68424 Federal Register / Vol. 79, No. 221 / Monday, November 17, 2014 / Notices 

1The Commission defines burden as the total 

time, effort, or financial resources expended by 

persons to generate, maintain, retain, or disclose or 

provide information to or for a Federal agency. For 

further explanation of what is included in the 

information collection burden, reference 5 Code of 

Federal Regulations 1320.3. 

2Energy Policy Act of 2005, Public Law 109–58, 

119 Stat. 594 (2005) 

3Repeal of the Public Utility Holding Company 

Act of 1935 and Enactment of the Public Utility 

Holding Company Act of 2005, 70 FR 75592 (2005), 

order on rehearing, Order 667–A, 71 FR 28446 

(2006), order on rehearing, Order 667–B, 71 FR 

42750 (2006), order on rehearing, Order 667–C, 118 

FERC 61133 (2007). 

4 18 CFR 366.1. 

5 18 CFR 366.7. 

the Small Business Administration 

(SBA) to maintain information about 

SBIR/STTR awards issued through the 

two programs. This data will be 

provided by DOE based on information 

collected from SBIR/STTR awardees. 

This data will be used by DOE, SBA, 

and Congress to assess the commercial 

impact of these two programs; (5) 

Annual Estimated Number of 

Respondents: 2,500; (6) Annual 

Estimated Number of Total Responses: 

2,500; (7) Annual Estimated Number of 

Burden Hours: 2,500; (8) Annual 

Estimated Reporting and Recordkeeping 

Cost Burden: $120,000. 

Statutory Authority: Section 9 of the 

Small Business Act, as amended, codified at 

15 U.S.C. 638(g). 

Issued in Washington, DC, on November 

10, 2014. 

Manny Oliver, 

SBIR/STTR Programs Director, Office of 

Science, U.S. Department of Energy. 

[FR Doc. 2014–27134 Filed 11–14–14; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 6450–01–P 

DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY 

Federal Energy Regulatory 

Commission 

[Docket No. IC15–1–000] 

Commission Information Collection 

Activities (FERC–598, FERC–716); 

Consolidated Comment Request; 

Extension 

AGENCY: Federal Energy Regulatory 

Commission, DOE. 

ACTION: Notice of information 

collections and request for comments. 

SUMMARY: In compliance with the 

requirements of the Paperwork 

Reduction Act of 1995, 44 USC 

3506(c)(2)(A), the Federal Energy 

Regulatory Commission (Commission or 

FERC) is soliciting public comment on 

the requirements and burden 1 of the 

information collections described 

below. 

DATES: Comments on the collections of 

information are due January 16, 2015. 

ADDRESSES: You may submit comments 

(identified by Docket No. IC15–1–000) 

by either of the following methods: 

• eFiling at Commission’s Web site: 

http://www.ferc.gov/docs-filing/

efiling.asp 

• Mail/Hand Delivery/Courier: 

Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, 

Secretary of the Commission, 888 First 

Street NE., Washington, DC 20426. 

Please reference the specific 

collection number and/or title in your 

comments. 

Instructions: All submissions must be 

formatted and filed in accordance with 

submission guidelines at: http://

www.ferc.gov/help/submissionguide.asp. For user assistance contact 

FERC Online Support by email at 

ferconlinesupport@ferc.gov, or by phone 

at: (866) 208–3676 (toll-free), or (202) 

502–8659 for TTY. 

Docket: Users interested in receiving 

automatic notification of activity in this 

docket or in viewing/downloading 

comments and issuances in this docket 

may do so at http://www.ferc.gov/docsfiling/docs-filing.asp. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Ellen Brown may be reached by email 

at DataClearance@FERC.gov, telephone 

at (202) 502–8663, and fax at (202) 273– 

0873. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

Type of Request: Three-year extension 

of the information collection 

requirements for all collections 

described below with no changes to the 

current reporting requirements. Please 

note that each collection is distinct from 

the next. 

Comments: Comments are invited on: 

(1) Whether the collections of 

information are necessary for the proper 

performance of the functions of the 

Commission, including whether the 

information will have practical utility; 

(2) the accuracy of the agency’s 

estimates of the burden and cost of the 

collections of information, including the 

validity of the methodology and 

assumptions used; (3) ways to enhance 

the quality, utility and clarity of the 

information collections; and (4) ways to 

minimize the burden of the collections 

of information on those who are to 

respond, including the use of automated 

collection techniques or other forms of 

information technology. 

FERC–598, Self-Certification for Entities 

Seeking Exempt Wholesale Generator 

Status or Foreign Utility Company 

Status 

OMB Control No.: 1902–0166. 

Abstract: The Commission uses the 

data in the FERC–598 information 

collection to implement the statutory 

provisions of Title XII, subchapter F of 

the Energy Policy Act of 2005 (EPAct 

2005).2

EPAct 2005 repealed the Public 

Utility Holding Company Act of 1935 

(PUHCA 1935) in its entirety, and 

adopted in its place the Public Utility 

Holding Company Act of 2005 (PUHCA 

2005). This change enabled the 

Commission to exempt from the 

requirements of PUHCA 2005 the 

holding companies that hold 

responsibility over wholesale generators 

from PUHCA 2005 on a case-by-case 

basis. The Commission amended its 

regulations (in Order No. 667 3) to add 

procedures for self-certification by 

entities seeking exempt wholesale 

generator (EWG) and Foreign Utility 

Company (FUCO) status. This selfcertification is similar to the process 

available to entities that seek qualifying 

facility status. 

An EWG is a ‘‘person engaged 

directly, or indirectly through one or 

more affiliates . . . and exclusively in 

the business of owning or operating, or 

both owning and operating, all or part 

of one or more eligible facilities and 

selling electric energy at wholesale.’’ 4 A 

FUCO is a company that ‘‘owns or 

operates facilities that are not located in 

any state and that are used for the 

generation, transmission, or distribution 

of electric energy for sale or the 

distribution at retail of natural or 

manufactured gas for heat, light, or 

power, if such company: (1) Derives no 

part of its income, directly or indirectly, 

from the generation, transmission, or 

distribution of electric energy for sale or 

the distribution at retail of natural or 

manufactured gas for heat, light, or 

power, within the United States; and (2) 

neither the company nor any of its 

subsidiary companies is a public-utility 

company operating in the United 

States.’’ 

An EWG, FUCO, or its representative 

seeking to self-certify its status must file 

with the Commission a notice of selfcertification demonstrating that it 

satisfies the definition of EWG or FUCO. 

In the case of EWGs, the person filing 

a notice of self-certification must also 

file a copy of the notice of selfcertification with the state regulatory 

authority of the state in which the 

facility is located and that person must 

also represent to the Commission in its 

submission that it has filed a copy of the 

notice with the appropriate state 

regulatory authority.5


asabaliauskas on DSK5VPTVN1PROD with NOTICES
Federal Register / Vol. 79, No. 221 / Monday, November 17, 2014 / Notices 68425 

6 42 U.S.C. 16451 et seq. 

7The estimates for cost per response are derived 

using the following formula: Average Burden Hours 

per Response * $70.50 per Hour = Average Cost per 

Response. The cost per hour figure is the FERC 

average salary plus benefits. Subject matter experts 

found that industry employment costs closely 

resemble FERC’s regarding the FERC–598 

information collection. 

8Previously titled ‘‘Transmission Services (Good 

Faith Request, Response by Transmitting Utility, 

and Application) under Sections 211 and 213a of 

the Federal Power Act’’. 

9The estimates for cost per response are derived 

using the following formula: Average Burden Hours 

per Response * $70.50 per Hour = Average Cost per 

Response. The cost per hour figure is the FERC 

average salary plus benefits. Subject matter experts 

found that industry employment costs closely 

resemble FERC’s regarding the FERC–716 

information collection. 

Submission of the information 

collected by FERC–598 is necessary for 

the Commission to carry out its 

responsibilities under EPAct 2005.6 The 

Commission implements its 

responsibilities through the Code of 

Federal Regulations (CFR) Title 18 Part 

366. These filing requirements are 

mandatory for entities seeking to selfcertify their EWG or FUCO status. 

Type of Respondent: EWGs and 

FUCOs. 

Estimate of Annual Burden: The 

Commission estimates the annual public 

reporting burden for the information 

collection as: 

FERC–598 (SELF-CERTIFICATION FOR ENTITIES SEEKING EXEMPT WHOLESALE GENERATOR STATUS OR FOREIGN UTILITY

COMPANY STATUS) 

Number of 

respondents 

Annual 

number of 

responses per 

respondent 

Total number 

of responses 

Average 

burden & cost 

per response 7

Total annual 

burden hours 

& total annual 

cost 

Cost per 

respondent 

($) 

(1) (2) (1) * (2) = (3) (4) (3) * (4) = (5) (5) ÷ (1) 

EWGs/FUCOs .......................................... 102 1 102 6 

$423 

612 

$43,146 

$423 

FERC–716, Good Faith Requests for 

Transmission Service and Good Faith 

Responses by Transmitting Utilities 

Under Sections 211(a) and 213(a) of the 

Federal Power Act (FPA) 8

OMB Control No.: 1902–0170. 

Abstract: The Commission uses the 

information collected under the 

requirements of FERC–716 to 

implement the statutory provisions of 

Sections 211 and Section 213 of the 

Federal Power Act as amended and 

added by the Energy Policy Act 1992. 

FERC–716 also includes the 

requirement to file a Section 211 request 

if the negotiations between the 

transmission requestor and the 

transmitting utility are unsuccessful. 

For the initial process, the information 

is not filed with the Commission. 

However, the request and response may 

be analyzed as a part of a Section 211 

action. The Commission may order 

transmission services under the 

authority of FPA 211. 

The Commission’s regulations in the 

Code of Federal Regulations (CFR), 18 

CFR 2.20, provide standards by which 

the Commission determines if and when 

a valid good faith request for 

transmission has been made under 

section 211 of the FPA. By developing 

the standards, the Commission sought to 

encourage an open exchange of data 

with a reasonable degree of specificity 

and completeness between the party 

requesting transmission services and the 

transmitting utility. As a result, 18 CFR 

2.20 identifies 12 components of a good 

faith estimate and 5 components of a 

reply to a good faith request. 

Type of Respondent: Transmission 

Requestors and Transmitting Utilities 

Estimate of Annual Burden: The 

Commission estimates the annual public 

reporting burden for the information 

collection as: 

FERC–716 (GOOD FAITH REQUESTS FOR TRANSMISSION SERVICE AND GOOD FAITH RESPONSES BY TRANSMITTING

UTILITIES UNDER SECTIONS 211(a) AND 213(a) OF THE FEDERAL POWER ACT (FPA)) 

Number of 

respondents 

Annual 

number of 

responses per 

respondent 

Total number 

of responses 

Average 

burden & cost 

per response 9

Total annual 

burden hours 

& total annual 

cost 

Cost per 

respondent 

($) 

(1) (2) (1) * (2) = (3) (4) (3) * (4) = (5) (5) ÷ (1) 

Information exchange between parties .... 3 1 3 100 

$7050 

300 

$21,150 

$7050 

Application submitted to FERC if parties’ 

negotiations are unsuccessful .............. 3 1 3 2.5 

$176.25 

7.5 

$528.75 

$176.25 

Total .................................................. ........................ ........................ 6 ........................ 307.5 

$21,678.75 

$7,226.25 


asabaliauskas on DSK5VPTVN1PROD with NOTICES
68426 Federal Register / Vol. 79, No. 221 / Monday, November 17, 2014 / Notices 

1NERC Petition at 3. 

2 Id. at 3. 

3 Id. at 4. 

4The affected entities for FAC–001–2 are 

Transmission Owners (TO) and applicable 

Generator Owners (GO). The affected entities for 

FAC–002–2 are Transmission Planners (TP), 

Planning Coordinators (PC), Generator Owners 

(GO), Transmission Owners (TO), Distribution 

Providers (DP), and Load-Serving Entities (LSE). 

Note that Planning Coordinator (PC) is the new 

name for Planning Authority—a term still used in 

NERC’s Compliance Registry. 

5The burden for the preceding versions of the 

standards being replaced was included in: (a) 

FERC–725M (OMB Control No. 1902–0263) for 

FAC–001–1, and (b) FERC–725A (OMB Control No. 

1902–0244) for FAC–002–1. 

6The number of respondents is based on the 

NERC Compliance Registry as of September 24, 

2014. Although 2,163 entities are registered as TO, 

DP, LSE, or GO, we expect at the most 216 entities 

(ten percent) will seek to interconnect and go 

through the study phase that may require 

coordination in any given year. 

7The estimates for cost per hour are derived as 

follows: 

• $72.92/hour, the average of the salary plus 

benefits for a manager ($84.96/hour) and an 

electrical engineer ($60.87/hour), from Bureau of 

Labor and Statistics at http://bls.gov/oes/current/

naics3_221000.htm, as of 9/4/2014 

• $29.01/hour, based on a Commission staff 

study of record retention burden cost. 

Dated: November 7, 2014. 

Kimberly D. Bose, 

Secretary. 

[FR Doc. 2014–27056 Filed 11–14–14; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 6717–01–P 

DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY 

Federal Energy Regulatory 

Commission 

[Docket No. RD14–12–000] 

Proposed Agency Information 

Collection 

AGENCY: Federal Energy Regulatory 

Commission, DOE. 

ACTION: Notice and request for 

comments. 

SUMMARY: The Federal Energy 

Regulatory Commission (Commission) 

invites public comment in Docket No. 

RD14–12–000 on a proposed change to 

a collection of information that the 

Commission 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 January 16, 

2015. 

ADDRESSES: Comments, identified by 

docket number, may be filed in the 

following ways: 

• Electronic Filing through http://

www.ferc.gov. Documents created 

electronically using word processing 

software should be filed in native 

applications or print-to-PDF format and 

not in a scanned format. 

• Mail/Hand Delivery: Those unable 

to file electronically may mail or handdeliver an original of their comments to: 

Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, 

Secretary of the Commission, 888 First 

Street NE., Washington, DC 20426. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Ellen Brown may be reached by email 

at DataClearance@FERC.gov, telephone 

at (202) 502–8663, and fax at (202) 273– 

0873. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The 

proposed information collection 

changes in Docket No. RD14–12–000 

relate to the proposed Reliability 

Standards FAC–001–2 (Facility 

Interconnection Requirements) and 

FAC–002–2 (Facility Interconnection 

Studies), developed by the North 

American Electric Reliability 

Corporation (NERC), and submitted to 

the Commission for approval. The 

Commission received NERC’s petition to 

approve the proposed Reliability 

Standards on August 22, 2014. 

NERC summarizes the FAC group of 

standards as follows: 

The Facility Design, Connections, and 

Maintenance (‘‘FAC’’) Reliability Standards 

address topics such as facility 

interconnection requirements, facility 

ratings, system operating limits, and transfer 

capabilities.1

In its petition, NERC also summarizes 

the proposed Reliability Standards’ 

applicability and requirements: 

Proposed Reliability Standard FAC–001–2 

requires that Transmission Owners and 

applicable Generator Owners document and 

make Facility interconnection requirements 

available so that entities seeking to 

interconnect have the necessary information. 

Proposed Reliability Standard FAC–002–2 

ensures that the reliability impact of 

interconnecting new or materially modified 

Facilities is studied. Collectively, proposed 

Reliability Standards FAC–001–2 and FAC– 

002–2 ensure that there is appropriate 

coordination and communication regarding 

the interconnection of Facilities, which 

improves the reliability of the Bulk-Power 

System.2

Finally, NERC also states that the 

proposed Reliability Standards improve 

reliability, clarify requirement language 

and eliminate redundant or unnecessary 

requirements.3

Burden Statement: Commission staff 

analyzed the proposed and currently 

enforced Reliability Standards and has 

concluded that proposed Reliability 

Standards merely clarify or eliminate 

redundancies and thus, the information 

collection requirements have not 

changed. Accordingly, the net overall 

burden and respondent universe 4

remain unchanged, when compared to 

the burden of the existing standards 

being replaced.5

The Commission intends to submit a 

request for approval to OMB under the 

Paperwork Reduction Act (PRA) related 

to the proposed Reliability Standards. 

For PRA purposes, the information 

collection requirements in proposed 

Reliability Standards FAC–001–2 and 

FAC–002–2 are identified as FERC– 

725D and OMB Control Number 1902– 

0247. 

The annual reporting burden for the 

implementation of Reliability Standards 

FAC–001–2 and FAC–002–2 is 

estimated as follows. 


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