[Senate Report 112-53]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
Calendar No. 133
112th Congress Report
SENATE
1st Session 112-53
======================================================================
LITTLE WOOD RIVER RANCH
_______
August 30 (legislative day, August 2), 2011.--Ordered to be printed
Filed, under authority of the order of the Senate of August 2, 2011.
_______
Mr. Bingaman, from the Committee on Energy and Natural Resources,
submitted the following
R E P O R T
[To accompany S. 333]
The Committee on Energy and Natural Resources, to which was
referred the bill (S. 333) to reinstate and extend the deadline
for commencement of construction of a hydroelectric project
involving the Little Wood River Ranch, having considered the
same, reports favorably thereon without amendment and
recommends that the bill do pass.
PURPOSE
The purpose of S. 333 is to reinstate and extend the
deadline for commencement of construction of a hydroelectric
project involving the Little Wood River Ranch in Idaho.
BACKGROUND AND NEED
On March 17, 2006, the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission
(FERC) licensed the Little Wood River Ranch II Project No.
12063 in Idaho. In 2008, the licensee requested, and FERC
granted, a two-year extension of the commencement of
construction deadline as permitted by section 13 of the Federal
Power Act (16 U.S.C. 806). The extension required that
construction commence by March 16, 2010, but as of that date,
construction had not commenced and FERC subsequently terminated
the license.
Legislation is required to reinstate the terminated license
and extend the construction commencement deadline.
LEGISLATIVE HISTORY
Senator Risch introduced S. 333 on February 14, 2011. The
bill is co-sponsored by Senator Crapo. The Subcommittee on
Water and Power of the Committee on Energy and Natural
Resources held a hearing on S. 333 on May 19, 2011, and
considered the bill at its business meeting on July 14, 2011.
The Committee ordered S. 333 favorably reported without
amendment, at its business meeting on July 14, 2011.
During the 111th Congress, the Committee considered
identical legislation, S. 3100, sponsored by Senator Risch. The
Subcommittee on Water and Power held a hearing on S. 3100 on
April 27, 2010 (S. Hrg. 111-619). The Committee ordered S. 3100
favorably reported without amendment on May 6, 2010 (S. Rpt.
111-196).
COMMITTEE RECOMMENDATION
The Senate Committee on Energy and Natural Resources, in
open business session on July 14, 2011, by voice vote of a
quorum present, recommends that the Senate pass S. 333.
SECTION-BY-SECTION ANALYSIS
Section 1 requires FERC, at the request of the licensee for
the project and after reasonable notice and in accordance with
FERC procedures, to extend the time period required to commence
the construction of project works for three years beginning on
the date of enactment, or if the license for FERC Project No.
12063 has been terminated prior to enactment, to reinstate the
license issued for the project and extend the time period
required to commence the construction of project works for
three years beginning on the date of enactment.
COST AND BUDGETARY CONSIDERATIONS
The following estimate of costs of this measure has been
provided by the Congressional Budget Office:
S. 333--A bill to reinstate and extend the deadline for commencement of
construction of a hydroelectric project involving the Little
Wood River Ranch
CBO estimates that implementing S. 333 would have no net
effect on the federal budget. The bill would authorize the
Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) to extend the
deadline for beginning construction of a hydroelectric project
(number 12063) in Lincoln County, Idaho. The proposed extension
could have a small 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 fees that the commission charges. Therefore, the
legislation's provisions would have no net budgetary impact.
Because FERC's administrative costs are controlled through
annual appropriation acts, enacting S. 333 would not affect
direct spending or revenues; therefore, pay-as-you-go
procedures do not apply.
S. 333 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.
The CBO staff contact for this estimate is Megan Carroll.
The estimate was approved by Theresa Gullo, 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. 333.
The bill is not a regulatory measure in the sense of
imposing Government-established standards or significant
economic 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. 333, as ordered reported.
CONGRESSIONALLY DIRECTED SPENDING
S. 333, as ordered reported, does not contain any
congressionally directed spending items, limited tax benefits,
or limited tariff benefits as defined in rule XLIV of the
Standing Rules of the Senate.
EXECUTIVE COMMUNICATIONS
The testimony provided by the Federal Energy Regulatory
Commission, at the May 19, 2011, Subcommittee hearing on S. 333
follows:
Federal Energy Regulatory Commission,
Washington, DC, May 18, 2011.
Re: S. 333
Hon. Jeff Bingaman,
Chairman, Committee on Energy and Natural Resources,
Dirksen Senate Office Building, Washington, DC.
Dear Chairman Bingaman: This letter is in response to your
request for my views on S. 333. That bill would require the
Federal Energy Regulatory Commission to grant a three-year
extension of the commencement of construction deadline for the
proposed 1.5-megawatt Little Wood River Ranch II Hydroelectric
Project No. 12063, to be located on the Little Wood River, near
the town of Shoshone, in Lincoln County, Idaho, and to
reinstate the project license if necessary.
The Commission issued an original license for this project,
to William Arkoosh, on March 17, 2006. The license provided
that the company was required to commence project construction
within two years of the date of the license, the maximum period
permitted by section 13 of the Federal Power Act. The
Commission subsequently granted a two-year extension of the
commencement of construction deadline, again the maximum
authorized by section 13. Construction had not commenced when
that deadline expired, on March 16, 2010. Section 13 provides
that, when construction has not timely commenced, the
Commission must terminate the license. The Commission issued an
order terminating the license on February 8, 2011.
I and the last several Commission Chairmen have taken the
position of not opposing legislation that would extend the
commencement of construction deadline no further than 10 years
from the date that the license in question was issued. Where
proposed extensions would run beyond that time, there has been
a sense that the public interest is better served by releasing
the site for other public uses. Because S. 333 requires the
Commission to grant a three-year extension from the date of the
bill's enactment, thus (assuming enactment during this session
of Congress) extending the commencement of construction
deadline to less than 10 years from when the license was
issued, I do not oppose the bill.
If I can be of further assistance to you on this or any
other Commission matter, please let me know.
Sincerely,
Jon Wellinghoff,
Chairman.
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 S. 333, as ordered
reported.