Notice2023-19347
Proposed Emergency Information Collection
Primary source
Metadata and text below are from the Federal Register, a public-domain U.S. government work. Always verify the official published version before relying on it for any legal matter.
Published
September 7, 2023
Issuing agencies
Energy Department
Abstract
The Department of Energy (DOE) Grid Deployment Office (GDO) invites public comment on a proposed emergency collection of information that DOE is developing for submission to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) pursuant to the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995.
Full Text
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<title>Federal Register, Volume 88 Issue 172 (Thursday, September 7, 2023)</title>
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[Federal Register Volume 88, Number 172 (Thursday, September 7, 2023)]
[Notices]
[Pages 61580-61581]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [<a href="http://www.gpo.gov">www.gpo.gov</a>]
[FR Doc No: 2023-19347]
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DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY
Proposed Emergency Information Collection
AGENCY: U.S. Department of Energy.
ACTION: Notice of request for comments.
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SUMMARY: The Department of Energy (DOE) Grid Deployment Office (GDO)
invites public comment on a proposed emergency collection of
information that DOE is developing for submission to the Office of
Management and Budget (OMB) pursuant to the Paperwork Reduction Act of
1995.
DATES: Comments regarding this proposed information collection must be
received on or before October 10, 2023. If you anticipate that you will
be submitting comments but find it difficult to do so within the period
allowed by this notice, please advise the OMB Desk Officer of your
intention to make a submission as soon as possible. The Desk Officer
may be telephoned at (202) 395-4718.
ADDRESSES: Written comments and recommendations for the proposed
information collection should be sent within 30 days of publication of
this notice to <a href="http://www.reginfo.gov/public/do/PRAMain">www.reginfo.gov/public/do/PRAMain</a>. Find this information
collection by selecting ``Currently under 30-day Review--Open for
Public Comments'' or by using the search function.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Aisha Miranda Rivera, <a href="/cdn-cgi/l/email-protection#0869617b60692665617a69666c69257a617e6d7a69486079266c676d266f677e"><span class="__cf_email__" data-cfemail="24454d574c450a494d56454a404509564d52415645644c550a404b410a434b52">[email protected]</span></a>, (240) 429-5213.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Comments are invited on: (a) Whether the
extended collection of information is necessary for the proper
performance of the functions of the agency, including whether the
information shall have practical utility; (b) the accuracy of the
agency's estimate of the burden of the proposed collection of
information, including the validity of the methodology and assumptions
used; (c) ways to enhance the quality, utility, and clarity of the
information to be collected; and (d) ways to minimize the burden of the
collection of information on respondents, including through the use of
automated collection techniques or other forms of information
technology.
This information collection request contains:
(1) OMB No.:1910-NEW;
(2) Information Collection Request Title: Puerto Rico Energy
Resiliency Fund (PR-ERF), Solar Ambassador Household Intake Form;
(3) Type of Request: Emergency Clearance;
(4) Purpose: To authorize the use of the `Solar Ambassador
Household Intake Form' to collect homeowner data necessary to qualify
households as eligible to receive rooftop solar and battery storage
installations as prescribed under the GDO Puerto Rico Energy Resiliency
Fund (PR-ERF). Eligibility is limited to very low-income, single-family
households (1) where an individual with an energy dependent disability
resides; or (2) located in a Last Mile Community.\1\ This will be a
one-time collection occurring over the course of 6-months.
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\1\ A census block that (a) has a high percent of very low-
income households, and (b) experiences frequent and prolonged power
outages. Solar Ambassador organizations will perform outreach
activities in Last Mile Communities to identify qualifying
households.
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Pursuant to the OMB procedures established in 5 CFR part 1320,
Controlling Paperwork Burdens on the Public, the DOE GDO, is requesting
that the proposed information of collection, Solar Ambassador Household
Intake Form, be processed as an Emergency Clearance Information
Collection Request (ICR) as referenced in 5 CFR 1320.13, Emergency
Processing. DOE has determined that the information must be collected
prior to the time periods established under Part 1320 of the
regulation, and that this information is essential to GDO's
implementation of the PR-ERF.
The PR-ERF, a $1 billion initiative authorized by Congress under
the Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2023, Public Law 117-328, will
incentivize the installation of rooftop solar and battery storage
technologies for eligible households.
According to information collected from LUMA, the grid operator of
Puerto Rico, there have been 54 load shedding events (power outages
caused by insufficient ability to generate electricity) in Puerto Rico
during the last two and a half months. These power outages occur when
customer demand for electricity exceeds the capacity of Puerto Rico's
electric generation fleet. This is expected to continue as power plant
maintenance schedules and associated high-priority repairs from
Hurricane Fiona in September 2022 have been postponed due to the need
to use all existing power capacity.
These daily outages in addition to recent record-breaking
temperatures on the island (in the midst of hurricane season) are a
combination of long-term damaging effects that affect the citizens of
Puerto Rico, representing a public harm, specifically for individuals
with an energy dependent disability or residents of areas that suffer
frequent and prolonged power outages. By initiating installations of
solar PV and battery storage systems before the 2024 hurricane season,
DOE plans to address the harm and risk represented by the fragility of
the islands' power system. Failure to collect the information
immediately would cause delays in providing assistance that is
necessary to reestablish the reliability of electric service to these
vulnerable residents. GDO developed an in-person application process
recognizing that the demographic served will lack access to broadband
and have limited mobility but that it is essential to program operation
to verify beneficiary eligibility for participation in the program.
This process is currently envisioned to be facilitated by competitively
selected Community Based Organizations (CBOs) but other entities such
as electric cooperatives and solar installers may also contribute
depending on program execution needs.
(5) Annual Estimated Number of Respondents: 40,200;
(6) Annual Estimated Number of Total Responses: 80,000;
(7) Annual Estimated Number of Burden Hours: 56,800;
(8) Annual Estimated Reporting and Recordkeeping Cost Burden:
$845,520.
Statutory Authority: The Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2023,
Public Law
[[Page 61581]]
117-328, authorized $1,000,000,000 to the Secretary of Energy to carry
out activities to improve the resilience of the Puerto Rican electric
grid by installation of renewable energy, energy storage, and other
grid technologies, with a focus on the island's most vulnerable and
disadvantaged households and communities. The need for a diligent
eligibility verification process is necessary to demonstrate to
Congress, Senior Leadership, and the public that these specific
communities have been served.
Signing Authority
This document of the Department of Energy was signed on August 18,
2023, by Maria D. Robinson, Director, Grid Deployment Office, pursuant
to delegated authority from the Secretary of Energy. That document with
the original signature and date is maintained by DOE. For
administrative purposes only, and in compliance with requirements of
the Office of the Federal Register, the undersigned DOE Federal
Register Liaison Officer has been authorized to sign and submit the
document in electronic format for publication, as an official document
of the Department of Energy. This administrative process in no way
alters the legal effect of this document upon publication in the
Federal Register.
Signed in Washington, DC, on September 1, 2023.
Treena V. Garrett,
Federal Register Liaison Officer, U.S. Department of Energy.
[FR Doc. 2023-19347 Filed 9-6-23; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6450-01-P
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