Title 36
SECTION 14.76
14.76 Terms and conditions.
§ 14.76 Terms and conditions.(a) By accepting a right-of-way for a power transmission line, the applicant thereby agrees and consents to comply with and be bound by the following terms and conditions, excepting those which the Secretary may waive in a particular case, in addition to those specified in § 14.9.
(1) To protect in a workmanlike manner, at crossings and at places in proximity to his transmission lines on the right-of-way authorized, in accordance with the rules prescribed in the National Electric Safety Code, all Government and other telephone, telegraph, and power transmission lines from contact and all highways and railroads from obstruction, and to maintain his transmission lines in such manner as not to menace life or property.
(2) Neither the privilege nor the right to occupy or use the lands for the purpose authorized shall relieve him of any legal liability for causing inductive or conductive interference between any project transmission line or other project works constructed, operated, or maintained by him on the servient lands, and any radio installation, telephone line, or other communication facilities now or hereafter constructed and operated by the United States or any agency thereof.
(3) Each application for authority to survey, locate, commence construction work and maintain a facility for the generation of electric power and energy or for the transmission or distribution of electric power and energy of 33 kilovolts or higher under this subpart shall be referred by the authorized officer to the Secretary of the Interior to determine the relationship of the proposed facility to the power marketing program of the United States. Where the proposed facility will not conflict with the program of the United States the authorized officer, upon notification to that effect, will proceed to act upon the application. In the case of necessary changes respecting the proposed location, construction, or utilization of the facility in order to eliminate conflicts with the power-marketing program of the United States, the authorized officer shall obtain from the applicant written consent to or compliance with such requirements before taking further action on the application: Provided however, That if increased costs to the applicant will result from changes to eliminate conflicts with the power-marketing program of the United States, and it is determined that a right-of-way should be granted, such changes will be required upon equitable contract arrangements covering costs and other appropriate factors.
(4) The applicant shall make provision, or bear the reasonable cost (as may be determined by the Secretary) of making provision for avoiding inductive or conductive interference between any transmission facility or other works constructed, operated, or maintained by it on the right-of-way authorized under the grant and any radio installation, telephone line, or other communication facilities existing when the right-of-way is authorized or any such installation, line or facility thereafter constructed or operated by the United States or any agency thereof. This provision shall not relieve the applicant from any responsibility or requirement which may be imposed by other lawful authority for avoiding or eliminating inductive or conductive interference.
(5) An applicant for a right-of-way for a transmission facility having a voltage of 66 kilovolts or more must, in addition to the requirements of Subpart C, execute and file with its application a stipulation agreeing to accept the right-of-way grant subject to the following conditions:
(i) In the event the United States, pursuant to law, acquires the applicant's transmission or other facilities constructed on or across such right-of-way, the price to be paid by the United States shall not include or be affected by any value of the right-of-way granted to the applicant under authority of the regulations of this part.
(ii) The Department of the Interior shall be allowed to utilize for the transmission of electric power and energy and surplus capacity of the transmission facility in excess of the capacity needed by the holder of the grant (subsequently referred to in this paragraph as “holder”) for the transmission of electric power and energy in connection with the holder's operations, or to increase the capacity of the transmission facility at the Department's expense and to utilize the increased capacity for the transmission of electric power and energy utilization by the Department of surplus or increased capacity shall be subject to the following terms and conditions:
(A) When the Department desires to utilize surplus capacity thought to exist in the transmission facility, notification will be given to the holder and the holder shall furnish to the Department within 30 days a certificate stating whether the transmission facility has any surplus capacity not needed by the holder for the transmission of electric power and energy in connection with the holder's operations and, if so, the amount of such surplus capacity.
(B) Where the certificate indicates that there is no surplus capacity or that the surplus capacity is less than that required by the Department the authorized officer may call upon the holder to furnish additional information upon which its certification is based. Upon receipt of such additional information the authorized officer shall determine, as a matter of fact, if surplus capacity is available and, if so, the amount of such surplus capacity.
(C) In order to utilize any surplus capacity determined to be available, or any increased capacity provided by the Department at its own expense, the Department may interconnect its transmission facilities with the holder's transmission facility in a manner conforming to approved standards of practice for the interconnection of transmission circuits.
(D) The expense of interconnection will be borne by the Department, and the Department will at all times provide and maintain adequate protective equipment to insure the normal and efficient operation of the holder's transmission facilities.
(E) After any interconnection is completed, the holder shall operate and maintain its transmission facilities in good condition, and, except in emergencies, shall maintain in a closed position all connections under the holder's control necessary to the transmission of the Department's power and energy over the holder's transmission facilities. The parties may by mutual consent open any switch where necessary or desirable for maintenance, repair or construction.
(F) The transmission of electric power and energy by the Department over the holder's transmission facilities will be effected in such manner, as will not interfere unreasonably with the holder's use of the transmission facilities in accordance with the holder's normal operating standards, except that the Department shall have the exclusive right to utilize any increased capacity of the transmission facility which has been provided at the Department's expense.
(G) The holder will not be obligated to allow the transmission of electric power and energy by the Department to any person receiving service from the holder on the date of the filing of the application for a grant, other than statutory preference customers including agencies of the Federal Government.
(H) The Department will pay to the holder an equitable share of the total monthly cost of that part of the holder's transmission facilities utilized by the Department for the transmission of electric power and energy the payment to be an amount in dollars representing the same proportion of the total monthly cost of such part of the transmission facilities as the maximum amount in kilowatts of the power transmitted on a scheduled basis by the Department over the holder's transmission facilities bears to the total capacity in kilowatts of that portion of the transmission facilities. The total monthly cost will be determined in accordance with the system of accounts prescribed by the Federal Power Commission, exclusive of any investment by the Department in the part of the transmission facilities utilized by the Department.
(I) If, at any time subsequent to a certification by the holder or determination by the authorized officer that surplus capacity is available for utilization by the Department, the holder needs for the transmission of electric power and energy in connection with its operations the whole or any part of the capacity of the transmission facility theretofore certified or determined as being surplus to its needs, the holder may request the authorized officer to modify or revoke the previous certification or determination by making application to the authorized officer not later than 36 months in advance of the holder's needs. Any modification or revocation of the certification or determination shall not affect the right of the Department to utilize facilities provided at its expense or available under a contract entered into by reason of the equitable contract arrangements provided for in this section.
(J) If the Department and the holder disagree as to the existence or amount of surplus capacity in carrying out the terms and conditions of this paragraph, the disagreement shall be decided by a board of three persons composed as follows: The holder and the authorized officer shall each appoint a member of the board and the two members shall appoint a third member. If the members appointed by the holder and the authorized officer are unable to agree on the designation of the third member, he shall be designated by the Chief Judge of the United States Court of Appeals of the circuit in which the major share of the facilities involved is located. The board shall determine the issue and its determination, by majority vote, shall be binding on the Department and the holder.
(K) As used in this section, the term “transmission facility” includes (1) all types of facilities for the transmission of electric power and energy and facilities for the interconnection of such facilities, and (2) the entire transmission line and associated facilities, from substation or interconnection point to substation or interconnection point, of which the segment crossing the lands of the United States forms a part.
(L) The terms and conditions prescribed in this paragraph may be modified at any time by means of a supplemental agreement negotiated between the holder and the Secretary of the Interior or his designee.
(b) Unless otherwise specified in a right-of-way granted under the Act of March 4, 1911, and unless sooner cancelled, the right-of-way shall expire 50 years from the date thereof. If, however, within the period of 1 year prior to the expiration date, the grantee shall file, in accordance with § 14.20, a written application to renew the right-of-way, and shall agree to comply with all the laws and regulations existing at such expiration date governing the occupancy and use of the lands of the United States for the purpose desired, the right-of-way may be renewed for a period of not to exceed 50 years. If such application is filed, the existing right-of-way will be extended subject to then existing and future rules and regulations, pending consideration of the application.