View Information Collection Request (ICR) Package

OMB Control No: 1902-0252	ICR Reference No: 201603-1902-006
Status: Historical Active	Previous ICR Reference No: 201509-1902-006
Agency/Subagency: FERC	Agency Tracking No: FERC-725G
Title: FERC-725G, (Final Rule in RM15-8-000), Reliabilty Standard: Relay Performance During Stable Power Swings
Type of Information Collection: Revision of a currently approved collection	Common Form ICR: No
Type of Review Request: Regular
OIRA Conclusion Action: Approved with change	Conclusion Date: 05/20/2016
Retrieve Notice of Action (NOA)	Date Received in OIRA: 03/25/2016
Terms of Clearance: In accordance with 5 CFR 1320, the revisions to the information collection are approved, noting that FERC will administratively remove an estimated 12,672 burden hours currently approved under FERC-725A (and before FERC 725A expires, or when it is renewed or extended) to prevent the temporary double counting of those hours associated with requirements from PRC-006-1. These hours have been added to FERC-725G to consolidate and ultimately reflect the entire burden associated with Reliability Standard PRC-006-2 (for new requirements as well as those unchanged and continuing from Version 1).

	Inventory as of this Action	Requested	Previously Approved
Expiration Date	05/31/2019	36 Months From Approved	11/30/2018
Responses	7,479	0	5,313
Time Burden (Hours)	526,877	0	505,181
Cost Burden (Dollars)	0	0	0

Abstract: On December 31, 2014, NERC submitted a petition seeking approval of the PRC-026-1 Reliability Standard, as well as the associated implementation plan, and violation risk factors and violation severity levels. NERC avers that Reliability Standard PRC-026-1 satisfies the FERC Order No. 733 directive to develop a new standard that requires the use of protective relay systems that can differentiate between faults and stable power swings. According to NERC, the Reliability Standard sets forth requirements that prevent the unnecessary tripping of bulk electric system elements in response to stable power swings. NERC further explains that the identification of bulk electric system elements with protection systems at-risk of operating as a result of a stable or unstable power swing and subsequent review by the applicable generator owner or transmission owner “provides assurance that relays will continue to be secure for stable power swings if any changes in system impedance occur.” Reliability Standard PRC-026-1 has four requirements and two attachments. NERC explains that Attachment A “provides clarity on which load-responsive protective relay functions are applicable” under the standard. Specifically, Attachment A provides that Reliability Standard PRC-026-1 applies to: -any protective functions which could trip instantaneously or with a time delay of less than 15 cycles on load current (i.e., “load-responsive”)…. According to NERC, the 15 cycle time delay “is representative of an expected power swing having a slow slip rate of 0.67 Hertz (Hz) and is the average time that a stable power swing with that slip rate would enter the relays’ characteristic, reverse direction, and then exit the characteristic before the time delay expired.” NERC states that the proposed standard does not apply to “functions that are either immune to power swings, block power swings, or prevent non-immune protection function operation due to supervision of the function.” The RM15-8-000 Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NOPR) was submitted to the FERC-725G3 information collection (OMB Control No. 1902-0285; ICR No. 201509-1902-008). FERC-725G3 was a temporary information collection number used in order to ensure timely submission to OMB. The RM15-8-000 Final Rule is now being submitted to FERC-725G (OMB Control No. 1902-0252; ICR No. 201603-1902-006) which is a permanent information collection.

ICR Summary of Burden

	Total Approved	Previously Approved	Change Due to Agency Discretion
Annual Number of Responses	7,479	5,313	2,166
Annual Time Burden (Hours)	526,877	505,181	21,696
Annual Cost Burden (Dollars)	0	0	0

Burden increases because of Program Change due to Agency Discretion: Yes

Burden Increase Due to: Miscellaneous Actions

Burden decreases because of Program Change due to Agency Discretion: No

Burden Reduction Due to:

Short Statement: The RM15-8-000 Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NOPR) was submitted to the FERC-725G3 information collection (OMB Control No. 1902-0285; ICR No. 201509-1902-008). FERC-725G3 was a temporary information collection number used in order to ensure timely submission to OMB. The RM15-8-000 Final Rule is now being submitted to FERC-725G (OMB Control No. 1902-0252; ICR No. 201603-1902-006) which is a permanent information collection. Pursuant to Section 215 of the Federal Power Act (FPA), FERC approves a revised Reliability Standard, PRC-026-1, developed and submitted by the North American Electric Reliability Corporation (NERC), the Commission-certified Electric Reliability Organization (ERO). Reliability Standard PRC-026-1 addresses the Commission’s directive from Order No. 733 by helping to prevent the unnecessary tripping of bulk electric system elements in response to stable power swings.

View ICR - OIRA Conclusion