[Federal Register: June 21, 2002 (Volume 67, Number 120)]
[Notices]               
[Page 42243-42244]
From the Federal Register Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]
[DOCID:fr21jn02-40]                         

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DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY

Federal Energy Regulatory Commission

[Docket No. IC02-717-000; FERC-717]

 
Commission Information Collection Activities, Proposed 
Collection; Comment Request; Extension

June 17, 2002.
AGENCY: Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, DOE.

ACTION: Notice.

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SUMMARY: In compliance with the requirements of Section 3506(c)(2)(a) 
of the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, 44 U.S.C. 3506(c)(2)(A), the 
Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (Commission) is soliciting public 
comment on the specific aspects of the information collection described 
below.

DATES: Comments on the collection of information are due by August 23, 
2002.

ADDRESSES: Copies of the proposed collection of information can be 
obtained from Michael Miller, Office of the Chief Information Officer, 
CI-1, 888 First Street NE., Washington, DC 20426. Comments may be filed 
either in paper format or electronically. Those persons filing 
electronically do not need to make a paper filing. For paper filings, 
the original and 14 copies of such comments should be submitted to the 
Office of the Secretary, Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, 888 
First Street, NE. Washington, DC 20426 and should refer to Docket No. 
IC02-717-000.
    Documents filed electronically via the Internet must be prepared in 
WordPerfect, MS Word, Portable Document Format, or ASCII format. To 
file the document, access the Commission's website at www.ferc.gov and 
click on ``Make an E-filing,'' and then follow the instructions for 
each screen. First time users will have to establish a user name and 
password. The Commission will send an automatic acknowledgment to the 
sender's E-mail address upon receipt of comments. User assistance for 
electronic filings is available at 202-208-0258 or by e-mail to 
efiling@ferc.fed.us. Comments should not be submitted to the e-mail 
address.
    All comments may be viewed, printed or downloaded remotely via the 
Internet through FERC's homepage using the RIMS link. User assistance 
for RIMS is available at 202-208-2222, or by e-mail to 
rimsmaster@ferc.fed.us.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Michael Miller may be reached by 
telephone at (202)208-1415, by fax at (202)208-2425, and by e-mail at 
michael.miller@ferc.gov.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The information collected under the 
requirements of FERC-717 ``Open Access Same Time Information System'' 
(OMB No. 1902-0173) is used by the Commission to carry out the general 
authority in Sections 309 and 311 of the Federal Power Act 1978 
(PURPA)(16 U.S.C. 825h). On April 24, 1996, the Commission issued two 
separate but interrelated final rules. The first rule, Order No. 888 
required that all public utilities that own, control or operate 
facilities used for transmitting electric energy in interstate commerce 
to have on file open access non-discriminatory transmission tariffs 
that contain minimum terms and conditions of non-discriminatory 
service. The second rule Order No. 889, required utilities to establish 
electronic systems to share information about available transmission 
capacity. Under this rule, each public utility (or its agent) that 
owns, controls, or operates transmission facilities had to create or 
participate in an Open Access Same-Time Information System (OASIS) that 
provides open access transmission customers (current and potential) 
with electronic information about transmission capacity, prices, and 
other information necessary to obtain open access nondiscriminatory 
transmission services. The rule also established standards of conduct 
to ensure that a public utility's employees engaged in a transmission 
operations function independently of those employees engaged in 
wholesale purchases and sales of electric energy in interstate 
commerce. In addition, specific requirements with respect to various 
standards and protocols were identified to ensure that the OASIS system 
presents information in a consistent and uniform manner. In subsequent 
orders OASIS has been modified as it became necessary to adopt uniform 
business practices and communication protocols. In Docket No. RM01-10-
000, the Commission proposed new standards of conduct to apply 
uniformly to both natural gas pipelines and transmitting public 
utilities, a matter still pending before the Commission.
    The compliance with these requirements is mandatory. The reporting 
requirements are found at 18 CFR Part 37.
    Action: The Commission is requesting a three-year extension of the 
current expiration date, with no changes to the existing collection of 
data with exception to the standards of conduct which are the subject 
of a separate proceeding as noted above.
    Burden Statement: Public reporting burden for this collection is 
estimated as:

[[Page 42244]]



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                                                           Number of        Average burden       Total annual
         Number of respondents annually (1)              responses per    hours per response     burden hours
                                                        respondent (2)            (3)             (1)x(2)x(3)
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
140.................................................                  1               1,418             198,520
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

    In the Commission's initial submission to OMB it included an 
estimate based on information obtained from technical journals of the 
annualized Capital/Startup costs necessary for setting out a world wide 
web site on the Internet. Additional costs included developing the 
procedures for calculating ATC and operating an OASIS, and creating the 
necessary links between control center computers and OASIS computers. 
To annualize, the Commission assumed that the system would last 
conservatively for three years. On an annual basis, the Commission 
estimated startup costs to be $190,000 per system. For operating and 
maintenance costs (``ongoing''), the Commission estimated the costs to 
be $110,000 per system. In addition, the Commission assumed that it 
would take six staff members working full time (five to cover reporting 
requirements and one to maintain the record keeping requirements).
    However, six years have passed since that initial estimate and 
three years since the last submission to OMB. OASIS has been in full 
operation for several years as the Commission noted in its last 
submission, therefore, it will only consider costs for the continued 
operation of OASIS. (Operations and Maintenance costs include the use 
of staff to maintain the web site plus human resources necessary for 
developing and handling data for OASIS. The Commission had assumed in 
its last submission that only 4.5 personnel (a reduction from the six 
as noted above) were necessary for staffing, but with improvements in 
information technology, consolidations within the industry and sharing 
of staff time between the OASIS site and control room operations, it is 
anticipated that staffing levels has been further reduced to an average 
of four personnel. The total annualized cost of the OASIS requirement 
is 140 respondents x operations and maintenance costs + staffing costs 
(using a personnel cost of $70,000). The latter figure represents an 
average of mean annual earnings for professions in Information 
Technology and Engineering as reported in Federal government 
occupational statistics for the year 2000. (140 respondents x $390,000 
= $ 54,600,000 for total costs).
    The reporting burden includes the total time, effort, or financial 
resources expended to generate, maintain, retain, disclose, or provide 
the information including: (1) Reviewing instructions; (2) developing, 
acquiring, installing, and utilizing technology and systems for the 
purposes of collecting, validating, verifying, processing, maintaining, 
disclosing and providing information; (3) adjusting the existing ways 
to comply with any previously applicable instructions and requirements; 
(4) training personnel to respond to a collection of information; (5) 
searching data sources; (6) completing and reviewing the collection of 
information; and (7) transmitting, or otherwise disclosing the 
information.
    The estimate of cost for respondents is based upon salaries for 
professional and clerical support, as well as direct and indirect 
overhead costs. Direct costs include all costs directly attributable to 
providing this information, such as administrative costs and the cost 
for information technology. Indirect or overhead costs are costs 
incurred by an organization in support of its mission. These costs 
apply to activities which benefit the whole organization rather than 
any one particular function or activity.
    Comments are invited on: (1) Whether the proposed 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 of the 
proposed collection of information, including the validity of the 
methodology and assumptions used; (3) ways to enhance the quality, 
utility and clarity of the information to be collected; and (4) ways to 
minimize the burden of the collection of information on those who are 
to respond, including the use of appropriate automated, electronic, 
mechanical, or other technological collection techniques or other forms 
of information technology e.g. permitting electronic submission of 
responses.

Linwood A. Watson, Jr.,
Deputy Secretary.
[FR Doc. 02-15701 Filed 6-20-02; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6717-01-P