Texas Blockchain Council v. Department of Energy — Entry #24: NOTICE of Agreement by Department of Energy, Energy Information Administration, Jennifer M

Case 6:24-cv-00099-ADA Document 24-1 Filed 03/01/24 Page 1 of 4


                        IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
                         FOR THE WESTERN DISTRICT OF TEXAS
                                   WACO DIVISION

TEXAS BLOCKCHAIN COUNCIL, et.al.,                 )
                                                  )
Plaintiffs,                                       )
                                                  )
v.                                                )
                                                  )           Case No. 6:24-cv-99
DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY, et.al.,                     )
                                                  )
Defendants.                                       )
                                                  )


               SUPPLEMENTAL DECLARATION BY JOSEPH DECAROLIS
I, Joseph DeCarolis, declare as follows:

        1.     I am the Administrator of the U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) and,

based on P.L. 95-91, 42 USC 7135, am responsible for the collection, evaluation and analysis of

the data requested in the survey form EIA-862 that is subject to the above-captioned lawsuit.

        2.     On February 26, 2024, I submitted to the Office of Management and Budget

(OMB) a discontinuance request. Exhibit A. In it, I stated that EIA is discontinuing (that is,

formally withdrawing and ceasing), effective immediately, the emergency collection of Form

EIA-862 and requested that OMB approve the discontinuance of the emergency authorization of

the Form EIA-862 data collection.

        I declare under penalty of perjury that the foregoing is true and correct.

Executed on February 27, 2024.


                                               ___________________________________
                                               Joseph DeCarolis
                                               Administrator
                                               U.S. Energy Information Administration.


Case 6:24-cv-00099-ADA Document 24-1 Filed 03/01/24 Page 2 of 4


       Exhibit A


                                           CUI//PRVCY
    Case 6:24-cv-00099-ADA Document 24-1 Filed 03/01/24 Page 3 of 4


                                           February 26, 2024

Dominic J. Mancini
Deputy Administrator
Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs
Office of Management and Budget

Subject: OMB NO. 1905-0213 (Expiration Date: 07/31/2024) – Discontinuance Request

Dear Dr. Mancini:

On January 26, 2024, the U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) received
approval from the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) to engage in the emergency
collection of information using survey Form EIA-862, “Cryptocurrrency Mining
Facilities Report,” under the emergency collection procedures set forth in the Paperwork
Reduction Act (PRA), 44 U.S.C. § 3507(j), and 5 C.F.R. § 1320.13. Effective
immediately, EIA is discontinuing (that is, formally withdrawing and ceasing) that
emergency collection of Form EIA-862 and requesting that OMB approve EIA’s
discontinuance of the emergency authorization of the Form EIA-862 data collection.
On February 23, 2024, in response to litigation, EIA decided to exercise its enforcement
discretion not to enforce any requirement to respond to Form EIA-862 through March 22,
2024. That same day, a federal court entered a Temporary Restraining Order, which
restrained EIA from collecting data required by Form EIA-862 for a period of 14 days.
See Texas Blockchain Council et al. v. Dep’t of Energy et al., 6:24-cv-99 (W.D. Tex.),
ECF Nos. 10-1, 13. In light of these litigation developments, EIA will not be able to
collect any data in response to the emergency collection of information using survey
Form EIA-862 before the end of the winter. EIA accordingly has decided that it will not
proceed through the emergency collection procedures set forth in 44 U.S.C. § 3507(j) and
5 C.F.R. § 1320.13 with respect to an information collection covering data of the type
described in Form EIA-862 and instead will proceed through the PRA’s notice-and-
comment procedures, as described further below, to determine whether to request that
OMB approve any collection of information covering such data. Subsequent to OMB’s
approval of the discontinuance of EIA’s emergency authorization of the Form EIA-862
data collection, EIA will alert all respondents that they are no longer under an obligation
to submit data under the emergency collection of information using survey Form EIA-
862.


                                                                                                 Exhibit A

                  Controlled by: The U.S. Energy Information Administration [email protected]


                                           CUI//PRVCY
    Case 6:24-cv-00099-ADA Document 24-1 Filed 03/01/24 Page 4 of 4

                                                                                                2


EIA intends to continue the process it has already begun under the PRA’s notice-and-
comment procedures to determine whether to request that OMB approve any collection of
data of the type described in Form EIA-862. On February 9, 2024, EIA published a 60-
day notice in the Federal Register seeking comments no later than April 9, 2024 on the
proposed data collection of Form EIA-862. Energy Information Administration, Agency
Information Collection Proposed Extension, 89 Fed. Reg. 9,140 (Feb. 9, 2024). EIA will
review the comments received in response to the February 9, 2024 Federal Register
notice. If EIA decides to go forward with proposing an information collection covering
data of the type described in EIA-862, EIA will publish a notice in the Federal Register
setting forth the proposed information collection, pursuant to 44 U.S.C. § 3507(a)(1)(D).
That would trigger a public comment period of at least 30 days, after which the Director
of OMB could make a decision whether or not to approve the information collection. See
44 U.S.C. § 3507(b).


Sincerely,


Joseph DeCarolis
Administrator
U.S. Energy Information Administration


                 Controlled by: The U.S. Energy Information Administration [email protected]