[Congressional Bills 114th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 1217 Introduced in Senate (IS)]
114th CONGRESS
1st Session
S. 1217
To establish an Interagency Rapid Response Team for Transmission, to
establish an Office of Transmission Ombudsperson, and for other
purposes.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES
May 6, 2015
Ms. Murkowski introduced the following bill; which was read twice and
referred to the Committee on Energy and Natural Resources
_______________________________________________________________________
A BILL
To establish an Interagency Rapid Response Team for Transmission, to
establish an Office of Transmission Ombudsperson, and for other
purposes.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the
United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the ``Electric Transmission Infrastructure
Permitting Improvement Act''.
SEC. 2. INTERAGENCY RAPID RESPONSE TEAM FOR TRANSMISSION.
(a) Establishment.--There is established an interagency rapid
response team, to be known as the ``Interagency Rapid Response Team for
Transmission'' (referred to in this section as the ``Team''), to
expedite and improve the permitting process for electric transmission
infrastructure on Federal land and non-Federal land.
(b) Mission.--The mission of the Team shall be--
(1) to improve the timeliness and efficiency of electric
transmission infrastructure permitting; and
(2) to facilitate the performance of maintenance and
upgrades to electric transmission lines on Federal land and
non-Federal land.
(c) Membership.--The Team shall be comprised of representatives
of--
(1) the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission;
(2) the Department of Energy;
(3) the Department of the Interior;
(4) the Department of Defense;
(5) the Department of Agriculture;
(6) the Council on Environmental Quality;
(7) the Department of Commerce;
(8) the Advisory Council on Historic Preservation; and
(9) the Environmental Protection Agency.
(d) Duties.--The Team shall--
(1) facilitate coordination and unified environmental
documentation among electric transmission infrastructure
project applicants, Federal agencies, States, and Indian tribes
involved in the siting and permitting process;
(2) establish clear timelines for the review and
coordination of electric transmission infrastructure projects
by the applicable agencies;
(3) ensure that each electric transmission infrastructure
project is posted on the Federal permitting transmission
tracking system known as ``e-Trans'', including information on
the status and anticipated completion date of each project; and
(4) regularly notify all participating members of the Team
involved in any specific permit of--
(A) any outstanding agency action that is required
with respect to the permit; and
(B) any approval or required comment that has
exceeded statutory or agency timelines for completion,
including an identification of any Federal agency,
department, or field office that has not met the
applicable timeline.
(e) Annual Reports.--Annually, the Team shall submit to the
Committee on Energy and Natural Resources of the Senate and the
Committee on Energy and Commerce of the House of Representatives a
report that describes the average completion time for specific
categories of regionally and nationally significant transmission
projects, based on information obtained from the applicable Federal
agencies.
(f) Use of Data by OMB.--Using data provided by the Team, the
Director of the Office of Management and Budget shall prioritize
inclusion of individual electric transmission infrastructure projects
in the permit performance dashboard.
SEC. 3. TRANSMISSION OMBUDSPERSON.
(a) Establishment.--To enhance and ensure the reliability of the
electric grid, there is established within the Federal Energy
Regulatory Commission the position of Transmission Ombudsperson
(referred to in this section as the ``Ombudsperson''), to provide a
unified point of contact for--
(1) resolving interagency or intra-agency issues or delays
with respect to electric transmission infrastructure permits;
and
(2) receiving and resolving complaints from parties with
outstanding or in-process applications relating to electric
transmission infrastructure.
(b) Duties.--The Ombudsperson shall--
(1) establish a process for--
(A) facilitating the permitting process for
performance of maintenance and upgrades to electric
transmission lines on Federal land and non-Federal
land, with a special emphasis on facilitating access
for immediate maintenance, repair, and vegetation
management needs;
(B) resolving complaints filed with the
Ombudsperson with respect to in-process electric
transmission infrastructure permits; and
(C) issuing recommended resolutions to address the
complaints filed with the Ombudsperson; and
(2) hear, compile, and share any complaints filed with
Ombudsperson relating to in-process electric transmission
infrastructure permits.
SEC. 4. RIGHTS-OF-WAY FOR ELECTRIC TRANSMISSION SYSTEMS.
Section 507 of the Federal Land Policy and Management Act of 1976
(43 U.S.C. 1767) is amended by adding at the end the following:
``(c) Rights-of-Way for Electric Transmission Systems.--
``(1) In general.--In a case in which a right-of-way has
been reserved for the use of any Federal agency or department
for an electric transmission system, the Secretary shall not
take any of the actions described in paragraph (2) unless the
head of the applicable Federal agency or department proposes to
change the use of the right-of-way to support a function other
than an electric transmission system.
``(2) Covered actions.--An action referred to in paragraph
(1) is an action--
``(A) requiring a new grant, permit, or renewal of
the grant or permit relating to the right-of-way;
``(B) requiring any other authorization or
instrument relating to the right-of-way; or
``(C) imposing new terms or conditions relating to
the right-of-way or the use of the right-of-way,
including any proposed changes to or additions of
equipment, structures, or other electric transmission
system facilities or appurtenances.''.
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