FERC Filings
COMMENTS OF THE ELECTRIC POWER SUPPLY ASSOCIATION re: CRITICAL ENERGY INFRASTRUCTURE INFORMATION AND POLICY STATEMENT ON THE TREATMENT OF PREVIOUSLY PUBLIC DOCUMENTS
BACKGROUND
On October 11, 2001, FERC issued a Policy Statement that removed from easy public access information containing the specification of energy facilities licensed or certified by the Commission (Policy Statement). The Policy Statement, issued in response to the terrorist attacks that occurred on September 11, 2001, removed previously public documents from the Commission’s Internet site, the Records and Information Management System (RIMS, now the Federal Energy Regulatory Records Information System-FERRIS), and the Public Reference Room. Such documents included oversized maps detailing the specifications of energy facilities already licensed or certificated. The NOPR proposes to expand the definition of CEII to include proposed projects as well.
On January 16, 2002, FERC issued a Notice of Inquiry and Guidance for Filings in the Interim (Notice). In the Notice, the Commission presented a comprehensive and detailed overview of many issues raised by the heightened need to adopt measures to prevent information relating to critical energy infrastructure from getting into hostile hands, while ensuring access to those parties with a legitimate use for it. The Commission also recognized in the Notice that the process under the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) is “not well suited in the long run for handling most requests” for CEII.
On March 25, 2002, EPSA filed comments on the Notice indicating that we shared the Commission’s concern that the FOIA process did not provide a workable mechanism to govern the public availability of CEII. At that time, we urged the Commission to develop an alternative approach by which those with a legitimate need for the information could obtain access to it. EPSA’s comments further stated that the Commission should control access to information when it is first filed with the Commission, rather than wait until the project is certificated. EPSA appreciates the Commission’s attention to these issues in the NOPR and submits the following comments.