36374 Federal Register / Vol. 87, No. 116 / Thursday, June 16, 2022 / Notices 

information about the alternative 

program. 

Section 192.624(b)(4) allows operators 

to petition for an extension of the 

completion deadlines to reconfirm 

maximum allowable operating pressure 

(MAOP) by up to one year if they 

provide an up-to-date plan, the reason 

for the requested extension, current 

status, completion date, remediation 

activities outstanding, and other factors. 

Section 192.624(c)(2)(iii) requires that 

operators notify PHMSA when they 

choose to use a less conservative 

pressure reduction factor or longer lookback period when reconfirming MAOP 

under § 192.624(c). Section 

192.624(c)(3)(iii)(A) requires operators 

to notify PHMSA at least 90 days in 

advance when using an ‘‘other 

technology’’ besides those enumerated 

in § 192.624(c)(3) for reconfirming 

MAOP using engineering critical 

assessment and analysis. 

Section 192.624(c)(6) requires 

operators to notify PHMSA at least 90 

days in advance of using an alternative 

technical evaluation process in 

reconfirming MAOP in onshore steel 

transmission pipelines. Section 

192.712(e)(2)(i)(E) allows operators to 

use other appropriate Charpy energy 

values (other than those specified in 

§ 192.712(e)(2)(i)) if they notify PHMSA 

in advance. 

Section 192.921(a)(7) requires 

operators to notify PHMSA (and 

applicable state and local authorities) at 

least 90 days in advance of using 

alternative baseline integrity assessment 

methods. Section 192.937(c)(7) requires 

operators to notify PHMSA (and 

applicable state and local authorities) at 

least 90 days in advance of using 

alternative ongoing integrity assessment 

methods. 

These mandatory notifications help 

PHMSA to stay abreast of issues related 

to the health and safety of the nation’s 

pipeline infrastructure. These 

notification requirements are necessary 

to ensure safe operation of transmission 

pipelines, ascertain compliance with gas 

pipeline safety regulations, and to 

provide a background for incident 

investigations. 

Affected Public: Operators of natural 

gas transmission pipelines. 

Estimated number of responses: 722. 

Estimated annual burden hours: 

1,070. 

Frequency of collection: On occasion. 

Comments are invited on: 

(a) The need for the renewal and 

revision of these collections of 

information for the proper performance 

of the functions of the Agency, 

including whether the information will 

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 those 

who are to respond, including the use 

of appropriate automated, electronic, 

mechanical, or other technological 

collection techniques. 

Authority: The Paperwork Reduction 

Act of 1995; 44 U.S.C. chapter 35, as 

amended; and 49 CFR 1.48. 

Issued in Washington, DC, on June 10, 

2022, under authority delegated in 49 CFR 

1.97. 

John A. Gale, 

Director, Standards and Rulemaking Division. 

[FR Doc. 2022–12972 Filed 6–15–22; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 4910–60–P 

DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION 

Pipeline and Hazardous Materials 

Safety Administration 

[Docket No: PHMSA–2022–0009] 

Pipeline Safety: Information Collection 

Activities: Natural Gas Distribution 

Infrastructure Safety and 

Modernization Grant Program 

AGENCY: Pipeline and Hazardous 

Materials Safety Administration 

(PHMSA), DOT. 

ACTION: Notice and request for 

comments. 

SUMMARY: In accordance with the 

Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, 

PHMSA invites public comments on its 

intent to request Office of Management 

and Budget (OMB) three-year approval 

of an information collection titled: ‘‘The 

Natural Gas Distribution Infrastructure 

Safety and Modernization Grant 

Program’’ under OMB Control No. 

2137–0641. The information collection 

enables eligible municipality and 

community-owned utilities (not 

including for-profit entities) to apply for 

grant assistance set forth under the 

heading ‘‘Department of 

Transportation—Pipeline and 

Hazardous Materials Safety 

Administration—Natural Gas 

Distribution Infrastructure Safety and 

Modernization Grant Program’’ in title 

VIII of division J of Public Law 117–58. 

DATES: Interested persons are invited to 

submit comments on or before August 

15, 2022. 

ADDRESSES: Comments may be 

submitted in the following ways: 

E-Gov Website: http://

www.regulations.gov. This site allows 

the public to enter comments on any 

Federal Register notice issued by any 

agency. 

Fax: 1–202–493–2251. 

Mail: Docket Management Facility; 

U.S. Department of Transportation 

(DOT), 1200 New Jersey Avenue SE, 

West Building, Room W12–140, 

Washington, DC 20590–0001. 

Hand Delivery: Room W12–140 on the 

ground level of DOT, West Building, 

1200 New Jersey Avenue SE, 

Washington, DC, between 9:00 a.m. and 

5:00 p.m., ET, Monday through Friday, 

except federal holidays. 

Instructions: Identify the docket 

number PHMSA–2022–0009 at the 

beginning of your comments. Note that 

all comments received will be posted 

without change to http://

www.regulations.gov, including any 

personal information provided. You 

should know that anyone is able to 

search the electronic form of all 

comments received into any of our 

dockets by the name of the individual 

submitting the comment (or signing the 

comment, if submitted on behalf of an 

association, business, labor union, etc.). 

Therefore, you may want to review 

DOT’s complete Privacy Act Statement 

in the Federal Register published on 

April 11, 2000, (65 FR 19477) or visit 

http://www.regulations.gov before 

submitting any such comments. 

Docket: For access to the docket or to 

read background documents or 

comments, go to http://

www.regulations.gov at any time or to 

Room W12–140 on the ground level of 

DOT, West Building, 1200 New Jersey 

Avenue SE, Washington, DC, between 

9:00 a.m. and 5:00 p.m., ET, Monday 

through Friday, except federal holidays. 

If you wish to receive confirmation of 

receipt of your written comments, 

please include a self-addressed, 

stamped postcard with the following 

statement: ‘‘Comments on: PHMSA– 

2022–0009.’’ The Docket Clerk will date 

stamp the postcard prior to returning it 

to you via the U.S. mail. Please note that 

due to delays in the delivery of U.S. 

mail to Federal offices in Washington, 

DC, we recommend that persons 

consider an alternative method 

(internet, fax, or professional delivery 

service) of submitting comments to the 

docket and ensuring their timely receipt 

at DOT. 

Privacy Act Statement: DOT may 

solicit comments from the public 

regarding certain general notices. DOT 

posts these comments, without edit, 

including any personal information the 

commenter provides, to 

www.regulations.gov, as described in 


khammond on DSKJM1Z7X2PROD with NOTICES
Federal Register / Vol. 87, No. 116 / Thursday, June 16, 2022 / Notices 36375 

the system of records notice (DOT/ALL14 FDMS), which can be reviewed at 

www.dot.gov/privacy. 

Confidential Business Information: 

Confidential Business Information (CBI) 

is commercial or financial information 

that is both customarily and actually 

treated as private by its owner. Under 

the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) 

(5 U.S.C. 552), CBI is exempt from 

public disclosure. If your comments 

responsive to this notice contain 

commercial or financial information 

that is customarily treated as private, 

that you actually treat as private, and 

that is relevant or responsive to this 

notice, it is important that you clearly 

designate the submitted comments as 

CBI. Pursuant to 49 CFR 190.343, you 

may ask PHMSA to give confidential 

treatment to information you give to the 

Agency by taking the following steps: 

(1) mark each page of the original 

document submission containing CBI as 

‘‘Confidential’’; (2) send PHMSA, along 

with the original document, a second 

copy of the original document with the 

CBI deleted; and (3) explain why the 

information you are submitting is CBI. 

Unless you are notified otherwise, 

PHMSA will treat such marked 

submissions as confidential under the 

FOIA, and they will not be placed in the 

public docket of this notice. 

Submissions containing CBI should be 

sent to Angela Hill, DOT, PHMSA, 1200 

New Jersey Avenue SE, PHP–30, 

Washington, DC 20590–0001. Any 

commentary PHMSA receives that is not 

specifically designated as CBI will be 

placed in the public docket for this 

matter. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Angela Hill by telephone at 202–366– 

1246 or by email at Angela.Hill@dot.gov. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

I. Background 

On November 15, 2021, the 

Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act 

(IIJA) (Pub. L. 117–58) was enacted. 

Under the heading ‘‘Department of 

Transportation—Pipeline and 

Hazardous Materials Safety 

Administration—Natural Gas 

Distribution Infrastructure Safety and 

Modernization Grant Program’’ in title 

VIII of division J, the Natural Gas 

Distribution Infrastructure Safety and 

Modernization Grant Program was 

established. The stated purpose of the 

program is for certain utilities ‘‘to 

repair, rehabilitate, or replace its natural 

gas distribution pipeline system or 

portions thereof or to acquire equipment 

to (1) reduce incidents and fatalities and 

(2) avoid economic losses’’ by providing 

grant opportunities to municipality and 

community-owned utilities (not 

including for-profit entities). The 

statutory requirements for PHMSA’s 

implementation of the program are 

mandatory, and PHMSA is expected to 

implement the program as swiftly as 

possible to reduce incidents, fatalities, 

and adverse impacts to the public and 

the environment, particularly in 

disadvantaged communities. 

The statutory requirements of the 

Natural Gas Distribution Infrastructure 

Safety and Modernization Grant 

Program established a 180-day deadline 

for DOT to publish a Notice of Funding 

Opportunity (NOFO) with a subsequent 

270-day deadline for making awards. In 

an effort to meet the statutory deadlines, 

PHMSA published a Federal Register 

notice on April 6, 2022; (87 FR 20031) 

notifying the public of its plan to seek 

emergency OMB approval for this 

information collection. During the 10- 

day comment period, PHMSA received 

one (1) comment from Red Bay Water 

and Gas seeking a reimbursement grant 

for a cast iron replacement project that 

began in October 2021 and is projected 

to be completed by August 2022. 

PHMSA encourages all potential 

applicants to submit an application via 

www.grants.gov in response to the 

NOFO issued on March 24, 2022. The 

application closes on July 25, 2022. 

On May 10, 2022, OMB granted 

PHMSA an emergency 6-month 

approval to collect the required 

information. PHMSA is publishing this 

notice, in compliance with the 

Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, to 

give stakeholders an opportunity to 

comment on PHMSA’s plan to request 

OMB’s full three-year approval of this 

information collection. 

II. Natural Gas Distribution 

Infrastructure Safety and 

Modernization Grant Program 

Solicitation for grants under the 

Natural Gas Distribution Infrastructure 

Safety and Modernization Grant 

Program is voluntary. No eligible entity 

is required to apply. To be eligible, 

however, municipality and communityowned utilities must meet all the 

requirements set forth in the law. 

Therefore, DOT must collect certain 

information from applicants to 

determine eligibility and evaluate 

applications. DOT must also verify the 

accuracy of grant requests from 

approved applicants, in accordance 

with Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 

1964, Section 504 of the Rehabilitation 

Act of 1973, and other laws and 

regulations governing Federal financial 

assistance programs, including (but not 

limited to) the Anti-Deficiency Act, the 

Federal Funding Accountability and 

Transparency Act, the Payment Integrity 

Information Act of 2019, and 2 CFR part 

200, among others. In accordance with 

the IIJA, DOT must not award more than 

12.5 percent of the funds available 

under the Natural Gas Distribution 

Infrastructure Safety and Modernization 

Grant Program to a single municipality 

or community-owned utility. 

DOT anticipates using grants.gov to 

collect the applicant information for the 

NOFO which will include the following 

information: 

• Legal name of the applicant (i.e., 

the legal name of the business entity), as 

well as any other identities under which 

the applicant may be doing business. 

• Business address, telephone, and 

email contact information for the 

applicant. 

• Legal authority under which the 

applicant is established. 

• Name and title of the authorized 

representative of the applicant (who 

will attest to the required certifications). 

DOT may also require the identity of 

external parties involved in preparation 

of the application, including outside 

accountants, attorneys, or auditors who 

may be assisting the business entity that 

is applying for assistance under this 

program. 

• The specific statutory criteria that 

the applicant meets for eligibility under 

this program. The statute defines 

eligible applicants to include 

municipality or community-owned 

utilities excluding for-profit entities. 

Accordingly, DOT will require the 

applicant to identify which of these 

categories they meet and to describe 

how they meet it. 

• Information regarding the possible 

environmental effects caused by the 

proposed project(s) specific to each site. 

Further, PHMSA will collect project 

information on (1) actions to comply 

with state and Federal environmental 

regulations, environmental justice, and 

historic preservation requirements, 

including the National Environmental 

Policy Act, and (2) additional mitigation 

actions to ensure that environmental 

impacts, such as those from excavation 

or the use of heavy equipment, are 

minimal. 

• Location where the applicant was 

legally established, created, or organized 

to do business. This information and 

supporting documentation will be 

required to demonstrate how the 

applicant meets the statutory 

requirement to be ‘‘established, created, 

or organized in the United States or 

under the laws of the United States.’’ 

• Other identification numbers, 

including but not limited to, the 

Employer/Taxpayer Identification 

Number, Unique Entity Identifier under 


khammond on DSKJM1Z7X2PROD with NOTICES
36376 Federal Register / Vol. 87, No. 116 / Thursday, June 16, 2022 / Notices 

2 CFR part 25, etc. All applicants will 

be required to have pre-registered with 

the System for Award Management at 

https://sam.gov/SAM/. 

• Description of the applicant’s 

business operations, in sufficient detail 

to demonstrate how the applicant meets 

the statutory requirement as a 

municipality or community-owned 

utility. 

• Whether the applicant is currently 

engaged in any legal proceeding that 

could jeopardize its ability to fulfill the 

legal commitments required in statute as 

conditions for receiving funds under the 

Natural Gas Distribution Infrastructure 

Safety and Modernization Grant 

Program. Examples of such proceedings 

could include, but are not limited to, 

any process related to the United States 

Bankruptcy Code, potential merger or 

acquisition discussions, or current 

litigation against the applicant. The 

NOFO will request that applicants 

identify any such issues at a high level 

and avoid including unnecessary details 

in the application. 

• Whether the applicant is delinquent 

on any debt to any Federal agency, 

along with supporting details. 

• A sworn certification as to the 

complete and accurate nature of all 

information provided, including all 

supporting documentation, subject to 

civil or criminal penalties. The specific 

certification language will include: ‘‘I 

certify under penalty of perjury that the 

information and certifications provided 

in the application and its attachments 

are true and correct. WARNING: 

Anyone who knowingly submits a false 

claim or makes a false statement is 

subject to criminal and/or civil 

penalties, including confinement for up 

to 5 years, fines, and civil penalties. (18 

U.S.C. 287, 1001; 31 U.S.C. 3729, 

3802).’’ 

Award recipients will be required to 

provide supporting documentation in 

sufficient detail to substantiate the 

actual costs, specifically excluding any 

personally identifiable information for 

any individual employees. Recipients 

will also be required to provide 

additional information and 

certifications in support of 

disbursement requests. 

III. Summary of Impacted Collection 

Section 1320.8(d), Title 5, CFR, 

requires PHMSA to provide interested 

members of the public and affected 

entities an opportunity to comment on 

information collection and 

recordkeeping requests. This notice 

identifies the proposed information 

collection request that PHMSA will 

forward to OMB for approval. 

The following information is provided 

for this information collection: (1) Title 

of the information collection; (2) OMB 

control number; (3) Current expiration 

date; (4) Type of request; (5) Abstract of 

the information collection activity; (6) 

Description of affected public; (7) 

Estimate of total annual reporting and 

recordkeeping burden; and (8) 

Frequency of collection. 

PHMSA will request a three-year 

approval for this information collection. 

PHMSA requests comments on the 

following information: 

Title: Natural Gas Distribution 

Infrastructure Safety and Modernization 

Grant Program. 

OMB Control Number: 2137–0641. 

Current Expiration Date: 11/30/2022. 

Type of Request: Extension of an 

approved information collection. 

Abstract: This information collection 

covers the collection of applicant data 

from municipality and communityowned utilities that are interested in 

applying to receive funds from the 

‘‘Natural Gas Distribution Infrastructure 

Safety and Modernization Grant 

Program.’’ Solicitation for grants under 

the Natural Gas Distribution 

Infrastructure Safety and Modernization 

Grant Program is voluntary. No eligible 

entity is required to apply. To be 

eligible, however, municipality and 

community-owned utilities must meet 

all the requirements set forth in the law. 

Therefore, DOT must collect certain 

information from applicants to 

determine eligibility and evaluate 

applications. DOT must also verify the 

accuracy of grant requests from 

approved applicants, in accordance 

with Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 

1964, Section 504 of the Rehabilitation 

Act of 1973, and other laws and 

regulations governing Federal financial 

assistance programs, including (but not 

limited to) the Anti-Deficiency Act, the 

Federal Funding Accountability and 

Transparency Act (FFATA), the 

Payment Integrity Information Act of 

2019, and 2 CFR part 200, among others. 

This information collection also covers 

the collection of data from grant 

recipients. PHMSA expects to receive 

approximately 200 applications from 

potential grantees. PHMSA estimates 

that it will take the 200 applicants 

approximately 82 hours to compile and 

submit the forms required to complete 

the application process for an annual 

burden of 16,400 hours. PHMSA 

estimates that 100 grant recipients will, 

on 8 occasions over the course of one 

year, spend 2.5 hours, or 20 hours 

annually, submitting post-award reports 

for an annual burden of 2,000 hours. 

Therefore, PHMSA estimates that there 

will be a total of 1,000 responses (200 

applications + 800 post-award reports) 

for an aggregate total annual burden for 

the information collection of 18,400 

hours (16,400 hours for applications + 

2,000 hours for post-award reports). 

Affected Public: Municipality and 

Community-owned Utilities. 

Annual Burden: 

Estimated number of responses: 

1,000. 

Estimated annual burden hours: 

18,400. 

Frequency of Collection: One-time 

application, grant reports no more than 

quarterly, to be followed by 

disbursement requests and closeout. 

Comments are invited on: 

(a) The need for this information 

collection for the proper performance of 

the functions of the Agency, including 

whether the information will 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; 

(d) Ways to minimize the burden of 

the collection of information on those 

who are to respond, including the use 

of appropriate automated, electronic, 

mechanical, or other technological 

collection techniques; and 

(e) Additional information that would 

be appropriate to collect to inform the 

reduction in risk to people, property, 

and the environment due to excavation 

damages. 

Authority: The Paperwork Reduction 

Act of 1995; 44 U.S.C. chapter 35, as 

amended. 

Issued in Washington, DC, on June 10, 

2022, under authority delegated in 49 CFR 

1.97. 

Alan K. Mayberry, 

Associate Administrator for Pipeline Safety. 

[FR Doc. 2022–12970 Filed 6–15–22; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 4910–60–P 

DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION 

Bureau of Transportation Statistics 

[Docket Number DOT–OST–2017–0043] 

Agency Information Collection 

Activity; Continue To Collect 

Information: Oil and Gas Industry 

Safety Data Program 

AGENCY: Office of the Assistant 

Secretary for Research and Technology 

(OST–R), Bureau of Transportation 

Statistics (BTS), U.S. Department of 

Transportation. 

ACTION: 30-Day notice. 


khammond on DSKJM1Z7X2PROD with NOTICES