated facilities (18 C.F.R. § 260.9) and the 

emergency reconstruction of certificated facilities (18 C.F.R. § 284.270). 

6. The Commission intends to modernize the filing method and to assist 

jurisdictional entities when filing information in response to the requirements of 

18 C.F.R. § 260.9 “Report by natural gas pipeline companies on service interruptions 

occurring on the pipeline system” and 18 C.F.R. Subpart I “Emergency natural gas sale, 

transportation, and exchange transactions.” The Commission will provide for the 

electronic submission of data, and will standardize the filing format. In addition, the 
Docket No. RM05-12-000 - 5 -

Commission proposes to develop an internal tracking mechanism to provide staff with 

timely information on the submission of reports for service interruptions and emergency 

natural gas transaction reports. The latter, as required by 18 C.F.R. 284.270, calls for the 

submission of forty-eight hour reports for sales transactions, transportation, exchanges 

and the termination reports. 

7. The current requirements of 18 C.F.R. 260.9 direct that natural gas pipeline 

companies must report to the Commission serious service interruptions to communities, 

major Government installations and large industrial plants outside of communities, or 

interruptions that the pipeline considers to be significant. The pipeline must notify the 

Commission of the interruption with the following information: (1) the location of the 

interruption; (2) the time of the interruption; (3) the customers affected by the 

interruption and (4) the emergency actions taken to maintain the service. The pipeline 

must also provide the Commission with a copy of the failure report filed with the 

Department of Transportation, and the pipeline must file the interruption report with the 

state commissions in the affected states. Natural gas pipeline companies currently submit 

this information in hardcopy as well as any electronic means, including facsimile 

transmission or telegraph. 

8. The information provided for under 18 C.F.R. 284.270 of the Commission’s 

regulations permits the Commission to determine whether an emergency gas sale, 

transportation or exchange qualifies for an exemption under section 7(c) of the NGA. 

The information must be filed within 48 hours after an emergency transaction begins, and 

within 30 days after termination of the transaction. The filer must also submit a report 
Docket No. RM05-12-000 - 6 -

with the U.S. Department of Transportation and may use the telegraph as a medium for 

transmitting this information. 

9. Because the telegraph is an outdated method for submitting this information, the 

Commission proposes to require instead the electronic submission of the information 

required in both 18 C.F.R. 260.9 and 18 C.F.R. 284.270. For Internet filing provisions, 

see 18 C.F.R. 385.2003 (c). The benefits of having this information filed electronically 

include efficient delivery of the information, immediate confirmation to the filer of the 

Commission’s receipt of the information, and almost immediate access by Commission 

staff. The electronic submission of information will reduce the number of data entry 

errors, permit Commission staff to conduct analysis in a timely manner, and provide for 

the storage of information on optical storage media, thus saving valuable storage. 

Electronic reporting will also provide time and resource savings for all parties by 

reducing the number of personnel needed to submit paper filings, particularly since it will 

eliminate paper processing and mailing. All parties, including the Commission, will 

benefit by having current data and the integrity of the data will increase because 

jurisdictional entities and the Commission will be able to correct the errors more 

promptly. 

10. In Order No. 6307

, the Commission issued procedures for gaining access to CEII, 

which would not otherwise be made available under the Freedom of Information Act.8

 

These procedures made in the aftermath of the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks, and 

 7 Critical Energy Infrastructure Information, 68 Fed. Reg. 9857 (March 3, 2003), 

FERC Stats. & Regs. ¶ 31,140 (2003). 

8

 5 U.S.C. 552. (2000). 
Docket No. RM05-12-000 - 7 -

instituted to restrict unrestrained access to certain types of information because of the 

threat of terrorism, keep sensitive infrastructure information out of the public domain. 

By placing restrictions on the use of this information, the Commission will decrease the 

likelihood terrorists could use such information to plan or execute terrorist attacks. The 

Commission defines CEII as information about “existing or proposed critical 

infrastructure that: (i) relates to the production, generation, transportation, transmission, 

or distribution of energy; (ii) could be useful to a person planning an attack on critical 

infrastructure; (iii) is exempt from mandatory disclosure under the Freedom of 

Information Act; and, (iv) does not simply give the location of critical infrastructure.” (18 

C.F.R. 388.113 (c) (1)) Critical infrastructure means “existing or proposed systems and 

assets, whether physical or virtual, the incapacity or destruction of which would 

negatively affect security, economic security, public health or safety, or any combination 

of these matters.” (18 C.F.R. 388.113(c) (2)) In submitting information under both 

18 C.F.R. 260.9 and 284.270, pipelines must provide descriptions of the facilities and 

their location in order to describe why there is an interruption of service or the measures 

that they are taking to reconstruct the pipeline. If this information remained publicly 

available, it could provide those planning or executing terrorist attacks with an 

opportunity to take advantage of vulnerabilities in the energy infrastructure. It is for this 

reason the Commission seeks comment on placing the information filed in response to 18 

C.F.R. 260.9 and 18 C.F.R. 284.270 under CEII protection. CEII may be released to a 

requester with a legitimate need for the information who is willing to abide by an 

appropriate non-disclosure agreement. See 18 C.F.R. 3881.113. 
Docket No. RM05-12-000 - 8 -

INFORMATION COLLECTION STATEMENT

11. The Office of Management and Budget (OMB) regulations require OMB to 

approve certain information collection requirements imposed by agency rule.9

 

Comments are solicited 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. 

12. Estimated Annual Burden

Data Collection Number of

Respondents

Number of

Responses

Number of

Hours Per

Response

Total Annual

Hours

FERC-576 22 1 1 22 

FERC-588 8 1 10 80 

Totals 102 

Title: Report of Service Interruptions (FERC-576) 

Emergency Natural Gas Sale, Transportation & Exchange (FERC-588) 

Action: Proposed Collections 

OMB Control Nos. 1902-0004 & 1902-0144 

 9

 5 C.F.R. 1320.11. 
Docket No. RM05-12-000 - 9 -

Respondents: Businesses or other for profit 

Frequency of Responses: On occasion. 

Necessity of the information: The proposed regulations will revise the reporting 

requirements for service interruptions and emergency transactions to streamline the 

requirements and reduce the burden for the respondents. The information filed with the 

Commission informs it of serious natural gas pipeline service interruptions and also of 

the need for emergency reconstruction of natural gas pipelines or the need to sell, 

transport or make exchanges due to actual or expected shortages of gas supply. 

Internal Review: The Commission has reviewed the proposed amendments to its 

regulations to modify the filing method, standardize the format and create an internal 

tracking mechanism for Commission staff. The revisions to the regulations will provide 

more effective and efficient information by providing current data by electronic 

submission. This method of filing will reduce data errors and thus preserve the integrity 

of the data. The Commission will be able to conduct further analysis of filed reports in a 

more timely fashion and expedite dissemination to Commission staff to ensure a timely 

response. The Commission also proposes to change the availability of the information to 

the public by classifying it as subject to CEII protection and seeks comment on this 

proposal. By invoking this protection, the Commission seeks to minimize the available 

information on vulnerabilities in the energy infrastructure to those persons who either 

plan or will execute a terrorist attack. The Commission has assured itself, by means of 

internal review, that there is specific, objective support for the burden estimates 

associated with the information collection requirements. 
Docket No. RM05-12-000 - 10 -

 Interested persons may obtain information on the information requirements by 

contacting the following: The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, 888 First Street, 

NE, Washington, D.C. 20426 [Attention: Michael Miller, Office of the Executive 

Director, Phone (202)502-8415, fax: (202)273-0873, e-mail: michael.miller@ferc.gov.] 

 For submitting comments concerning the collection of information(s) and the 

associated burden estimate(s), please send your comments to the contact listed above and 

to the Office of Management and Budget, Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs, 

Washington, D.C. 20503, [Attention: Desk Officer for the Federal Energy Regulatory 

Commission, phone: (202)395-4650, fax: (202)395-7285]. 

Environmental Analysis

13. 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.10 The Commission has categorically excluded certain 

actions from this requirement as not having a significant effect on the human 

environment. Included in the exclusion are rules that are clarifying, corrective, or 

procedural or that do not substantially change the effect of the regulations being 

amended.11 This proposed rule, if finalized, is procedural in nature and therefore falls 

under this exception. Therefore, no environmental consideration would be necessary. 

 10 Order No. 486, Regulations Implementing the National Environmental Policy 

Act, 52 FR 47897 (Dec. 17, 1987), FERC Stats. & Regs. Preambles 1986-1990 ¶ 30,783 

(1987). 

11 18 CFR 380.4(a) (2) (ii). 
Docket No. RM05-12-000 - 11 -

Regulatory Flexibility Act Certification

14. The Regulatory Flexibility Act of 1980 (RFA)12 generally requires a description 

and analysis of final rules that will have significant economic impact on a substantial 

number of small entities.13 The Commission is not required to make such an analysis if a 

rule would not have such an effect. 

15. The Commission does not think that the proposed amendments to its regulations 

would have such an impact on small entities. Based on past experience, most of the 

pipelines filing either an interruption service report or an emergency transaction report 

under the proposed regulations would be entities that do not meet the RFA’s definition of 

a small entity. Further, if the proposed regulations are adopted, all pipelines, including 

small entities, should benefit through reduced staffing and processing costs by being able 

to submit this information electronically. Therefore, the Commission certifies that this 

rule will not have a significant impact on a substantial number of small entities. 

Comment Procedures

16. The Commission invites interested persons to submit comments on the matters and 

issues that it proposes to adopt, including any related matters or alternative proposals that 

 12 5 U.S.C. 601-612 (2000). 

13 The RFA definition of “small entity” refers to the definition provided in the 

Small Business Act, which defines a “small business concern” a business which is 

independently owned and operated and which is not dominant in its field of operation. 

15 U.S.C. 632 (2000). The Small Business Size Standards component of the North 

American Industry Classification System defines a small pipeline for transportation of 

natural gas as one that, including its affiliates, did not have total annual revenues for the 

preceding fiscal years exceeding $6.0 million. 13 CFR 121.201 (Sectors 48-49, Sub 

sector 486, Pipeline Transportation, North American Industry Classification System, 

NAICS) ( 2004) 
Docket No. RM05-12-000 - 12 -

commenters may wish to discuss. Comments are due [insert 45 days after publication 

in the FEDERAL REGISTER]. Comments must refer to Docket No. RM05-12-000, 

and must include the commenter’s name, the organization they represent, if applicable, 

and their address in their comments. 

17. Comments may be filed electronically via the eFiling link on the Commission's 

web site at http://www.ferc.gov. The Commission accepts most standard word 

processing formats and commentors may attach additional files with supporting 

information in certain other file formats. Commenters filing electronically do not need to 

make a paper filing. Commenters that are not able to file comments electronically must 

send an original and 14 copies of their comments to: The Federal Energy Regulatory 

Commission, Office of the Secretary, 888 First Street N.E., Washington, DC, 20426. 

18. 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. Commentors commenting on this proposal are not required to serve copies of 

their comments on other commenters. 

Document Availability

19. 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 FERC's Home Page 

(http://www.ferc.gov) and in FERC's Public Reference Room during normal business 

hours (8:30 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. Eastern time) at 888 First Street, N.E., Room 2A, 

Washington D.C. 20426. 
Docket No. RM05-12-000 - 13 -

20. From FERC's Home Page on the Internet, this information is available in the 

eLibrary. The full text of this document is available in the eLibrary both 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. 

21. User assistance is available for eLibrary and the FERC's website during normal 

business hours. For assistance contact FERC Online Support at 

FERCOnlineSupport@ferc.gov or toll-free at (866)208-3676, or for TTY, contact 

(202)502-8659. E-Mail the Public Reference Room at public.referenceroom@ferc.gov or 

202-502-8371. 

List of subjects in 18 CFR Part 260

Statements, Reporting and recordkeeping requirements 

List of subjects in 18 CFR Part 284

Natural Gas, reporting and recordkeeping requirements 

 By direction of the Commission. 

Linda Mitry, 

Deputy Secretary. 
Docket No. RM05-12-000 - 14 -

In consideration of the foregoing, the Commission proposes to amend Parts 260 

 and 284, Title 18 of the Code of Federal Regulations, as set forth below: 

PART 260 - - STATEMENTS AND REPORT (SCHEDULES) 

1. The authority citation for part 260 continues to read as follows: 

 Authority: 15 U.S.C. 717-717w, 3301-3432; 42 U.S.C. 7101-7352. 

2. Part 260 is amended by revising section 260.9, paragraph (b) and (e) to read as 

follows: 

§ 260.9 Report by natural gas pipeline companies on service interruptions occurring

 on the pipeline system 

* * * * * 

(b) Reporting requirement. Natural gas pipeline companies must report such 

interruptions to service by electronic submission, to the Commission and the 

Director, Division of Pipeline Certificates, Office of Energy Projects, Federal 

Energy Regulatory Commission, Washington, D.C. 20426 (Fax: (202) 502-8625) 

at the earliest feasible time following such interruption to service, and must state 

briefly: 

* * * * * 

(Submit in electronic format in accordance with § 385.2003. This report is an 

electronic file that is classified as a “qualified document.” As a qualified 

document, no paper copy version of the filing is required unless there is a request 

for privileged and protected treatment or the document is combined with another 

document as provided in § 385.2003(c)(3) or (4).) 
Docket No. RM05-12-000 - 15 -

 * * * * * 

 (e) Copies of the report on interruption of service must be sent electronically 

to the State commission in those States where service has been or might be 

 affected. 

PART 284 - - SUBPART I - EMERGENCY NATRUAL GAS SALE, 

TRANSPORTATION AND EXCHANGE TRANSACTIONS

1. The authority citation for part 284 continues to read as follows: 

Authority: 15 U.S.C. 717-717w, 3301-3432; 42 U.S.C. 7101-7352; 43 U.S.C. 1331- 

1356. 

2. Part 284 – Subpart I is amended by revising section 284.270, paragraphs (a), (b) and 

(c) to read as follows: 

 

§ 284.270 Reporting requirements. 

Each report shall be submitted in electronic format in accordance with § 385.2003. 

All reports are electronic files classified as “qualified documents.” As qualified 

documents, no paper copy version of the filing is required unless there is a request 

for privileged and protected treatment or the document is combined with another 

document as provided in § 385.2003(c)(3) or (4). 

* * * * * 

(a) Forty-eight hour report for sales transactions. Within 48 hours after deliveries 

of emergency natural gas commence, the purchasing participant must notify the 

Commission electronically of the sale, stating, in the following sequences: 

 

* * * * * 
Docket No. RM05-12-000 - 16 -

(b) Forty-eight hour report for transportation (excluding exchanges). 

Within 48 hours after deliveries commence in an emergency natural gas 

transaction which does not involve the sale of emergency natural gas, the 

recipient of the emergency natural gas shall notify the Commission electronically 

of the transportation, stating in the following sequence: 

* * * * * 

(c) Forty-eight hour report for exchanges. Within 48 hours after an 

exchange transaction for emergency natural gas commences, the initial 

recipient of the exchange volumes shall notify the Commission electronically 

of the exchange, stating in the following sequence: 

* * * * *