§ 7135. Energy Information Administration

(a) Establishment; appointment of Administrator; compensation; qualifications; duties

(1) There shall be within the Department an Energy Information Administration to be headed by an Administrator who shall be appointed by the President, by and with the advice and consent of the Senate, and who shall be compensated at the rate provided for in level IV of the Executive Schedule under section 5315 of title 5. The Administrator shall be a person who, by reason of professional background and experience, is specially qualified to manage an energy information system.

(2) The Administrator shall be responsible for carrying out a central, comprehensive, and unified energy data and information program which will collect, evaluate, assemble, analyze, and disseminate data and information which is relevant to energy resource reserves, energy production, demand, and technology, and related economic and statistical information, or which is relevant to the adequacy of energy resources to meet demands in the near and longer term future for the Nation’s economic and social needs.

(b) Delegation of functions

The Secretary shall delegate to the Administrator (which delegation may be on a nonexclusive basis as the Secretary may determine may be necessary to assure the faithful execution of his authorities and responsibilities under law) the functions vested in him by law relating to gathering, analysis, and dissemination of energy information (as defined in section 796 of title 15) and the Administrator may act in the name of the Secretary for the purpose of obtaining enforcement of such delegated functions.

In addition to, and not in limitation of the functions delegated to the Administrator pursuant to other subsections of this section, there shall be vested in the Administrator, and he shall perform, the functions assigned to the Director of the Office of Energy Information and Analysis under part B of the Federal Energy Administration Act of 1974 [15 U.S.C. 790 et seq.], and the provisions of sections 53 (d) and 59 thereof [15 U.S.C. 790b (d), 790h] shall be applicable to the Administrator in the performance of any function under this chapter.

(d) Collection or analysis of information and preparation of reports without approval

The Administrator shall not be required to obtain the approval of any other officer or employee of the Department in connection with the collection or analysis of any information; nor shall the Administrator be required, prior to publication, to obtain the approval of any other officer or employee of the United States with respect to the substance of any statistical or forecasting technical reports which he has prepared in accordance with law.

(e) Annual audit

The Energy Information Administration shall be subject to an annual professional audit review of performance as described in section 55 ^[1] of part B of the Federal Energy Administration Act of 1974.

(f) Furnishing information or analysis to any other administration, commission, or office within Department

The Administrator shall, upon request, promptly provide any information or analysis in his possession pursuant to this section to any other administration, commission, or office within the Department which such administration, commission, or office determines relates to the functions of such administration, commission, or office.

(g) Availability of information to public

Information collected by the Energy Information Administration shall be cataloged and, upon request, any such information shall be promptly made available to the public in a form and manner easily adaptable for public use, except that this subsection shall not require disclosure of matters exempted from mandatory disclosure by section 552 (b) of title 5. The provisions of section 796 (d) of title 15, and section 5916 of this title, shall continue to apply to any information obtained by the Administrator under such provisions.

(h) Identification and designation of “major energy producing companies”; format for financial report; accounting practices; filing of financial report; annual report of Department; definitions; confidentiality

(1)

(A) In addition to the acquisition, collection, analysis, and dissemination of energy information pursuant to this section, the Administrator shall identify and designate “major energy-producing companies” which alone or with their affiliates are involved in one or more lines of commerce in the energy industry so that the energy information collected from such major energy-producing companies shall provide a statistically accurate profile of each line of commerce in the energy industry in the United States.

(B) In fulfilling the requirements of this subsection the Administrator shall—

(i) utilize, to the maximum extent practicable, consistent with the faithful execution of his responsibilities under this chapter, reliable statistical sampling techniques; and

(ii) otherwise give priority to the minimization of the reporting of energy information by small business.

(2) The Administrator shall develop and make effective for use during the second full calendar year following August 4, 1977, the format for an energy-producing company financial report. Such report shall be designed to allow comparison on a uniform and standardized basis among energy-producing companies and shall permit for the energy-related activities of such companies—

(A) an evaluation of company revenues, profits, cash flow, and investments in total, for the energy-related lines of commerce in which such company is engaged and for all significant energy-related functions within such company;

(B) an analysis of the competitive structure of sectors and functional groupings within the energy industry;

(C) the segregation of energy information, including financial information, describing company operations by energy source and geographic area;

(D) the determination of costs associated with exploration, development, production, processing, transportation, and marketing and other significant energy-related functions within such company; and

(E) such other analyses or evaluations as the Administrator finds is necessary to achieve the purposes of this chapter.

(3) The Administrator shall consult with the Chairman of the Securities and Exchange Commission with respect to the development of accounting practices required by the Energy Policy and Conservation Act [42 U.S.C. 6201 et seq.] to be followed by persons engaged in whole or in part in the production of crude oil and natural gas and shall endeavor to assure that the energy-producing company financial report described in paragraph (2) of this subsection, to the extent practicable and consistent with the purposes and provisions of this chapter, is consistent with such accounting practices where applicable.

(4) The Administrator shall require each major energy-producing company to file with the Administrator an energy-producing company financial report on at least an annual basis and may request energy information described in such report on a quarterly basis if he determines that such quarterly report of information will substantially assist in achieving the purposes of this chapter.

(5) A summary of information gathered pursuant to this section, accompanied by such analysis as the Administrator deems appropriate, shall be included in the annual report of the Department required by subsection (a) ^[2] of section 7267 of this title.

(6) As used in this subsection the term—

(A) “energy-producing company” means a person engaged in:

(i) ownership or control of mineral fuel resources or nonmineral energy resources;

(ii) exploration for, or development of, mineral fuel resources;

(iii) extraction of mineral fuel or nonmineral energy resources;

(iv) refining, milling, or otherwise processing mineral fuels or nonmineral energy resources;

(v) storage of mineral fuels or nonmineral energy resources;

(vi) the generation, transmission, or storage of electrical energy;

(vii) transportation of mineral fuels or nonmineral energy resources by any means whatever; or

(viii) wholesale or retail distribution of mineral fuels, nonmineral energy resources or electrical energy;

(B) “energy industry” means all energy-producing companies; and

(7) The provisions of section 1905 of title 18 shall apply in accordance with its terms to any information obtained by the Administration pursuant to this subsection.

(i) Manufacturers energy consumption survey

(1) The Administrator shall conduct and publish the results of a survey of energy consumption in the manufacturing industries in the United States at least once every two years and in a manner designed to protect the confidentiality of individual responses. In conducting the survey, the Administrator shall collect information, including—

(A) quantity of fuels consumed;

(B) energy expenditures;

(D) use of nonpurchased sources of energy, such as solar, wind, biomass, geothermal, waste by-products, and cogeneration.

(2) This subsection does not affect the authority of the Administrator to collect data under section 52 of the Federal Energy Administration Act of 1974 (15 U.S.C. 790a).

(j) Collection and publication of survey results

(1) The Administrator shall annually collect and publish the results of a survey of electricity production from domestic renewable energy resources, including production in kilowatt hours, total installed capacity, capacity factor, and any other measure of production efficiency. Such results shall distinguish between various renewable energy resources.

(2) In carrying out this subsection, the Administrator shall—

(A) utilize, to the maximum extent practicable and consistent with the faithful execution of his responsibilities under this chapter, reliable statistical sampling techniques; and

(B) otherwise take into account the reporting burdens of energy information by small businesses.

(3) As used in this subsection, the term “renewable energy resources” includes energy derived from solar thermal, geothermal, biomass, wind, and photovoltaic resources.

(k) Survey procedure

Pursuant to section 52(a) of the Federal Energy Administration Act of 1974 (15 U.S.C. 790a (a)), the Administrator shall—

(1) conduct surveys of residential and commercial energy use at least once every 3 years, and make such information available to the public;

(2) when surveying electric utilities, collect information on demand-side management programs conducted by such utilities, including information regarding the types of demand-side management programs being operated, the quantity of measures installed, expenditures on demand-side management programs, estimates of energy savings resulting from such programs, and whether the savings estimates were verified; and

(3) in carrying out this subsection, take into account reporting burdens and the protection of proprietary information as required by law.

(l) Data collection

In order to improve the ability to evaluate the effectiveness of the Nation’s energy efficiency policies and programs, the Administrator shall, in carrying out the data collection provisions of subsections (i) and (k) of this section, consider—

(1) expanding the survey instruments to include questions regarding participation in Government and utility conservation programs;

(2) expanding fuel-use surveys in order to provide greater detail on energy use by user subgroups; and

(3) expanding the scope of data collection on energy efficiency and load-management programs, including the effects of building construction practices such as those designed to obtain peak load shifting.

(m) Renewable fuels survey

(1) In order to improve the ability to evaluate the effectiveness of the Nation’s renewable fuels mandate, the Administrator shall conduct and publish the results of a survey of renewable fuels demand in the motor vehicle fuels market in the United States monthly, and in a manner designed to protect the confidentiality of individual responses. In conducting the survey, the Administrator shall collect information both on a national and regional basis, including each of the following:

(A) The quantity of renewable fuels produced.

(B) The quantity of renewable fuels blended.

(D) The quantity of renewable fuels demanded.

(E) Market price data.

(F) Such other analyses or evaluations as the Administrator finds are necessary to achieve the purposes of this section.

(2) The Administrator shall also collect or estimate information both on a national and regional basis, pursuant to subparagraphs (A) through (F) of paragraph (1), for the 5 years prior to implementation of this subsection.

(3) This subsection does not affect the authority of the Administrator to collect data under section 52 of the Federal Energy Administration Act of 1974 (15 U.S.C. 790a).

[1] See References in Text note below.

[2] So in original. Section 7267 of this title was enacted without a subsec. (a).

U.S. Code

§ 7135. Energy Information Administration