NOTE: Number in parenthesis below Texas Railroad Commission District number(s) represents the change in the number of active rotary drilling rigs from 10/30/78 to 2/19/79.

Mr. LOEFFLER. Clearly what I am looking for is the impact of the regulatory proceedings with respect to drilling activity.

Will you please detail to the committee the steps you see the Commission taking this year to reduce the filings burdens on the natural gas producers in our country?

Mr. CURTIS. First, the Commission is engaged in a very extensive data validation effort to review each of its regulatory forms to affirm whether the information is in fact needed or whether some of the data elements or the entire form could be eliminated. We will have presented to the Commission a rulemaking which will implement the first product of this data validation effort. That will be the elimination in total of some 11 forms. We have identified 13 that can eliminated on our first round of data validation, and that will save all of regulated industry which comes within the Commission's jurisdiction, 100 man-years estimated to be required now for form preparation.

One of those forms will be the form 45, which calls for certain producer information for intrastate sales by producers who are also selling in the interstate market. But I would point out, and fairly I think, that the Natural Gas Policy Act does require us to impose additional data requirements on some producers who were not heretofore regulated by the Commission. That will be, in the case of those producers, a net gain in regulatory burden, if you will. Mr. LOEFFLER. OK, and the time frame-was that in your response?

Mr. CURTIS. The first question is the forms elimination, which would be through a proposed rulemaking. That will be on the Commission's agenda next week.

Mr. LOEFFLER. Would you also include for the record the quantity of forms, et cetera, that once were required by the Federal Power Commission to comply with the regulatory proceedings; and the amount on a pro rata basis of that gas which was produced in the United States, as compared to today? I feel like I have the answer, but I would like to see the amount of gas that is under regulation and also the amount of paperwork involved in the FPC days as compared to what we are currently looking at and what you will be administering.

Mr. CURTIS. We will give our best efforts.

[The information requested is currently unavailable, but will be supplied to the subcommittee as soon as it is available.]

Mr. SHARP. As one who participated in the natural gas negotiations that finally arose, I would like to indicate for the record, since a contrary view was raised, that Chairman Curtis, as far as I am aware, played no advocacy role whatsoever on any substantive matters in the discussions. He and the Commission were asked from time to time as to what terms meant, what practices were utilized at the Commission, and what had been the system of regulations. He was asked this since it is obviously complicated. He was asked to provide a complete analysis, as was alluded to before, as to what the understanding was of the implementations problems that might exist in the various proposals as we reached the end. I would like to ask, however, at this time, Mr. Curtis, if you could possibly tick off fairly quickly, what are the major regulatory actions that you have yet to go under the Natural Gas Act. I

realize you do not have that: "This will happen in April and May" and that sort of thing, but what you expect to have done by the end of this year and next year and that sort of thing.

Mr. CURTIS. We still have to finalize the basic producer regulations side of the Natural Gas Policy Act, which is something on which Commissioner Smith has labored a great deal. He may wish to comment on the detail of what remains to be done in the time schedule.

Mr. SHARP. Are you talking about price regulations?

Mr. CURTIS. Yes, that is on price regulations. The two major areas which remain for the Commission's implementation are title II, which deals with incremental pricing; and title IV, dealing with certain protections from curtailment for certain categories of users. And Commissioner Hall has assumed on behalf of the Commission a major supervisory responsibility for maturing and presenting this matter to the Commission.

With the Chair's indulgence I would like to ask him to respond to the question.

Mr. HALL. Mr. Chairman, if I might start with title IV, which deals with curtailment policy, the Commission has the lead responsibility with respect to section 401, subject to rules by the Secretary of Agriculture and rules by the Secretary of Energy. This is the area that deals with agricultural curtailments. We have before us now an interim rule which would cover the period of this coming summer. We have a draft rule out for the permanent rule, which would go into effect November 1. We will be having a series of regional meetings starting next week on that and would expect to have that rule in place as soon as possible in order to maximize the time people would have to get ready for it.

Mr. SHARP. I assume the general presumption is barring some kind of national disaster, it is highly unlikely that you would have to worry about curtailments until at least the next heating season? Mr. HALL. That is the basic idea of the division. I can go into detail if you want

Mr. SHARP. We do not need it at this point.

Mr. HALL. As I said, section 402 is the lead responsibility of the Secretary of Energy. This deals with curtailment of process and feedstock usage of gas in farm and industrial circumstances. There is no time deadline for that rule. However, I hope it will be out by next fall. I say that because I just think it is very important that we do make some changes in curtailment policy in this area.

With respect to title II, the incremental pricing provisions, we have a rather detailed schedule for getting that in place by the statutory deadline. We are moving concurrently on developing a rule for the passthrough mechanism and the computation of the surcharge.

We are also at the same time working on the rule for determining the ceiling, or the cap, to be placed on the amount to be flowed through to nonexempt facilities. And, if you like, I can give you the detailed timetable on that.

Mr. SHARP. Well, perhaps it would be useful to have it for the record.

[The following information was received for the record:]

Mr. LOEFFLER. Clearly what I am looking for is the impact of the regulatory proceedings with respect to drilling activity.

Will you please detail to the committee the steps you see the Commission taking this year to reduce the filings burdens on the natural gas producers in our country?

Mr. CURTIS. First, the Commission is engaged in a very extensive data validation effort to review each of its regulatory forms to affirm whether the information is in fact needed or whether some of the data elements or the entire form could be eliminated. We will have presented to the Commission a rulemaking which will implement the first product of this data validation effort. That will be the elimination in total of some 11 forms. We have identified 13 that can eliminated on our first round of data validation, and that will save all of regulated industry which comes within the Commission's jurisdiction, 100 man-years estimated to be required now for form preparation.

One of those forms will be the form 45, which calls for certain producer information for intrastate sales by producers who are also selling in the interstate market. But I would point out, and fairly I think, that the Natural Gas Policy Act does require us to impose additional data requirements on some producers who were not heretofore regulated by the Commission. That will be, in the case of those producers, a net gain in regulatory burden, if you will. Mr. LOEFFLER. OK, and the time frame-was that in your response?

Mr. CURTIS. The first question is the forms elimination, which would be through a proposed rulemaking. That will be on the Commission's agenda next week.

Mr. LOEFFLER. Would you also include for the record the quantity of forms, et cetera, that once were required by the Federal Power Commission to comply with the regulatory proceedings; and the amount on a pro rata basis of that gas which was produced in the United States, as compared to today? I feel like I have the answer, but I would like to see the amount of gas that is under regulation and also the amount of paperwork involved in the FPC days as compared to what we are currently looking at and what you will be administering.

Mr. CURTIS. We will give our best efforts.

[The information requested is currently unavailable, but will be supplied to the subcommittee as soon as it is available.]

Mr. SHARP. As one who participated in the natural gas negotiations that finally arose, I would like to indicate for the record, since a contrary view was raised, that Chairman Curtis, as far as I am aware, played no advocacy role whatsoever on any substantive matters in the discussions. He and the Commission were asked from time to time as to what terms meant, what practices were utilized at the Commission, and what had been the system of regulations. He was asked this since it is obviously complicated. He was asked to provide a complete analysis, as was alluded to before, as to what the understanding was of the implementations problems that might exist in the various proposals as we reached the end. I would like to ask, however, at this time, Mr. Curtis, if you could possibly tick off fairly quickly, what are the major regulatory actions that you have yet to go under the Natural Gas Act. I

realize you do not have that: "This will happen in April and May" and that sort of thing, but what you expect to have done by the end of this year and next year and that sort of thing.

Mr. CURTIS. We still have to finalize the basic producer regulations side of the Natural Gas Policy Act, which is something on which Commissioner Smith has labored a great deal. He may wish to comment on the detail of what remains to be done in the time schedule.

Mr. SHARP. Are you talking about price regulations?

Mr. CURTIS. Yes, that is on price regulations. The two major areas which remain for the Commission's implementation are title II, which deals with incremental pricing; and title IV, dealing with certain protections from curtailment for certain categories of users. And Commissioner Hall has assumed on behalf of the Commission a major supervisory responsibility for maturing and presenting this matter to the Commission.

With the Chair's indulgence I would like to ask him to respond to the question.

Mr. HALL. Mr. Chairman, if I might start with title IV, which deals with curtailment policy, the Commission has the lead responsibility with respect to section 401, subject to rules by the Secretary of Agriculture and rules by the Secretary of Energy. This is the area that deals with agricultural curtailments. We have before us now an interim rule which would cover the period of this coming summer. We have a draft rule out for the permanent rule, which would go into effect November 1. We will be having a series of regional meetings starting next week on that and would expect to have that rule in place as soon as possible in order to maximize the time people would have to get ready for it.

Mr. SHARP. I assume the general presumption is barring some kind of national disaster, it is highly unlikely that you would have to worry about curtailments until at least the next heating season? Mr. HALL. That is the basic idea of the division. I can go into detail if you want

Mr. SHARP. We do not need it at this point.

Mr. HALL. As I said, section 402 is the lead responsibility of the Secretary of Energy. This deals with curtailment of process and feedstock usage of gas in farm and industrial circumstances. There is no time deadline for that rule. However, I hope it will be out by next fall. I say that because I just think it is very important that we do make some changes in curtailment policy in this area.

With respect to title II, the incremental pricing provisions, we have a rather detailed schedule for getting that in place by the statutory deadline. We are moving concurrently on developing a rule for the passthrough mechanism and the computation of the surcharge.

We are also at the same time working on the rule for determining the ceiling, or the cap, to be placed on the amount to be flowed through to nonexempt facilities. And, if you like, I can give you the detailed timetable on that.

Mr. SHARP. Well, perhaps it would be useful to have it for the record.

[The following information was received for the record:]