The goal of Course 101 is to provide an overview of federal regulation of the natural gas industry by the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC). Taught by industry practitioners and regulators from FERC, the course begins with a brief overview of the natural gas industry, including the production, gathering, transportation, distribution, and storage of natural gas.

The course describes key statutes governing and affecting the interstate transportation of natural gas and discusses key legal milestones. Instructors explain important regulatory concepts, pipeline services, and the scope and limits of FERC jurisdiction.

The course covers key sections of the Natural Gas Act (NGA), including imports and exports under Section 3, construction and abandonment under section 7, ratemaking under sections 4 and 5, and enforcement issues.

Tuesday, December 9

12:30 PM – 12:40 PM Central Time: Welcome and Introduction

12:40 PM – 1:20 PM Central Time: Historical Perspective and Natural Gas Industry Overview

• What is natural gas?
• Where is it produced?
• How is it used?
• Who’s who in the industry?
• What is FERC?

1:20 PM – 2:40 PM: Natural Gas Act Sections 4 & 5: Setting Rates and Terms and Conditions of Service

• Sections 4 and 5
• Filed Rate and Mobile-Sierra Doctrines
• Rate setting objectives
• Cost-Based rates vs. Market-based rates

2:40 PM – 3:40 PM: Key Regulatory Concepts

• A comparative perspective: Natural Gas Act, Federal Power Act, and Interstate Commerce Act
• Filed rate doctrine
• Undue preference or undue discrimination
• Just and reasonable
• Incremental vs. rolled-in rates
• Present or future public convenience and necessity
• Chevron deference to agency decisions

3:40 PM – 3:55 PM: Afternoon Break

3:55 PM – 4:30 PM: Legal Overview: FERC’s Jurisdiction Through the Eyes of Congress and the Supreme Court

This session provides a decade-by-decade review of key Supreme Court decisions and Congressional amendments that explain how the Natural Gas Act has adapted to a constantly changing natural gas industry

4:30 PM – 5:20 PM: Natural Gas Act Section 3: Imports and Exports

• Role of FERC
• Role of Department of Energy
• Statutory Standard
• LNG Exports

5:20 PM – 5:30 PM: Wrap Up and Adjournment

5:30 PM – 7:00 PM: Happy Hour

Wednesday, December 10

8:05 AM – 8:05 AM Central Time: Welcome and Introduction

8:05 AM – 9:00 AM Central Time: Enforcement and Compliance Issues

• Market Manipulation
• Secondary Market (shipper must have title requirement, prohibition on flipping and buy/sells)
• Other Issues

9:00 AM – 10:10 AM: Cost-of-Service Ratemaking

• Determining regulated rates
• Revenue Requirement
• Cost Functionalization
• Cost Classification
• Cost Allocation
• Rate Design
• Key Rate Case Issues:
  • Depreciation
  • Rate of Return

10:10 AM – 10:20 AM: Morning Break

10:20 AM – 11:00 AM: Regulation of Pipeline Safety/PHMSA

• Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA)
• Current rules and recent history
• Pending or upcoming rules
• State regulation of pipeline safety

11:00 AM – 12:00 PM: Emerging Rate Case Issues

• FERC Gas Pipeline Rate Case Update
• Accumulated and Excess Deferred Income Taxes and MLPs
• Pipeline Return on Equity Policy
• Climate Change Policy
• Changing Regulatory Landscape
• Cybersecurity

12:00 PM – 12:15 PM: Lunch Break

12:15 PM – 1:45 PM: Natural Gas Act Section 7: Construction and Abandoning Pipelines

• Statutory Standards
• Certificate Policy Statement
• Pre-Application (open seasons, pre-filing requirements)
• Application Process
• Initial Rate-Setting Authority
• Post-Certificate Compliance
• Storage
• Abandonment of Facilities
• Blanket Certificates
• Certificate “hot” topics

1:45 PM – 1:50 PM: Wrap up and Adjournment

Type	Member Rate	Non-Member Rate
Virtual Participation	$290	$315
Attorney/Energy Professional	$390	$415
Young Lawyer	$315	$415
Government Attorney/EP/Academic	$365	$415
Solo Attorney/Small Firm	$390	$415
Student	$140	$415

CLE Statement:
This program is eligible for 9.5 hours of CLE credit in 60-minute states, and 11.4 hours of CLE credit for 50-minute states.  Credit hours are estimated and are subject to each state’s approval and credit rounding rules.

To Receive CLE Credit:

If you have met the participation requirements, you will receive a personalized CLE affidavit from mcle-eba@americanbar.org for the program at which you attended at least one session to completion. Please check your spam or junk folders as these emails often end up there. Please note you will fill out one affidavit for the full event. Once you complete the affidavit, you will be able to download your certificate(s) of attendance and they will be emailed to you as well from mcle-eba@americanbar.org. EBA is applying for CLE credit in VA, CA, TX, LA, and NY for this event. If you don’t see your state listed, please contact Olivia Dwelley at odwelley@eba-net.org.

Scholarships:

EBA offers eligible student, government, and academic members discounts on the rates for most EBA programs which carry CLE credits, including EBA’s Annual and Mid-Year Meetings. EBA will, on a case-by-case basis, consider requests from members to attend EBA programs at a discounted rate. Discount requests must be made to EBA’s office at least fifteen days prior to the close of regular registration for the program in question. Requests will be considered by EBA if timely and complete. Discount requests must demonstrate a substantial financial hardship. Please submit your requests to jhannan@eba-net.org.