Rules Concerning Certification of the Electric Reliability Organization; and Procedures for the Establishment, Approval, and Enforcement of Electric Reliability Standards

Pursuant to Subtitle A (Reliability Standards) of the Electricity Modernization Act of 2005, which is Title XII of the Energy Policy Act of 2005 (EPAct) and which added a new section 215 to the Federal Power Act (FPA), the Commission is amending its regulations to incorporate: Criteria that an entity must satisfy to qualify to be the Electric Reliability Organization (ERO) which the Commission will certify as the organization that will propose and enforce Reliability Standards for the Bulk-Power System in the United States, subject to Commission approval; procedures under which the ERO may propose new or modified Reliability Standards for Commission review; a process for timely resolution of any conflict between a Reliability Standard and a Commission-approved tariff or order; a process for resolution of an inconsistency between a state action and a Reliability Standard; regulations pertaining to the funding of the ERO; procedures governing an enforcement action by the ERO, a Regional Entity or the Commission; criteria under which the ERO may enter into an agreement to delegate authority to a Regional Entity for the purpose of proposing Reliability Standards to the ERO and enforcing Reliability Standards; regulations governing the issuance of periodic reliability reports by the ERO that assess the reliability and adequacy of the Bulk-Power System in North America; and procedures for the establishment of Regional Advisory Bodies that may provide advice to the Commission, the ERO or a Regional Entity on matters of governance, applicable Reliability Standards, the reasonableness of proposed fees within a region, and any other responsibilities requested by the Commission.