40706 Federal Register / Vol. 63, No. 146 /Thursday, July 30, 1998 / Notices

DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY

Energy Information Administration

Agency Information Collection

Activities: Proposed Collection;

Comment Request

AGENCY: Energy Information

Administration, DOE.

ACTION: Agency information collection

activities; Proposed collection; comment

request concerning the proposed

revision and extension of the coal data

collections included in the Coal

Program Package.

SUMMARY: The Energy Information

Administration (EIA) is soliciting

comments concerning the proposed

revision and extension of the surveys

included in the Coal Program Package.

The surveys covered by this action are

the Form EIA–1, ‘‘Weekly Coal

Monitoring Report—General Industries

and Blast Furnaces’’ (Standby); Form

EIA–3, ‘‘Quarterly Coal Consumption

Report—Manufacturing Plants;’’ Form

EIA–3A, ‘‘Annual Coal Quality Report—

Manufacturing Plants;’’ Form EIA–4,

‘‘Weekly Coal Monitoring Report—Coke

Plants’’ (Standby); Form EIA–5,

‘‘Quarterly Coal Consumption Report—

Coke Plants;’’ Form EIA–5A, ‘‘Annual

Coal Quality Report—Coke Plants;’’

Form EIA–6, ‘‘Coal Distribution

Report;’’ Form EIA–6 (Schedule Q),

‘‘Quarterly Coal Report’’ (Standby);

Form EIA–7A, ‘‘Coal Production

Report;’’ and Form EIA–20, ‘‘Weekly

Telephone Survey of Coal Burning

Utilities’’ (Standby). The Standby forms

are designed to be utilized under certain

conditions.

DATES: Written comments must be

submitted within 60 days of the

publication of this notice. If you

anticipate that you will be submitting

comments, but find it difficult to do so

within the period of time allowed by

this notice, you should advise the

contact listed below of your intention to

do so as soon as possible.

ADDRESSES: Send comments to Thomas

Murphy, Coal, Nuclear, and Renewables

Division, EI–52, Forrestal Building, U.S.

Department of Energy, Washington, DC

20585. Alternatively, Mr. Murphy can

be reached at

TMURPHY@EIA.DOE.GOV (Internet email), 202–426–1151 (voice), or 202–

426–1311 (facsimile).

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Requests for additional information or

copies of the forms and instructions

should be directed to Thomas Murphy

at the address listed above.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

I. Background

II. Current Actions

III. Request for Comments

I. Background

In order to fulfill its responsibilities

under the Federal Energy

Administration Act of 1974 (Pub. L. 93–

275) and the Department of Energy

Organization Act (Pub. L. 95–91), the

Energy Information Administration

(EIA) is obliged to carry out a central,

comprehensive, and unified energy data

and information program. As part of this

program, EIA collects, evaluates,

assembles, analyzes, and disseminates

data and information related to energy

resource reserves, production, demand,

and technology, and related economic

and statistical information relevant to

the adequacy of energy resources to

meet demands in the near and longer

term future for the Nation’s economic

and social needs.

The EIA, as part of its continuing

effort to reduce paperwork and

respondent burden (required by the

Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (Pub.

L. 104–13)), conducts a presurvey

consultation program to provide the

general public and other Federal

agencies with an opportunity to

comment on proposed and/or

continuing reporting forms. This

program helps to prepare data requests

in the desired format, minimize

reporting burden, develop clearly

understandable reporting forms, and

assess the impact of collection

requirements on respondents. Also, EIA

will later seek approval by the Office of

Management and Budget (OMB) for the

collections under Section 3507(h) of the

Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (Pub.

L. 104–13, Title 44, U.S.C. Chapter 35).

The coal surveys included in the Coal

Program Package collect information on

coal production, distribution, receipts,

consumption, quality, stocks, and

prices. This information is used to

support public policy analyses of the

coal industry and is published in

various EIA publications, including the

Coal Industry Annual, the Annual

Energy Review, and the Quarterly Coal

Report. Respondents to the surveys

include coal producers, coal

distributors, and coal consumers.

II. Current Actions

The EIA will request a 3-year

extension of the collection authority for

each of the above-referenced surveys.

Additionally, the EIA proposes the

following changes affecting the Form

EIA–6 (Schedule Q), the Form EIA–7A,

and Form EIA–20.

Form EIA–6 (Schedule Q) and Form

EIA–7A

Over the past three years, the EIA has

worked closely with the U.S. Mine

Safety and Health Administration

(MSHA) to identify opportunities for

reducing respondent reporting burden

and survey operating costs by sharing

some of the information each agency

currently collects from coal producers

and operators of coal processing

facilities. By Memorandum of

Understanding, dated March 19, 1996,

the EIA and MSHA initiated a

cooperative program providing for realtime comparison of coal production

information collected quarterly on

MSHA Form 7000–2 with similar

information collected quarterly on

Schedule Q of Form EIA–6 and annually

on the Form EIA–7A. Concurrently,

MSHA Form 7000–2 information on

employment at coal mines was

compared with similar information

collected on the EIA–7A. This initiative,

which was undertaken in consultation

with the National Mining Association,

(NMA), and other coal data users, was

aimed at establishing a basis for

agreeing upon a single source of high

quality information to satisfy the

requirements of MSHA, the EIA, and

NMA customers.

After evaluating the results of this

program, the EIA has concluded that the

MSHA Form 7000–2 information can be

used in place of the corresponding

information collected on the EIA

surveys. Accordingly, the EIA has

suspended the quarterly collection of

coal production and coal stocks

information on the EIA–6, Schedule Q,

and now proposes to re-classify the

Schedule Q as a Standby survey

available for use in the event of a change

in the availability of the MSHA data.

The quarterly coal production

information previously obtained from

this survey will be obtained from

MSHA. The first, second and third

quarter ending coal stocks will be

estimated by the EIA, and the fourth

quarter ending coal stocks will be based

on information reported annually on

Form EIA–6.

Additionally, the EIA proposes to

revise the Form EIA–7A by eliminating

or modifying most of the survey data

elements currently collected to calculate

coal production, and by deleting

entirely the portion of the survey

pertaining to employment and

productivity at coal mines and coal

preparation plants. Instead, EIA–7A

respondents will be asked to report on

the EIA–7A the same coal production

value they report to MSHA, and the EIA

will obtain employment and
Federal Register / Vol. 63, No. 146 /Thursday, July 30, 1998 / Notices 40707

productivity information directly from

MSHA. The EIA will evaluate the

accuracy of the data reported to EIA for

MSHA production versus the data

reported directly to MSHA at the end of

the first annual collection cycle. If the

EIA deems the data to be comparable, in

subsequent years data will come

directly from MSHA.

The collection of coal price

information on the Form EIA–7A, which

is currently accomplished using the

same data elements gathered to

calculate coal production, will be

preserved by reformatting the survey to

request information on open market coal

sales and revenues, as well as

information on captive market coal sales

and transfers, and corresponding value.

Information on the amount of coal

consumed at the reporting facility will

also be retained as a separate data

element. The collection of data on

projected production during the next

year will be eliminated.

The EIA also proposes to modify the

reporting requirements for the Form

EIA–7A. For Calendar Years beginning

after 1997, mines producing less than

10,000 short tons annually, and standalong preparation plants recording

fewer than 5,000 person hours annually,

will no longer be required to submit the

Form EIA–7A. Firms in the coal

industry are sent the survey materials

and those meeting the thresholds must

file.

Form EIA–20

The Form EIA–20 is a Standby survey

that was developed to collect weekly

information on electric utility coal

consumption and coal stocks in the

event of a coal supply disruption. The

Instructions for this Survey currently

include an Appendix specifying a

formula for estimating the number of

days the reporting facility could

continue to operate by burning the coal

on hand at the end of the reporting

period (i.e., burn days). The EIA

proposes to delete this Appendix and to

amend the Instructions to request that

respondents calculate burn days in

accordance with their customary

operating practices.

III. Request for Comments

Prospective respondents and other

interested parties should comment on

the actions discussed in item II. The

following guidelines are provided to

assist in the preparation of responses.

Please indicate to which form(s) your

comments apply.

General issues

A. Is the proposed collection of

information necessary for the proper

performance of the functions of the

agency and does the information have

practical utility? Practical utility is

defined as the actual usefulness of

information to or for an agency, taking

into account its accuracy, adequacy,

reliability, timeliness, and the agency’s

ability to process the information it

collects.

B. What enhancements can EIA make

to the quality, utility, and clarity of the

information to be collected?

As a potential respondent

A. Are the instructions and

definitions clear and sufficient? If not,

which instructions require clarification?

B. Can data be submitted by the due

date?

C. The estimated public reporting

burden for each of the surveys included

in the Coal Program Package is shown

in the following Table.

Survey(s)

Estimated hours per

response

Current Proposed

EIA–1, EIA–4, and

EIA–20 ................. 1.0 1.0

EIA–3 ...................... .4 .4

EIA–5 ...................... .9 .9

EIA–3A and EIA–5A 1.0 1.0

EIA–6A .................... 5.0 5.0

EIA–6, Schedule Q .5 .5

EIA–7A .................... 1.0 .75

Burden includes the total time, effort,

or financial resources expended to

generate, maintain, retain, or disclose or

provide the information. The Forms

EIA–1, 4, 6 (Schedule Q), and 20 are

Standby surveys. The above estimates

reflect the anticipated burden per

response in the event these surveys are

implemented.

Please comment on (1) the accuracy of

our estimate and (2) how the agency

could minimize the burden of the

collection of information, including the

use of information technology.

D. EIA estimates that respondents will

incur no additional costs for reporting

other than the hours required to

complete the collection. What is the

estimated: (1) total dollar amount

annualized for capital and start-up

costs, and (2) recurring annual costs of

operation and maintenance, and

purchase of services associated with this

data collection?

E. Do you know of any other Federal,

State, or local agency that collects

similar data? If you do, specify the

agency, the data element(s), and the

methods of collection.

As a potential user

A. Can you use data at the levels of

detail indicated on the form?

B. For what purpose would you use

the data? Be specific.

C. Are there alternate sources of data

and do you use them? If so, what are

their deficiencies and/or strengths?

Comments submitted in response to

this notice will be summarized and/or

included in the request for OMB

approval of the form. They also will

become a matter of public record.

Statutory Authority: Section 3506(c)(2)(A)

of the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995

(Pub. L. No. 104–13).

Issued in Washington, D.C. July 24, 1998.

Jay H. Casselberry,

Agency Clearance Officer, Statistics and

Methods Group, Energy Information

Administration.

[FR Doc. 98–20377 Filed 7–29–98; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 6450–01–P

DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY

Federal Energy Regulatory

Commission

[Docket No. RP89–161–036]

ANR Pipeline Company; Notice of

Refund Report

July 23, 1998.

Take notice that on July 17, 1998,

ANR Pipeline Company (ANR),

tendered for filing, a report of refunds

paid to customers.

The refunds relate to ANR’s Interim

Sales Program for the period November

1, 1992 through October 31, 1993. The

Commission issued an order on March

12, 1998 in the referenced proceeding

which required ANR to file its Third

Reconciliation Report on the Interim

Sales Program. Such report, which

detailed additional refunds to customers

of revenues collected in excess of gas

costs, was subsequently accepted by the

Commission in a letter order dated June

12, 1998. Accordingly, on June 17, 1998,

ANR states that it refunded to eligible

customers $7,557,718, consisting of

principal amounts totaling $5,251,258

and interest of $2,306,460.

Any person desiring to protest this

filing should file a protest with the

Federal Energy Regulatory Commission,

888 First Street, N.E., Washington, D.C.

20426, in accordance with Section

385.211 of the Commission’s Rules and

Regulations. All such protests must be

filed on or before July 29, 1998. Protests

will be considered by the Commission

in determining the appropriate action to

be taken, but will not serve to make

protestants parties to the proceedings.

Copies of this filing are on file with the

Commission and are available for public