A bill to require the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission to extend the time period during which licensees are required to com...
Officially: “A bill to require the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission to extend the time period during which licensees are required to commence construction of certain hydropower projects.” Read the full text
What it does
Read it in plain language
Section 1Extension of time to commence construction of certain hydropower projects
This section would apply to a "covered project," defined as a hydropower project for which the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) issued a license before March 13, 2020. Despite the time limit set in section 13 of the Federal Power Act (16 U.S.C. 806), if the licensee of a covered project asks, FERC could, after giving reasonable notice and finding good cause, extend the deadline for starting construction on the covered project by up to 6 additional years beyond the 8 years already allowed under that section. Any such extension would have to consist of no more than three consecutive 2-year periods, would have to begin on the date the licensee's final extension granted under section 13 expires, and would have to end no later than 6 years after the latest date to which FERC is authorized to extend the construction deadline under that section. If the construction deadline under section 13 for a covered project expired after December 31, 2023, and before this Act becomes law, FERC could reinstate the expired license, effective as of the date the license expired, and the extension allowed under this section would take effect on that same expiration date.
Show official text
1. Extension of time to commence construction of certain hydropower projects (a) Definition of covered project In this section, the term covered project means a hydropower project with respect to which the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission issued a license before March 13, 2020. (b) Authorization of extension Notwithstanding section 13 of the Federal Power Act ( 16 U.S.C. 806 ), on the request of a licensee of a covered project, the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission may, after reasonable notice and for good cause shown, extend in accordance with subsection (c) the period during which the licensee is required to commence construction of the covered project for not more than an additional 6 years beyond the 8 years authorized by that section. (c) Period of extension An extension of time to commence construction of a covered project under subsection (b) shall— (1) consist of not more than 3 consecutive 2-year periods; (2) begin on the date on which the final extension of the period for commencement of construction granted to the licensee under section 13 of the Federal Power Act ( 16 U.S.C. 806 ) expires; and (3) end on the date that is not more than 6 years after the latest date to which the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission is authorized to extend the period for commencement of construction under that section. (d) Reinstatement of Expired License If the time period required under section 13 of the Federal Power Act ( 16 U.S.C. 806 ) to commence construction of a covered project expires after December 31, 2023, and before the date of enactment of this Act— (1) the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission may reinstate the license for the applicable project effective as of the date of expiration of the license; and (2) the extension authorized under subsection (b) shall take effect on the date of that expiration.
Where it is
In the Senate.