80_FR_39140 80 FR 39010 - Five-Year Review of the Oil Pipeline Index

80 FR 39010 - Five-Year Review of the Oil Pipeline Index

DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY
Federal Energy Regulatory Commission

Federal Register Volume 80, Issue 130 (July 8, 2015)

Page Range39010-39011
FR Document2015-16628

The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (Commission) invites comments on its proposed five-year review of the index level used to determine annual changes to oil pipeline rate ceilings. The Commission proposes an index level between the Producer Price Index for Finished Goods (PPI-FG)+2.0 percent and PPI-FG+2.4 percent for the five-year period commencing July 1, 2016. The Commission invites interested persons to submit comments regarding this proposal and any alternative methodologies for calculating the index level.

Federal Register, Volume 80 Issue 130 (Wednesday, July 8, 2015)
[Federal Register Volume 80, Number 130 (Wednesday, July 8, 2015)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Pages 39010-39011]
From the Federal Register Online  [www.thefederalregister.org]
[FR Doc No: 2015-16628]


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DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY

Federal Energy Regulatory Commission

18 CFR Part 342

[Docket No. RM15-20-000]


Five-Year Review of the Oil Pipeline Index

AGENCY: Federal Energy Regulatory Commission.

ACTION: Notice of inquiry.

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SUMMARY: The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (Commission) invites 
comments on its proposed five-year review of the index level used to 
determine annual changes to oil pipeline rate ceilings. The Commission 
proposes an index level between the Producer Price Index for Finished 
Goods (PPI-FG)+2.0 percent and PPI-FG+2.4 percent for the five-year 
period commencing July 1, 2016. The Commission invites interested 
persons to submit comments regarding this proposal and any alternative 
methodologies for calculating the index level.

DATES: Initial Comments are due August 24, 2015, and Reply Comments are 
due September 21, 2015.

ADDRESSES: You may submit comments, identified by docket number by any 
of the following methods:
     Agency Web site: http://www.ferc.gov. Documents created 
electronically using word processing software should be filed in native 
applications or print-to-PDF format and not in a scanned format. All 
supporting workpapers must be submitted with formulas and in a 
spreadsheet format acceptable under the Commission's eFiling rules.
     Mail/Hand Delivery: Commenters unable to file comments 
electronically must mail or hand deliver an original to: Federal Energy 
Regulatory Commission, Office of the Secretary, 888 First Street NE., 
Washington, DC 20426.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 
    Monil Patel (Technical Information); Office of Energy Market 
Regulation; Federal Energy Regulatory Commission; 888 First Street NE.; 
Washington, DC 20426; (202) 502-8296; Andrew Knudsen (Legal 
Information); Office of the General Counsel; Federal Energy Regulatory 
Commission; 888 First Street NE.; Washington, DC 20426; (202) 502-6527.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 
    1. The Commission annually applies an index to existing oil 
pipeline transportation rate ceilings to establish new rate ceiling 
levels. The Commission reexamines this index every five years.\1\ In 
this notice of inquiry (NOI), the Commission invites comments on its 
proposal to use an index level between the Producer Price Index for 
Finished Goods \2\ (PPI-FG)+2.0 percent and PPI-FG+2.4 percent for the 
next five years beginning July 1, 2016.\3\ This proposal is based upon 
the Kahn Methodology established in Order No. 561 and applied in 
subsequent five-year review proceedings.\4\ The Commission proposes a 
range because not all pipelines have filed Form No. 6 data for 2014. 
The Commission will select a final index level at the conclusion of 
this proceeding. Commenters are invited to submit comments on, and 
justify alternatives to, the proposed index level. In addition to 
inviting comments, the Commission plans to hold a conference on July 
30, 2015, to discuss the issues raised by this notice. A subsequent 
notice will provide

[[Page 39011]]

additional details regarding the conference.
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    \1\ The five-year review process was established in Order No. 
561. See Revisions to Oil Pipeline Regulations Pursuant to the 
Energy Policy Act, Order No. 561, FERC Stats. & Regs. ] 30,985 
(1993), order on reh'g, Order No. 561-A, FERC Stats. & Regs. ] 
31,000 (1994), aff'd, Assoc. of Oil Pipelines v. FERC, 83 F.3d 1424 
(D.C. Cir. 1996).
    \2\ The PPI-FG represents the Producer Price Index for Finished 
Goods. The PPI-FG is determined and issued by the Bureau of Labor 
Statistics, U.S. Department of Labor.
    \3\ As provided by 18 CFR 342.3(d)(2) (2014), ``The index will 
be calculated by dividing the PPI-FG for the calendar year 
immediately preceding the index year by the previous calendar year's 
PPI-FG.'' Multiplying the rate ceiling on June 30 of the index year 
by the resulting number gives the rate ceiling for the year 
beginning the next day, July 1.
    \4\ Five-Year Review of Oil Pipeline Index, 133 FERC ] 61,228, 
at PP 5-9, 60-63 (2010), order on reh'g, 135 FERC ] 61,172 (2011). 
See also Five-Year Review of Oil Pipeline Index, 102 FERC ] 61,195 
(2003), aff'd, Flying J Inc., et al., v. FERC, 363 F.3d 495 (D.C. 
Cir. 2004); Five-Year Review of Oil Pipeline Index, 114 FERC ] 
61,293 (2006).
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I. Background

    2. In Order No. 561, the Commission established an indexing 
methodology that allows oil pipelines to change rates based upon an 
annual index as opposed to making cost-of-service filings.\5\ In Order 
No. 561, the Commission committed to review the index level every five 
years to ensure that the index level chosen by the Commission 
adequately reflects changes to industry costs.\6\
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    \5\ Order No. 561, FERC Stats. & Regs. ] 30,985 at 30,947.
    \6\ Id.
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    3. In Order No. 561 and each successive index review, the 
Commission calculated the index level based upon a methodology 
developed by Dr. Alfred E. Kahn.\7\ The Kahn Methodology measures 
changes in operating costs and capital costs on a per barrel-mile basis 
using FERC Form No. 6 (Form No. 6) data from the prior five-year period 
(for example, between 2009 and 2014 in this proceeding).\8\ The Kahn 
Methodology uses net carrier property per barrel-mile as a proxy for 
capital cost data. The Kahn Methodology assigns a weight to the Form 
No. 6 operating expenses relative to the net carrier property using an 
``operating ratio.'' \9\ The weighted operating expense and the 
weighted net carrier property are then added together to establish the 
cumulative cost change for each pipeline.\10\
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    \7\ The Commission's use of the Kahn Methodology has been 
affirmed by the United States Court of Appeals for the District of 
Columbia Circuit. Assoc. of Oil Pipelines v. FERC, 83 F.3d 1424 
(D.C. Cir. 1996) and Flying J Inc., et al., v. FERC, 363 F.3d 495 
(D.C. Cir. 2004).
    \8\ Specifically, this data is drawn from the Form No. 6: 
Carrier Property, page 110; Accrued Depreciation, page 111; 
Operating Revenues and Operating Expenses, page 114; Crude and 
Products Barrel-Miles, page 600. To the extent this information is 
incomplete, alternate data reported in the Form No. 6 has been 
substituted.
    \9\ The ``operating ratio'' = ((Operating Expense at Year 1/
Operating Revenue at Year 1) + (Operating Expense at Year 5/
Operating Revenue at Year 5))/2. If the operating ratio is greater 
than one, then it is assigned the value of 1 in the Kahn Methodology 
calculations.
    \10\ Cumulative Cost Change = (1-operating ratio) * net plant + 
operating ratio * operating expenses.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    4. Once these cumulative cost changes have been calculated for each 
pipeline with sufficient Form No. 6 data, the Kahn Methodology culls a 
data set consisting of pipelines with cumulative per-barrel-mile cost 
changes in the middle 50 percent of all pipelines. This trimming 
removes statistical outliers or spurious data points that could bias 
the sample in either direction. For the middle 50 percent data set, the 
Kahn Methodology considers three different measures of central 
tendency. One measure is the median of each data set. Another measure, 
the weighted mean, calculates an average barrel-mile cost change in 
which each pipeline's cost change is weighted by its barrel-miles. A 
third measure, the un-weighted average, calculates the simple average 
of the percentage cost change per barrel-mile for each pipeline. A 
composite is calculated by taking the simple average of the median, the 
weighted mean, and the un-weighted mean. This composite is compared to 
the value of the PPI-FG index data over the same period. The index 
level is then set at PPI-FG plus (or minus) this differential.

II. Commission Proposal

    5. The Commission proposes to use an index level between PPI-FG+2.0 
percent and PPI-FG+2.4 percent as the index level for the five-year 
period commencing July 1, 2016. This proposal is based upon the Kahn 
Methodology as applied to Form No. 6 data from the 2009 through 2014 
period. The Commission's calculations are included in Attachment A to 
this order.

III. Conference and Comment Procedures

    6. The Commission invites interested persons to submit comments 
regarding this proposal and any alternative methodologies for 
calculating the index level for the five-year period commencing July 1, 
2016.
    7. Initial Comments are due August 24, 2015 and Reply Comments are 
due September 21, 2015. Comments must refer to Docket No. RM15-20-000, 
and must include the name of the commenter, and if applicable, the 
organization represented and their address. On July 30, 2015, the 
Commission plans to hold a conference to discuss the issues raised by 
this notice. A subsequent notice will provide additional details 
regarding the conference.
    8. The Commission encourages comments to be filed electronically 
via the eFiling link on the Commission's Web site 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. All supporting workpapers must be 
submitted with formulas and in a spreadsheet format acceptable under 
the Commission's eFiling rules. Commenters filing electronically do not 
need to make a paper filing.
    9. 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.
    10. 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 are not required to 
serve copies of their comments on other commenters.

IV. Document Availability

    11. 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.
    12. From the Commission's Home Page on the Internet, this 
information is available in the Commission's document management 
system, 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) in the docket number field.
    13. User assistance is available for eLibrary and the Commission's 
Web site during normal business hours. For assistance, please contact 
the Commission's Online Support at 1-866-208-3676 (toll free) or 202-
502-6652 (email at [email protected]) or the Public Reference 
Room at 202-502-8371, TTY 202-502-8659 (email at 
[email protected]).

    By direction of the Commission.

    Dated: June 30, 2015.
Nathaniel J. Davis, Sr.,
Deputy Secretary.
[FR Doc. 2015-16628 Filed 7-7-15; 8:45 am]
 BILLING CODE 6717-01-P



                                                  39010                   Federal Register / Vol. 80, No. 130 / Wednesday, July 8, 2015 / Proposed Rules

                                                  consequences that could result from                      any other issues that commenters may                     • Mail/Hand Delivery: Commenters
                                                  such disclosures with respect to audit                   wish to address and the benefits and                  unable to file comments electronically
                                                  firms, individual audit partners, audit                  costs relating to investors, issuers and              must mail or hand deliver an original to:
                                                  committee members, audit committees,                     other market participants of revising                 Federal Energy Regulatory Commission,
                                                  issuers, investors, or others? For                       disclosure rules pertaining to the audit              Office of the Secretary, 888 First Street
                                                  instance, could potential changes chill                  committee and the audit committee                     NE., Washington, DC 20426.
                                                  or overly formalize audit committee                      report included in Commission filings.                FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
                                                  communications with auditors? Are                        Please be as specific as possible in your                Monil Patel (Technical Information);
                                                  there specific liability implications with               discussion and analysis of any                        Office of Energy Market Regulation;
                                                  respect to additional disclosure made by                 additional issues. Where possible,                    Federal Energy Regulatory Commission;
                                                  the audit committee? If so, please                       please provide empirical data or                      888 First Street NE.; Washington, DC
                                                  describe.                                                observations to support or illustrate                 20426; (202) 502–8296; Andrew
                                                     70. Would other categories of                         your comments.                                        Knudsen (Legal Information); Office of
                                                  disclosures about the audit committee’s                    By the Commission.                                  the General Counsel; Federal Energy
                                                  role relative to the auditor be useful? If                 Dated: July 1, 2015.                                Regulatory Commission; 888 First Street
                                                  so, what other categories?                               Brent J. Fields,                                      NE.; Washington, DC 20426; (202) 502–
                                                     71. How should the Commission                                                                               6527.
                                                                                                           Secretary.
                                                  address potential changes in the
                                                  auditor’s report with respect to audit                   [FR Doc. 2015–16639 Filed 7–7–15; 8:45 am]            SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
                                                  committee oversight of the auditor?                      BILLING CODE 8011–01–P                                   1. The Commission annually applies
                                                     72. If audit committees are required to                                                                     an index to existing oil pipeline
                                                  provide disclosure that relates to                                                                             transportation rate ceilings to establish
                                                  information provided by the auditor                      DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY                                  new rate ceiling levels. The Commission
                                                  (and it is not currently required to be                                                                        reexamines this index every five years.1
                                                  communicated by the auditor under                        Federal Energy Regulatory                             In this notice of inquiry (NOI), the
                                                  existing PCAOB auditing standards),                      Commission                                            Commission invites comments on its
                                                  would changes to PCAOB auditing                                                                                proposal to use an index level between
                                                  standards be necessary to ensure that                    18 CFR Part 342                                       the Producer Price Index for Finished
                                                  additional information beyond existing                   [Docket No. RM15–20–000]                              Goods 2 (PPI–FG)+2.0 percent and PPI–
                                                  required communications is provided to                                                                         FG+2.4 percent for the next five years
                                                  the audit committee?                                     Five-Year Review of the Oil Pipeline                  beginning July 1, 2016.3 This proposal
                                                     73. Are there improvements that the                   Index                                                 is based upon the Kahn Methodology
                                                  Commission should consider to the                                                                              established in Order No. 561 and
                                                                                                           AGENCY: Federal Energy Regulatory                     applied in subsequent five-year review
                                                  reporting on the audit committee’s
                                                                                                           Commission.                                           proceedings.4 The Commission
                                                  oversight of the accounting and
                                                                                                           ACTION: Notice of inquiry.                            proposes a range because not all
                                                  financial reporting process or internal
                                                  audits? For instance, should the audit                   SUMMARY:   The Federal Energy                         pipelines have filed Form No. 6 data for
                                                  committee disclose how it interacts with                 Regulatory Commission (Commission)                    2014. The Commission will select a
                                                  the company’s management?                                invites comments on its proposed five-                final index level at the conclusion of
                                                     74. Should the Commission consider                    year review of the index level used to                this proceeding. Commenters are invited
                                                  the potential for changes that would                     determine annual changes to oil                       to submit comments on, and justify
                                                  affect the role and responsibilities of the              pipeline rate ceilings. The Commission                alternatives to, the proposed index
                                                  audit committee, such as those related                   proposes an index level between the                   level. In addition to inviting comments,
                                                  to qualifications of members of the audit                Producer Price Index for Finished                     the Commission plans to hold a
                                                  committee or areas for which audit                       Goods (PPI–FG)+2.0 percent and PPI–                   conference on July 30, 2015, to discuss
                                                  committees should (or should not) be                     FG+2.4 percent for the five-year period               the issues raised by this notice. A
                                                  responsible? Should the audit                            commencing July 1, 2016. The                          subsequent notice will provide
                                                  committee disclose its role, if any, in                  Commission invites interested persons
                                                  risk governance? Should the audit                        to submit comments regarding this
                                                                                                                                                                    1 The five-year review process was established in

                                                  committee report on other areas of                                                                             Order No. 561. See Revisions to Oil Pipeline
                                                                                                           proposal and any alternative                          Regulations Pursuant to the Energy Policy Act,
                                                  oversight? For example, audit                            methodologies for calculating the index               Order No. 561, FERC Stats. & Regs. ¶ 30,985 (1993),
                                                  committees may be charged with                           level.                                                order on reh’g, Order No. 561–A, FERC Stats. &
                                                  overseeing treatment of complaints,                      DATES: Initial Comments are due August
                                                                                                                                                                 Regs. ¶ 31,000 (1994), aff’d, Assoc. of Oil Pipelines
                                                  cyber risks, information technology                                                                            v. FERC, 83 F.3d 1424 (D.C. Cir. 1996).
                                                                                                           24, 2015, and Reply Comments are due                     2 The PPI–FG represents the Producer Price Index
                                                  risks, or other areas. Would this                        September 21, 2015.                                   for Finished Goods. The PPI–FG is determined and
                                                  disclosure distract from the report’s                                                                          issued by the Bureau of Labor Statistics, U.S.
                                                                                                           ADDRESSES: You may submit comments,
                                                  focus on oversight of the audit function?                                                                      Department of Labor.
                                                  In this regard, we note that                             identified by docket number by any of                    3 As provided by 18 CFR 342.3(d)(2) (2014), ‘‘The

                                                  commentators have recently indicated                     the following methods:                                index will be calculated by dividing the PPI–FG for
                                                                                                             • Agency Web site: http://                          the calendar year immediately preceding the index
                                                  concern that audit committees are
                                                                                                           www.ferc.gov. Documents created                       year by the previous calendar year’s PPI–FG.’’
srobinson on DSK5SPTVN1PROD with PROPOSALS




                                                  becoming the catch all of board                                                                                Multiplying the rate ceiling on June 30 of the index
                                                                                                           electronically using word processing
                                                  committees by overseeing anything                                                                              year by the resulting number gives the rate ceiling
                                                                                                           software should be filed in native                    for the year beginning the next day, July 1.
                                                  related to risk.113
                                                                                                           applications or print-to-PDF format and                  4 Five-Year Review of Oil Pipeline Index, 133
                                                     In addition to the areas for comment
                                                                                                           not in a scanned format. All supporting               FERC ¶ 61,228, at PP 5–9, 60–63 (2010), order on
                                                  identified above, we are interested in                                                                         reh’g, 135 FERC ¶ 61,172 (2011). See also Five-Year
                                                                                                           workpapers must be submitted with
                                                                                                                                                                 Review of Oil Pipeline Index, 102 FERC ¶ 61,195
                                                     113 Michael Rapoport & Joann S. Lublin, Meet the      formulas and in a spreadsheet format                  (2003), aff’d, Flying J Inc., et al., v. FERC, 363 F.3d
                                                  Corporate Board’s ‘‘Kitchen Junk Drawer,’’ Wall St.      acceptable under the Commission’s                     495 (D.C. Cir. 2004); Five-Year Review of Oil
                                                  J. (Feb. 3, 2015).                                       eFiling rules.                                        Pipeline Index, 114 FERC ¶ 61,293 (2006).



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                                                                           Federal Register / Vol. 80, No. 130 / Wednesday, July 8, 2015 / Proposed Rules                                                39011

                                                  additional details regarding the                         Methodology considers three different                   9. Commenters that are not able to file
                                                  conference.                                              measures of central tendency. One                     comments electronically must send an
                                                                                                           measure is the median of each data set.               original of their comments to: Federal
                                                  I. Background
                                                                                                           Another measure, the weighted mean,                   Energy Regulatory Commission,
                                                     2. In Order No. 561, the Commission                   calculates an average barrel-mile cost                Secretary of the Commission, 888 First
                                                  established an indexing methodology                      change in which each pipeline’s cost                  Street NE., Washington, DC 20426.
                                                  that allows oil pipelines to change rates                change is weighted by its barrel-miles.                 10. All comments will be placed in
                                                  based upon an annual index as opposed                    A third measure, the un-weighted                      the Commission’s public files and may
                                                  to making cost-of-service filings.5 In                   average, calculates the simple average of             be viewed, printed, or downloaded
                                                  Order No. 561, the Commission                            the percentage cost change per barrel-                remotely as described in the Document
                                                  committed to review the index level                      mile for each pipeline. A composite is                Availability section below. Commenters
                                                  every five years to ensure that the index                calculated by taking the simple average               are not required to serve copies of their
                                                  level chosen by the Commission                           of the median, the weighted mean, and                 comments on other commenters.
                                                  adequately reflects changes to industry                  the un-weighted mean. This composite
                                                  costs.6                                                                                                        IV. Document Availability
                                                                                                           is compared to the value of the PPI–FG
                                                     3. In Order No. 561 and each                          index data over the same period. The                    11. In addition to publishing the full
                                                  successive index review, the                             index level is then set at PPI–FG plus (or            text of this document in the Federal
                                                  Commission calculated the index level                    minus) this differential.                             Register, the Commission provides all
                                                  based upon a methodology developed                                                                             interested persons an opportunity to
                                                  by Dr. Alfred E. Kahn.7 The Kahn                         II. Commission Proposal                               view and/or print the contents of this
                                                  Methodology measures changes in                             5. The Commission proposes to use an               document via the Internet through the
                                                  operating costs and capital costs on a                   index level between PPI–FG+2.0 percent                Commission’s Home Page (http://
                                                  per barrel-mile basis using FERC Form                                                                          www.ferc.gov) and in the Commission’s
                                                                                                           and PPI–FG+2.4 percent as the index
                                                  No. 6 (Form No. 6) data from the prior                                                                         Public Reference Room during normal
                                                                                                           level for the five-year period
                                                  five-year period (for example, between                                                                         business hours (8:30 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.
                                                                                                           commencing July 1, 2016. This proposal
                                                  2009 and 2014 in this proceeding).8 The                                                                        Eastern time) at 888 First Street NE.,
                                                                                                           is based upon the Kahn Methodology as
                                                  Kahn Methodology uses net carrier                                                                              Room 2A, Washington DC 20426.
                                                                                                           applied to Form No. 6 data from the
                                                  property per barrel-mile as a proxy for                                                                          12. From the Commission’s Home
                                                                                                           2009 through 2014 period. The
                                                  capital cost data. The Kahn                                                                                    Page on the Internet, this information is
                                                                                                           Commission’s calculations are included
                                                  Methodology assigns a weight to the                                                                            available in the Commission’s document
                                                                                                           in Attachment A to this order.
                                                  Form No. 6 operating expenses relative                                                                         management system, eLibrary. The full
                                                  to the net carrier property using an                     III. Conference and Comment                           text of this document is available on
                                                  ‘‘operating ratio.’’ 9 The weighted                      Procedures                                            eLibrary in PDF and Microsoft Word
                                                  operating expense and the weighted net
                                                                                                             6. The Commission invites interested                format for viewing, printing, and/or
                                                  carrier property are then added together
                                                                                                           persons to submit comments regarding                  downloading. To access this document
                                                  to establish the cumulative cost change
                                                                                                           this proposal and any alternative                     in eLibrary, type the docket number
                                                  for each pipeline.10
                                                                                                           methodologies for calculating the index               (excluding the last three digits) in the
                                                     4. Once these cumulative cost changes
                                                                                                           level for the five-year period                        docket number field.
                                                  have been calculated for each pipeline
                                                                                                           commencing July 1, 2016.                                13. User assistance is available for
                                                  with sufficient Form No. 6 data, the
                                                                                                             7. Initial Comments are due August                  eLibrary and the Commission’s Web site
                                                  Kahn Methodology culls a data set
                                                                                                           24, 2015 and Reply Comments are due                   during normal business hours. For
                                                  consisting of pipelines with cumulative
                                                                                                           September 21, 2015. Comments must                     assistance, please contact the
                                                  per-barrel-mile cost changes in the
                                                                                                           refer to Docket No. RM15–20–000, and                  Commission’s Online Support at 1–866–
                                                  middle 50 percent of all pipelines. This
                                                                                                           must include the name of the                          208–3676 (toll free) or 202–502–6652
                                                  trimming removes statistical outliers or
                                                                                                           commenter, and if applicable, the                     (email at FERCOnlineSupport@ferc.gov)
                                                  spurious data points that could bias the
                                                                                                           organization represented and their                    or the Public Reference Room at 202–
                                                  sample in either direction. For the
                                                                                                           address. On July 30, 2015, the                        502–8371, TTY 202–502–8659 (email at
                                                  middle 50 percent data set, the Kahn
                                                                                                           Commission plans to hold a conference                 public.referenceroom@ferc.gov).
                                                     5 Order No. 561, FERC Stats. & Regs. ¶ 30,985 at      to discuss the issues raised by this                    By direction of the Commission.
                                                  30,947.                                                  notice. A subsequent notice will provide                Dated: June 30, 2015.
                                                     6 Id.
                                                                                                           additional details regarding the                      Nathaniel J. Davis, Sr.,
                                                     7 The Commission’s use of the Kahn Methodology
                                                                                                           conference.                                           Deputy Secretary.
                                                  has been affirmed by the United States Court of
                                                  Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit. Assoc.       8. The Commission encourages                        [FR Doc. 2015–16628 Filed 7–7–15; 8:45 am]
                                                  of Oil Pipelines v. FERC, 83 F.3d 1424 (D.C. Cir.        comments to be filed electronically via
                                                                                                                                                                 BILLING CODE 6717–01–P
                                                  1996) and Flying J Inc., et al., v. FERC, 363 F.3d       the eFiling link on the Commission’s
                                                  495 (D.C. Cir. 2004).                                    Web site at http://www.ferc.gov. The
                                                     8 Specifically, this data is drawn from the Form

                                                  No. 6: Carrier Property, page 110; Accrued
                                                                                                           Commission accepts most standard
                                                                                                           word processing formats. Documents                    DEPARTMENT OF VETERANS
                                                  Depreciation, page 111; Operating Revenues and
                                                  Operating Expenses, page 114; Crude and Products         created electronically using word                     AFFAIRS
                                                  Barrel-Miles, page 600. To the extent this               processing software should be filed in
srobinson on DSK5SPTVN1PROD with PROPOSALS




                                                  information is incomplete, alternate data reported                                                             38 CFR Part 4
                                                  in the Form No. 6 has been substituted.
                                                                                                           native applications or print-to-PDF
                                                     9 The ‘‘operating ratio’’ = ((Operating Expense at    format and not in a scanned format. All               RIN 2900–AO44
                                                  Year 1/Operating Revenue at Year 1) + (Operating         supporting workpapers must be
                                                  Expense at Year 5/Operating Revenue at Year 5))/         submitted with formulas and in a                      Schedule for Rating Disabilities—The
                                                  2. If the operating ratio is greater than one, then it   spreadsheet format acceptable under the               Endocrine System
                                                  is assigned the value of 1 in the Kahn Methodology
                                                  calculations.                                            Commission’s eFiling rules.                           AGENCY:    Department of Veterans Affairs.
                                                     10 Cumulative Cost Change = (1-operating ratio) *     Commenters filing electronically do not
                                                                                                                                                                 ACTION:   Proposed rule.
                                                  net plant + operating ratio * operating expenses.        need to make a paper filing.


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Document Created: 2018-02-23 09:12:44
Document Modified: 2018-02-23 09:12:44
CategoryRegulatory Information
CollectionFederal Register
sudoc ClassAE 2.7:
GS 4.107:
AE 2.106:
PublisherOffice of the Federal Register, National Archives and Records Administration
SectionProposed Rules
ActionNotice of inquiry.
DatesInitial Comments are due August 24, 2015, and Reply Comments are due September 21, 2015.
ContactMonil Patel (Technical Information); Office of Energy Market Regulation; Federal Energy Regulatory Commission; 888 First Street NE.; Washington, DC 20426; (202) 502-8296; Andrew Knudsen (Legal Information); Office of the General Counsel; Federal Energy Regulatory Commission; 888 First Street NE.; Washington, DC 20426; (202) 502-6527.
FR Citation80 FR 39010 

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