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Federal Register / Vol. 79, No. 194 / Tuesday, October 7, 2014 / Notices

increasing teacher effectiveness and
achieving equity in teacher distribution;
and (d) turning around our lowestachieving schools.
Dated: October 2, 2014.
Stephanie Valentine,
Acting Director, Information Collection
Clearance Division, Privacy, Information and
Records Management Services, Office of
Management.
[FR Doc. 2014–23875 Filed 10–6–14; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4000–01–P

DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY
Proposed Agency Information
Collection
U.S. Energy Information
Administration (EIA), U.S. Department
of Energy.
ACTION: Notice and Request for OMB
Review and Comment.
AGENCY:

EIA has submitted to the
Office of Management and Budget
(OMB) for clearance, under the
provisions of the Paperwork Reduction
Act of 1995, for the natural gas survey
forms (OMB–1975–0175). EIA requests a
three-year clearance for the following
forms:
• EIA 176, ‘‘Annual Report of Natural
and Supplemental Gas Supply and
Disposition,’’
• EIA 191, ‘‘Monthly and Annual
Underground Natural Gas Storage
Report,’’
• EIA–757, ‘‘Natural Gas Processing
Plant Survey,’’
• EIA 857, ‘‘Monthly Report of
Natural Gas Purchases and Deliveries to
Consumers,’’
• EIA–910, ‘‘Monthly Natural Gas
Marketer Survey,’’ and
• EIA–912, ‘‘Weekly Underground
Natural Gas Storage Report.’’
The proposed data collection will
make minor changes to the forms and
instructions to provide clarity. The
number of respondents for EIA–191,
EIA–857 and EIA–757 has been
increased to reflect recent survey frame
research which has identified new
respondents. Data confidentiality
procedures for protecting the
identifiability of submitted data remain
unchanged for all forms with the
exception of a portion of Form EIA–191.
EIA is also proposing a change to the
published revision policy for Form EIA–
912, a Principal Federal Economic
Indicator. In addition, EIA is proposing
specific changes to several of the forms;
these changes are described in detail in
the ‘‘Supplementary Information’’
section below.

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SUMMARY:

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Comments regarding this
collection must be received on or before
November 6, 2014. 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,
please advise the DOE Desk Officer at
OMB of your intention to make a
submission as soon as possible. The
Desk Officer may be telephoned at 202–
395–4718 or contacted by email at
[email protected].
ADDRESSES: Written comments should
be sent to the
DOE Desk Officer, Office of Information
and Regulatory Affairs, Office of
Management and Budget, New
Executive Office Building, Room
10102, 735 17th Street NW.,
Washington, DC 20503,
[email protected]. and
to
Amy Sweeney, U.S. Energy Information
Administration, Mail Stop EI–24,
Forrestal Building, 1000
Independence Avenue SW.,
Washington, DC 20585,
[email protected].
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
Requests for additional information or
copies of any forms and instructions
should be directed to Ms. Sweeney at
the address listed above. Also, the draft
forms and instructions are available on
the EIA Web site at http://www.eia.gov/
survey/notice/
ngdownstreamforms2015.cfm.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: This
information collection request contains:
(1) OMB No.: 1975–0175.
(2) Information Collection Request
Title: ‘‘Natural Gas Data Collection
Program Package.’’
(3) Type of Request: Proposed
revision and three-year extension of the
natural gas surveys.
(4) Purpose: EIA is proposing the
following changes:
(a) Form EIA–176, ‘‘Annual Report of
Natural and Supplemental Gas
Supply and Disposition’’
1. Type of Request: Extension, with
changes, of a currently approved
collection.
2. Purpose: Form EIA–176, ‘‘Annual
Report of Natural and Supplemental Gas
Supply and Disposition,’’ collects data
on natural, synthetic, and other
supplemental gas supplies, disposition,
and certain revenues by state. The data
appear in the EIA publications, Monthly
Energy Review, Natural Gas Annual,
and Natural Gas Monthly. The proposed
changes include:
• In Part 3, EIA is proposing to collect
information on the price of compressed
natural gas (CNG) for natural gas local
DATES:

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distribution companies that sell CNG to
the public. This information will
provide information on retail prices of
CNG. CNG is a growing segment of the
natural gas industry that is not
represented in EIA’s natural gas retail
price series.
• In Part 4, EIA is proposing to collect
data related to costs associated with
already-reported information on natural
gas purchased and received at the city
gate. EIA collects information on costs
associated with purchases at the city
gate on a monthly basis on Form EIA–
857 for a sample of companies that
report on Form EIA–176. However, the
monthly city gate purchase information
is frequently subject to monthly trueups and having an annual benchmark
for city gate purchase costs is expected
to lead to a more accurate depiction of
natural gas distributors’ cost of natural
gas.
• In Part 5, EIA is proposing to collect
the capacity of liquefied natural gas
(LNG) marine terminals to gain a better
understanding of the extent to which
these storage assets are able to supply
the market during periods of peak
natural gas demand.
3. Estimated Number of Survey
Respondents: 2,012 respondents.
4. Annual Estimated Number of Total
Responses: The annual number of total
responses is 2,012.
5. Annual Estimated Number of
Burden Hours: The annual estimated
burden is 24,144 hours.
6. Annual Estimated Reporting and
Recordkeeping Cost Burden: Additional
costs to respondents are not anticipated
beyond costs associated with response
burden hours.
(b) Form EIA–191, ‘‘Monthly
Underground Gas Storage Report’’
1. Type of Request: Extension, with
changes, of a currently approved
collection.
2. Purpose: Form EIA–191, ‘‘Monthly
Underground Gas Storage Report,’’
collects data on the operations of all
active underground storage facilities.
The data appear in the EIA publications
Monthly Energy Review, Natural Gas
Annual, and Natural Gas Monthly. EIA
is proposing to make the following
changes to the form:
• To reduce reporting burden EIA is
proposing to discontinue two categories
regarding Field Status: ‘‘Depleting’’ and
‘‘Other.’’ EIA will use only two
categories, ‘‘Active’’ and ‘‘Inactive.’’ The
category ‘‘Inactive’’ is more descriptive
and replaces the Field Status category
label of ‘‘Abandoned.’’ The ‘‘Depleting’’
and ‘‘Other’’ categories are rarely used
by reporting companies and collapsing
these categories into ‘‘Inactive’’ will not

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Federal Register / Vol. 79, No. 194 / Tuesday, October 7, 2014 / Notices
cause a loss in data utility, as the same
data will still be reported, albeit in a
single category.
• EIA is proposing to make public
reported values for monthly base gas
levels reported in Part 4. This
information will enhance the utility of
the underground storage information
already available to the public
pertaining to capacity and working gas
capacity. Additionally, base gas can
indicate another potential source of
supply during times of sustained high
demand as there have traditionally been
some withdrawals of base gas, albeit
small amounts, late during the heating
season. The current confidentiality
protection covering the other
information reported in Part 4,
including monthly working gas, total
gas in storage, and injections and
withdrawals into storage, will be
retained. EIA will continue to publish,
in disaggregated form, information
collected in Part 3 of Form EIA–191,
including storage field name and type,
reservoir name, location, working gas
and total storage field capacity, and
maximum deliverability. On its Web
site, EIA currently releases this
information at the field level through its
Natural Gas Annual Respondent Query
System.
3. Estimated Number of Survey
Respondents: There are approximately
135 respondents. This has been
increased from the previous clearance to
reflect additional storage operators that
have been identified via survey frame
research. The change results in an
increase of total annual responses and
total burden hours as stated below.
4. Annual Estimated Number of Total
Responses: The annual estimated
number of total responses is 1,620.
5. Annual Estimated Number of
Burden Hours: The annual estimated
burden is 4,212 hours.
6. Annual Estimated Reporting and
Recordkeeping Cost Burden: Additional
costs to respondents are not anticipated
beyond costs associated with response
burden hours.
(c) Form EIA–757, ‘‘Natural Gas
Processing Plant Survey’’
1. Type of Request: Extension, with
changes, of a currently approved
collection.
2. Purpose: Form EIA–757, ‘‘Natural
Gas Processing Plant Survey,’’ collects
information on the capacity, status, and
operations of natural gas processing
plants, and monitors constraints of
natural gas processing plants during
periods of supply disruption in areas
affected by an emergency, such as a
hurricane. Schedule A of the EIA–757 is
collected no more than every three years

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to collect baseline operating and
capacity information from all
respondents and Schedule B is activated
as needed and collected from a sample
of respondents in affected areas as
needed. Schedule A was most recently
conducted in 2012 and Schedule B was
most recently activated in 2012 for
Hurricane Isaac with a sample of
approximately 20 plants. EIA is
proposing to continue the collection of
the same data elements on Form EIA–
757 Schedules A and B in their present
form with the following change:
• EIA is proposing to eliminate two
elements from Schedule A, annual
average total plant capacity and annual
average natural gas flow at plant inlet,
as this information will be duplicative
of information to be collected on a
proposed new survey of natural gas
processing plants, Form EIA–915, to be
submitted under a separate OMB
Control Number.
3. Estimated Number of Survey
Respondents: Schedule A: 600;
Schedule B: To be determined based on
the number of processing plants that are
within the proximity of the natural gas
supply disruption, historically around
20. Note the total number of
respondents in schedule A has been
increased from 500 to 600 due to recent
research into the number of active
natural gas processing plants which has
yielded new potential respondents. The
change results in an increase of total
annual responses and total burden
hours as stated below.
4. Annual Estimated Number of Total
Responses: Schedule A is used to collect
information once every three years.
Therefore, the annual estimated number
of total responses is 200. The number of
respondents for Schedule B varies from
year to year, but the most recent
activation surveyed approximately 20
respondents.
5. Annual Estimated Number of
Burden Hours: The annual estimated
burden for Schedule A is 100 hours.
Schedule B is estimated to require 1.5
hours for each respondent to complete;
the number of respondents varies but
the most recent activation surveyed
approximately 20 respondents, so the
estimated burden is 30 hours.
6. Annual Estimated Reporting and
Recordkeeping Cost Burden: Additional
costs to respondents are not anticipated
beyond costs associated with response
burden hours.
(d) Form EIA–857, ‘‘Monthly Report of
Natural Gas Purchases and Deliveries
to Consumers’’
1. Type of Request: Extension, with
change, of a currently approved
collection.

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2. Purpose: Form EIA–857, ‘‘Monthly
Report of Natural Gas Purchases and
Deliveries to Consumers,’’ collects data
on the quantity and cost of natural gas
delivered to distribution systems and
the quantity and revenue of natural gas
delivered to end-use consumers by
market sector, on a monthly basis by
state. The data appear in the EIA
publications, Monthly Energy Review,
Natural Gas Annual, and Natural Gas
Monthly. EIA is proposing the following
change:
• EIA is proposing to add a new
question to the form that asks whether
the reporting company is including any
adjustments to prior periods in their
current monthly reporting. Reporting
companies frequently make adjustments
to correct data previously submitted in
prior periods that skew the current
month’s reporting and EIA would like to
propose this mechanism to more easily
identify this phenomenon and address it
proactively with the reporting
companies.
3. Estimated Number of Survey
Respondents: 320 respondents each
month. The number of firms surveyed
each month has increased to 320 in
order to maintain sufficient coverage of
the survey variables collected on EIA–
857. The change results in an increase
of total annual responses and total
burden hours as stated below.
4. Annual Estimated Number of Total
Responses: The annual estimated
number of total responses is 3,840.
5. Annual Estimated Number of
Burden Hours: The annual estimated
burden is 13,440 hours.
6. Annual Estimated Reporting and
Recordkeeping Cost Burden: Additional
costs to respondents are not anticipated
beyond costs associated with response
burden hours.
(e) Form EIA–910, ‘‘Monthly Natural
Gas Marketer Survey’’
1. Type of Request: Extension of a
currently approved collection.
2. Purpose: Form EIA–910, ‘‘Monthly
Natural Gas Marketer Survey,’’ collects
information on natural gas sales from
marketers in selected states that have
active customer choice programs. EIA is
requesting information on the volume
and revenue for natural gas commodity
sales and any receipts for distribution
charges and taxes associated with the
sale of natural gas. EIA is proposing to
continue Form EIA–910 in its present
form with no changes to the elements
collected or geographic coverage.
3. Estimated Number of Survey
Respondents: There are approximately
210 respondents each month.
4. Annual Estimated Number of Total
Responses: The annual estimated
number of total responses is 2,520.

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5. Annual Estimated Number of
Burden Hours: The annual estimated
burden is 5,040 hours.
6. Annual Estimated Reporting and
Recordkeeping Cost Burden: Additional
costs to respondents are not anticipated
beyond costs associated with response
burden hours.
(f) Form EIA–912, ‘‘Weekly
Underground Natural Gas Storage
Report’’
1. Type of Request: Extension, with
changes, of a currently approved
collection.

2. Purpose: Form EIA–912, ‘‘Weekly
Underground Natural Gas Storage
Report,’’ collects information on weekly
inventories of natural gas in
underground storage facilities and
serves as a Principal Federal Economic
Indicator. The proposed changes
include an additional data element as
well as expanded geographic categories
for working gas collection and
publication in the Lower 48 states:
• Instead of dividing the states into
three regions, the East, West and
Producing Regions, EIA is proposing to
collect data in five regions by further
breaking out the current regions. The

states currently included in the
Producing region will remain
unchanged except for the removal of
New Mexico. The Producing region will
now be referred to as the South Central
region. The South Central region will
continue to have two subcategories for
the different storage technologies
prevalent in the region, salt and non-salt
facilities. Four additional regions that
further break out the current East and
West regions will be added in order to
enhance the analysis and usability of
the data. The new geographic regions
are defined in the following table:

Current EIA–912 regions

Proposed EIA–912 regions

Producing Region: Alabama, Arkansas, Kansas, Louisiana, Mississippi,
New Mexico, Oklahoma, and Texas.
East Region: Connecticut, Delaware, District of Columbia, Florida,
Georgia, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kentucky, Massachusetts, Maryland,
Maine, Michigan, Missouri, Nebraska, New Hampshire, New Jersey,
New York, North Carolina, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, South
Carolina, Tennessee, Vermont, Virginia, Wisconsin, and West Virginia.

South Central Region: Alabama, Arkansas, Kansas, Louisiana, Mississippi, Oklahoma, and Texas.
East Region: Connecticut, Delaware, District of Columbia, Florida,
Georgia, Massachusetts, Maryland, Maine, New Hampshire, New
Jersey, New York, North Carolina, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, South Carolina, Vermont, Virginia, and West Virginia.

West Region: Arizona, California, Colorado, Idaho, Minnesota, Montana, Nevada, North Dakota, Oregon, South Dakota, Utah, Washington, and Wyoming.

Midwest Region: Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kentucky, Michigan, Minnesota,
Missouri, and Tennessee, and Wisconsin.
Mountain Region: Arizona, Colorado, Idaho, Montana, Nebraska, New
Mexico, Nevada, North Dakota, South Dakota, Utah, and Wyoming.

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Pacific Region: California, Oregon, and Washington.

• EIA is also proposing a new data
element, inventory adjustments of
working gas in storage, to better
distinguish when adjustments to
working gas inventories, such as
reclassifications between working and
base gas, occur. In most instances, this
data element would not be applicable to
the majority of respondents. However,
when inventory adjustments do occur,
they will most easily be discerned by
being directly reported in a designated
portion of the form instead of being
listed in the comments section. As the
primary use of the WNGSR’s data is the
net change in weekly inventory data,
which serves as a proxy for natural gas
flowing into and out of underground
storage, clearer data on inventory
adjustments that can obscure the nature
of flows into and out of storage will be
more easily distinguished and
published.
• Finally, EIA is proposing two
changes to its current Weekly Natural
Gas Storage Report revision policy. The
first proposed change would reduce the
threshold for published revisions and
reclassifications between working and
base gas from 7 billion cubic feet (Bcf)
to 4 Bcf. Under the proposed revision
policy, revisions will be announced in
the regularly scheduled release, when
the sum of reported changes is at least
4 Bcf at either a regional or national

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level. Second, EIA is also proposing to
amend the policy addressing the
unscheduled release of revisions. Under
the current policy, an unscheduled
release of revised data will occur when
the cumulative effect of respondent
submitted data changes or corrections is
at least 10 Bcf for the current or prior
report week. Under the proposed policy,
the unscheduled release of revisions to
weekly estimates of working gas held in
underground storage will occur when
the cumulative sum of data changes or
corrections to working gas and the net
change between the two most recent
report weeks is at least 10 Bcf. The
proposed change leaves the 10-Bcf
threshold, as well as the current out-ofcycle release procedures, intact but will
further require that the revision have an
impact of 10 Bcf or more on the reported
net change between the two most
recently reported weekly periods. For
example, if one or more respondents
submits changes totaling 10 Bcf to
previously submitted data but the
changes are the result of errors that have
been accumulating over several weeks
and do not affect flows of working
natural gas into or out of storage in the
most recent two reported weekly
periods by more than 10 Bcf, the
unscheduled data release will not occur
and the revisions will be published with
the next regularly scheduled release.

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3. Estimated Number of Survey
Respondents: There are approximately
85 respondents every week.
4. Annual Estimated Number of Total
Responses: The annual estimated
number of total responses is 4,420.
5. Annual Estimated Number of
Burden Hours: The annual estimated
burden is 4,420 hours.
6. Annual Estimated Reporting and
Recordkeeping Cost Burden: Additional
costs to respondents are not anticipated
beyond costs associated with response
burden hours.
Statutory Authority: Section 13(b) of the
Federal Energy Administration Act of 1974,
Public Law 93–275, codified at 15 U.S.C.
772(b).
Issued in Washington, DC, September 30,
2014.
Nanda Srinivasan,
Director of Survey Development and
Statistical Integration, U. S. Energy
Information Administration.
[FR Doc. 2014–23751 Filed 10–6–14; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6450–01–P

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