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Federal Register / Vol. 86, No. 58 / Monday, March 29, 2021 / Rules and Regulations D. Clarification of Notification in the Case of Waiver
therefore not required to submit this rule to OMB for review.

14. Interior requests clarification on what action the Commission would take to notify or coordinate with federal agencies if the categorical one-year waiver period set by the Commission for the certifying authority lapses.28
15. By statute, waiver is automatic.29
However, a state certifying agency would be on notice that waiver occurred when the applicant files a request for authorization to proceed with construction in which the applicant must document that it has received all applicable authorizations required under federal law or evidence of waiver thereof.30 Interested agencies may receive filings in a project docket, such as copies of water quality certification applications or requests for authorization to proceed with construction, by registering and subscribing to the project docket at https ferconline.ferc.gov/
eSubscription.aspx. In any case, federal agencies should take whatever steps they deem necessary to carry out their statutory mandates, regardless of state action or inaction under the CWA.

B. Environmental Analysis 17. The Commission is required to prepare an Environmental Assessment or an Environmental Impact Statement for any action that may have a significant effect on the human environment.33 The Commission has categorically excluded certain actions from this requirement as not having a significant effect on the human environment, including the promulgation of rules that are clarifying, corrective, or procedural, or that do not substantially change the effect of legislation or the regulations being amended.34 This final rule proposes to categorically establish a reasonable period of time for a certifying agency to act on a water quality certification request for natural gas and liquified natural gas projects with an application pending with the Commission. Because this final rule is procedural in nature, preparation of an Environmental Assessment or an Environmental Impact Statement is not required.

IV. Regulatory Requirements A. Information Collection Statement 16. The Paperwork Reduction Act 31
requires each federal agency to seek and obtain the Office of Management and Budgets OMB approval before undertaking a collection of information i.e., reporting, recordkeeping, or public disclosure requirements directed to ten or more persons or contained in a rule of general applicability. OMB
regulations require approval of certain information collection requirements contained in final rules published in the Federal Register.32 This final rule does not contain any information collection requirements. The Commission is 28 Interiors November 17, 2020 Comments at 1
explaining that Interior is concerned it will not have adequate information about baseline water quality conditions and that certain statutes require its Bureau of Land Management to prevent degradation to waters it manages, regardless of whether a certifying authority has waived under section 401.
29 33 U.S.C. 1341a1. If the certifying authority fails or refuses to act on a request for certification, within a reasonable period of time which shall not exceed one year after receipt of such request, then certification is waived.
30 In addition, pursuant to the EPAs regulations, 40 CFR 121.9c, if waiver occurs, the Commissions Office of Energy Projects will issue a notice of waiver in the FERC docket for the applicable project.
31 44 U.S.C. 35013521.
32 See 5 CFR 1320.12.

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C. Regulatory Flexibility Act 18. The Regulatory Flexibility Act of 1980 RFA 35 generally requires a description and analysis of final rules that will have significant economic impact on a substantial number of small entities. The RFA mandates consideration of regulatory alternatives that accomplish the stated objectives of a final rule and minimize any significant economic impact on a substantial number of small entities.36
In lieu of preparing a regulatory flexibility analysis, an agency may certify that a final rule will not have a significant economic impact on a substantial number of small entities.37
The Small Business Administrations SBA Office of Size Standards develops the numerical definition of a small business.38 The SBA has established a size standard for pipelines transporting natural gas, stating that a firm is small if its annual receipts including its affiliates are less than $30 million.39
19. This final rule would apply to entities, a small number of which may be small businesses, with an application for a project pending with the 33 Regulations Implementing the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969, Order No. 486, FERC Stats. & Regs. 30,783 1987 crossreferenced at 41 FERC 61,284.
34 18 CFR 380.4a2ii.
35 5 U.S.C. 601612.
36 Id. 603c.
37 Id. 605b.
38 13 CFR 121.101.
39 13 CFR 121.201, subsection 486.

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Commission under section 3 or 7 of the NGA that require a water quality certification under section 401a1 of the CWA. However, the final rule would have no effect on these entities, regardless of their status as a small entity or not, as the rule imposes no action or requirement on those entities.
Accordingly, pursuant to section 605b of the RFA, the Commission certifies that this final rule will not have a significant economic impact on a substantial number of small entities.
D. Document Availability 20. In addition to publishing the full text of this document in the Federal Register, the Commission provides all interested persons an opportunity to view and/or print the contents of this document via the internet through the Commissions Home Page http
www.ferc.gov. At this time, the Commission has suspended access to the Commissions Public Reference Room due to the March 13, 2020
proclamation declaring a National Emergency concerning the Novel Coronavirus Disease COVID19.
21. From the Commissions Home Page on the internet, this information is available on eLibrary. The full text of this document is available on eLibrary in PDF and Microsoft Word format for viewing, printing, and/or downloading.
To access this document in eLibrary, type the docket number excluding the last three digits of this document in the docket number field.
22. User assistance is available for eLibrary and the Commissions website during normal business hours from the Commissions Online Support at 202
5026652 toll free at 18662083676
or email at ferconlinesupport@ferc.gov, or the Public Reference Room at 202
5028371, TTY 202 5028659. Email the Public Reference Room at public.referenceroom@ferc.gov.
E. Effective Date and Congressional Notification 23. These regulations are effective June 28, 2021. The Commission has determined, with the concurrence of the Administrator of the Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs of OMB, that this rule is not a major rule as defined in section 251 of the Small Business Regulatory Enforcement Fairness Act of 1996.40 This rule is being submitted to the Senate, House, Government Accountability Office, and Small Business Administration.
40 5

U.S.C. 8042.

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