Document ID: FERC-2017-0456-0001
Agency: ferc
Document Type: Notice
Title: AgencyInformation Collection Activities; Proposals, Submissions, and Approvals
Posted Date: 2017-04-11T04:00Z

[Federal Register Volume 82, Number 68 (Tuesday, April 11, 2017)]
[Notices]
[Pages 17420-17421]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2017-07241]

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DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY

Federal Energy Regulatory Commission

[Docket No. IC17-10-000]

Commission Information Collection Activities (FERC Form No. 2 and 
FERC Form No. 2A) Comment Request; Extension

AGENCY: Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, Department of Energy.

ACTION: Notice of information collection and request for comments.

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SUMMARY: In compliance with the requirements of the Paperwork Reduction 
Act of 1995, the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (Commission or 
FERC) is soliciting public comment on the currently approved 
information collection, FERC Form No. 2 (Major Natural Gas Pipeline 
Annual Report) and FERC Form No. 2A (Non-major Natural Gas Pipeline 
Annual Report).

DATES: Comments on the collection of information are due June 12, 2017.

ADDRESSES: You may submit comments (identified by Docket No. IC17-10-
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.
    Instructions: All submissions must be formatted and filed in 
accordance with submission guidelines at: http://www.ferc.gov/help/submission-guide.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/docs-filing/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: 
    Title: FERC Form No. 2 (Annual Report of Major Natural Gas 
Companies) & FERC Form No. 2A (Annual Report of Non-major Natural Gas 
Companies).\1\
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    \1\ The FERC Form No. 2 and Form 2A are also part of the Forms 
Refresh effort (started in Docket No. AD15-11), which is a separate 
activity and not addressed in this Notice. In addition, there is a 
pending Docket No. RM15-19 which is a separate activity and is not 
addressed in this Notice.
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    OMB Control No.: 1902-0028 (FERC Form No. 2) and 1902-0030 (FERC 
Form No. 2A).
    Type of Request: Three-year extension of the FERC Form No. 2 and 
FERC Form No. 2A information collection requirements with no changes to 
the current reporting requirements.
    Abstract: Pursuant to sections 8, 10 and 14 of the National Gas Act 
(NGA), (15 U.S.C. 717g-717m, Pub. L. 75-688), the Commission is 
authorized to make investigations and collect and record data, to 
prescribe rules and regulations concerning accounts, records and 
memoranda as necessary or appropriate for purposes of administering the 
NGA. The Commission includes the filing requirements in 18 CFR parts 
260.1 and 260.2.
    The forms provide information concerning a company's past

[[Page 17421]]

performance. The information is compiled using a standard chart of 
accounts contained in the Commission's Uniform System of Accounts 
(USofA).\2\ The forms contain schedules which include a basic set of 
financial statements: Comparative Balance Sheet, Statement of Income 
and Retained Earnings, Statement of Cash Flows, and the Statement of 
Comprehensive Income and Hedging Activities. Supporting schedules 
containing supplementary information are filed, including revenues and 
the related quantities of products sold or transported; account 
balances for various operating and maintenance expenses; selected plant 
cost data; and other information.
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    \2\ See 18 CFR part 201.
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    The information collected in the forms is used by Commission staff, 
state regulatory agencies and others in the review of the financial 
condition of regulated companies. The information is also used in 
various rate proceedings, industry analyses and in the Commission's 
audit programs and, as appropriate, for the computation of annual 
charges based on Page 520 of the forms. The Commission provides the 
information to the public, interveners and all interested parties to 
assist in the proceedings before the Commission.
    Print versions of the Forms No. 2 and 2A are located on the 
Commission's Web site at http://www.ferc.gov/docs-filing/forms.asp#2.
    Type of Respondent: Each natural gas company whose combined gas 
transported or stored for a fee exceed 50 million dekatherms in each of 
the previous three years must file the Form 2. Each natural gas company 
not meeting the filing threshold for the Form 2 but having total gas 
sales or volume transactions exceeding 200,000 dekatherms in each of 
the previous three calendar years must submit the Form 2A.
    Estimate of Annual Burden: \3\ The Commission estimates the annual 
public reporting burden for the information collection as:
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    \3\ The 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.
    \4\ The estimates for cost per response are derived using the 
following formula: 2017 Average Burden Hours per Response * $76.50 
per Hour = Average Cost per Response. The hourly cost figure of 
$76.50 is the average FERC employee wage plus benefits. We assume 
that respondents earn at a similar rate.

          FERC Form No. 2: Annual Report of Major Natural Gas Companies and FERC Form No. 2A: Annual Report of Non-Major Natural Gas Companies
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                                                                                                        Average burden    Total annual
                                                           Number of     Annual number   Total number   hours and cost  burden hours and     Cost per
                                                          respondents    of responses    of responses    per response     total annual    respondent ($)
                                                                        per respondent                        \4\             cost
                                                                   (1)             (2)     (1) * (2) =             (4)   (3) * (4) = (5)       (5) / (1)
                                                                                                   (3)
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FERC Form No. 2.......................................              92               1              92           1,629           149,868        $124,619
                                                                                                              $124,619       $11,464,902
FERC Form No. 2A......................................              66               1              66          253.39            16,724          19,384
                                                                                                               $19,384        $1,279,366
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    Comments: Comments are invited on: (1) Whether the collection of 
information is 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 estimate of the burden and 
cost of the collection of information, including the validity of the 
methodology and assumptions used; (3) ways to enhance the quality, 
utility and clarity of the information collection; and (4) ways to 
minimize the burden of the collection of information on those who are 
to respond, including the use of automated collection techniques or 
other forms of information technology.

    Dated: April 5, 2017.
Kimberly D. Bose,
Secretary.
[FR Doc. 2017-07241 Filed 4-10-17; 8:45 am]
 BILLING CODE 6717-01-P