FERC 545 549C 60-day notice

Federal Register / Vol. 83, No. 170 / Friday, August 31, 2018 / Proposed Rules
Revision 03, excluding Appendix 01 and
including Appendix 02, dated November 9,
2017, as applicable to the airplane
configuration.
(s) New Terminating Action
Modification of an airplane in accordance
with the Accomplishment Instructions of
Airbus Service Bulletin A320–52–1165,
Revision 03, excluding Appendix 01 and
including Appendix 02, dated November 9,
2017, or as specified in paragraph (r) of this
AD constitutes terminating action for the
requirements of paragraphs (g), (i), (k), (l),
and (m) of this AD for that airplane.
(t) New Parts Installation Prohibition
(1) Do not install on any airplane a
component specified in paragraphs (g)(1)
through (g)(5) of this AD, as required by
paragraph (t)(1)(i) or (t)(1)(ii) of this AD, as
applicable.
(i) For airplanes in pre-Airbus Modification
27716 or pre-Airbus Service Bulletin A320–
52–1100 configuration: After completing the
optional modification specified in paragraph
(n)(2) of this AD.
(ii) For airplanes in post-Airbus
Modification 27716 or post Airbus Service
Bulletin A320–52–1100 configuration: As of
the effective date of this AD.
(2) Do not install on any airplane a
component specified in paragraphs (g)(1)
through (g)(5) of this AD or paragraphs (i)(1)
through (i)(3) of this AD, as required by
paragraph (t)(2)(i) or (t)(2)(ii) of this AD, as
applicable.
(i) For airplanes in pre-Airbus Modification
155648 or pre-Airbus Service Bulletin A320–
52–1165, Revision 03, excluding Appendix
01 and including Appendix 02, dated
November 9, 2017, configuration: After
completion of the additional work required
by paragraph (r) of this AD.
(ii) For airplanes in post-Airbus
Modification 155648 or post-Airbus Service
Bulletin A320–52–1165, Revision 03,
excluding Appendix 01 and including
Appendix 02, dated November 9, 2017,
configuration: As of the effective date of this
AD.

daltland on DSKBBV9HB2PROD with PROPOSALS

(u) Credit for Previous Actions
(1) This paragraph provides credit for
optional actions provided by paragraph (n)(2)
of this AD, if those actions were performed
before the effective date of this AD using
Airbus Service Bulletin A320–52–1100,
dated December 7, 1998.
(2) This paragraph provides credit for the
actions required by paragraphs (g), (i), (k), (l),
and (m) of this AD, if those actions were
performed before the effective date of this AD
using Airbus Service Bulletin A320–52–1163,
dated February 4, 2014.
(3) This paragraph provides credit for the
actions required by paragraphs (k), (l)(1), (m),
and (n)(3) of this AD if those actions were
performed before the effective date of this AD
using Airbus Service Bulletin A320–52–1165,
Revision 01, dated October 23, 2015,
excluding Appendix 01, dated November 3,
2014, and including Appendix 02, dated
October 23, 2015.

VerDate Sep<11>2014

16:46 Aug 30, 2018

Jkt 244001

(v) Other FAA AD Provisions
(1) Alternative Methods of Compliance
(AMOCs): The Manager, International
Section, Transport Standards Branch, FAA,
has the authority to approve AMOCs for this
AD, if requested using the procedures found
in 14 CFR 39.19. In accordance with 14 CFR
39.19, send your request to your principal
inspector or local Flight Standards District
Office, as appropriate. If sending information
directly to the International Section, send it
to the attention of the person identified in
paragraph (w)(2) of this AD. Information may
be emailed to: [email protected].
(i) Before using any approved AMOC,
notify your appropriate principal inspector,
or lacking a principal inspector, the manager
of the local flight standards district office/
certificate holding district office.
(ii) AMOCs approved previously for AD
2016–07–23 are approved as AMOCs for the
corresponding provisions of this AD.
(2) Contacting the Manufacturer: As of the
effective date of this AD, for any requirement
in this AD to obtain corrective actions from
a manufacturer, the action must be
accomplished using a method approved by
the Manager, International Section, Transport
Standards Branch, FAA; or the European
Aviation Safety Agency (EASA); or Airbus
SAS’s EASA Design Organization Approval
(DOA). If approved by the DOA, the approval
must include the DOA-authorized signature.
(3) Required for Compliance (RC): Except
as specified by paragraph (q) of this AD: If
any service information contains procedures
or tests that are identified as RC, those
procedures and tests must be done to comply
with this AD; any procedures or tests that are
not identified as RC are recommended. Those
procedures and tests that are not identified
as RC may be deviated from using accepted
methods in accordance with the operator’s
maintenance or inspection program without
obtaining approval of an AMOC, provided
the procedures and tests identified as RC can
be done and the airplane can be put back in
an airworthy condition. Any substitutions or
changes to procedures or tests identified as
RC require approval of an AMOC.
(w) Related Information
(1) Refer to Mandatory Continuing
Airworthiness Information (MCAI) EASA AD
2018–0023, dated January 26, 2018; corrected
February 5, 2018; for related information.
This MCAI may be found in the AD docket
on the internet at http://www.regulations.gov
by searching for and locating Docket No.
FAA–2018–0762.
(2) For more information about this AD,
contact Sanjay Ralhan, Aerospace Engineer,
International Section, Transport Standards
Branch, FAA, 2200 South 216th St., Des
Moines, WA 98198; telephone and fax 206–
231–3223.
(3) For service information identified in
this AD, contact Airbus SAS, Airworthiness
Office—EIAS, Rond-Point Emile Dewoitine
No: 2, 31700 Blagnac Cedex, France;
telephone +33 5 61 93 36 96; fax +33 5 61
93 44 51; email account.airworth-eas@
airbus.com; internet http://www.airbus.com.
You may view this service information at the
FAA, Transport Standards Branch, 2200

PO 00000

Frm 00018

Fmt 4702

Sfmt 4702

44521

South 216th St., Des Moines, WA. For
information on the availability of this
material at the FAA, call 206–231–3195.
Issued in Des Moines, Washington, on
August 17, 2018.
Michael Kaszycki,
Acting Director, System Oversight Division,
Aircraft Certification Service.
[FR Doc. 2018–18813 Filed 8–30–18; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4910–13–P

DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY
Federal Energy Regulatory
Commission
18 CFR Part 284
[Docket No. RM96–1–041]

Standards for Business Practices of
Interstate Natural Gas Pipelines
Federal Energy Regulatory
Commission.
ACTION: Notice of proposed rulemaking.
AGENCY:

The Federal Energy
Regulatory Commission (Commission) is
proposing to amend its regulations to
incorporate by reference, with certain
enumerated exceptions, the latest
version (Version 3.1) of business
practice standards adopted by the
Wholesale Gas Quadrant of the North
American Energy Standards Board
(NAESB) applicable to natural gas
pipelines in place of the currently
incorporated version (Version 3.0) of
those business practice standards.
DATES: Comments are due October 1,
2018.
SUMMARY:

Comments, identified by the
docket number of this proceeding, may
be filed electronically at http://
www.ferc.gov in acceptable native
applications and print-to-PDF, but not
in scanned or picture format. For those
unable to file electronically, comments
may be filed by mail or hand-delivery
to: Federal Energy Regulatory
Commission, Secretary of the
Commission, 888 First Street NE,
Washington, DC 20426. The Comment
Procedures Section of this document
contains more detailed filing
procedures.

ADDRESSES:

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Stanley Wolf (technical issues), Office of
Energy Policy and Innovation, Federal
Energy Regulatory Commission, 888
First Street NE, Washington, DC
20426, Telephone: (202) 502–6841, Email: [email protected].
Oscar F. Santillana (technical issues),
Office of Energy Market Regulation,
Federal Energy Regulatory

E:\FR\FM\31AUP1.SGM

31AUP1

44522

Federal Register / Vol. 83, No. 170 / Friday, August 31, 2018 / Proposed Rules

Commission, 888 First Street NE,
Washington, DC 20426, Telephone:
(202) 502–6392, E-mail:
[email protected].

Gary D. Cohen (legal issues), Office of
the General Counsel, Federal Energy
Regulatory Commission, 888 First
Street NE, Washington, DC 20426,

Telephone: (202) 502–8321, E-mail:
[email protected].
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Table of Contents
Paragraph No.

I. Background ................................................................................................................................................................................
II. Discussion ................................................................................................................................................................................
A. Modifications to Previous Version of Standards ............................................................................................................
B. Standards Proposed Not to be Incorporated by Reference .............................................................................................
C. Proposed Implementation Procedures .............................................................................................................................
III. Notice of Use of Voluntary Consensus Standards ................................................................................................................
IV. Incorporation by Reference ....................................................................................................................................................
V. Information Collection Statement ...........................................................................................................................................
VI. Environmental Analysis .........................................................................................................................................................
VII. Regulatory Flexibility Act .....................................................................................................................................................
VIII. Comment Procedures ...........................................................................................................................................................
IX. Document Availability ...........................................................................................................................................................

164 FERC ¶ 61,125

I. Background

United States of America

2. Since 1996, the Commission has
adopted regulations to standardize the
business practices and communication
methodologies of interstate natural gas
pipelines to create a more integrated
and efficient pipeline grid. These
regulations have been promulgated in
the Order No. 587 series of orders,2
wherein the Commission has
incorporated by reference standards for
interstate natural gas pipeline business
practices and electronic
communications that were developed
and adopted by NAESB’s WGQ. Upon
incorporation by reference, this version
of the standards will replace the
currently incorporated version (Version
3.0) of those business practice
standards, will become part of the
Commission’s regulations, and
compliance by interstate natural gas
pipelines will become mandatory.
3. On September 29, 2017, NAESB
filed a report informing the Commission
that it had adopted and ratified WGQ
Version 3.1 of its business practice
standards applicable to natural gas
pipelines. The NAESB report identifies
all the changes made to the Version 3.0
Standards and summarizes the
deliberations that led to the changes
being made. It also identifies changes to
the existing standards that were
considered but not adopted due to a
lack of consensus or other reasons.

Federal Energy Regulatory Commission
Standards for Business Practices of
Interstate Natural Gas Pipelines
Docket No. RM96–1–041
Notice of Proposed Rulemaking

daltland on DSKBBV9HB2PROD with PROPOSALS

(August 21, 2018)
1. The Federal Energy Regulatory
Commission (Commission) proposes to
amend its regulations at 18 CFR 284.12
to incorporate by reference, with certain
enumerated exceptions,1 the latest
version (Version 3.1) of business
practice standards adopted by the
NAESB Wholesale Gas Quadrant (WGQ)
applicable to natural gas pipelines that
NAESB reported to the Commission on
September 29, 2017 in place of the
currently incorporated version (Version
3.0) of those business practice
standards. The implementation of these
standards and regulations will promote
the additional efficiency and reliability
of the natural gas industries’ operations
thereby helping the Commission to
carry out its responsibilities under the
Natural Gas Act. In addition, the
proposed revisions are necessary to
establish more efficient coordination
between the natural gas and electric
industries. Requiring such information
ensures both a common means of
communication and common business
practices to limit miscommunication for
participants engaged in the sale of
electric energy at wholesale and the
transportation of natural gas.
1 As

explained below, in section II.B.1, the
Commission is not proposing in this proposed rule
to incorporate by reference the optional model
contracts and the eTariff-related standards included
in the North American Energy Standards Board
(NAESB) Wholesale Gas Quadrant (WGQ) Version
3.1 package of business practice standards.

VerDate Sep<11>2014

16:46 Aug 30, 2018

Jkt 244001

II. Discussion
4. In this NOPR, the Commission
proposes to incorporate by reference, in
its regulations, Version 3.1 of the
NAESB WGQ consensus business
practice standards, with certain
2 This series of orders began with the
Commission’s issuance of Standards for Business
Practices of Interstate Natural Gas Pipelines, Order
No. 587, FERC Stats. & Regs. ¶ 31,038 (1996).

PO 00000

Frm 00019

Fmt 4702

Sfmt 4702

2
4
7
16
17
22
23
33
39
40
43
47

exceptions.3 We propose that any
compliance filings made in accordance
with a final rule on this subject be made
90 days after issuance of any final rule
in this proceeding or on the first
business day thereafter if falling on a
weekend or holiday. This will allow
time for the Commission to process the
compliance filings before the effective
date of the new standards.4
5. As the Commission found in Order
No. 587, adoption of consensus
standards is appropriate, because the
consensus process helps ensure the
reasonableness of the standards by
requiring that the standards draw
support from a broad spectrum of
industry participants representing all
segments of the industry. Moreover,
because the industry conducts business
under these standards, the
Commission’s regulations should reflect
those standards that have the widest
possible support. In section 12(d) of the
National Technology Transfer and
Advancement Act of 1995, Congress
affirmatively requires federal agencies to
use technical standards developed by
voluntary consensus standards
organizations, like NAESB, as a means
to carry out policy objectives or
activities.
6. We discuss below some specific
aspects of NAESB’s filing.
A. Modifications to Previous Version of
Standards
7. NAESB adopted two substantive
revisions concerning the Nominations
Related Standards, which govern
shipper requests to schedule service on
3 In the discussion below we identify the NAESB
WGQ Version 3.1 Standards that we propose not to
incorporate by reference.
4 See supra P 21, where we propose that
compliance with the new standards will be required
beginning on the first business day of the month
after the fourth full month following issuance of a
final rule in this proceeding.

E:\FR\FM\31AUP1.SGM

31AUP1

Federal Register / Vol. 83, No. 170 / Friday, August 31, 2018 / Proposed Rules

daltland on DSKBBV9HB2PROD with PROPOSALS

natural gas pipelines. One revision
revises Standard 1.3.82 to establish a
standard rounding process (requiring
calculations to at least the seventh
decimal place) for elapsed-proratedscheduled quantity 5 calculations to
provide for needed numerical
uniformity and granularity for users of
these NAESB procedures. The other
Nomination Related Standards revision
was to revise the ‘‘Service Requester’’
element of Standard 1.3.27,6 which
specifies some of the information that
should be included in a nomination
request, from a Mandatory designation
to a Business Conditional 7 designation.
Thus, instead of forcing a specific
upstream or downstream (unthreaded)
nomination 8 to be tied to a specific
5 Standard 1.2.12 of the Nominations Related
Standards defines the elapsed-prorated-scheduled
quantity to mean:
That portion of the scheduled quantity that
would have theoretically flowed up to the effective
time of the intraday nomination being confirmed,
based upon a cumulative uniform hourly quantity
for each nomination period affected.
6 NAESB also made conforming revisions to the
related data sets and documents: Standard 1.4.1 of
the Nomination data set, Standard 1.4.5 of the
Scheduled Quantity data set, Standard 2.4.4 of the
Shipper Imbalance data set, Standard 1.4.2 of the
Nomination Quick Response data set, Standard
2.4.1 of the Pre-Determined Allocation document
and Standard 2.4.3 of the Allocation document.
7 Standard 1.2.2 of the Nominations Related
Standards provides that a Business Conditional data
element is one that is based on current variations
in business practice.
8 NAESB’s Nomination Data Dictionary, WGQ
Version 3.1, Standard 1.4.1, retains from the
Version 3.0 standard the field for ‘‘Model Type
Data’’ that identifies which of three types of
nomination structures is being used. These are:
Pathed, Non-Pathed and Pathed Non-Threaded.
Having these three types of model type data allows
specificity as to the details of the nomination. A
pathed nomination uses one nomination line item
to transact business and, therefore, has one
transaction type. A non-pathed nomination uses
two nomination line items to transact business and,
therefore, has two transaction types. A pathed nonthreaded nomination uses three nomination line
items to transact business and has three transaction
types.
NAESB also provides the following further
clarification of these concepts in the description of
the technical implementation of business processes
included as part of Standard 1.4.1, where NAESB
explains that:
[a] ‘‘Pathed’’ nomination is actually a ‘‘Pathed
Threaded’’ nomination because (1) the physical
path of the pipeline locations and service
contract(s) is fully described in the nomination, and
(2) the logical thread of a specific supplier entity
to a specific market entity at specific pipeline
locations for a specific quantity is also fully
described. ‘‘Non-Pathed’’ nominations are actually
‘‘Non-Pathed Non-Threaded’’ nominations because
(1) physical ‘‘location location-to to-location’’ paths
are not described in the nominations, and (2) no ties
of specific supply entities to specific market entities
are established. And for ‘‘Pathed Non-Threaded’’
nominations, (1) the physical path of the pipeline
locations, service contract(s), and quantity is fully
described, and (2) no ties of specific supply entities
to specific market entities are established. See
NAESB WGQ Version 3.1 Business Practice
Standards, Nominations Related Standards,
Standard 1.4.1, at 87 (Sep. 29, 2017).

VerDate Sep<11>2014

16:46 Aug 30, 2018

Jkt 244001

contract (using a specific threaded
nomination), upstream nominations
may now be distributed among several
contracts (using a Pathed Non-Threaded
nomination structure), which generally
increases flexibility to customers.
8. NAESB also adopted three
revisions to the WGQ Electronic
Delivery Mechanism Standards, which
establish the framework for the
electronic dissemination and
communication of information between
parties in the North American
Wholesale Gas marketplace. First,
NAESB revised Standard 4.3.80 to
increase the allowable field length in
ASCII Comma Separated Value Files to
3000 characters because that increases
the amount of information that can be
conveyed, but reasonably limits it in
conformity with commonly used
software such as Excel. Second, NAESB
adopted new Standard 4.3.106 to allow
checkboxes and radio buttons in the
Transmission Service Providers’
Electronic Bulletin Boards (EBBs) to
indicate ‘‘Yes’’ and/or ‘‘No’’ responses
to data elements, which is more
convenient than the current drop down
list. Third, NAESB modified its
standards to update the operating
systems and web browsers that entities
should support to allow users to take
advantage of recent developments in
computer technology and use.
Additionally, language was added to
clarify the Secure Sockets Layer/
Transport Layer Security protocols,
which encrypt data to hide information
from electronic observers on the
internet. The new standard provides
guidance on the timing for adoption of
a new version of Secure Sockets Layer/
Transport Layer Security protocols—
new versions of these protocols should
be used within 9 months of the version
becoming generally available. In
addition, the new standard clarifies that
Secure Sockets Layer is a colloquial
term that encompasses both Secure
Sockets Layer and Transport Layer
Security.
9. Other changes adopted by NAESB
included changes to the NAESB WGQ
data sets and other technical
implementation documentation, which
provide the technological support
necessary to use the NAESB standards
effectively. One such change was to add
a new Business Conditional data
element ‘‘Agent’’ and corresponding
technical implementation to the
Nomination data set Standard 1.4.1 and
the Scheduled Quantity data set
Standard 1.4.5. Currently, in the data
sets, the Service Requester is defined as
the Shipper or their Agent; however,
language included in the
implementation guides states that both

PO 00000

Frm 00020

Fmt 4702

Sfmt 4702

44523

the Shipper and Agent will be
identified. Thus, this change adds a data
element ‘‘Agent’’ to the data sets to
allow the Service Requestor to identify
both the shipper and its agent if it uses
an agent to nominate and schedule on
the pipeline.
10. NAESB also adopted revisions to
the Flowing Gas Related data sets and
technical implementation, which
address quantitative issues relating
generally to allocation, imbalances and
measurement of flowing gas.
Specifically, NAESB added three
Business Conditional data elements to
the Authorization to Post Imbalances
data set (Standard 2.4.9). The addition
of the three data elements will allow a
Service Requester to authorize specific
contracts and quantities of imbalances
for specified periods of time to be
posted.
11. In addition, NAESB revised the
Imbalance Trade data set (Standard
2.4.11) to reinstate language providing
the confirming party the ability to reject
a trade in the Imbalance Trade data set
when an auto-confirm agreement with a
confirming party is in place. NAESB
states that in its WGQ Version 2.1
publication, before the Imbalance
Trading data sets were consolidated, the
Imbalance Trade Confirmation
contained a Yes/No indicator that the
confirming party could use to indicate
its acceptance or rejection of the trade.
This indicator informed a pipeline
whether the confirming party agreed to
the terms of the trade that the initiating
trader had posted. When the data sets
were consolidated, this data element
was dropped because it was assumed
that if a confirming party did not agree
with the posted terms it would not
confirm the trade, which was effective
only if the pipeline did not have an
auto-confirm agreement with that
confirming party. Accordingly, to
address situations where there are autoconfirm agreements, NAESB has now
revised Standard 2.4.11 to add a new
Business Conditional data element
‘‘Imbalance Trade Response’’ with an
‘‘Accept/Reject’’ code value. This
Accept/Reject indicator informs the
pipeline whether the confirming party
agrees to the terms of the trade that the
initiating trader had posted.
12. NAESB also revised Standard
2.4.6 to add two Senders Option data
elements,9 ‘‘Comments’’ and ‘‘VolumeUncorrected’’ to the Measured Volume
9 Nominations Standard 1.2.2 provides that
Sender’s Option means that this element is an
option for the sender to send and, if sent, the
receiver should store and use the contents of the
data element.

E:\FR\FM\31AUP1.SGM

31AUP1

44524

Federal Register / Vol. 83, No. 170 / Friday, August 31, 2018 / Proposed Rules

Audit Statement 10 in order to
communicate raw data on volumes in
addition to the final volumes which are
communicated through the existing data
element ‘‘Volume Corrected.’’ Thus,
users will now be able to indicate what
initial data they received in addition to
how that data was ultimately corrected,
and to provide comments concerning
that data, which relate to what meter
was used to measure the data.
13. NAESB also adopted revisions to
the Capacity Release Related data sets
and technical implementation.
Specifically, NAESB revised Standard
5.4.24 to add a new Business
Conditional data element, ‘‘Waive
Bidder Credit Indicator’’ and
corresponding code values to the Offer
data set. The additional data element
indicates to a Bidder whether the
Releasing Shipper will waive, pursuant
to the Transmission Service Provider’s
tariff, the Bidder’s creditworthiness prequalification.
14. Further, NAESB revised Standard
6.3.1 (i.e., the NAESB Base Contract for
Sale and Purchase of Natural Gas) to
add language to the disclaimer to
provide a copyright notification and
direct the reader to the NAESB
Copyright Policy and Companies with
Access to NAESB Standards under the
Copyright Policy posted on the NAESB
website. Identical language was added
to three additional NAESB WGQ
Contracts.
15. Lastly, NAESB adopted
modifications to the cover page of
Standard 6.3.1 to add a selfidentification provision that assists end
users in determining whether
counterparties are commercial market
participants as defined by the United
States Commodity Futures Trading
Commission.
B. Standards Proposed Not To Be
Incorporated by Reference
16. The Commission proposes to
continue its past practice 11 of not
incorporating by reference into its
regulations any optional model
contracts, because the Commission does
not require the use of these contracts.12
In addition, consistent with our findings
in past proceedings, the Commission is

daltland on DSKBBV9HB2PROD with PROPOSALS

10 NAESB’s

business process and practices
overview of the Flowing Gas Standards states that
the Measured Volume Audit Statement data set is
used to report gas measurement information in
support of the allocation, imbalance, invoice and
audit processes.
11 See, e.g., Standards for Business Practices of
Interstate Natural Gas Pipelines, Notice of Proposed
Rulemaking, FERC Stats. & Regs. ¶ 32,708, at P 20
(2015) (WGQ Version 3.0 NOPR).
12 Id., Standards for Business Practices of
Interstate Natural Gas Pipelines, Order No. 587–V,
FERC Stats. & Regs. ¶ 31,332, at n.11 (2012).

VerDate Sep<11>2014

16:46 Aug 30, 2018

Jkt 244001

not proposing to incorporate by
reference the Wholesale Electric
Quadrant/WGQ eTariff Related
Standards, because the Commission has
already adopted standards and protocols
for electronic tariff filings based on the
NAESB Standards.13
C. Proposed Implementation Procedures
17. The Commission is proposing to
continue the compliance filing
requirements as revised in Order No.
587–V.14 This would require
compliance with the NAESB WGQ
Version 3.1 standards on the first
business day of the month after the
fourth full month following issuance of
a final rule in this proceeding. As the
Commission found in Order No. 587–V,
adoption of the revised compliance
filing requirements increases the
transparency of the pipelines’
incorporation by reference of the
NAESB WGQ Standards so that shippers
and the Commission will know which
tariff provision(s) implements each
standard as well as the status of each
standard.15 Likewise, consistent with
past practice, the Commission will post
on its eLibrary website (under Docket
No. RM96–1–041) a sample tariff format,
to provide filers an illustrative example
to aid them in preparing their
compliance filings.
18. Consistent with our practice in
Order No. 587–V, each pipeline should
designate a single tariff section under
which every NAESB WGQ Standard
incorporated by reference by the
Commission is listed.16 The pipeline
tariff filings should list all the
incorporated standards with which the
pipeline will comply. In addition, for
any standard that the pipeline seeks
approval not to comply with, the tariff
filing must identify the standard in
question and either identify the
provision in its tariff that complies with
the standard; 17 or provide an
explanation of any waiver, extension of
time, or other variance with respect to
compliance with the standard that
would excuse compliance.18
19. Consistent with our findings in
Order No. 587–V,19 we propose that
requests for waivers that do not meet the
requirements set forth in Order No. 587–
13 WGQ Version 3.0 NOPR, FERC Stats. & Regs.
¶ 32,708 at P 20; Electronic Tariff Filings, Order No.
714, FERC Stats. & Regs. ¶ 31,276 (2008).
14 Order No. 587–V, FERC Stats. & Regs. ¶ 31,332
at PP 36–39.
15 Trans-Union Interstate Pipeline L.P., 141 FERC
¶ 61,167, at P 36 (2012) (Order No. 587–V
Compliance Order).
16 Id. P 36; WGQ Version 3.0 NOPR, FERC Stats.
& Regs. ¶ 32,708 at P 25.
17 Id.
18 Id.
19 Order No. 587–V, FERC Stats. & Regs., ¶ 31,332.

PO 00000

Frm 00021

Fmt 4702

Sfmt 4702

V will not be granted. In particular, as
we explained in Order No. 587–V,
waivers are unnecessary and will not be
granted when the standard applies only
on condition the pipeline performs a
business function and the pipeline
currently does not perform that
function.20
20. If the pipeline is requesting a
continuation of an existing waiver or
extension of time, it must include a
table in its transmittal letter that
identifies the standard for which a
waiver or extension of time was granted,
and the docket number or order citation
to the proceeding in which the waiver
or extension of time was granted. The
pipeline must also present an
explanation for why such waiver or
extension of time should remain in force
with regard to the WGQ Version 3.1
Standards.
21. This continues the Commission’s
practice of having pipelines include in
their tariffs a common location that
identifies the way the pipeline is
incorporating all the NAESB WGQ
Standards and the standards with which
it is required to comply. As explained
above, the Commission will post on its
eLibrary website (under Docket No.
RM96–1–041) a sample tariff format, to
provide filers an illustrative example to
aid them in preparing their compliance
filings.21
III. Notice of Use of Voluntary
Consensus Standards
22. Office of Management and Budget
Circular A–119 (section 11) (February
10, 1998) provides that Federal
Agencies should publish a request for
comment in a NOPR when the agency
is seeking to issue or revise a regulation
proposing to adopt a voluntary
consensus standard or a governmentunique standard. In this NOPR, the
Commission is proposing to incorporate
by reference voluntary consensus
standards developed by the WGQ.
IV. Incorporation by Reference
23. The Office of the Federal Register
requires agencies incorporating material
by reference in final rules to discuss, in
the preamble of the final rule, the ways
that the materials it incorporates by
reference are reasonably available to
interested parties and how interested
parties can obtain the materials.22 The
regulations also require agencies to
summarize, in the preamble of the final
rule, the material it incorporates by
reference. The standards we are
20 Order No. 587–V Compliance Order, 141 FERC
¶ 61,167 at PP 4, 38.
21 Id. P 24.
22 1 CFR 51.5 (2017). See Incorporation by
Reference, 79 FR 66267 (Nov. 7, 2014).

E:\FR\FM\31AUP1.SGM

31AUP1

daltland on DSKBBV9HB2PROD with PROPOSALS

Federal Register / Vol. 83, No. 170 / Friday, August 31, 2018 / Proposed Rules
proposing to incorporate by reference
consist of seven suites of NAESB WGQ
Business Practice Standards that touch
on a variety of topics and are designed
to streamline the transactional processes
for the wholesale gas industry by
promoting a more competitive and
efficient market. These include the:
WGQ Additional Business Practice
Standards; WGQ Nominations Related
Business Practice Standards; WGQ
Flowing Gas Related Business Practice
Standards; Invoicing Related Business
Practice Standards; Quadrant Electronic
Delivery Mechanism Related Business
Practice Standards; Capacity Release
Related Business Practice Standards;
and internet Electronic Transport
Related Business Practice Standards.
These can be summarized as follows.
24. The WGQ Additional Business
Practice Standards address six areas:
Creditworthiness, Storage Information,
Gas/Electric Operational
Communications, Operational Capacity,
Unsubscribed Capacity, and Location
Data Download.
• The Creditworthiness related
standards describe requirements for the
exchange of information, notification,
and communication between parties
during the creditworthiness evaluation
process.
• The Storage Information related
standards define the information to be
provided to natural gas service
requesters related to storage activities
and/or balances.
• The Gas/Electric Operational
Communications related standards
define communication protocols
intended to improve coordination
between the gas and electric industries
in daily operational communications
between transportation service
providers and gas-fired power plants.
The standards include requirements for
communicating anticipated power
generation fuel for the upcoming day as
well as any operating problems that
might hinder gas-fired power plants
from receiving contractual gas
quantities.
• The Operational Capacity related
standards define requirements of the
transportation service provider related
to the reporting and requesting of a
transportation service provider’s
operational capacity, total scheduled
quantity, and operationally available
capacity.
• The Unsubscribed Capacity related
standards define requirements of the
transportation service provider related
to reporting and requesting a
transportation service provider’s
available unsubscribed capacity.
• The Location Data Download
related standards define requirements

VerDate Sep<11>2014

16:46 Aug 30, 2018

Jkt 244001

for the use of codes assigned by the
transportation service provider for
locations and common codes for parties
communicating electronically.
25. The WGQ Nominations Related
Business Practice Standards define the
process by which a natural gas service
requester with a natural gas
transportation contract nominates (or
requests) service from a pipeline or a
transportation service provider for the
delivery of natural gas.
26. The WGQ Flowing Gas Related
Business Practice Standards define the
business processes related to the
communication of entitlement rights of
flowing gas at a location, of the
entitlement rights on a contractual basis,
of the management of imbalances, and
of the measurement and gas quality
information of the actual flow of gas.
27. The Invoicing Related Business
Practice Standards define the process
for the communication of charges for
services rendered (Invoice),
communication of details about funds
rendered in payment for services
rendered (Payment Remittance), and
communication of the financial status of
a customer’s account (Statement of
Account).
28. The Quadrant Electronic Delivery
Mechanism Related Business Practice
Standards define the framework for the
electronic dissemination and
communication of information between
parties in the North American wholesale
gas marketplace for Electronic Data
Interchange (EDI)/Electronic Delivery
Mechanism (EDM) transfers, batch flat
file/EDM transfers, informational
postings websites, EBB/EDM and
interactive flat file/EDM.
29. The Capacity Release Related
Business Practice Standards define the
business processes for communication
of information related to the selling of
all or any portion of a transmission
service requester’s contract rights.
30. The internet Electronic Transport
Related Business Practice Standards
define the implementation of various
technologies necessary to communicate
transactions and other electronic data
using standard protocols for electronic
commerce over the internet between
trading partners.
31. Our regulations provide that
copies of the standards incorporated by
reference may be obtained from the
North American Energy Standards
Board, 801 Travis Street, Suite 1675,
Houston, TX 77002, Phone: (713) 356–
0060. Copies of the standards may be
inspected at the Federal Energy
Regulatory Commission, Public
Reference and Files Maintenance
Branch, 888 First Street NE,

PO 00000

Frm 00022

Fmt 4702

Sfmt 4702

44525

Washington, DC 20426, Phone: (202)
502–8371, http://www.ferc.gov.
32. NAESB is a private consensus
standards developer that develops
voluntary wholesale and retail
standards related to the energy industry.
The procedures used by NAESB make
its standards reasonably available to
those affected by Commission
regulations, which generally is
comprised of entities that have the
means to acquire the information they
need to effectively participate in
Commission proceedings. Participants
can join NAESB, for an annual
membership cost of $7,000, which
entitles them to full participation in
NAESB and enables them to obtain
these standards at no additional cost.
Non-members may obtain the Individual
Standards Manual or Booklets for each
of the seven Manuals by email for $250
per manual, which in the case of these
standards would total $1,750. Nonmembers also may obtain the complete
set of Standards Manuals, Booklets, and
Contracts on USB flash drive for $2,000.
NAESB also provides a free electronic
read-only version of the standards for a
three business day period or, in the case
of a regulatory comment period, through
the end of the comment period. In
addition, NAESB considers requests for
waivers of the charges on a case-by-case
basis depending on need.
V. Information Collection Statement
33. The Office of Management and
Budget (OMB) regulations require that
OMB approve certain reporting, record
keeping, and public disclosure
requirements (information collection)
imposed by an agency.23 Therefore, the
Commission is submitting its proposed
information collection to OMB for
review in accordance with section
3507(d) of the Paperwork Reduction Act
of 1995. Upon approval of a collection
of information, OMB will assign an
OMB control number and an expiration
date. Respondents subject to the filing
requirements of a rule will not be
penalized for failing to respond to these
collections of information unless the
collection of information displays a
valid OMB control number.
34. The Commission solicits
comments on the Commission’s need for
this information, whether the
information will have practical utility,
the accuracy of the provided burden
estimates, ways to enhance the quality,
utility, and clarity of the information to
be collected, and any suggested methods
for minimizing respondents’ burden,
including the use of automated
information techniques.
23 5

CFR 1320.11 (2017).

E:\FR\FM\31AUP1.SGM

31AUP1

44526

Federal Register / Vol. 83, No. 170 / Friday, August 31, 2018 / Proposed Rules

35. Public Reporting Burden: The
Commission’s burden estimates for the
proposals in this NOPR are for one-time
implementation of the information
collection requirements of this NOPR
(including tariff filing, documentation of
the process and procedures, and
information technology work).

36. The collections of information
related to this NOPR fall under FERC–
545 (Gas Pipeline Rates: Rate Change
(Non-Formal)) 24 and FERC–549C
(Standards for Business Practices of
Interstate Natural Gas Pipelines).25 The
following estimates of reporting burden
are related only to this NOPR and

RM96–1–041

anticipate the costs to pipelines for
compliance with the Commission’s
proposals in this NOPR. The burden
estimates are primarily related to
implementing these standards and
regulations and will not result in
ongoing costs.

NOPR

daltland on DSKBBV9HB2PROD with PROPOSALS

[Standards for Business Practices of Interstate Natural Gas Pipelines]
Number of
respondents 26

Annual number of
responses per
respondent

Total number of
responses

Average burden
hr. per response

Total annual burden
hours and total
annual cost 27

Annual costs
per respondent
($)

(1)

(2)

(1) * (2) = (3)

(4)

(3) * (4) = (5)

(5) * (1) = (6)

FERC–545 (one-time) .......................
FERC–549C (one-time) ....................

165
165

1
1

165
165

10 hrs.; $1,020 .....
22 hrs.; $2,244 .....

1,650 hrs.; $168,000 ......
3,630 hrs.; $370,260 ......

1,020
2,244

Total ...........................................

..........................

..............................

330

...............................

5,280 hrs.; $538,560 ......

..........................

The one-time burden (for both the
FERC–545 and FERC–549C) will be
averaged over three years:
FERC–545: 1,650 hours ÷ 3 = 550 hours/
year over three years
FERC–549C: 3,630 hours ÷ 3 = 1,210
hours/year over three years
The number of responses is also
averaged over three years (for both the
FERC–545 and FERC–549C):
FERC–545: 165 responses ÷ 3 = 55
responses/year
FERC–549C: 165 responses ÷ 3 = 55
responses/year
The responses and burden for Years
1–3 will total respectively as follows:
Year 1: 55 responses; 550 hours (FERC–
545); 1,210 hours (FERC–549C)
Year 2: 55 responses; 550 hours (FERC–
545); 1,210 hours (FERC–549C)
Year 3: 55 responses; 550 hours (FERC–
545); 1,210 hours (FERC–549C)
Title: FERC–545, Gas Pipeline Rates:
Rates Change (Non-Formal); FERC–
549C, Standards for Business Practices
of Interstate Natural Gas Pipelines.
Action: Proposed information
collections.
OMB Control Nos.: 1902–0154 (FERC–
545), 1902–0174 (FERC–549C).
Respondents: Business or other for
profit (e.g., Natural Gas Pipelines,
applicable to only a few small
businesses).
Frequency of Responses: One-time
implementation (related to business
procedures, capital/start-up).

Necessity of Information: The
proposals in this NOPR would, if
implemented, upgrade the
Commission’s current business practices
and communication standards by
specifically: (1) Updating the
Nominations Related Standards to
standardize a rounding process for the
elapsed-prorated-scheduled quantity
calculation, and dictate that the
‘‘Service Requester Contract’’ data
element signify business conditional
nominations, rather than mandatory
nominations; (2) updating the WGQ
Electronic Delivery Mechanism related
Standards to make three minor revisions
designed to add clarity, update the
minimum technical characteristics to
account for changes in technology since
the previous version (Version 3.0) of the
WGQ standards, and update the
minimum and suggested operating
systems and web browsers that entities
should support; and (3) revising the
NAESB WGQ data sets or other
technical implementation
documentation while not resulting in
modifications to the underlying
business practice standards. The
package of standards also includes
minor corrections.
The implementation of these data
requirements will provide additional
transparency to informational posting
websites and will improve
communication standards. The
implementation of these standards and
regulations will promote the additional

efficiency and reliability of the natural
gas industries’ operations thereby
helping the Commission to carry out its
responsibilities under the Natural Gas
Act. In addition, the Commission’s
Office of Enforcement will use the data
for general industry oversight.
Internal Review: The Commission has
reviewed the requirements pertaining to
business practices of natural gas
pipelines and made a preliminary
determination that the proposed
revisions are necessary to establish more
efficient coordination between the gas
and electric industries. Requiring such
information ensures both a common
means of communication and common
business practices to limit
miscommunication for participants
engaged in the sale of electric energy at
wholesale and the transportation of
natural gas. These requirements
conform to the Commission’s plan for
efficient information collection,
communication, and management
within the natural gas pipeline
industries. The Commission has assured
itself, by means of its internal review,
that there is specific, objective support
for the burden estimates associated with
the information requirements.
37. Interested persons may obtain
information on the reporting
requirements by contacting the
following: Federal Energy Regulatory
Commission, 888 First Street NE,
Washington, DC 20426 [Attention: Ellen
Brown, Office of the Executive Director],

24 FERC–545 covers rate change filings made by
natural gas pipelines, including tariff changes.
25 FERC–549C covers Standards for Business
Practices of Interstate Natural Gas Pipelines.
26 The number of respondents is the number of
entities in which a change in burden from the
current standards to the proposed exists, not the
total number of entities from the current or
proposed standards that are applicable.

27 The estimated hourly cost (salary plus benefits)
provided in this section is based on the salary
figures for May 2017 posted by the Bureau of Labor
Statistics for the Utilities sector (available at http://
www.bls.gov/oes/current/naics2_22.htm#13-0000)
and scaled to reflect benefits using the relative
importance of employer costs in employee
compensation from May 2017 (available at https://
www.bls.gov/oes/current/naics2_22.htm). The
hourly estimates for salary plus benefits are:

Computer and Information Systems Manager
(Occupation Code: 11–3021), $96.51
Electrical Engineer (Occupation Code: 17–2071),
$66.90
Legal (Occupation Code: 23–0000), $143.68
The average hourly cost (salary plus benefits),
weighting all of these skill sets evenly, is $102.36.
The Commission rounds it to $102/hour.

VerDate Sep<11>2014

16:46 Aug 30, 2018

Jkt 244001

PO 00000

Frm 00023

Fmt 4702

Sfmt 4702

E:\FR\FM\31AUP1.SGM

31AUP1

Federal Register / Vol. 83, No. 170 / Friday, August 31, 2018 / Proposed Rules
email: [email protected], phone:
(202) 502–8663, fax: (202) 273–0873.
38. Comments concerning the
collection of information(s) and the
associated burden estimate(s), should be
sent to the contact listed above and to
the Office of Management and Budget,
Office of Information and Regulatory
Affairs, Washington, DC 20503
[Attention: Desk Officer for the Federal
Energy Regulatory Commission,
telephone: (202) 395–0710, fax: (202)
395–4718].
VI. Environmental Analysis
39. The Commission is required to
prepare an Environmental Assessment
or an Environmental Impact Statement
for any action that may have a
significant adverse effect on the human
environment.28 The actions proposed to
be taken here fall within categorical
exclusions in the Commission’s
regulations for rules that are clarifying,
corrective, or procedural, for
information gathering, analysis, and
dissemination, and for rules regarding
sales, exchange, and transportation of
natural gas that require no construction
of facilities.29 Therefore, an
environmental review is unnecessary
and has not been prepared as part of this
NOPR.

daltland on DSKBBV9HB2PROD with PROPOSALS

VII. Regulatory Flexibility Act
40. The Regulatory Flexibility Act of
1980 (RFA) 30 generally requires a
description and analysis of proposed
rules that will have significant
economic impact on a substantial
number of small entities. The
Commission is not required to make
such analysis if proposed regulations
would not have such an effect.
41. Approximately 165 interstate
natural gas pipelines, both large and
small, are potential respondents subject
to the requirements adopted by this
rule. Most of the natural gas pipelines
regulated by the Commission do not fall
within the RFA’s definition of a small
entity,31 which is currently defined for
natural gas pipelines as a company that,
in combination with its affiliates, has
total annual receipts of $27.5 million or
less.32 For the year 2018, only eleven
28 Regulations Implementing the National
Environmental Policy Act, Order No. 486, FERC
Stats. & Regs. ¶30,783 (1987).
29 See 18 CFR 380.4(a)(2)(ii), 380.4(a)(5),
380.4(a)(27) (2017).
30 5 U.S.C. 601–612.
31 See 5 U.S.C. 601(3) citing section 3 of the Small
Business Act, 15 U.S.C. 623. Section 3 of the SBA
defines a ‘‘small business concern’’ as a business
which is independently owned and operated and
which is not dominant in its field of operation
(2017).
32 13 CFR 121.201 (Subsector 486-Pipeline
Transportation; North American Industry

VerDate Sep<11>2014

16:46 Aug 30, 2018

Jkt 244001

companies not affiliated with larger
companies had annual revenues in
combination with its affiliates of $27.5
million or less and therefore could be
considered a small entity under the
RFA. This represents about seven
percent of the total universe of potential
respondents that may have a significant
burden imposed on them. The
Commission estimates that the one-time
implementation cost of the proposals in
this NOPR is $538,560 (or $3,264 per
entity, regardless of entity size).33 The
Commission does not consider the
estimated $3,264 impact per entity to be
significant. Moreover, these
requirements are designed to benefit all
customers, including small businesses
that must comply with them. Further, as
noted above, adoption of consensus
standards helps ensure the
reasonableness of the standards by
requiring that the standards draw
support from a broad spectrum of
industry participants representing all
segments of the industry. Because of
that representation and the fact that
industry conducts business under these
standards, the Commission’s regulations
should reflect those standards that have
the widest possible support.
42. Accordingly, pursuant to 605(b) of
the RFA,34 the regulations proposed
herein should not have a significant
economic impact on a substantial
number of small entities.
VIII. Comment Procedures
43. The Commission invites interested
persons to submit comments on the
matters and issues proposed in this
document to be adopted, including any
related matters or alternative proposals
that commenters may wish to discuss.
Comments are due October 1, 2018.
Comments must refer to Docket No.
RM96–1–041, and must include the
commenter’s name, the organization
they represent (if applicable), and their
address in their comments.
44. The Commission encourages
comments to be filed electronically via
the eFiling link on the Commission’s
website at http://www.ferc.gov. The
Commission accepts most standard
word processing formats. Documents
created electronically using word
processing software should be filed in
native applications or print-to-PDF
format and not in a scanned format.
Commenters filing electronically do not
need to make a paper filing.
Classification System code 486210; Pipeline
Transportation of Natural Gas) (2017). ‘‘Annual
Receipts’’ are total income plus cost of goods sold.
33 This number is derived by dividing the total
cost figure by the number of respondents. $538,560/
165 = $3,264.
34 5 U.S.C. 605(b).

PO 00000

Frm 00024

Fmt 4702

Sfmt 4702

44527

45. Commenters that are not able to
file comments electronically must send
an original of their comments to:
Federal Energy Regulatory Commission,
Secretary of the Commission, 888 First
Street NE, Washington, DC 20426.
46. All comments will be placed in
the Commission’s public files and may
be viewed, printed, or downloaded
remotely as described in the Document
Availability section below. Commenters
on this proposal are not required to
serve copies of their comments on other
commenters.
IX. Document Availability
47. In addition to publishing the full
text of this document in the Federal
Register, the Commission provides all
interested persons an opportunity to
view and/or print the contents of this
document via the internet through the
Commission’s Home Page (http://
www.ferc.gov) and in the Commission’s
Public Reference Room during normal
business hours (8:30 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.
Eastern time) at 888 First Street NE,
Room 2A, Washington DC 20426.
48. From the Commission’s Home
Page on the internet, this information is
available on eLibrary. The full text of
this document is available on eLibrary
in PDF and Microsoft Word format for
viewing, printing, and/or downloading.
To access this document in eLibrary,
type the docket number excluding the
last three digits of this document in the
docket number field.
49. User assistance is available for
eLibrary and the Commission’s website
during normal business hours from the
Commission’s Online Support at (202)
502–6652 (toll free at 1–866–208–3676)
or email at [email protected],
or the Public Reference Room at (202)
502–8371, TTY (202) 502–8659. Email
the Public Reference Room at
[email protected].
List of Subjects in 18 CFR Part 284
Incorporation by reference, Natural
gas, Reporting and recordkeeping
requirements.
By direction of the Commission.
Issued: August 21, 2018.
Nathaniel J. Davis, Sr.,
Deputy Secretary.

In consideration of the foregoing, the
Commission proposes to amend part
284, chapter I, title 18, Code of Federal
Regulations, as follows.

E:\FR\FM\31AUP1.SGM

31AUP1

44528

Federal Register / Vol. 83, No. 170 / Friday, August 31, 2018 / Proposed Rules

PART 284—CERTAIN SALES AND
TRANSPORTATION OF NATURAL GAS
UNDER THE NATURAL GAS POLICY
ACT OF 1978 AND RELATED
AUTHORITIES
1. The authority citation for part 284
continues to read as follows:

■

Authority: 15 U.S.C. 717–717z, 3301–3432;
42 U.S.C. 7101–7352; 43 U.S.C. 1331–1356.

2. Section 284.12 is amended by:
a. Revising paragraph (a)(1); and
b. Removing from paragraph (a)(2) the
phrase ‘‘http://www.archives.gov/
federal_register/code_of_federal_
regulations/ibr_locations.html’’ and
adding ‘‘www.archives.gov/federalregister/cfr/ibr-locations.html’’ in its
place.
The revision reads as follows:
■
■
■

§ 284.12 Standards for pipeline business
operations and communications.

(a) * * *
(1) An interstate pipeline that
transports gas under subparts B or G of
this part must comply with the business
practices and electronic
communications standards as
promulgated by the North American
Energy Standards Board, as
incorporated herein by reference in
paragraphs (a)(1)(i) thru (vii) of this
section.
(i) Additional Standards (Version 3.1,
September 29, 2017);
(ii) Nominations Related Standards
(Version 3.1, September 29, 2017);
(iii) Flowing Gas Related Standards
(Version 3.1, September 29, 2017);
(iv) Invoicing Related Standards
(Version 3.1, September 29, 2017);
(v) Quadrant Electronic Delivery
Mechanism Related Standards (Version
3.1, September 29, 2017);
(vi) Capacity Release Related
Standards (Version 3.1, September 29,
2017); and
(vii) internet Electronic Transport
Related Standards (Version 3.1,
September 29, 2017).
*
*
*
*
*
[FR Doc. 2018–18473 Filed 8–30–18; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6717–01–P

ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION
AGENCY
daltland on DSKBBV9HB2PROD with PROPOSALS

40 CFR Part 52
[EPA–R09–OAR–2018–0535; FRL–9983–
00—Region 9]

Clean Air Plans; 2008 8-Hour Ozone
Nonattainment Area Requirements;
San Joaquin Valley, California
Environmental Protection
Agency (EPA).

AGENCY:

VerDate Sep<11>2014

16:46 Aug 30, 2018

Jkt 244001

ACTION:

Proposed rule.

The Environmental Protection
Agency (EPA) is proposing to approve
portions of three state implementation
plan (SIP) revisions submitted by the
State of California to meet Clean Air Act
(CAA or ‘‘the Act’’) requirements for the
2008 8-hour ozone national ambient air
quality standards (NAAQS or
‘‘standards’’) in the San Joaquin Valley,
California ozone nonattainment area.
First, the EPA is proposing to approve
the portions of the 2016 Ozone Plan for
the 2008 8-Hour Ozone Standard (‘‘2016
Ozone Plan’’) that address the
requirements to demonstrate attainment
by the applicable attainment date and
implementation of reasonably available
control measures, among other
requirements. Second, the EPA is
proposing to approve the portions of the
Revised Proposed 2016 State Strategy
for the State Implementation Plan
(‘‘2016 State Strategy’’) related to the
ozone control strategy for San Joaquin
Valley for the 2008 ozone standards,
including a specific aggregate emissions
reduction commitment. Lastly, the EPA
is proposing to approve an air district
rule addressing the emission statement
requirement for ozone nonattainment
areas. The EPA is not taking action at
this time on the portions of the San
Joaquin Valley 2016 Ozone Plan that
address the requirements for a
reasonable further progress (RFP)
demonstration, motor vehicle emissions
budgets (MVEBs), a base year emissions
inventory, and contingency measures
for failure to attain or to meet reasonable
further progress milestones. We intend
to address these remaining elements in
a forthcoming proposal.
DATES: Written comments must arrive
on or before October 1, 2018.
ADDRESSES: Submit your comments,
identified by Docket ID No. EPA–R09–
OAR–2018–0535 at https://
www.regulations.gov. For comments
submitted at Regulations.gov, follow the
online instructions for submitting
comments. Once submitted, comments
cannot be edited or removed from
Regulations.gov. The EPA may publish
any comment received to its public
docket. Do not submit electronically any
information you consider to be
Confidential Business Information (CBI)
or other information whose disclosure is
restricted by statute. Multimedia
submissions (audio, video, etc.) must be
accompanied by a written comment.
The written comment is considered the
official comment and should include
discussion of all points you wish to
make. The EPA will generally not
consider comments or comment
SUMMARY:

PO 00000

Frm 00025

Fmt 4702

Sfmt 4702

contents located outside of the primary
submission (i.e. on the web, cloud, or
other file sharing system). For
additional submission methods, please
contact the person identified in the FOR
FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT section.
For the full EPA public comment policy,
information about CBI or multimedia
submissions, and general guidance on
making effective comments, please visit
http://www.epa.gov/dockets/
commenting-epa-dockets.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
Laura Lawrence, EPA Region IX, (415)
972–3407, [email protected].
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Throughout this document, ‘‘we,’’ ‘‘us’’
and ‘‘our’’ refer to the EPA.
Table of Contents
I. Regulatory Context
A. Ozone Standards, Area Designations
and SIPs
B. The San Joaquin Valley Ozone
Nonattainment Area
C. CAA and Regulatory Requirements for
2008 Ozone Nonattainment Area SIPs
II. Submissions From the State of California
To Address 2008 Ozone Requirements in
the San Joaquin Valley
A. Summary of Submissions
B. Clean Air Act Procedural Requirements
for Adoption and Submission of SIP
Revisions
III. Evaluation of the 2016 Ozone Plan
A. Emissions Inventories
B. Emission Statement
C. Reasonably Available Control Measures
Demonstration and Control Strategy
D. Attainment Demonstration
E. Rate of Progress Plan and Reasonable
Further Progress Demonstration
F. Transportation Control Strategies and
Measures To Offset Emissions Increases
From Vehicle Miles Traveled
G. Contingency Measures To Provide for
RFP and Attainment
H. Clean Fuels or Advanced Control
Technology for Boilers
I. Motor Vehicle Emissions Budgets for
Transportation Conformity
J. Other Clean Air Act Requirements
Applicable to Extreme Ozone
Nonattainment Areas
IV. Other Commitments To Reduce
Emissions
V. Proposed Action
VI. Incorporation by Reference
VII. Statutory and Executive Order Reviews

I. Regulatory Context
A. Ozone Standards, Area Designations
and SIPs
Ground-level ozone pollution is
formed from the reaction of volatile
organic compounds (VOC) and oxides of
nitrogen (NOX) in the presence of
sunlight.1 These two pollutants, referred
1 The State of California typically refers to
reactive organic gases (ROG) in its ozone-related
submissions since VOC in general can include both

E:\FR\FM\31AUP1.SGM

31AUP1