FERC-505, (NOPR in RM18-14) Small Hydropower Projects and Conduit Facilities including License/Relicense, Exemption, and Qualifying Conduit Facility Determination

Forms and Documents

Document Name	Status
FERC-505_500_80 SuppState NOPR RM18-14.docx Supporting Statement A	2018-05-29
regs for 500_505 RM18-14 NOPR.docx Supplementary Document	2018-05-21
CFR-2017-title18-vol1-part5.pdf Supplementary Document	2018-01-29
CFR-2017-title18-vol1-part8.pdf Supplementary Document	2018-01-29
CFR-2017-title18-vol1-part16.pdf Supplementary Document	2018-01-29
CFR-2017-title18-vol1-part4.pdf Supplementary Document	2018-01-29
PURPA78.PDF Supplementary Document	2018-01-23
Hydropower Regulatory Efficiency Act of 20133.pdf Supplementary Document	2017-09-29
16 USC 797a.PNG Supplementary Document	2017-09-29

IC Document Collections

IC ID	Document Title	Status
44000	Small Hydropower Projects and Conduit Facilities including License/Relicense, Exemption, and Qualifying Conduit Facility Determination	Unchanged
231526	NOPR in RM18-14	New

ICR Details

OMB Control No: 1902-0115	ICR Reference No: 201805-1902-006
Status: Historical Inactive	Previous ICR Reference No: 201708-1902-014
Agency/Subagency: FERC	Agency Tracking No: FERC-505
Title: FERC-505, (NOPR in RM18-14) Small Hydropower Projects and Conduit Facilities including License/Relicense, Exemption, and Qualifying Conduit Facility Determination
Type of Information Collection: Revision of a currently approved collection	Common Form ICR:  No
Type of Review Request: Regular
OIRA Conclusion Action: Comment filed on proposed rule and continue	Conclusion Date: 08/09/2018
	Date Received in OIRA: 05/29/2018
Terms of Clearance: In accordance with 5 CFR 1320, OMB is filing comment and withholding approval at this time. The agency shall examine public comment in response to the proposed rulemaking and will include in the supporting statement of the next ICR--to be submitted to OMB at the final rule stage--a description of how the agency has responded to any public comments on the ICR, including comments on maximizing the practical utility of the collection and minimizing the burden.

	Inventory as of this Action	Requested	Previously Approved
Expiration Date	04/30/2021	36 Months From Approved	04/30/2021
Responses	33	0	33
Time Burden (Hours)	24,321	0	24,321
Cost Burden (Dollars)	0	0	0

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Abstract: NOPR in RM18-14. FERC proposes to eliminate Form 80 and to revise sections 8.1 and 8.2 of its regulations to modernize public notice practices, clarify recreational signage requirements, and provide flexibility to assist licensees’ compliance efforts. FERC-505, in general. FERC regulates nonfederal hydropower projects on navigable waters & federal lands pursuant to the Federal Power Act (FPA). RM14-22, Final Rule. On 8/9/13, Congress enacted the Hydropower Regulatory Efficiency Act of 2013 (Hydropower Efficiency Act) to encourage the hydropower industry to utilize non-power dams for electric generation, noting that roughly 97 percent of the 80,000 dams in the U.S. do not generate electricity. Congress recognized that it could encourage hydropower development by reducing costs and regulatory burden during the project study and licensing stages. To that end, Congress amended statutory provisions pertaining to preliminary permits and projects that are exempt from licensing. In response, FERC issued the Final Rule in Docket No. RM14-22-000, amending 18CFR Parts 4 & 380 to conform to the Hydropower Efficiency Act. Although FERC has been complying with the Hydropower Efficiency Act since its enactment,&made its compliance procedures available on its website, the Final Rule now formalizes FERC's compliance procedures in its revised regulations on preliminary permits and exemptions, & in a new subpart on qualifying conduit hydro. facilities. FERC-505 Renewal: FERC-505 is an application for a small hydropower project license or relicense, exemption, or determination of a qualifying conduit hydropower facility. FERC-505 has an increase in the number of responses and the decrease in total hours is related to Congress’ enactment of the Hydropower Regulatory Efficiency Act in August 2013, which in part, authorized the Commission to issue qualifying conduit exemptions. The 28 previous responses that were requested and approved did not include qualifying conduit exemption applications, which at the time, did not exist. Qualifying conduit exemption applications are much less burdensome to prepare than the other applications reported. Of the 33 responses currently requested, 22 are attributed to the much less burdensome qualifying exemption applications. Therefore, although the number of responses slightly increased, the total burden decreased.

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Authorizing Statute(s): US Code: 16 USC 791 Name of Law: Federal Power Act
   US Code: 16 USC 46 Name of Law: Public Utilities Regulatory Policies Act of 1978 (PURPA)
  

Citations for New Statutory Requirements: None

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Associated Rulemaking Information
RIN:	Stage of Rulemaking:	Federal Register Citation:	Date:
1902-AF51	Proposed rulemaking	83 FR 23848	05/23/2018

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Federal Register Notices & Comments

Did the Agency receive public comments on this ICR? No

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Number of Information Collection (IC) in this ICR: 2

IC Title	Form No.	Form Name
Small Hydropower Projects and Conduit Facilities including License/Relicense, Exemption, and Qualifying Conduit Facility Determination
NOPR in RM18-14

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Burden increases because of Program Change due to Agency Discretion: Yes

Burden Increase Due to: Changing Regulations

Burden decreases because of Program Change due to Agency Discretion: No

Burden Reduction Due to:

Short Statement: In RM18-14, the Commission is proposing to eliminate Form 80. In addition, the Commission proposes to further revise its regulations related to recreational use and development at licensed projects in order to modernize public notice practices, clarify recreational signage requirements, and provide flexibility to assist licensees’ compliance efforts. 18CFR Section 8.1 directs licensees to publicize information about the availability of projects lands and waters for recreational purposes, and any recreation-related license conditions. Section 8.1 requires licensees, at a minimum, to publish notice in a local newspaper once each week for four weeks of any recreation-related license conditions that the Commission may designate in an order issuing or amending a license. In addition to publishing notice in the local newspaper, the Commission proposes to require licensees with project websites to also post notice of recreation-related license conditions on its website. This requirement would only apply to a licensee that already has an existing project website, or decides to develop a project website in the future. This proposed change will ensure that the public is informed of recreational opportunities and recreation-related license conditions regardless of whether members of the public rely on a newspaper or the internet as their main source of news and information. The proposed amendments to 18CFR 8.2 clarify project signage requirements and reflect modern public dissemination methods, such as website publication. The Commission proposes to revise section 8.2(a) to streamline the information licensees must include on recreation signage at each public access point. The proposed revisions would require signs to, at a minimum, identify: the project name and number, and a statement that the project is licensed by the Commission; the licensee name and contact information for obtaining additional project recreation information; and permissible times and activities. This proposed change reduces the information that must be included on recreation signage, providing licensees greater flexibility to design signs that effectively communicate the appropriate information needed by public to use and enjoy the recreational opportunities afforded by a particular project. In addition, the Commission proposes to revise section 8.2(b) to require licensees with project websites to include on their websites copies of any approved recreation plan, recreation-related reports approved by the Commission, and the entire license instrument. As with the proposed revision to section 8.1, this requirement would only apply to a licensee that already has an existing project website, or decides to develop a project website in the future. This proposed changed would allow the public to obtain information about a project’s recreation requirements by accessing the licensee’s website, if applicable, or by visiting the licensee’s local office in the project vicinity.

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Annual Cost to Federal Government: $1,405,901

Does this IC contain surveys, censuses, or employ statistical methods? No

Does this ICR request any personally identifiable information (see OMB Circular No. A-130 for an explanation of this term)? Please consult with your agency's privacy program when making this determination.     No

Does this ICR include a form that requires a Privacy Act Statement (see 5 U.S.C. §552a(e)(3))? Please consult with your agency's privacy program when making this determination.     No

Is this ICR related to the Affordable Care Act [Pub. L. 111-148 & 111-152]? No

Is this ICR related to the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act, [Pub. L. 111-203]? No

Is this ICR related to the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (ARRA)? No

Is this ICR related to the Pandemic Response? Uncollected

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Common Form ICR:  No

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On behalf of this Federal agency, I certify that the collection of information encompassed by this request complies with 5 CFR 1320.9 and the related provisions of 5 CFR 1320.8(b)(3).

The following is a summary of the topics, regarding the proposed collection of information, that the certification covers:

(a) It is necessary for the proper performance of agency functions;

(b) It avoids unnecessary duplication;

(c) It reduces burden on small entities;

(d) It uses plain, coherent, and unambiguous language that is understandable to respondents;

(e) Its implementation will be consistent and compatible with current reporting and recordkeeping practices;

(f) It indicates the retention periods for recordkeeping requirements;

(g) It informs respondents of the information called for under 5 CFR 1320.8 (b)(3) about:

(i) Why the information is being collected;

(ii) Use of information;

(iii) Burden estimate;

(iv) Nature of response (voluntary, required for a benefit, or mandatory);

(v) Nature and extent of confidentiality; and

(vi) Need to display currently valid OMB control number;

(h) It was developed by an office that has planned and allocated resources for the efficient and effective management and use of the information to be collected.

(i) It uses effective and efficient statistical survey methodology (if applicable); and

(j) It makes appropriate use of information technology.

If you are unable to certify compliance with any of these provisions, identify the item by leaving the box unchecked and explain the reason in the Supporting Statement.

Certification Date: 05/29/2018

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