Critical Energy/Electric Infrastructure Information (CEII)

CEII Defined

CEII is defined as information related to or proposed to critical electric infrastructure,

• generated by or provided to the Commission or other Federal agency other than classified national security information,
• that is designated as critical electric infrastructure information by the Commission or the Secretary of the Department of Energy pursuant to section 215A(d) of the Federal Power Act.

CEII is specific engineering, vulnerability, or detailed design information about proposed or existing critical infrastructure (physical or virtual) that:

1. Relates details about the production, generation, transmission, or distribution of energy;
2. Could be useful to a person planning an attack on critical infrastructure;
3. Is exempt from mandatory disclosure under the Freedom of Information Act; and
4. Gives strategic information beyond the location of the critical infrastructure.

Critical energy/electric infrastructure means a system or asset of the bulk-power system, (physical or virtual) the incapacity or destruction of which would negatively affect:

• national security,
• economic security,
• public health or safety, or
• any combination of such matters.

CEII Request Forms

• Complete the following CEII Request Form and Non-Disclosure Agreement Form which applies to you: 
  • CEII NDA - General
  • CEII NDA - State
  • CEII NDA - Federal
  • CEII NDA - Media
  • CEII NDA - Consultant
• Email the CEII Request Form and all appropriate non-disclosure agreement(s) to [email protected].
  CEII requests will not be processed until all necessary documentation is received.

Guidance for CEII Request Forms

Thank you for your interest in submitting a Critical Energy/Electric Infrastructure Information (CEII) request. To complete your request you will have to follow the following three steps pursuant to 18 C.F.R. 388.113(g)(5):

1. You will be asked to select and execute the appropriate non-disclosure agreement.
2. You will be asked to provide:
   1. your name, title, address, and telephone number;
   2. the name, address, and telephone number of the person or entity on whose behalf the information is requested; and
   3. a detailed Statement of Need, which must state:
      1. the extent to which a particular function is dependent upon access to the information;
      2. why the function cannot be achieved or performed without access to the information;
      3. an explanation of whether other information is available to the requester that could facilitate the same objective;
      4. how long the information will be needed;
      5. whether or not the information is needed to participate in a specific proceeding (with that proceeding identified); and
      6. an explanation of whether the information is needed expeditiously.
3. You will be asked to sign a statement attesting to the accuracy of the information provided in the request.

Requesting Form No. 715

Each transmitting utility that operates integrated transmission system facilities that are rated at or above 100 kilovolts (kV), must annually submit this information to the Commission.

Through FERC-715, the Commission requires each Respondent to:

• Identify a contact person [FERC-715, Part 1].
• Submit in electronic format, its base case power flow data if it does not participate in the development and use of regional power flow data. A Respondent that participates in the development and use of regional power flow studies must either submit in electronic format the regional or sub regional base case power flow data or designate any regional or sub regional organization, or any other single entity to submit in electronic format the regional or sub regional base case power flow data [FERC-715, Part 2].
• Submit transmission system maps and diagrams used by the Respondent for transmission planning [FERC-715, Part 3], preferably in an electronic format; regardless if changes have taken place during the past year; file these each year.
• Submit a detailed description of the transmission planning reliability criteria used to evaluate system performance for time frames and planning horizons used in regional and corporate planning [FERC-715, Part 4].
• Submit a detailed description of the Respondent's transmission planning assessment practices (including, but not limited to, how reliability criteria are applied and the steps taken in performing transmission planning studies) [FERC-715, Part 5].
• Submit a detailed evaluation of the Respondent's anticipated system performance as measured against its stated reliability criteria using its stated assessment practices [FERC-715, Part 6]

The Commission considers the information collected in FERC-715 as Critical Energy Infrastructure Information (CEII) and will treat it as such. Please follow the instructions provided under our CEII Filing Guidelines section - to request a copy of any Form 715 filed with the Commission.

CEII Exemptions

An Owner/operator of a facility, including employees and officers of the owner/operator, may obtain CEII relating to its own facility directly from Commission staff. Non-employee agents of an owner/operator of such a facility may obtain CEII relating to the owner/operator's facility in the same manner as owner/operators as long as they present written authorization from the owner/operator to obtain such information. 388.113(g).

Helpful Resources

In order to familiarize yourself with the Commission's policy regarding Critical Energy Energy/Electric Infrastructure Information (CEII, please read the Commission's rulemakings: Order Nos. 833, 702, 630, 630-A, 643, 649 and 683 under our CEII Regulations section.

You may also find our CEII Related Document Classes Table a useful aid in your inquiry.

Fees

The cost of duplication of FOIA and CEII records  will depend on the number of documents requested, the time necessary to locate the documents requested, and the category of the persons requesting the records. The procedures for appeal of requests for fee waiver or reduction are set forth in 18 CFR §388.-109.

Once a CEII requester has been verified by Commission staff as a legitimate requester who does not pose a security risk, his or her verification will be valid for the remainder of that calendar year. Such a requester is not required to provide detailed information about him or herself with subsequent requests during the calendar year. He or she is also not required to file a non-disclosure agreement with subsequent requests during the calendar year because the original non-disclosure agreement will apply to all subsequent releases of CEII.

Annual Filing

Once a CEII requester has been verified by Commission staff as a legitimate requester who does not pose a security risk, his or her verification will be valid for the remainder of that calendar year. Such a requester is not required to provide detailed information about him or herself with subsequent requests during the calendar year. He or she is also not required to file a non-disclosure agreement with subsequent requests during the calendar year because the original non-disclosure agreement will apply to all subsequent releases of CEII.

Organizational Requests

A requester who seeks the information on behalf of all employees of an organization should clearly state that the information is sought for the organization, that the requester is authorized to seek the information on behalf of the organization, and that all the requesters agree to be bound by a non-disclosure agreement that must be executed by and will be applied to all individuals who have access to the CEII. Limited to one calendar year.