August 7, 1969
Page 22921
INTERGOVERNMENTAL POWER COORDINATION AND ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION ACT
Mr. MUSKIE. Mr. President, on July 31, 1969, I introduced S. 2752, the Intergovernmental Power Coordination and Environmental Protection Act. The text of the bill, called for in exhibit 12, was inadvertently omitted from the RECORD on that date.
I ask unanimous consent that the text be printed in the RECORD.
There being no objection, the bill was ordered to be printed in the RECORD, as follows
S. 2752
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,
SHORT TITLE
SECTION 1. This Act may be cited as the "Intergovernmental Coordination of Power Development and Environmental Protection Act".
SEC. 2. (a) The Congress hereby finds and declares that–
(1) lack of coordination and consultation and effective procedures among the Governors of the States and Federal, regional, and State agencies discourages joint planning for the supply of electric energy and impedes efforts to promote the welfare and safety of the people of the United States;
(2) in the siting and construction of bulk power facilities, proper protection and consideration must be provided for the public interest in the prevention and the control of air and water pollution;
(3) comprehensive, multipurpose use of land and other natural resources, in accordance with public planning and with due regard for scenic, historic, and recreation values, should be required in the siting and construction of bulk power facilities;
(4) availability of an abundant and reliable supply of low-cost electricity is essential to national security, economic growth, and individual well-being;
(5) a major expansion of bulk power facilities is required to meet projected demands for electricity in the United States;
(6) large savings and enhanced reliability of service are possible through regional coordination in the use of new technology in the production and transmission of electricity;
(7) all electric utilities must have direct access to the potential benefits of such coordination on just and reasonable terms to prevent undue concentration of control of the industry to the detriment of consumers; and
(8) electric utilities are public utilities, and the interstate character of the electric utility industry, the effects on interstate commere of such industry's facilities, the vital nature of the service it provides, and the impact of such industry on national environmental assets demand Federal leadership and financial assistance through inter-governmental cooperation with appropriate regional, State, and local agencies to protect the public interest in bulk power supply.
(b) It is, therefore, the purpose of this Act to
(1) insure maximum intergovernmental consultation, cooperation, and coordination among the States, regional organizations, and the Federal Government for the safety, health, and welfare of the people of the several States;
(2) preserve and enhance the environment by insuring that the siting and construction of bulk power facilities is consistent with local, State, regional, and national programs for the control of air and water pollution, multipurpose use of land, and conservation of other natural resources; and
(3) create procedures for more effective regional coordination of the siting and construction of bulk power facilities so as to take advantage of advanced technical developments in the production and transmission of electricity for the economic and esthetic benefit of all power users.
DEFINITIONS
SEC. 3. For the purposes of this Act, the term–
(1) "bulk power facility" means any site or facility for the generation of electric energy capable of supporting operation at a capacity (all units combined) of four hundred megawatts or more, and any right-of-way and other facility for the transmission of electric power which is capable of being operated at a nominal voltage higher than two hundred kilovolts between phase conductors for alternating current or between poles for direct current (hereafter referred to as "EHV transmission"); and
(2) "agency" means the agency of the Federal Government designated by the President to carry out the purposes of this Act.
REGIONAL DISTRICTS AND BOARDS
SEC. 4. (a) Within ninety days after designation of the agency by the President to carry out the purposes of this Act, the agency shall establish regional districts embracing areas which, in the judgment of the agency, are compatible with long-range planning for the siting and construction of bulk power facilities and which can be economically and reliably served by interconnected and coordinated bulk power supply facilities. In establishing such regional districts, the agency shall recognize and evaluate existing regional classifications under Section 202 of the Federal Power Act, as well as those regional classifications established for the purposes of air pollution control, water pollution control, water and related land resources planning and development, economic development, Federal power marketing programs, urban and rural planning programs, interstate compacts and agreements where appropriate and other regional programs which, in the judgment of the agency, must be recognized and evaluated for the purposes of establishing regional districts. Before establishing any such regional district and fixing or modifying the boundaries thereof the Commission shall give notice to the Governor of each State situated wholly or in part within such district, and shall afford each such Governor reasonable opportunity to present his views and recommendations, and shall receive and evaluate such views and recommendations.
(b) (1) For the purposes of this Act, there shall be established in any district designated pursuant to subsection (a) of this section a regional board composed of a representative of the Governor of each State within such district. Within ninety days after notification by the agency of designation of any regional district of the Governor of any State which is a part of such district shall designate a representative to serve at the pleasure of said Governor. The chairman of such board shall be elected by the members.
(2) No such representative shall be appointed who shall be an officer, employee, director, or stockholder of any public, private, or cooperative electric utility. During his term of office no representative shall engage in any business transaction with any electric utility which shall benefit or otherwise profit such representative other than such benefits as may be normally available to a retail consumer of electric service.
(3) For the purposes of carrying out the functions authorized by this Act, each regional board shall employ such staff as may be necessary and prepare a budget for operations which budget shall be transmitted to the agency for review and approval. Any funds required by the agency for the activities of regional boards shall be submitted to the Congress as a part of the agency appropriation request.
(c) Each regional board shall appoint an intergovernmental advisory council for its region composed of representatives of the regional organizations, States, local governmental bodies, affected international agencies, the public, and all segments of the electric industry, including representatives of public, private, and cooperative electric utilities. Regional boards shall consult with regional advisory councils in carrying out the purposes of this Act. Regional advisory councils may make such studies or conduct such investigations as requested by the regional boards. Any studies, reports, or other information provided to the regional board by such advisory councils shall be made available to the public, and any meeting of such advisory council shall be open to the public with reasonable opportunity for presentation of views by any person interested in the purposes of this Act. The regional councils shall seek to stimulate maximum participation and presentation of views by persons having an interest in or affected by planning for the construction or modification of bulk power supply facilities, and shall forward these views to the regional board. Members of such advisory councils (except Government employees) may be compensated at rates fixed by the agency, but not exceeding $100 per day, including travel time, and while so serving away from their homes or regular places of employment, all members (including Government employees) may be allowed travel expenses, including per diem in lieu of subsistence, as authorized by section 5703 of title 5 of the United States Code. Funds necessary for the operation of regional advisory councils shall be budgeted by the regional boards in accordance with section 4(b) (3) of this Act.
CRITERIA AND PROCEDURES
SEC. 5. (a) Within twelve months after the enactment of this Act, the agency shall promulgate, and distribute to the regional boards after consultation with other interested governmental agencies and utility regulatory commissions, criteria for the development of procedures for the siting and construction of bulk power facilities to assure compliance with
(1) air and water quality standards established pursuant to applicable State or Federal law;
(2) health, welfare, and safety standards and requirements established pursuant to applicable State or Federal law, including but not limited to the Atomic Energy Act;
(3) State public utility codes;
(4) standards of adequacy and reliability of power supply as developed pursuant to section 6 of this Act;
(5) applicable regional, State, metropolitan area, and, where appropriate, local economic and land use plans, including plans for optimum and multipurpose use of rights-of-way;
(6) Federal, State, and local plans and programs for the preservation and development of recreation areas, historic and other important sites, and esthetic values;
(7) applicable Federal antitrust statutes; and
(8) such other Federal, State, and local requirements as the agency determines are necessary to carry out the purposes of this Act.
In the formulation of such criteria, the agency shall take into account the separate and coordinate roles of Federal, State, and local governmental agencies in the siting of such facilities.
(b) Within twelve months after promulgation of the criteria pursuant to subsection (a) of this section, each regional board shall prescribe, after public notice and opportunity for written and oral comment and in consultation with the advisory council for such region appointed pursuant to section 4(c), (1) procedures for the application of such criteria within the region of such board; and (2) procedures for applying for and issuing licenses pursuant to section 7(b). Such procedures shall be reviewed by the agency and if found to be consistent with the criteria, shall become the approved procedures for the region.
(c) Criteria and procedures established pursuant to this section may be modified when necessary for the purposes of this Act in the same manner in which such criteria or procedures were initially established.
RELIABILITY AND ADEQUACY STANDARDS
SEC. 6. (a) Within twelve months after notice from the regional board, the electric utilities within a designated regional district established pursuant to section 4(a) shall propose reliability and adequacy standards of regional and interregional applicability, including standards setting forth the nominal voltage ratings and other measures of the capacities of the regional or interregional EHV transmission networks. Upon receipt of such proposed reliability and adequacy standards, the regional board shall forward such standards and any dissenting views to the agency, which such agency shall cause notice of such proposed standards, and any material changes which the regional board shall propose thereto, to be promptly published in the Federal Register. The agency shall allow interested persons a reasonable time to submit to the agency written comments or objections regarding the proposed standards. In its review of the proposed standards the agency shall consider relevant the comments submitted pursuant to this section. After appropriate consultation with the State commissions and electric utilities in the region, the agency shall then determine the reasonable standards which it finds are necessary and appropriate in the interests of reliability and adequacy of regional and interregional bulk power supply. The agency shall then promulgate regulations setting forth such reasonable reliability and adequacy standards under which all bulk power suppliers within the regional district shall plan, construct, and operate bulk power supply facilities.
(b) The standards prescribed by the agency pursuant to subsection (a) of this section shall be considered as minimum standards. State agencies, as authorized by law, may prescribe more stringent standards, except that the standards prescribed for capacity ratings of the regional or interregional EHV transmission networks shall be conclusive upon all such State agencies.
FAILURE TO ACT
SEC. 7. (a) In any case in which the Governor of a State fails to appoint a representative to a regional board, the President or his designee shall appoint a representative which representative shall be a resident of that State. Such representative shall serve until a qualified successor is appointed by the Governor.
(b) In any case in which a regional board fails, within the period prescribed by subsection (b) of section 5 to promulgate procedures or propose standards required by such subsection, or wherever the agency finds that such procedures are not consistent with the criteria established under section 5(a), the agency shall notify the regional board of its findings. If the regional board fails to take such action as may be required by the agency within thirty days following such notification, the agency shall promulgate standards or procedures for the region which standards or procedures shall apply for the purposes of this Act.
APPLICATION OF CRITERIA AND STANDARDS
SEC. 8. (a) As soon as practicable, but not less than one hundred and twenty days after the agency has approved standards and procedures under section 5 (b), or has promulgated regional standards and procedures under Section 7(b), such standards or procedures shall be effective in such region. On and after the date on which such standards or procedures take effect, no person shall undertake to construct or modify any bulk power facility in such region without notice from such regional board to the agency that such person has obtained a certification of compliance with such standards and procedures from such regional board.
(b) Upon notification from a regional board that the construction or modification of any bulk power facility has been certified in compliance with such standards and procedures the agency shall issue a license for such construction or modification unless the agency, upon advice from other affected Federal agencies, finds that such construction or modification has not complied with approved procedures and standards, the purposes of this Act, or other Federal statutes or regulations. In any case in which the agency shall refuse, after opportunity for hearing, to issue a license no person shall undertake to construct or modify such bulk power facility until such conditions as may be required by the agency shall have been met and a license shall have been issued.
EMINENT DOMAIN
SEC. 9. Whenever an electric utility, having obtained a license pursuant to this Act, is unable to agree with the owner of property as to compensation paid for the necessary right-of-way or other property to construct, operate, and maintain extra-high-voltage facilities or a steamplant, it may acquire the same by the exercise of the power of eminent domain in the United States district court for the district in which such property may be located. In any such eminent domain proceeding the plaintiff may file with the complaint or at any time before judgement a declaration of taking in the manner and with the consequences provided by sections 258a, 258b, and 258d of title 40, United States Code, and the plaintiff shall be subject to all of the provisions of said sections which are applicable to the United States when it files a declaration of taking thereunder.