[Senate Report 109-32]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
Calendar No. 45
109th Congress Report
SENATE
1st Session 109-32
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EXTENSION OF TIME FOR THE FEDERAL ENERGY REGULATORY COMMISSION
HYDROELECTRIC PROJECT
_______
March 10, 2005.--Ordered to be printed
_______
Mr. Domenici, from the Committee on Energy and Natural Resources,
submitted the following
R E P O R T
[To accompany S. 244]
The Committee on Energy and Natural Resources, to which was
referred the bill (S. 244) to extend the deadline for
commencement of construction of a hydroelectric project in the
State of Wyoming, having considered the same, reports favorably
thereon without amendment and recommends that the bill do pass.
PURPOSE OF THE MEASURE
The purpose of S. 244 is to extend the deadline for
commencement of construction of a hydroelectric project in the
State of Wyoming.
BACKGROUND AND NEED
Section 13 of the Federal Power Act requires that the
construction of a licensed project commence within two years
from the date the license is issued. The Federal Energy
Regulatory Commission (``FERC'' or ``Commission'') is
authorized under the Federal Power Act to extend this deadline
once, for a maximum of two additional years, upon a finding
that such extension is ``not incompatible with the public
interest.'' Consequently, a license is subject to termination
if a licensee fails to begin construction within four years
after the date the license is issued unless legislation
authorizing an additional extension is enacted. S. 244
authorizes FERC to extend the construction deadline for Project
No. 1651.
On December 19, 1997, the Commission issued a license to
the Swift Creek Power Company to rehabilitate, operate, and
maintain the 1.5 megawatt Swift Creek Project No. 1651, located
in Lincoln County, Wyoming. The original deadline for
commencing construction of the project was December 18, 1999.
The Commission subsequently extended that deadline to December
18, 2001.
Project No. 1651 includes rehabilitation of the upper
development of the project by modifying the upper dam to add
one-foot stoplogs, replacing a 36-inch-diameter penstock with
one 48 inches in diameter, dredging around the intake
structure, refurbishing the powerhouse, and installing two
generators. The rehabilitation of the project's lower
development includes dredging behind the lower dam, installing
a 2,000-foot-long buried penstock, building a powerhouse,
installing two generating units, and burying a short new
transmission line.
LEGISLATIVE HISTORY
S. 244 was introduced by Senator Thomas on February 1,
2005. S. 244 is identical to S. 1577 as passed by the Senate
during the 108th Congress.
During the 108th Congress, S. 1577 was introduced by
Senator Thomas on September 3, 2003, and referred to the
Committee on Energy and Natural Resources. A hearing on S. 1577
was conducted by the Water and Power Subcommittee on October
15, 2003. S. Hrg. 108-271. The Energy and Natural Resources
Committee, on February 11, 2004, by unanimous vote of a quorum
present, ordered S. 1577 favorably reported. S. Rept. 108-237.
S. 1577 was passed by the Senate by unanimous consent on May
19, 2004.
During the 107th Congress, S. 1852, identical legislation
to the measure now under consideration, was reported by the
Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee on June 28, 2002.
S. Rept. 107-195. The bill passed the Senate on August 1, 2002,
by unanimous consent, but the House failed to act in time to
enact the measure.
At a business meeting on February 9, 2005, the Committee on
Energy and Natural Resources ordered S. 244 favorably reported.
COMMITTEE RECOMMENDATION
The Senate Committee on Energy and Natural Resources, in an
open business session on February 9, 2005, by unanimous voice
vote of a quorum present, recommends that the Senate pass S.
244.
SECTION-BY-SECTION ANALYSIS
Section 1 authorizes FERC, at the request of the licensee,
to extend the deadline for commencing construction of
hydroelectric Project No. 1651. The time period may be extended
for three consecutive two-year periods. The extension is to
take effect on the date of the expiration of the extension
originally issued by the Commission under section 13 of the
Federal Power Act.
COST AND BUDGETARY CONSIDERATIONS
The following estimate of costs of this measure has been
provided by the Congressional Budget Office.
U.S. Congress,
Congressional Budget Office,
Washington, DC, February 14, 2005.
Hon. Pete V. Domenici,
Chairman, Committee on Energy and Natural Resources,
U.S. Senate, Washington, DC.
Dear Mr. Chairman: The Congressional Budget Office has
prepared the enclosed cost estimate for S. 244, a bill to
extend the deadline for commencement of construction of a
hydroelectric project in the state of Wyoming.
If you wish further details on this estimate, we will be
pleased to provide them. The CBO staff contact is Lisa Cash
Driskill.
Sincerely,
Douglas Holtz-Eakin, Director.
Enclosure.
S. 244--A bill to extend the deadline for commencement of construction
of a hydroelectric project in the state of Wyoming
CBO estimates that implementing S. 244 would have no net
effect on the federal budget. The legislation contains no
intergovernmental or private-sector mandates as defined in the
Unfunded Mandates Reform Act and would impose no costs on
state, local, or tribal governments.
S. 244 would authorize the Federal Energy Regulatory
Commission (FERC) to extend the deadline for construction of a
hydroelectric project (number 1651) in Lincoln County, Wyoming.
These provisions could have a minor impact on FERC's workload.
Because FERC recovers 100 percent of its costs through user
fees, any change in its administrative costs would be offset by
an equal change in the fees that the commission charges. Hence,
the legislation's provisions would have no net budgetary
impact.
Because FERC's administrative costs are limited in annual
appropriations, the bill would not affect direct spending or
revenues.
The CBO staff contact for this estimate is Lisa Cash
Driskill. This estimate was approved by Peter H. Fontaine,
Deputy Assistant Director for Budget Analysis.
REGULATORY IMPACT EVALUATION
In compliance with paragraph 11(b) of rule XXVI of the
Standing Rules of the Senate, the Committee makes the following
evaluation of the regulatory impact which would be incurred in
carrying out S. 244. The bill is not a regulatory measure in
the sense of imposing Government-established standards or
significant responsibilities on private individuals and
businesses.
No personal information would be collected in administering
the program. Therefore, there would be no impact on personal
privacy.
Little, if any, additional paperwork would result from the
enactment of S. 244.
EXECUTIVE COMMUNICATIONS
The testimony provided by the Commission at the
Subcommittee hearing on S. 1577, an identical bill to S. 244 in
the 108th Congress, follows:
Statement of Chairman Pat Wood III, Federal Energy Regulatory
Commission
Madam Chairman and Members of the Subcommittee: I
appreciate the opportunity to comment on S. 1577, a bill to
extend the deadline for commencement of construction of a
hydroelectric project in the State of Wyoming.
Section 13 of the Federal Power Act requires that
construction of a licensed project be commenced within two
years of issuance of the license. Section 13 authorizes the
Federal Energy Regulatory Commission to extend this deadline
once, for a maximum additional two years. If project
construction has not commenced by this deadline, the Commission
is required to terminate the license. Section 13 also
authorizes the Commission to extend the deadline for completion
of construction when not incompatible with the public interest.
the project
On December 19, 1997, the Commission issued a license to
Swift Creek Power Company to rehabilitate, operate, and
maintain the 1.5-megawatt Swift Creek Project No. 1651, in
Lincoln County, Wyoming. The project occupies 20 acres of
federal land within the Bridger-Teton National Forest. The
original deadline in the license for the commencement of
construction, December 18, 1999, was, at the licensee's
request, extended by the Commission to December 18, 2001, four
years after license issuance. The request cited the lack of a
power purchase contract. The licensee did not ask the
Commission for any further extensions of the deadline. On
November 29, 2002, Swift Creek Power Company and the Town of
Afton, Wyoming, filed a joint application to transfer the
project license from the company to the town. In response to
notice of the application, the U.S. Forest Service filed on
February 28, 2003, a motion to intervene in the transfer
proceeding, and commented that it supported the transfer if it
facilitated either placing the project back into operation or
removing the project works from and restoring National Forest
System lands. Action on the application remains pending.
Rehabilitation of the upper development of Project No. 1651
entails modifying the upper dam to add one-foot stoplogs,
replacing a 36-inch-diameter penstock with one 48 inches in
diameter, dredging around the intake structures, refurbishing
the powerhouse, and installing two generators. Rehabilitation
of the project's upper development entails dredging behind the
lower dam, installing a 2,000-foot-long buried penstock,
building a powerhouse, installing two generating units, and
burying a short new transmission line.
the legislation
S. 1577 would authorize the Commission, at the request of
the licensee for the project, and after reasonable notice, in
accordance with the good faith, due diligence, and public
interest requirements of that section and the Commission's
procedures under that section, to extend the time period during
which the licensee is required to commence the construction of
the project for three consecutive two-year periods from the
date of the expiration of the extension originally issued by
the Commission.
The Commission interprets the deadlines in Section 13 as
applying only to the initial construction of a project. Project
No. 1651 was in existence when the project was issued a new
license in 1997, although refurbishment of the damaged project
entails significant new construction. But while Section 13 is
not an impediment to the Project No. 1651 licensee, the
Commission has rarely given a licensee more than ten years to
commence new construction at an existing project.
As a general matter, enactment of bills authorizing or
requiring commencement-of-construction extensions for
individual projects delays utilization in the public interest
of an important energy resource and therefore is not
recommended. In cases where project-specific extensions are
authorized by the Congress, it has been the position of prior
Commission chairmen that such extensions should not go beyond
ten years from the date the project was licensed. I have no
reason to depart from this extension policy.
S. 1577 would permit the licensee for Project No. 1651 to
extend the deadline for commencement of construction for three
consecutive 2-year periods from the date of the expiration of
the extension originally issued by the Commission. Accordingly,
construction could commence no later than ten years from the
date the license was issued. This time frame is therefore
consistent with the Commission's policy, and I have no
objection to the bill.
CHANGES IN EXISTING LAW
In compliance with paragraph 12 of rule XXVI of the
Standing Rules of the Senate, the Committee notes that no
changes in existing law are made by the bill S. 244, as ordered
reported.