[Federal Register Volume 63, Number 215 (Friday, November 6, 1998)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Pages 59916-59917]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 98-29590]
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DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY
Federal Energy Regulatory Commission
18 CFR Parts 4, 153, 157, and 375
[Docket No. RM98-16-000]
Collaborative Procedures for Energy Facilities Applications;
Notice of Technical Conferences
October 30, 1998.
AGENCY: Federal Energy Regulatory Commission.
ACTION: Notice of Technical Conferences.
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SUMMARY: The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (Commission) intends
to hold staff technical conferences to discuss the proposed pre-filing
collaborative process.
DATES: Conference will be held at 9:00 a.m. on November 10, 1998, in
Houston, Texas and at 9:00 a.m. on November 18, 1998, in Chicago,
Illinois.
ADDRESSES: Conference locations are as follows:
Houston Airport Marriott, 18700 Kennedy Boulevard, Houston, Texas
Chicago Marriott Downtown, 540 North Michigan Avenue, Chicago, Illinois
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
Thomas Russo, Office of Pipeline Regulation, Federal Energy Regulatory
Commission, 888 First Street, N.E., Washington, D.C. 20426, (202) 219-
2792
Berne Mosley, Office of Pipeline Regulation, Federal Energy Regulatory
Commission, 888 First Street, N.E., Washington, D.C. 20426, (202) 208-
2256
Gordon Wagner, Office of the General Counsel, Federal Energy Regulatory
Commission, 888 First Street, N.E., Washington, D.C. 20426, (202) 219-
0122
Merrill Hathaway, Office of the General Counsel, Federal Energy
Regulatory Commission, 888 First Street, N.E., Washington, D.C. 20426,
(202) 208-0825
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: In addition to publishing the full text of
this document in the Federal Register, the Commission also provides all
interested persons an opportunity to inspect or copy the contents of
this document during normal business hours in the Public Reference Room
at 888 First Street, N.E., Room 2A, Washhington, D.C. 20426.
The Commission Issuance Posting System (CIPS) provides access to
the texts of formal documents issued by the Commission. CIPS can be
accessed via
[[Page 59917]]
Internet through FERC's Homepage (http://www.ferc.fed.us) using the
CIPS Link or the Energy Information Online icon. The full text of this
document will be available on CIPS in ASCII and WordPerfect 6.1 format.
CIPS is also available through the Commission's electronic bulletin
board service at no charge to the user and may be accessed using a
personal computer with a modem by dialing 202-208-1397, if dialing
locally, or 1-800-856-3920, if dialing long distance. To access CIPS,
set your communications software to 19200, 14400, 12000, 9600, 7200,
4800, 2400, or 1200 bps, full duplex, no parity, 8 data bits and 1 stop
bit. User assistance is available at 202-208-2474 or by E-mail to
[email protected]
This document is also available through the Commission's Records
and Information Management System (RIMS), an electronic storage and
retrieval system of documents submitted to and issued by the Commission
after November 16, 1981. Documents from November 1995 to the present
can be viewed and printed. RIMS is available in the Public Reference
Room or remotely via Internet through FERC's Homepage using the RIMS
link or the Energy Information Online icon. User assistance is
available at 202-208-2222, or by E-mail to [email protected]
Finally, the complete text on diskette in WordPerfect format may be
purchased from the Commission's copy contractor, RVJ International,
Inc. RVJ International, Inc., is located in the Public Reference Room
at 888 First Street, N.E., Washington, D.C. 20426.
The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (Commission) is proposing
to expand its procedural regulations governing the authorization of
natural gas facilities and services, and is considering revising its
procedural regulations governing applications for licenses for
hydroelectric projects.\1\ The proposed regulations are intended to
offer prospective applicants seeking to construct, operate or abandon
natural gas facilities or services the option, in appropriate
circumstances and prior to filing an application, of using a
collaborative process to resolve significant issues. In addition, a
significant portion of the environmental review process could be
completed as part of the pre-filing collaborative process. This pre-
filing collaborative process is comparable to the process the
Commission recently adopted with respect to applications for
hydroelectric licenses, amendments and exemptions and, like those
regulations, is optional and is designed to be adaptable to the facts
and circumstances of the particular case. The proposed regulations
would not delete or replace any existing regulations. Finally, the
Commission is considering whether the existing collaborative process
for hydroelectric license and exemption applications, as well as the
proposed collaborative process for natural gas facilities and services,
should be made mandatory.
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\1\ See 84 FERC para. 61,346 (September 30, 1998).
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Staff technical conferences will be held to provide an overview of
the proposed pre-filing collaborative process and to respond to
questions. Conferences will be held at 9:00 a.m. on November 10, 1998,
at the Houston Airport Marriott, 18700 Kennedy Boulevard, Houston,
Texas, and on November 18, 1998, at the Chicago Marriott Downtown, 540
North Michigan Avenue, Chicago, Illinois. These conferences are
designed as workshops in which Commission staff will present
information and respond to questions concerning the proposed
collaborative process as an aid to assist participants in developing
comments in response to and as requested in the September 30, 1998
Notice of Proposed Rulemaking. Accordingly, there will be no transcript
and statements made in the context of the workshops will not become
part of the record in this proceeding. All parties--particularly those
with experience with collaborative processes, whether at this agency or
in another context--are invited to attend.
David P. Boergers,
Secretary.
[FR Doc. 98-29590 Filed 11-5-98; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6717-01-M
