79–010 

Calendar No. 536 

115TH CONGRESS REPORT " ! SENATE 2d Session 115–311 

J. BENNETT JOHNSTON WATERWAY HYDROPOWER 

EXTENSION ACT OF 2018 

JULY 31, 2018.—Ordered to be printed 

Ms. MURKOWSKI, from the Committee on Energy and Natural 

Resources, submitted the following 

R E P O R T 

[To accompany S. 1142] 

[Including cost estimate of the Congressional Budget Office] 

The Committee on Energy and Natural Resources, to which was 

referred the bill (S. 1142) to extend the deadline for commencement 

of construction of certain hydroelectric projects, having considered 

the same, reports favorably thereon with an amendment in the nature of a substitute and recommends that the bill, as amended, do 

pass. 

AMENDMENT

The amendment is as follows: 

Strike all after the enacting clause and insert the following: 

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

This Act may be cited as the ‘‘J. Bennett Johnston Waterway Hydropower Extension Act of 2018’’. 

SEC. 2. EXTENSION. 

(a) IN GENERAL.—Notwithstanding the time period specified in section 13 of the 

Federal Power Act (16 U.S.C. 806) that would otherwise apply to Federal Energy 

Regulatory Commission project numbers 12756, 12757, and 12758, the Commission 

may, at the request of the licensee for the applicable project, and after reasonable 

notice, in accordance with the good faith, due diligence, and public interest requirements of that section and the procedures of the Commission under that section, extend the time period during which the licensee is required to commence the construction of the applicable project for up to 3 consecutive 2-year periods from the 

date of the expiration of the extension originally issued by the Commission. 

(b) REINSTATEMENT OF LICENSE.—If the time period required for commencement 

of construction of a project described in subsection (a) has expired prior to the date 

of enactment of this Act— 

2 

(1) the Commission may reinstate the license for the applicable project effective as of the date of the expiration of the license; and 

(2) the first extension authorized under subsection (a) shall take effect on that 

expiration. 

PURPOSE

The purpose of S. 1142 is to extend the deadline for commencement of construction for three hydroelectric projects in Louisiana. 

BACKGROUND AND NEED

The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC or Commission) issued licenses for Red River Lock and Dam hydroelectric 

projects No. 3 (FERC Project Number 12756), No. 4 (FERC Project 

Number 12757), and No. 5 (FERC Project Number 12758) in Louisiana on April 14, 2014, February 17, 2017, and March 28, 2017, 

respectively. Nelson Energy, LLC, is pursuing development of these 

three projects, which are located within an 84-mile long reach of 

the Red River known as the J. Bennett Johnston Waterway, and 

are all currently owned and operated by the U.S. Army Corps of 

Engineers. In total, the projects represent approximately 92 

megawatts of generation capacity and have an estimated cost of 

$479 million. 

On February 23, 2016, FERC granted a two-year extension for 

the construction start time for FERC Project Number 12756, the 

maximum allowed under section 13 of the Federal Power Act. In 

order to ensure the continuity of ongoing work, the licensee now 

seeks a Congressional authorization for FERC to grant up to three 

additional two-year period extensions of the commencement construction deadlines for all three projects. 

LEGISLATIVE HISTORY

Senator Cassidy introduced S. 1142 on May 16, 2017. 

Representative Mike Johnson introduced companion legislation, 

H.R. 2457, in the House of Representatives on May 16, 2017. H.R. 

2457 was favorably reported, as amended, by the Energy and Commerce Committee on June 12, 2017, and was passed by the House 

of Representatives by a vote of 402–1 on the same day. The bill 

was referred to the Committee on Energy and Natural Resources 

on June 13, 2017. 

On February 28, 2018, the Subcommittee on Water and Power 

held a legislative hearing on S. 1142 and H.R. 2457. A similar 

measure was included in Amendment No. 3059, which the Senate 

agreed to on June 21, 2018, as an amendment to H.R. 5895, the 

Energy and Water, Legislative Branch, and Military Construction 

and Veterans Affairs Appropriations Act, 2019, which the Senate 

passed, as amended, on June 25, 2018. 

The Committee on Energy and Natural Resources met in open 

business session on May 17, 2018, and ordered S. 1142 favorably 

reported, as amended. 

COMMITTEE RECOMMENDATION

The Senate Committee on Energy and Natural Resources, in 

open business session on May 17, 2018, by majority voice vote of 

a quorum present recommends that the Senate pass S. 1142, if 

amended as described herein. 

3 

COMMITTEE AMENDMENT

During its consideration of S. 1142, the Committee adopted an 

amendment in the nature of substitute to strike language regarding annual charges and to make technical and conforming changes. 

This amendment is further described in the section-by-section analysis. 

SECTION-BY-SECTION ANALYSIS

Section 1. Short title 

Section 1 sets forth a short title. 

Section 2. Extension 

Section 2(a) authorizes the Commission, at the request of the licensee for the applicable project and after reasonable notice, and 

in accordance with FERC procedures, to extend the time period 

during which the licensee is required to commence project construction for up to three consecutive two-year periods, beginning on the 

expiration date of the Commission’s license extension. 

Subsection (b) authorizes the Commission to reinstate a project 

license if the license for an applicable project has expired prior to 

the date of enactment of this Act. If so reinstated, the reinstated 

license is to be effective as of the date of the expiration of the previous extension. 

COST AND BUDGETARY CONSIDERATIONS

The following estimate of the costs of this measure has been provided by the Congressional Budget Office: 

CBO estimates that implementing S. 1142 would have no net effect on the federal budget. The bill would authorize the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) to reinstate the license and 

extend the deadline for beginning construction of three hydroelectric projects: numbers 12756 and 12757 (located in Catahoula 

Parish, Louisiana) and number 12758 (located in Bossier Parish, 

Louisiana). The proposed extensions could have a minor effect on 

FERC’s workload; however, because FERC recovers 100 percent of 

its costs through user fees, any change in that agency’s costs 

(which are controlled through annual appropriation acts) would be 

offset by an equal change in fees that the commission charges, resulting in no net change in federal spending. 

Enacting S. 1142 would not affect direct spending or revenues; 

therefore, pay-as-you-go procedures do not apply. 

CBO estimates that enacting S. 1142 would not increase net direct spending or on-budget deficits in any of the four consecutive 

10-year periods beginning in 2029. 

S. 1142 contains no intergovernmental or private-sector mandates as defined in the Unfunded Mandates Reform Act. 

The CBO staff contact for this estimate is Megan Carroll. The estimate was reviewed by H. Samuel Papenfuss, Deputy Assistant 

Director for Budget Analysis. 

REGULATORY IMPACT EVALUATION

In compliance with paragraph 11(b) of rule XXVI of the Standing 

Rules of the Senate, the Committee makes the following evaluation 

4 

of the regulatory impact which would be incurred in carrying out 

S. 1142. The bill is not a regulatory measure in the sense of imposing Government-established standards or significant economic responsibilities on private individuals and businesses. 

No personal information would be collected in administering the 

program. Therefore, there would be no impact on personal privacy. 

Little, if any, additional paperwork would result from the enactment of S. 1142, as ordered reported. 

CONGRESSIONALLY DIRECTED SPENDING

S. 1142, as ordered reported, does not contain any congressionally directed spending items, limited tax benefits, or limited tariff 

benefits as defined in rule XLIV of the Standing Rules of the Senate. 

EXECUTIVE COMMUNICATIONS

The written testimony provided by the Commission at the February 28, 2018, hearing on S. 1142 and H.R. 2457 follows: 

FEDERAL ENERGY REGULATORY COMMISSION, 

OFFICE OF THE CHAIRMAN, 

Washington, DC, February 26, 2018 

Hon. LISA MURKOWSKI, 

Chairman, Committee on Energy and Natural Resources, 

U.S. Senate, Washington, DC. 

DEAR CHAIRMAN MURKOWSKI: This letter is in response to a request by the Senate Committee on Energy and Natural Resources 

for my views on S. 1142 and H.R. 2457, two bills to authorize the 

extension of the time to begin construction of the original licenses 

for the Red River Lock and Dam No 3. (FERC Project No. 12756), 

Red River Lock and Dam No. 4 (FERC Project No. 12757), and Red 

River Lock and Dam No. 5 (FERC Project No. 12758), and H.R. 

2786, a bill to amend the Federal Power Act (FPA) with respect to 

criteria and process for a proposed project to qualify as qualifying 

conduit hydropower facility. 

S. 1142 and H.R. 2457 

On April 14, 2014, the Commission issued an original license authorizing BOST3 Hydroelectric LLC to construct and operate the 

Red River Lock and Dam No. 3 Project on the Red River in 

Catahoula Parish, Louisiana. The Commission issued an original license to BOST4 Hydroelectric LLC on February 17, 2017, to construct and operate the Red River Lock and Dam No. 4 Project also 

to be located on the Red River in Catahoula Parish, Louisiana. On 

March 8, 2017, the Commission issued an original license authorizing BOST5 Hydroelectric LLC to construct and operate the Red 

River Lock and Dam No. 5 Project to be located on the Red River 

in Bossier Parish, Louisiana. 

Pursuant to section 31(a) of the FPA, licensees are required to 

begin construction of the projects within 2 years of the license 

issuance date. They may be granted one two-year extension of time. 

The licensee for the Red River Lock and Dam No. 3 has been granted the one two-year extension. 

S. 1142 and H.R. 2457 would extend the time period during 

which the licensees for Project Nos. 12756, 12757, and 12758 are 

5 

required to commence the construction of their applicable project 

for up to 3 consecutive 2-year periods from the date of the expiration of any extension issued by the Commission for such project. 

The last several Commission Chairmen have taken the position 

of not opposing legislation that would extend a project’s commencement of construction deadline where the extension does not exceed 

10 years past the date that the license in question was issued. 

Where proposed extensions would run beyond that time, there has 

been a sense that the public interest is better served by releasing 

the site at issue for other public uses. Because S. 1142 and H.R. 

2457 provide for commencement of construction deadlines that do 

not exceed 10 years from the date on which the project license was 

issued, I do not have concerns with the suggested approach. 

If I can be of further assistance to you on this or any other Commission matter, please let me know. 

Sincerely, 

KEVIN J. MCINTYRE, 

Chairman. 

CHANGES IN EXISTING LAW

In compliance with paragraph 12 of rule XXVI of the Standing 

Rules of the Senate, the Committee notes that no changes in existing law are made by the bill as ordered reported. 

Æ