FERC-539, 30-day notice in IC16-8



[Federal Register Volume 81, Number 146 (Friday, July 29, 2016)]
[Notices]
[Pages 49974-49975]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [http://www.gpo.gov/]
[FR Doc No: 2016-17896]

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DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY

Federal Energy Regulatory Commission

[Docket No. IC16-8-000]

Commission Information Collection Activities (Ferc-539); Comment
Request

July 25, 2016.
AGENCY: Federal Energy Regulatory Commission.

ACTION: Comment request.

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SUMMARY: In compliance with the requirements of the Paperwork Reduction
Act of 1995, 44 U.S.C. 3507(a)(1)(D), the Federal Energy Regulatory
Commission (Commission or FERC) is submitting its information
collection FERC-539 (Gas Pipeline Certificates: Import & Export Related
Applications) to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) for review
of the information collection requirements. Any interested person may
file comments directly with OMB and should address a copy of those
comments to the Commission as explained below. The Commission
previously issued a Notice in the Federal Register (81 FR 21859, 4/13/
2016) requesting public comments. The Commission received no comments
on the FERC-539 and is making this notation in its submittal to OMB.

DATES: Comments on the collection of information are due by August 29,
2016.

ADDRESSES: Comments filed with OMB, identified by the OMB Control No.
1902-0062, should be sent via email to the Office of Information and
Regulatory Affairs: [email protected]. Attention: Federal Energy
Regulatory Commission Desk Officer.
A copy of the comments should also be sent to the Commission, in
Docket No. IC16-8-000, 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 [email protected], 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
[email protected], by telephone at (202) 502-8663, and by fax at
(202) 273-0873.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Title: FERC-539, Gas Pipeline Certificates: Import & Export Related
Applications.
OMB Control No.: 1902-0062.
Type of Request: Three-year extension of the FERC-539 information
collection requirements with no changes to the reporting requirements.
Abstract: Section 3 of the Natural Gas Act (NGA) \1\ provides, in
part, that ``. . . . no person shall export any natural gas from the
United States to a foreign country or import any natural gas from a
foreign country without first having secured an order from the
Commission authorizing it to do so.'' The 1992 amendments to Section 3
of the NGA concern importation or exportation from/to a nation which
has a free trade agreement with the United States and requires that
such importation or exportation: (1) Shall be deemed to be a ``first
sale'' (i.e. not a sale for a resale) and (2) shall be deemed to be
consistent with the public interest. Applications for such importation
or exportation should be granted without modification or delay.
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\1\ 15 U.S.C. 717-717w.
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The regulatory functions of Section 3 are shared by the Commission
and the Secretary of Energy, Department of Energy (DOE). The Commission
has the authority to approve or disapprove the construction and
operation of particular facilities, the site at which such facilities
shall be located, and, with respect to natural gas that involves the
construction of new domestic facilities, the place of entry for imports
or exit for exports. DOE approves the importation or exportation of the
natural gas commodity.\2\ Additionally, pursuant to the DOE Delegation
Order and Executive Order Nos. 10485 and 12038, the Commission has the
authority to issue Presidential Permits for natural gas facilities
which cross an international border of the United States. Persons
seeking Section 3 authorizations or Presidential Permits from the
Commission file applications

[[Page 49975]]

for such requests pursuant to Part 153 of the Commission's
Regulations.\3\
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\2\ Secretary of DOE's current delegation of authority to the
Commission relating to import and export facilities was renewed by
the Secretary's Delegation Order No. 00-004.00A, effective May 16,
2006.
\3\ Part 153, Subpart B and Subpart C.
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Type of Respondents: The respondents include all jurisdictional
natural gas companies seeking authorization from the Commission to
import or export natural gas.
Estimate of Annual Burden: \4\ The Commission estimates the annual
public reporting burden for the information collection as:
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\4\ 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.
\5\ The estimates for cost per response are derived using the
2015 FERC average salary plus benefits of $149,489/year (or $72.00/
hour). Commission staff finds that the work done for this
information collection is typically done by wage categories similar
to those at FERC.

FERC-539: Gas Pipeline Certificates: Import & Export Related Applications
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Annual number
Number of respondents of responses Total humber Average burden & cost per Total annual burden hours & Cost per
per respondent of responses response \5\ total annual cost respondent ($)
(1) (2) (1) * (2) = (3) (4)......................... (3) * (4) = (5)............. (5) / (1)
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12....................................... 2 24 12 hrs.; $864............... 288 hrs.; $20,736........... $1,728
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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.

Nathaniel J. Davis, Sr.,
Deputy Secretary.
[FR Doc. 2016-17896 Filed 7-28-16; 8:45 am]
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