Critical Energy Infrastructure Information Release ICR Approved

Yesterday the OMB’s Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs (OIRA) announced that it had approved the renewal of the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission’s (FERC) information collection request (ICR) for their Critical Energy Infrastructure Information (CEII) Release program. The approval was conditional upon FERC’s continued review of internal procedures of how to best protect CEII while allowing the widest possible dissemination.

The actual condition language reads:

“The Commission will incorporate any changes, upon the resubmission of this information collection request, in response to FERC's ongoing assessment of how best to keep Critical Energy Infrastructure Information secure while allowing those in the industry who need the information to access it.”

CEII is defined at 18 CFR 388.113(c)(1) and the procedures for requesting access are outlined in the same section. There is an interesting review of the changes in the FERC handling of CEII access process on the FERC web site.