Dear Secretary Bose:
The U.S. Chamber of Commerce (“the Chamber”) hereby responds to the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission’s (“FERC” or “Commission”) invitation to comment on two policy statements it issued on February 18, 2022, and then deemed to be drafts on March 24, 2022, [1] the Updated Policy Statement on Certification of New Interstate Natural Gas Facilities [2] and Consideration of Greenhouse Gas Emissions in Natural Gas Infrastructure Project Reviews Interim Policy Statement (collectively, the “2022 Draft Policy Statements”).[3] Without modification, the 2022 Draft Policy Statements dilute, and indeed are inconsistent with, the Commission’s statutory mandate under section 7(e) of the Natural Gas Act (“NGA”) [4] to certificate interstate natural gas pipeline facilities “required by the present or future public convenience and necessity.” [5] By expanding the scope of the statute’s “public interest” purpose to stretch the Commission’s certification considerations into areas beyond those authorized by Congress, including the apparent requirement to mitigate upstream and downstream greenhouse gas impacts not connected to the infrastructure under review, the 2022 Draft Policy Statements would depart fundamentally from the Commission’s statutory role as an economic regulator tasked with protecting consumers by “encourag[ing] orderly development of plentiful supplies of . . . natural gas at reasonable prices.” [6]
Finalization and implementation of the proposals set forth in the 2022 Draft Policy Statements would unreasonably impose upward pressure on natural gas prices by injecting considerable uncertainty into the Commission’s review process and undermining investor confidence otherwise necessary to ensure “just and reasonable rates.” Hence, the Commission should take this opportunity to course-correct. It can revise the 2022 Draft Policy Statements to align with its statutory mission while still being responsive to federal appellate decisions that concern the agency’s obligations under the NGA and the National Environmental Policy Act (“NEPA”). [7]
