15092 Federal Register / Vol. 77, No. 50 / Wednesday, March 14, 2012 / Notices 

should the Board’s tasks require such 

representation. 

EMAB meets the criteria for, and is 

subject to the Federal Advisory 

Committee Act (FACA). Members are 

selected in accordance with FACA 

requirements and serve on an 

uncompensated, volunteer basis. 

Members, however, may be reimbursed 

in accordance with the Federal Travel 

Regulations for authorized per diem and 

travel expenses incurred while 

attending Board meetings. 

The Department of Energy’s (DOE) 

Office of Environmental Management is 

accepting nominations through April 

20, 2012, to fill vacancies on its 

Environmental Management Advisory 

Board (EMAB or Board). Applicants 

with expertise in project management, 

acquisition management, human capital 

management, environmental 

management and engineering, or other 

related fields are preferred. This 

expertise may be drawn from service in 

the private sector, academia, research 

institutions, professional organizations, 

or local and state governments. The 

Board requires a balanced membership 

so that a diversity of perspectives is 

represented on the issues that come 

before it. This membership balance is 

not static, however, and may change 

depending on the work of the 

committee. 

Any interested person or organization 

may nominate qualified individuals for 

membership. Self-nominations are also 

welcome. Nominations must include a 

resume and short biography describing 

the educational and professional 

qualifications of the nominee and the 

nominee’s current occupation, position, 

address and daytime telephone number. 

Nominations are open to all individuals 

without regard to race, color, religion, 

sex, national origin, age, mental or 

physical handicap, marital status, or 

sexual orientation. Please note, 

however, that Federally-registered 

lobbyists and individuals already 

serving on another Federal advisory 

committee are ineligible for nomination. 

All nominees will be vetted before 

selection. 

Nominations can be sent by U.S. Mail 

or electronically to Ms. Kristen Ellis, 

Designated Federal Officer, at the 

address above. For further information 

on EMAB, please visit the Web site: 

www.em.doe.gov/emab or contact Ms. 

Ellis directly. 

Issued at Washington, DC, on March 7, 

2012. 

LaTanya R. Butler, 

Acting Deputy Committee Management 

Officer. 

[FR Doc. 2012–6141 Filed 3–13–12; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 6450–01–P 

DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY 

U.S. Energy Information 

Administration; Proposed Agency 

Information Collection 

AGENCY: U.S. Energy Information 

Administration (EIA), Department of 

Energy. 

ACTION: Agency Information Collection 

Activities: Proposed Collection; Notice 

and Request for Comments. 

SUMMARY: The EIA invites public 

comment on the proposed collection of 

information, EIA–882T, ‘‘Generic 

Clearance for Questionnaire Testing, 

Evaluation, and Research’’ that EIA is 

developing for submission to the Office 

of Management and Budget (OMB) 

pursuant to the Paperwork Reduction 

Act of 1995. Comments are invited on: 

(a) Whether the proposed collection of 

information is necessary for the proper 

performance of the functions of the 

agency, including whether the 

information shall have practical utility; 

(b) the accuracy of the agency’s estimate 

of the burden of the proposed collection 

of information, including the validity of 

the methodology and assumptions used; 

(c) ways to enhance the quality, utility, 

and clarity of the information to be 

collected; and (d) ways to minimize the 

burden of the collection of information 

on respondents, including through the 

use of automated collection techniques 

or other forms of information 

technology. 

DATES: Comments regarding this 

proposed information collection must 

be received on or before May 14, 2012. 

If you anticipate difficulty in submitting 

comments within that period, contact 

the person listed in ADDRESSES as soon 

as possible. 

ADDRESSES: Written comments may be 

sent to Richard Reeves, Energy 

Information Administration, 1000 

Independence Ave. SW., Washington, 

DC 20585 or by fax at 202–586–5271 or 

by email at richard.reeves@eia.gov. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Requests for additional information or 

copies of the information collection 

instrument and instructions should be 

directed to Richard Reeves, Energy 

Information Administration, 1000 

Independence Ave. SW., Washington 

DC 20585, phone: 202–586–5856, email: 

richard.reeves@eia.gov. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: This 

information collection request contains: 

(1) OMB No.: New; 

(2) Information Collection Request 

Title: Generic Clearance for 

Questionnaire Testing, Evaluation, and 

Research; 

(3) Type of Request: Proposed; 

(4) Purpose: The U.S. Energy 

Information Administration (EIA) is 

planning to request a three-year 

approval from the Office of Management 

and Budget (OMB) to utilize qualitative 

and quantitative methodologies to 

pretest questionnaires and validate the 

quality of the data that is collected on 

EIA forms. This authority would allow 

EIA to conduct pretest surveys, pilot 

surveys, respondent debriefings, 

cognitive interviews, usability 

interviews, and focus groups. Through 

the use of these methodologies, EIA will 

improve the quality of data being 

collected, reduce or minimize 

respondent burden, increase agency 

efficiency, and improve responsiveness 

to the public. This authority would also 

allow EIA to improve data collection in 

order to meet the needs of EIA’s 

customers while also staying current in 

the evolving nature of the energy 

industries. 

The specific methods proposed for the 

coverage by this clearance are described 

below. Also outlined is the legal 

authority for these voluntary 

information gathering activities. 

The methods proposed are the 

following: 

Field Testing. Field testing surveys 

conducted under this clearance will 

generally be methodological studies of 

500 cases or less. The samples may not 

be statistically representative because it 

will be designed to clarify particular 

issues rather than to be representative of 

the universe. Collection may be on the 

basis of convenience, e.g., limited to 

specific geographic locations, but the 

selection of sample cases will not be 

completely arbitrary in any instance. 

The sample designs will be determined 

at the time of development and will 

vary based on the content of the 

information collection or survey being 

tested. 

Pilot Surveys. Pilot surveys conducted 

under this clearance will generally be 

methodological studies of 500 cases or 

less, but will always employ statistically 

representative samples. The pilot 

surveys will replicate all components of 

the methodological design, sampling 

procedures (where possible) and 

questionnaires of the full scale survey. 

Pilots will normally be utilized when 


srobinson on DSK4SPTVN1PROD with NOTICES
Federal Register / Vol. 77, No. 50 / Wednesday, March 14, 2012 / Notices 15093 

EIA undertakes a complete redesign of 

a particular data collection methodology 

or when EIA undertakes data collection 

in new areas, such as greenhouse gases 

or alternative fueled motor vehicle 

transportation system studies. 

Respondent Debriefings. Respondent 

debriefings conducted under this 

clearance will generally be 

methodological studies of 500 cases or 

less, involving either purposive or 

statistically representative samples. The 

debriefing form is administered after a 

respondent completes a questionnaire 

either in paper form, electronically, or 

through in-person interviews. The 

debriefings contain questions that probe 

to determine how respondents interpret 

the questions and whether they have 

problems in completing the survey/ 

questionnaire. Respondent debriefings 

also are useful in determining potential 

issues with data quality and in 

determining a more accurate respondent 

burden measure. This structured 

approach to debriefing enables both 

quantitative and qualitative analyses of 

data when administered to a statistically 

representative sample and allows EIA to 

improve its understanding of variance 

for the items in the questionnaire. 

Cognitive Interviews. Cognitive 

interviews are typically one-on-one 

interviews in which the respondent is 

usually asked to ‘‘think aloud’’ or is 

asked ‘‘retrospective questions’’ as he or 

she answers survey questions, reads 

survey materials, or completes other 

activities as part of a survey process. A 

number of different techniques may be 

involved, including asking respondents 

to paraphrase questions, asking 

respondents probing questions to 

determine how they come up with their 

answers, and so on. The objective is to 

identify problems of ambiguity or 

misunderstanding, or other difficulties 

respondents have answering questions, 

and reduce measurement error in a 

survey. 

Usability Interviews. Usability 

interviews are similar to cognitive 

interviews in which a respondent is 

typically asked to ‘‘think aloud’’ or 

asked ‘‘retrospective questions’’ as he or 

she reviews an electronic questionnaire, 

Web site and/or associated materials. 

The object of a usability interview is to 

make sure that electronic 

questionnaires, Web sites and other 

associated materials are user-friendly, 

allowing respondents to easily and 

intuitively navigate the electronic item 

and find the information that they seek. 

Focus Groups. Focus groups involve 

group sessions guided by a moderator 

who follows a topic guide containing 

questions or topics focused on a 

particular issue, rather than adhering to 

a standardized questionnaire. Focus 

groups are useful for identifying and 

exploring issues with populations of 

interest, e.g., from a specific group of 

stakeholders. 

(5) Annual Estimated Number of 

Respondents: 1,000; 

(6) Annual Estimated Number of 

Total Responses: 1,000; 

(7) Annual Estimated Number of 

Burden Hours: 1,000; 

(8) Annual Estimated Reporting and 

Recordkeeping Cost Burden: There are 

no costs associated with these survey 

methods other than the burden hours. 

Statutory Authority: Section 13(b) of the 

Federal Energy Administration Act of 1974, 

Pub. L. 93–275, codified at 15 U.S.C. 772(b). 

Issued in Washington, DC, on March 6, 

2012. 

Stephanie Brown, 

Director, Office of Survey Development and 

Statistical Integration, U. S. Energy 

Information Administration. 

[FR Doc. 2012–6154 Filed 3–13–12; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 6450–01–P 

DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY 

Federal Energy Regulatory 

Commission 

[Project No. 2351–017] 

Public Service Company of Colorado; 

Notice of Application Tendered for 

Filing With the Commission and 

Establishing Procedural Schedule for 

Licensing and Deadline for Submission 

of Final Amendments 

Take notice that the following 

hydroelectric application has been filed 

with the Commission and is available 

for public inspection. 

a. Type of Application: New Major 

License. 

b. Project No.: 2351–017. 

c. Date Filed: February 27, 2012. 

d. Applicant: Excel Energy Services, 

Inc. on behalf of Public Service 

Company of Colorado. 

e. Name of Project: Cabin Creek 

Pumped Storage Project. 

f. Location: The existing project is 

located on the South Clear Creek and its 

tributary Cabin Creek in Clear Creek 

County, Colorado. The project, as 

currently licensed, is located on 267 

acres of U.S. Forest Service lands within 

the Arapahoe National Forest. 

g. Filed Pursuant to: Federal Power 

Act, 16 USC 791 (a)-825(r). 

h. Applicant Contact: Christine E. 

Johnston, Xcel Energy, 4653 Table 

Mountain Drive, Golden, CO 80403; 

(720) 497–2156. 

i. FERC Contact: David Turner, (202) 

502–6091. 

j. This application is not ready for 

environmental analysis at this time. 

k. The Project Description: The 

existing project includes the following 

facilities: (1) A 210-foot-high, 1,458- 

foot-long concrete-faced rockfill Upper 

Dam across Cabin Creek; (2) a 25.4 acre 

upper reservoir with 1,087 acre-feet of 

usable storage between the maximum 

operating elevation of 11,196 feet mean 

sea level (msl) and the minimum 

operating elevation of 11,140 feet msl; 

(3) a 95-foot-high, 1,195-foot-long 

earthfill and rockfill Lower Dam across 

South Clear Creek; (4) a 44.8-acre lower 

reservoir with 1,221 acre-feet of usable 

storage between the maximum operating 

elevation of 10,002 feet msl and 9,975 

feet msl; (5) a 145-foot-long auxiliary 

spillway constructed in the 

embankment of the lower reservoir with 

a crest elevation of 10,013 feet; (6) an 

intake structure located near the bottom 

of the upper reservoir; (7) a 12 to 15- 

foot-diameter, 4,143-foot-long power 

tunnel; (8) two 75-foot-long, 8.5-footdiameter penstocks directing flow from 

the power tunnel to the powerhouse 

turbines; (9) a powerhouse installed at 

the lower reservoir containing two 

reversible turbine-generator units rated 

at 150 megawatts (nameplate capacity) 

each; (10) a switchyard located next to 

the powerhouse; (11) three miles of 

gravel access roads; and (12) 

appurtenant facilities. 

Cabin Creek is a pumped storage 

project. The normal daily operation 

cycle involves pumping water from the 

lower reservoir to the upper reservoir 

during off-peak periods of energy 

demand and generating electricity with 

water released from the upper reservoir 

during the high energy demand part of 

the day. Under the current license, the 

applicant is required to provide a 

continuous release from the lower 

reservoir of three cubic feet per second 

or inflow, whichever is less, to South 

Clear Creek. 

The applicant proposes the following 

changes to the project: (1) Upgrade the 

pump-generation equipment; (2) raise 

the usable storage capacity of the upper 

reservoir 75 acre-feet by raising the 

height of the dam 4.5 feet; and (3) 

increase the project boundary by 59 

acres. 

l. Locations of the Application: A 

copy of the application is available for 

review at the Commission in the Public 

Reference Room or may be viewed on 

the Commission’s Web site at http:// 

www.ferc.gov using the ‘‘eLibrary’’ link. 

Enter the docket number excluding the 

last three digits in the docket number 

field to access the document. For 

assistance, contact FERC Online 

Support at 


srobinson on DSK4SPTVN1PROD with NOTICES