§ 900.2 - Definitions.

§ 900.2 Applicability.

(a) The regulations under this part apply to qualifying projects. At the discretion of the Assistant Secretary (OE-1) the provisions of part 900 may also apply to Other Projects.

(b) Other Projects.

(1) Persons seeking DOE assistance in the Federal authorization process for Other Projects must file a request for coordination with the OE-1. The request must contain:

(i) The legal name of the requester; its principal place of business; whether the requester is an individual, partnership, corporation, or other entity; citations to the state laws under which the requester is organized or authorized; and the name, title, and mailing address of the person or persons to whom communications concerning the request for coordination are to be addressed;

(ii) A concise general description of the proposed other project sufficient to explain its scope and purpose;

(iii) A list of all potential Federal entities involved in the proposed Other Project; and

(iv) A list of anticipated Non-Federal entities involved in the proposed Other Project, including any agency serial or docket numbers for pending applications.

(2) Within thirty (30) calendar days of receiving this request, the OE-1, in consultation with the affected Federal entities with jurisdiction, will determine if the other project should be treated as a qualifying project under this part and will notify the project proponent of one of the following:

(i) If accepted for processing under this rule, the project will be treated as a qualifying project and the project proponent must submit an initiation request as set forth under § 900.5; or

(ii) If not accepted for processing under this rule, the project proponent must follow the standard procedures of Federal entities that will have jurisdiction over the project.

(c) This part does not apply to Federal authorizations for electric transmission facilities wholly located within the Electric Reliability Council of Texas interconnection.

(d) This part does not apply to electric transmission facilities in a DOE-designated National Interest Electric Transmission Corridor where a project proponent seeks a construction or modification permit from the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) under

Definitions.

As used in this part:

Analysis area means a geographical area established for a resource report at the IIP Process initial meeting and modified at the IIP Process review meeting, if applicable.

Authorization means any license, permit, approval, finding, determination, or other administrative decision required under Federal, Tribal, State, or local law to site a proposed electric transmission facility, including special use authorization, certifications, opinions, or other approvals.

Communities of Interest means the following communities that could be affected by a proposed electric transmission project: disadvantaged communities; rural communities; Tribal communities; indigenous communities; geographically proximate communities; communities with environmental justice concerns; and energy communities.

Director means the Director of the DOE Grid Deployment Office, that person's delegate, or another DOE official designated to perform the functions of this part by the Secretary of Energy.

Federal authorization means any authorization required under Federal law.

Federal entity means any Federal agency or department.

Indian Tribe has the same meaning as provided by 25 U.S.C. 5304(e).

Mitigation approach means an approach that applies a conceptual plan to identify appropriate measures to avoid, minimize, or compensate for potential impacts to resources from a proposed electric transmission project, consistent with 40 CFR 1508.1(s) or any successor regulation. A mitigation approach identifies the needs and baseline conditions of targeted resources, potential impacts from the proposed project, cumulative impacts of past and reasonably foreseeable future disturbances to those resources, and future disturbance trends, then uses this information to identify priorities for measures across the relevant area. Such an approach includes full consideration of the conditions of additionality (meaning that the benefits of a compensatory mitigation measure improve upon the baseline conditions in a manner that is demonstrably new and would not have occurred without the mitigation measure) and durability (meaning that the effectiveness of a mitigation measure is sustained for the duration of the associated direct and indirect impacts).

MOU signatory agency means a Federal entity that has entered into the currently effective memorandum of understanding (MOU) under section 216(h)(7)(B)(i) of the Federal Power Act, such as the interagency MOU executed in May 2023, titled “Memorandum of Understanding among the U.S. Department of Agriculture, Department of Commerce, Department of Defense, Department of Energy, the Environmental Protection Agency, the Council on Environmental Quality, the Federal Permitting Improvement Steering Council, Department of the Interior, and the Office of Management and Budget Regarding Facilitating Federal Authorizations for Electric Transmission Facilities.”

NEPA joint lead agency means the Federal entity designated under § 900.11.

Non-Federal entity means an Indian Tribe, multi-State governmental entity, State agency, or local government agency.

Participating agencies means:

(1) The Department of Agriculture (USDA);

(2) The Department of Commerce;

(3) The Department of Defense (DOD);

(4) The Department of Energy;

(5) The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA);

(6) The Council on Environmental Quality;

(7) The Office of Management and Budget;

(8) The Department of the Interior (DOI);

(9) The Federal Permitting Improvement Steering Council (FPISC);

(10) Other agencies and offices as the Secretary of Energy may from time to time invite to participate; and

(11) The following independent agencies, to the extent consistent with their statutory authority and obligations, and determined by the chair or executive director of each agency, as appropriate:

(i) The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC); and

(ii) The Advisory Council on Historic Preservation.

Potentially affected landowner means an owner of a real property interest that is potentially affected directly (e.g., crossed or used) or indirectly (e.g., changed in use) by a project right-of-way, potential route, or proposed ancillary or access site, as identified in § 900.6.

Project area means the area located between the two end points of the proposed electric transmission facility containing the study corridors selected by the project proponent for in-depth consideration for the proposed project and the immediate surroundings of the end points of the proposed facility. The project area does not necessarily coincide with “permit area,” “area of potential effect,” “action area,” or other terms specific to a certain type of regulatory review.

Project proponent means a person or entity who initiates the IIP Process in anticipation of seeking a Federal authorization for a proposed electric transmission project.

Qualifying project means:

(1) A proposed electric transmission line and its attendant facilities:

(i) That will either be a high-voltage (230 kV or above) line or a regionally or nationally significant line, as determined by DOE based upon relevant factors, including but not limited to, reduction in congestion costs for generating and delivering energy, mitigation of weather and variable generation uncertainty, and enhanced diversity of supply;

(ii) Which is expected to be used, in whole or in part, for the transmission of electric energy in interstate or international commerce for sale at wholesale;

(iii) Which is expected to require preparation of an environmental impact statement (EIS) pursuant to NEPA to inform an agency decision on a Federal authorization;

(iv) Which is not proposed for authorization under section 8(p) of the Outer Continental Shelf Lands Act (43 U.S.C. 1337(p));

(v) Which is not seeking a construction or modification permit from FERC pursuant to section 216(b) of the Federal Power Act (16 U.S.C. 824p(b))

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e) This part does not affect any requirements of Federal law. Participation or non-participation in the IIP Process does not waive any requirements to obtain necessary Federal authorizations for electric transmission facilities. This part shall not alter or diminish any responsibilities of the Federal entities to consult under applicable law.

(f) This part complements, and does not supplant, the Federal entities' pre-application procedures for a Federal authorization. Participation in the IIP Process does not guarantee issuance of any required Federal authorization for a proposed qualifying project or selection of the project proponent's proposed study corridors and proposed routes as a range of reasonable alternatives or the preferred alternative for NEPA purposes.

(g) DOE, in exercising its responsibilities under this part, will communicate regularly with the FERC, electric reliability organizations and electric transmission organizations approved by FERC, other Federal entities, and project proponents. DOE will use information technologies to provide opportunities for Federal entities to participate remotely.

(h) DOE, in exercising its responsibilities under this part, will to the maximum extent practicable and consistent with Federal law, coordinate the IIP Process with any Non-Federal entities. DOE will use information technologies to provide opportunities for Non-Federal entities to participate remotely

vi) Which will not be wholly located within the Electric Reliability Council of Texas interconnection; or

(2) Any other proposed electric transmission facility that is approved by the Director under the process set out in § 900.3.

Relevant Federal entity means a Federal entity with jurisdictional interests that may have an effect on a proposed electric transmission project, that is responsible for issuing a Federal authorization for the proposed project, that has relevant expertise with respect to environmental and other issues pertinent to or potentially affected by the proposed project, or that provides funding for the proposed project. The term includes participating agencies. The term includes a Federal entity with either permitting or non-permitting authority; for example, those entities with which consultation or review must be completed before a project may commence, such as DOD for an examination of military test, training, or operational impacts.

Relevant non-Federal entity means a non-Federal entity with relevant expertise or jurisdiction within the project area, that is responsible for issuing an authorization for the proposed electric transmission project, that has relevant expertise with respect to environmental and other issues pertinent to or potentially affected by the proposed project, or that provides funding for the proposed project. The term includes an entity with either permitting or non-permitting authority, such as an Indian Tribe, Native Hawaiian Organization, or State or Tribal Historic Preservation Office with whom consultation must be completed in accordance with section 106 of the NHPA prior to approval of a permit, right-of-way, or other authorization required for a Federal authorization.

Route means an area along a linear path within which a proposed electric transmission facility could be sited that is:

(1) Wide enough to allow minor adjustments in the alignment of the proposed facility to avoid sensitive features or to accommodate potential engineering constraints; and

(2) Narrow enough to allow detailed study.

Stakeholder means any relevant non-Federal entity, interested non-governmental organization, potentially affected landowner, or other interested person or organization.

Study corridor means a contiguous area (not to exceed one mile in width) within the project area where potential routes or route segments may be considered for further study. A study corridor does not necessarily coincide with “permit area,” “area of potential effect,” “action area,” or other defined terms of art that are specific to types of regulatory review.